Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39898164›Full record

ArticleThe Canadian veterinary journal = La revue veterinaire canadienne2025

Strychnine poisoning in nontarget species in western Canada: A retrospective case series (2014 to 2023).

Vanessa E Cowan

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The Canadian veterinary journal = La revue veterinaire canadienne, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

1 author.

Vanessa E CowanVeterinary Biomedical Sciences, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, 52 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5B4.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Strychnine is a highly toxic, plant-derived alkaloid. It has historically been used in western Canada as a rodenticide for control of Richardson's ground squirrels; and in Alberta, as a predacide against wolves, coyotes, black bears, and skunks. However, nontarget species poisonings with strychnine have been widely documented in Canada and elsewhere. Poisonings manifest as acute neuroexcitation and are usually fatal. In March 2023, strychnine was banned in Canada for control of Richardson's ground squirrels, with concerns over wildlife poisonings cited. However, fatal poisonings have occurred in animals since the ban. Objective: To retrospectively characterize cases of nontarget species poisoning by strychnine in western Canada (British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba) based on diagnostic case records. Procedure: Diagnostic information from confirmed cases of strychnine poisoning from 2014 to 2023 was compiled from the records of Prairie Diagnostic Services (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan). Where available, epidemiologic data pertaining to year and month of submission, province, location of submitting veterinary clinic/enforcement office, species/breed, age, sample submitted, strychnine concentration, and case history were collected. Results: Prairie Diagnostic Services confirmed 51 cases of strychnine poisoning in western Canada from 2014 to 2023. Strychnine poisoning was diagnosed in dogs ( Conclusion and clinical relevance: This paper highlights the prevalence of nontarget species strychnine toxicosis in western Canada. Despite the recent national ban of strychnine, poisonings of nontarget species have continued.

Indexed as

PoisoningRodenticidesStrychnineAlbertaAnimalsCanadaDogsFemaleMaleRetrospective StudiesSaskatchewanRodenticidesStrychnine

Identifiers

PMID39898164
PMCPMC11770616

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.