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Treatment

Toad venom toxicity is an emergency with highly likely fatal outcomes. Time remains a crucial factor in the survival of the affected animal. If you suspect that your cat has encountered a toxic toad, immediately take your cat to a nearby veterinary hospital for emergency treatment.

The first step of treatment is to flush the mouth with water for 5-10 minutes to prevent further absorption of the venom through the mouth membranes. The doctor will also need to keep the cat's body temperature stable, which may require keeping it in a cool bath. Heart abnormalities are a common symptom, so your veterinarian will want to monitor the heart's ability to function and respond to the treatment. An ECG will be set up and continuously monitored to evaluate your cat's cardiac activity. Drugs can be used to control the abnormal heart rhythm, and also to reduce the amount of saliva your cat is producing in response to the toxin. If your cat is in an obvious amount of pain, your doctor may also decide to anesthetize it in order to reduce the severity of the symptoms.

Living and Management

Continuous monitoring will be required until the cat is fully recovered. Your veterinarian will continuously record the heart's rhythms using ECG to evaluate your cat's response to the treatment patient. Patients that have been treated before enough of the toxin has had a chance to reach the system, within about 30 minutes, have a good chance of recovery. However, the overall prognosis is not good for most animals, and death is common in cats that have been exposed to toad venom.