A dog has been hospitalized with a 106-degree fever after ingesting methamphetamine during a walk in North Hollywood, California. Nikolas and Jenifer Dorhoutmees took their Australian cattle mix, Uni, for a walk around their neighborhood this week. The outing ended in an emergency trip to the vet after Uni fell sick soon after sniffing around a local park.
Symptoms and Emergency Response
“Drooling, diarrhea, all of it,” Jenifer told KTLA. “We decided to start bringing her back home. We checked her gums — her gums were white.” The dog was rushed to the vet, where Jenifer insisted on a drug test after recalling a similar story of a dog acting strangely after eating meth.
Another North Hollywood resident, Karla Vicuña, and her husband had previously rushed their German Shepherd Husky mix, Atreyu, to the vet after he accidentally ate meth. “His heart rate was really elevated and he was panting a lot and couldn’t settle down,” she told KTLA last November. “He had a 103-degree fever.”
Treatment and Recovery
Uni’s drug test came back positive for methamphetamine, and the veterinary staff worked to bring her high temperature down. “They said her temperature was 106 degrees, which, anything at 106 and above could cause brain damage, organ failure,” Jenifer said. “They were working for about 45 minutes to an hour trying to get her temperature to drop.” Both Atreyu and Uni survived their accidental meth exposure.
“If even one person is just a little bit more mindful and it saves their dog from being in this critical condition, this interview was more than enough,” Nikolas said.
Broader Context of Pet Poisoning
ASPCA Poison Control staff helped more than 334,000 animals with exposures to toxic substances, plants, and poisons last year, according to a March press release. Over-the-counter medications remained the top animal toxin on the ASPCA Poison Control’s list in 2025, accounting for 16.9 percent of all exposures. Recreational drugs, including marijuana and hallucinogenic mushrooms, placed 10th on the list for the fourth consecutive year.
