Dog and Porcupine = Big trouble!

gardenandcats

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My 2 year old Golden Retriever Buddy met up with a porcupine early tonight. He always goes with us in the truck he loves to ride..We went to a friends house and he always loves to visit as they have a dog he plays with. Usually he jumps out of the truck and is at their door quicker then a flash.
Tonight though he ran down the end of their driveway and was barking like crazy. Hubby went and got him and he had a face full of porcupine quills.
He panicked he was hollering quick get in the truck I jumped back in and poor Buddy looked horrid all in his nose all around hes muzzle ,quills I felt horrible.. luckily the vets was 5 minutes away and the one night they are open untill 8:00
$238.00 later he was quill free. They took out 47 quills he even had a few in his gums ..Plus in his front paws.. Hes doing ok just dopey from the Anesthesia

My friends are borrowing a live trap tommorow and hope to catch Mr. Porcupine and relocate him..
 

strange_wings

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Your dog shouldn't have been loose in the back of the truck. I've seen too many dogs jump out while the trucks are still moving. IMO, I don't think dogs should even be in the back of a truck. They should be secured inside the vehicle - if I'm not mistaken it may even a law in some places. After that, a leash does wonders for preventing trouble.

As for the porcupine. It might be kinder to euthanize it then remove it from it's home range. Some wildlife does not do well when moved from it's home range - whether it be because of being unfamiliar with the area or because it tries to get back to it's own territory. At the very least contact a wildlife rehabber if you do catch the poor thing.
 

babywukong

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Oh dear.. that sounds horrible! I hope your poor dog recovers soon, and that he learns his lesson about porcupines too.

About the porcupine, if this is the first time it was seen there, can you really be sure that the place is his home range? Perhaps he just wandered farther than usual on that day. Euthanasia sounds like an over the top measure - to kill it just because it was where it shouldn't be. Agree with contacting a wildlife rehabber if you're going to relocate it.
 

2dogmom

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OUCH! That's happened to both of my dogs. We have a Porky who lives in a tree on our property. Fortunately he stays up there most of the time. Porky quills are no fun at all, sorry Buddy had to make Mr Porky's acquaintance!
 
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gardenandcats

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You misunderstood me. My dog was not riding in the back of the truck! Eeek no way. We have a kingcab and he was in the back seat where he always rides.Mr porcupine lives there .Our local game warden is the one doing the trapping and relocating him onto a game reserve.
My friends feel its best as they also have a dog and do not want theirs to have a run in with him.
And he is not allowed to roam unleashed. This property is on a private dirt road and he always is allowed to get our unleashed theire as there is no traffic and they are 1/2 a mile in from a road.
 

katiemae1277

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ouch ouch ouch!!!! poor Buddy
I hope he never tries to make friends with a porcupine again
 

strange_wings

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Originally Posted by BabyWukong

About the porcupine, if this is the first time it was seen there, can you really be sure that the place is his home range? Perhaps he just wandered farther than usual on that day. Euthanasia sounds like an over the top measure - to kill it just because it was where it shouldn't be. Agree with contacting a wildlife rehabber if you're going to relocate it.
They, like most animals, do not wander as far in winter. My point was that moving it this time a year may be as good as killing it. Though a slow death from starvation would be horrible, maybe freezing from lack of shelter will take it sooner.
They have smaller ranges in the winter and are territorial over the trees they feed off of. This does not sound like an animal that would do well with a quick change to a new environment in winter.

Chances are the porcupine learned just as much a lesson as the dog did and may avoid that particular area now.
 

motoko9

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Your poor dog! I'm glad you were able to get him to the vet so quickly.

I can't resist saying that I would be thrilled to see a porcupine in the wild (not up close, though)! I have raccoons, opossum, and skunks where I live, but I think my area is too urban for porcupines...they must not like garbage as much as the aforementioned critters!
 

strange_wings

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Porcupine are herbivores. Seeds, roots, leaves, plants, bark, etc. They're not very fast, and the ones I've seen up close were very fussy. They're rather cute, actually.
 

twstychik

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Originally Posted by strange_wings

Porcupine are herbivores. Seeds, roots, leaves, plants, bark, etc. They're not very fast, and the ones I've seen up close were very fussy. They're rather cute, actually.
They may be cute but they are armed and clearly dangerous!

Poor Buddy, I hope his nose heals quickly!
 

yosemite

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Hey, Mr. Porcupine was just defending himself from the big bad dog.
These things happen in the country - it's part of life. Growing up on a farm we saw our share of dogs that had to learn to respect porcupines. Porcupines don't "throw" their quills so the dog must have gotten close and personal.


Glad he is quill-free now. My dad always just took out any quills our dogs got in them.
 

kara_leigh

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Originally Posted by strange_wings

IMO, I don't think dogs should even be in the back of a truck. They should be secured inside the vehicle - if I'm not mistaken it may even a law in some places.
Here it is illegal to have your dog in the bed of a pickup truck (I know the OP did not have her dog there, though). You actually get a bigger fine for having your dog in the bed of a pickup truck than you do for not having your child in a car seat when they should be.

To the OP, sorry your dog had a run in with the porcupine!! OUCH!! I hope he feels better soon!!
 
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