Kaley Cuoco warned her Instagram fans about foxtails after her dog ingested the plant and became 'violently ill'
@kaleycuoco/Instagram
- Kaley Cuoco said Monday that her dog, King, had to have "intense surgery" after ingesting foxtails.
- Cuoco said the plant made King "violently ill" and was nearly fatal.
- According to WebMD, foxtail plants have "tough seeds that don't break down" and can cause "serious infection."
Kaley Cuoco is warning pet owners about foxtails, a plant her dog, King, ingested that made him sick and required surgery.
According to WebMD, the "barbed seed heads of the foxtail plant" can infiltrate nearly any part of a dog's body, and since the "tough seeds don't break down inside the body," if the plant is not removed, it can cause "serious infection" or be fatal.
Foxtails are most commonly found in the Western United States.
Cuoco posted a series of Instagram stories Monday explaining the foxtail ordeal.
Her first post about the foxtails showed a photo of the plant on her leg.
@kaleycuoco/Instagram
"This is a foxtail. They are extremely dangerous to animals esp dogs .. we spent the last 2 months trying to figure out what was wrong," Cuoco's caption read in part.
She added the plant made King "violently ill" and was only discovered after "a specialist" found two of the plants inside him.
According to Cuoco, the foxtails were nearly fatal and were only "days away" from puncturing King's heart.
In a follow-up story, "The Big Bang Theory" star gave an update on King's condition and shared a photo of the dog post-surgery.
@kaleycuoco/Instagram
"He is doing soooo much better but as u can see he has tons of stitches from a super intense surgery .. please be careful," Cuoco's caption read in part.
She shared that foxtails "must be surgically removed" because the plants "do not heal on their own."
In her third and final story, Cuoco shared a snap of the pooch wrapped in bandages.
@kaleycuoco/Instagram
"Take care of your pets or don't have one!" Cuoco captioned the picture. "We are so grateful he is ok and will live a long happy life!"
According to a previous Instagram post, Cuoco found and rescued King in Atlanta, where her actor boyfriend, Tom Pelphrey, worked at the time.
In the video, Cuoco wrote that King, who appears to be a Chihuahua, was "scrawny, underweight, scared and hairless" when the couple rescued him.
In addition to King's medical trauma, Cuoco recently grieved the loss of her dog, Dump Truck, in May.
An Instagram tribute Cuoco posted for Dump Truck called him the "sweetest" and said he was "with me during some of the hardest moments I've had in my life."