Danger in the Garden

Thank you for printing “The Pet Safe Garden” (Dec. 23). Dog owners must be aware that their back yards can be either a safe place or a deadly place for their pets. One important bit of information was left out of the article. Mushrooms that grow in the wild can also kill dogs.

I have two dogs, a black Labrador retriever and a golden retriever, and both dogs ate mushrooms from my back yard last spring. Molly, my black lab, ate the mushrooms three times in one week. Her stomach was pumped twice and once she received a shot of antidote. These treatments saved her life.

More than 30 types of mushrooms grow during the spring and summer in California. Many kinds of mushrooms can cause coma and slow death for dogs. Make sure these fungi are removed from your yards.

OWEN DAVIS

La Habra