What happens if your dog eats cicadas? What pet owners should know as Brood X emerges
Billions of cicadas are emerging — and your dog may be rushing to eat them.
While the noisy insects are high in protein, eating too many at once can pose a risk to furry friends, experts say.
Here’s what pet owners should know about the Brood X cicadas and limiting your dog’s exposure to them.
What are Brood X cicadas?
Brood X cicadas are part of a group of insects that lives below the soil for 17 years before coming up.
In the upcoming weeks, adult cicadas are expected to emerge in 15 eastern states, if they haven’t already.
The critters are known for their signature noises, which males use to attract mates. While above ground, female cicadas lay their eggs in trees so the nearly two-decade cycle can start over again, McClatchy News reported.
What should pet owners know?
All the emerging cicadas may pique your dog’s curiosity — so don’t panic if your dog eats a few, experts say.
“Allow [your dog] to chew them up and then take your pet back inside,” Karen Lechelt, an Arkansas veterinarian, told AARP. “Trying to remove the cicada from your pet’s mouth may cause your pet to swallow the insect whole, which is a choking hazard, and you could be injured as well.”
Since cicadas won’t bite or sting, the major risk for dogs is indulging for too long, according to veterinarians.
“In most cases, your dog will be fine after eating a few cicadas,” Dr. Jerry Klein, chief veterinary officer for the American Kennel Club, said on the group’s website. “However, dogs that gorge on the large, crunchy insects will find the exoskeleton difficult to digest and can suffer serious consequences.”
Eating too many cicadas can cause your dog to have an upset stomach. Pain, vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy and rare allergic reactions are possible, according to experts.
“The big issue is that our dogs don’t know when to stop, and because there may be hundreds of cicadas available to them, some dogs will just keep eating one after the other,” said Georgina Ushi Phillips, a Florida veterinarian, according to AARP.
How can you keep your dog healthy?
The best way to keep pets healthy is to limit the number of cicadas in their diets, experts say. Tips include going on short walks, watching your dog closely and keeping pets away from trees, where cicadas often gather.
“Get ahead of the game and teach the ‘leave it’ command,” the Hebron Animal Hospital in Kentucky wrote in a Facebook post. “And if you have a pup who likes to act like an anteater, you may need to be constant companions when he or she goes outside for the next couple of months.”
Even if cicadas aren’t around, pet owners should plan to be careful around exoskeletons that the insects shed onto the ground, according to experts.
If your dog has eaten cicadas and is experiencing vomiting or other symptoms “more than a couple times,” it’s best to call a veterinarian, WTOP reported.
This story was originally published May 24, 2021 at 10:04 AM with the headline "What happens if your dog eats cicadas? What pet owners should know as Brood X emerges."
