Ninety percent of the 116,432 dog poisonings reported to Poison Control Centers in the U.S. in 1993-94 occurred at home. Ninety-three percent of these resulted form the dog eating or drinking something he or she shouldn't have. These statistics are part of a report on animal poisonings reported to Poison Control Centers. The data was compiled and analyzed by Carl Hornfeldt of the Hennepin Regional Poison Center and Michael J. Murphy,. DVM, Ph.D, of the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine. The report was recently published in Veterinary and Human Toxicology.

Most poisonings (91 percent) are unintentional and only a small percentage are from adverse reactions to food, drugs, or other products that are intentionally administered. Less than half of one percent of all dogs poisoned in that time period were known to have died as a result of the poisonings. Thirty-two percent of all dogs poisoned by nondrug products were poisoned by insecticides, but only 86 of the 28,878 dogs poisoned by insecticides died as a result of the poisonings. Nearly 11 percent of the poisonings were from plants, resulting in 40 deaths. Rodenticide poisoning accounted for nearly 10 percent of all canine nondrug poisonings.

Analgesics (e.g., acetaminophen, nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, or prescription painkillers) were responsible for 14 percent of the drug poisonings in dogs. This is the reason why dog owners should not medicate their dogs without consulting a veterinarian. Twelve percent of dogs poisoned by drug products were poisoned by topical preparations (anything you put on skin), and 11 percent were poisoned by antimicrobial drugs (antibiotics or antivirals, for example).

The moral: Keep dangerous chemicals, drugs, insecticides, rodenticides, and cleaning fluids in a place where your dog can't get at them.

The writers are Dr. Steven B. Holzman, Dr. William R. Haagenson and Dr. Kathleen Tapley. They are associated with the Nassau-Suffolk Veterinary Hospital of Farmingdale.