# Dwayne Johnson loses dog to toxic mushroom. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [September 30, 2015, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057 "2015-09-30T17:38:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/1 "2015-09-30T17:38:35Z")
I wasn’t sure where to put this since it’s not related to Johnson’s wrestling or acting career. Mods, feel free to move this if it fits in another forum. Dwayne Johnson’s French bulldog, Brutus, who the Rock rescued from drowning in the pool earlier this month, had to be put down this week after eating a poisonous mushroom in the back yard. > [@](#): > > Another reminder we have to live and love as greatly as we can today, because tomorrow is never guaranteed. …I encourage all of you out there to be mindful of mushrooms in your yards, parks or anywhere outside your dogs play. What looks innocent, can be deadly to your lil’ family members. > **[The Rock mourns the loss of his puppy, Brutus](https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/entertainthis/2015/09/30/dwayne-the-rock-johnson-mourns-puppy-brutus/73077980/)** > > His new pup had to be put down after he ate a poisonous mushroom. I feel sorry for the little fella. I was just watching a video of the Rock trying to get his dogs used to the leash and it was so cute the way the pups just flopped onto their bellies and lay there on the grass. You can anticipate hazards around the house such as electrical cords and chocolate and keep those things away from your pets, but you can’t always protect them from nature and their own curiosity. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/2 "2015-09-30T17:56:26Z")
The dog was obviously suicidal. Went straight to the bottom of the pool, no attempt at swimming. Was rescued. Ate toxic mushroom. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/3 "2015-09-30T18:57:43Z")
I had a dog eat a bad mushroom (found the half eaten mushroom) and her head and ears puffed up a lot. If I remember correctly, the vet told me there wasn’t much to do but let it pass which it did slowly over several hours. Poor dog. ---
**Author:** ![Doctor\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doctor_jackson/32/32_2.png) [@Doctor\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doctor_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/4 "2015-09-30T19:22:14Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > I had a dog eat a bad mushroom (found the half eaten mushroom) and her head and ears puffed up a lot. If I remember correctly, the vet told me there wasn’t much to do but let it pass which it did slowly over several hours. The dog passed his own head and ears? :eek: I mean, I’ve known _people_ who had their head up their own ass, but I always envisioned it going in the other way… ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/5 "2015-09-30T19:27:17Z")
> [@Doctor\_Jackson](#): > > The dog passed his own head and ears? :eek: > > I mean, I’ve known _people_ who had their head up their own ass, but I always envisioned it going in the other way… Hardy Har. “It” being the swelling. If it were really the head and ears, I think it would be “them”. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/6 "2015-09-30T20:07:28Z")
> [@Chimera](#): > > The dog was obviously suicidal. Went straight to the bottom of the pool, no attempt at swimming. Was rescued. Ate toxic mushroom. He probably saw[_Tooth Fairy_.](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0808510/) ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/7 "2015-09-30T23:10:37Z")
Unfortunately I have witnessed many of these cases of dogs eating these mushrooms. There are many different types of mushrooms and some are more toxic than others but the Death Cap and Destroying Angel in the Amanita genus are the worst. If the name wasn’t enough to tell you how bad they are … > [@](#): > > “Amatoxins are cyclopeptides composed of a ring of amino acids that inhibit the production of specific proteins within liver and kidney cells. Without these proteins, cells cease to function. Following ingestion…five to twenty-four hours (average, twelve hours) pass before nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, and diarrhea begin. These initial symptoms are followed by a brief period of apparent improvement, but without treatment, severe liver damage and kidney failure often result in coma and death.” We often have these cases where they seem to improve and we have to send them off to their regular vet with the dire warning that they may yet experience liver and kidney failure. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/8 "2015-09-30T23:30:58Z")
Too late to edit. [Here’s a good overview](http://americanmushrooms.com/toxicms.htm) of the different toxic mushrooms. ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/9 "2015-09-30T23:40:06Z")
Mushrooms can pop up really quickly, too, if the weather is just right. People - don’t leave your dogs out unattended. ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2015, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/10 "2015-09-30T23:42:34Z")
Poor pup. Sympathies, Dwayne. My dogs will eat anything that holds still long enough. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/11 "2015-10-01T02:09:19Z")
> [@Merneith](#): > > Mushrooms can pop up really quickly, too, if the weather is just right. People - don’t leave your dogs out unattended. Why wouldnt animals have inherited some fear/dislike of mushrooms? ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/12 "2015-10-01T15:21:04Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > Why wouldnt animals have inherited some fear/dislike of mushrooms? I suspect domesticated animals may be more trusting. If a house pet had grown used to human food\*, maybe mushrooms would be more appetizing to that animal than to a pet whose whole diet was kibble or yard prey. Also, there’s a bit of confirmation bias here: if a wild animal ate toxic mushrooms and died, who would know? Unless there’d been a plague-like influx of deadly but attractive mushrooms decimating whole local ecosystems, no one… the occasional isolated mysteriously-dead feral dog would be completely unnoticed. \*Not to say that Dwayne Johnson feeds his dogs table scraps, but it’s possible in a generic sense. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/13 "2015-10-01T15:26:52Z")
> [@gnoitall](#): > > Also, there’s a bit of confirmation bias here: if a wild animal ate toxic mushrooms and died, who would know? Unless there’d been a plague-like influx of deadly but attractive mushrooms decimating whole local ecosystems, no one… the occasional isolated mysteriously-dead feral dog would be completely unnoticed. Excellent point. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Merneith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Merneith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Merneith)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/14 "2015-10-01T16:42:33Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > Why wouldnt animals have inherited some fear/dislike of mushrooms? Some dogs will eat just damn near anything. I’ve never had a dog that ate wild mushrooms but I’m completely unsurprised to hear about one who did. Here’s a series of xrays of dogs with weird stuff in their bellies: > **[X-rays of all the weird stuff dogs eat](https://dangerousminds.net/comments/x_rays_of_all_the_weird_stuff_dogs_eat)** > > Ouch: The x-ray of a Jack Russell Terrier who ate a 10-inch bread knife. >   > The excuse of the dog ate my homework might not be so far fetched as these X-rays of things our fine four-legged friends have swallowed shows. > > Dogs are supposed to be... ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 4:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/15 "2015-10-01T16:44:28Z")
Thanks for that link. Wow. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/16 "2015-10-01T16:59:53Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > I had a dog eat a bad mushroom (found the half eaten mushroom) and her head and ears puffed up a lot. On the flip side that sure would prevent him from sinking to the bottom of any pool. The first think I did when we got a pup was go over the list of poisonous plants and cull them from the yard. #1 danger here in the south… Sago Palms, especially the seeds. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/17 "2015-10-01T17:18:31Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > On the flip side that sure would prevent him from sinking to the bottom of any pool. > > The first think I did when we got a pup was go over the list of poisonous plants and cull them from the yard. #1 danger here in the south… Sago Palms, especially the seeds. Mushrooms, though… they appear almost magically. Spring up virtually overnight after a couple of days’ brisk rain. Culling in advance isn’t an option. It’s more like a constant patrol, or never letting the beasties out in the yard unattended. Mushrooms. It had to be mushrooms. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2015, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dwayne-johnson-loses-dog-to-toxic-mushroom/733057/18 "2015-10-02T23:32:47Z")
I think my dog has pica or something. He’ll go out and eat what appear to be rocks. He’s done it for years, so I think he’s fine. He also likes grass, but that’s not uncommon.