How ReadyRESCUE Can Save Your Pet from Accidental Overdoses

In the fall of 2023, Katie Scott came home after work to find that her black Labrador Chowder had slipped out of her crate and into a bottle of liquid children’s ibuprofen. “She’s a year-old Lab, so naturally she’s a little mischievous,” Scott told The Daily Beast.

Scott, who is a veterinary technician, says that human medication such as Advil and Tylenol can be harmful to internal organs in dogs, causing gastrointestinal, kidney and liver problems. She knew she was working against the clock to get Chowder the care she needed.

Before she called her local veterinary hospital, however, Scott arrived Ready RESCUEa home pet detoxifier that works to absorb toxins before the pet’s body, buying the pet’s parents time to get to a vet to be seen.

“As a veterinary technician, I have experience with traditional charcoal administration and it’s very messy,” Scott said, adding that most pet parents don’t have the activated charcoal product — a common antidote used in veterinary hospitals to free animals from toxins – that veterinarians. administer

Scott said for her, ReadyRESCUE’s most valuable asset is being able to give at home, because every minute counts after animals have ingested toxins, and give pet parents a minute to breathe before calling the poison control or veterinary clinic.

ReadyRESCUE, manufactured by the Dr. Cuddles brand, is made of activated carbon balls that can be mixed with another ingredient, such as peanut butter, to give to animals that have ingested toxins at home. This can include human medication, chocolate, and recreational drugs like THC. The charcoal absorbs the toxin, drawing harmful ingredients to the spheres instead of your pet’s blood, and is then safely eliminated in a cat or dog’s feces without causing damage to internal organs or the tract. gastrointestinal.

A box costs $134 and contains three vials – and the dose is based on the size of the animal. Scott says he dosed Chowder “very easily” with peanut butter and his dog “happily ate the whole thing.”

“I’m still in contact with an emergency doctor from the hospital to check the dose of ibuprofen he ingested to make sure Chowder doesn’t need the hospital,” Scott said.

While the administration of charcoal to animals that have ingested a toxin is not new (activated carbon is a common protocol used in animal hospitals) ReadyRESCUE’s carbon spheres provide pet owners with a first-of-its-kind tool that can be used at home. It’s a concept that excites the founder, Mat Glassman, a board-certified veterinary surgeon in Washington, DC who spent three years developing the product.

“I know it will save lives and make the vet’s job easier,” Glassman told The Daily Beast. “It is intended to be administered when we have the window to be most effective – at home as soon as a toxin ingestion is suspected.”

I think intended for accidental ingestion of toxins, Glassman note that there are some toxins ReadyRESCUE will not be effective against, including xylitol, which is a sweetener found in products such as gum; and ethylene glycol, or antifreeze. For pet owners like Scott, however, the product is a “convenient” tool to have on hand.

“The great thing about ReadyRESCUE is that it’s safe to give even if you’re not sure what or how much your pet has taken,” she said. “If they haven’t ingested a toxin, the charcoal beads will just flow through the intestines without causing any damage.”

Benjamin Brainard, professor of small animal emergency and critical care at the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine, told The Daily Beast that he has not used ReadyRESCUE in his practice, but is familiar with the product and offers a recent scenario where it might have been. useful One of his patients was on an island in South Carolina and his dog took human medication.

“The nearest vet was a couple of hours away, so he called me to ask for help,” said the specialist in Athens, Georgia. “If I had been able to administer activated charcoal at home, it probably would have been a beneficial way to prevent absorption of this toxin while on the way to the vet.”

In this case, Brainard said the alternative option was to induce vomiting with hydrogen peroxide. “This means first you have to have hydrogen peroxide in the house – and hydrogen peroxide turns into water after about six months, so it has to be a new bottle,” he explained, adding that the administration of hydrogen peroxide comes with its own risks, such as. as mouth irritation, and is best done under the supervision of a veterinarian.

“Vomiting doesn’t always carry the toxin at all,” he added.

Brainard emphasized that giving a product like ReadyRESCUE at home can help, not hurt, animals. “I think the best way to think about ReadyRESCUE is as a bridge,” Brainard told The Daily Beast. “The animal still needs to see a vet.”

Barking Up the Wrong Tree

While some emergency vets support the product and see the value, others are not convinced.

Lauren Darwin, an emergency veterinarian in Tucson, Arizona, called ReadyRESCUE “a dangerous product” for consumers and told The Daily Beast that after a pet has ingested a toxin, the first step should be to contact the Pet ASPCA Poison Control Center, a 24/7/365. The helpline is available by calling (888) 426-4435, followed by taking you to the nearest emergency room for treatment.

“As an emergency vet, I see toxin ingestion quite often, and especially the common ones that ReadyRESCUE claims to be effective against, such as chocolate, grape, and prescription drug overdoses,” said Darwin.

The Arizona-based veterinarian emphasized that charcoal alone is not enough to decontaminate toxins from animal bodies. “I am concerned that this product falsely gives the impression that you can give this at home and may dissuade people from seeking veterinary care because they believe this product will be enough,” he said.

Darwin added that while charcoal can be recommended for some types of toxin ingestion, there are life-threatening problems that can arise from giving charcoal at home.

“Animals often vomit if they have ingested a toxin,” Darwin said. “Giving coal at home presents a huge risk for them to vomit at home and then aspirate and get sick with aspiration pneumonia, which is life-threatening.”

Glassman admitted that vomiting is a valid concern when animals ingest toxins, but one that is faced regardless of whether the charcoal is given at home or in a hospital. He cited medical studies, including one the use of hydrogen peroxide to induce vomitingwhich highlights the importance of time in the treatment of patients who have ingested toxins.

“The fact that ReadyRESCUE could be given at home long before puking or gastric lavage in a hospital suggests that prevention of absorption would be much better,” he said.

While Glassman accepts the concern regarding vomiting, he is firm that the product is not intended to be a substitute for professional veterinary care, but a solution for critical emergencies in time, such as toxin ingestion.

“I think of ReadyRESCUE as CPR,” he explained. “If you’re giving someone CPR, you’re not saying ‘Give them CPR, and don’t call 911 or go to the hospital.'” You’re saying ‘Give them CPR while you call or until you get to the hospital.’