by Denise Cook

Created on: June 20, 2008

Dogs and Frogs

My dog Rebel is a frog licker. He is addicted and needs a twelve step program.

Around this time every year it becomes a battle between me, the frogs and Rebel every time I let him outside. Evenings and early mornings are the toughest because the frogs are still hopping around just waiting to be "picked off." Afternoons have become challenging because this year Rebel has figured out that the frogs bury down in the ground during the day to stay cool. If I leave the dogs out too long unsupervised, I return to find large holes throughout my rose garden with the roots of the bushes exposed. Rebel likes to have his dirty work done for him so he's enlisted Rosie and Baxter to do the digging.

Now I've had frog-licking dogs before, but usually they only try it once. When frogs are licked or sense danger they secrete a toxin from their skin that is very bitter and cause dogs to foam at the mouth. Our little Border Terrier, Rosie, experienced it once and didn't go back for seconds. However, she acts as an accomplice to Rebel because she's an excellent frog hunter. Once she locates one, she gently paws at it to make it jump. She finds this vastly entertaining until Rebel runs over and starts licking the captured frog like a Braum's double scoop ice cream cone. He immediately begins rabidly foaming at the mouth but keeps on licking! What a pleasant surprise for me when I let him back in the house with his slobbery frog foam chops! I wet a towel and wipe him down, try to clean the inside of his mouth as well and he goes off to have a rest. Job well done for him! This is especially disgusting at night when my husband lets him in our bedroom door and he jumps on the bed to wipe his face! The problem has become so predictable that I had to shave Rebel's beard close so he'd be easier to clean.

There are toads that live in Colorado and Florida that are known to be toxic enough to kill dogs that lick them, but thank goodness our north Texas toad's venom is not deadly. Dogs are curious by nature and have a tendency to hunt small game, or explore out-of-the-way places such as woodpiles, weed thickets and potted plants where frogs like to hide. I can understand this as it is their instinct, but what I can't understand is why Rebel keeps licking them when he suffers from it every time. Could he have short-term memory loss as related to amphibians? Guess I'll never know. In the meantime, I will continue to monitor his outdoor time closely, keep a damp towel ready and long for an early autumn.

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