Dog lucky to be alive after eating magic mushrooms

Millie, an 11-month-old border collie in Australia, is lucky to be alive after eating "magic mushrooms", her vet has said. The Olding family found their beloved pet sitting under a tree and shaking violently. "She wouldn't come to us and she was distressed," Tony Olding said.

He took Millie to Lindfield vet Joe Daley, who said: "Millie was nervous, frothing at the mouth, shaking all over and unable to stand." Suspecting a toxin, such as fox bait, he flushed her system and found mushroom material in her stomach. "These can have a hallucinogenic effect, so we sedated Millie heavily while the toxin left her system," Mr Daley said.

He said that while dogs affected by "marijuana poisoning was relatively common", dogs eating "magic mushrooms" was unusual. Millie may have found the mushrooms near a creek in the Oldings' backyard. After two days under observation, Millie returned home to Mr Olding, wife Caroline Olding and their children Angus, 14, and Sophie, 13.

Mr Olding said that Millie started acting strangely around lunchtime on a Friday afternoon a couple of weeks ago and "had a very high temperature, she was shaking uncontrollably and we had to catch her to bundle her in the car". Mr Daley said that pet owners had to remember that young dogs were "like toddlers" and would "eat anything".