My dog swallowed a foreign body: what are the risks and how to react?

If it is a delicate subject to approach in clinic with our hairy friends, this is the case with the foreign body.How to react if your dog swallows an object he shouldn't have?

1. Your dog swallowed something: a difficult diagnosis
2. How do you take care of a dog that swallowed a foreign body?
3. How do I see my dog swallowing something?

When it comes to swallowing prohibited things, everything goes with dogs!It is a curious animal, who spends a lot of time exploring, especially with his mouth.It is therefore not uncommon for him to nibble an object for a time, and that he ends up swallowing pieces.The snacking behavior is a fundamental need for the dog, some are even subscribers of the destruction of objects.

But the difficulty of this diagnosis is the uncertainty of what the dog ate.In reality, you can never even know if a dog swallowed something that he shouldn't have.

Indeed, many current symptoms can make it think of it: vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, appetite disorder ... These are frequent consultation reasons.When the owner does not call directly after seeing his dog swallow the object of the offense!

Your dog swallowed something: a difficult diagnosis

An object stuck in the digestive tract can cause very diverse harmful consequences, depending on its nature.A massive object will come to make a plug, with dramatic consequences, but a smaller foreign body, like a string (we speak of a linear foreign body) will disturb the intestine and digestion.

Sharp or sharp objects are also very dangerous.The work of the veterinarian is therefore a real investigation work, based on clues and probabilities.

Once the hypothesis of a foreign bodies well in mind (and the history reported by the master comes to weigh heavy to give a suspicion), we can consider several complementary examinations: on the one hand, blood exams come to inform about the stategeneral of the animal, and generally make it possible to exclude other hypotheses.But the examination of choice is imagery, and we then have several possibilities: radio, ultrasound, or even more.

Finally, if the suspicion of foreign bodies is very strong, even if the imagery does not provide the expected answers, a last examination then takes advance with healing: it is a question of going to observe directly in the belly of thedog, surgically.

When the animal is operated on just for diagnostic observation, we speak of explorer laparotomy, but if an object is discovered, the advantage is that it is generally removed in stride.

We therefore understand, with all this information, why the foreign body is so complicated to diagnose.There are plenty of different natures, and the exams available do not give a certain response each time.

There are therefore many different cases of dogs who have swallowed various objects, and the treatments can vary depending on the case.

How do you take care of a dog that swallowed a foreign body?

Therapy is generally not complicated to understand, since it is simply a question of removing the object.To put it into practice, however, there are several methods:

The dog, by his behavior, obliges us to remain vigilant permanently.Some owners are trained by their dog: after two surgeries and an incalculable number of socks or shredded and swallowed balls, they are dogs who make their owner capable of making the follow-up themselves, by dint usually!

But in case of doubt, the reference remains the veterinarian, who is confronted there regularly and who will be able to make the share of things between this hypothesis and another.

How do I see my dog swallowing something?

With all this information, it is easy to do as the work of a veterinarian can be complicated, the foreign body is the perfect example of this difficulty.

We have only one expression to designate the little anecdote Bégnine, and the animal in a critical situation;In addition, the survey work to be carried out is long, complex, and often requires being reactive.The therapeutic plan can change along the way (decide surgery after a few days of observation for example).

So unless you are used to it and some confidence, it is better to organize follow -up with your veterinarian.Each practitioner will have his methods, and his habits, to manage this case, but the important thing is to trust him to rely on his therapeutic decisions.

It is not always easy, because the police investigation that has been described above does not always give the answers, and these exams have a cost, which sometimes forbids to go to the end of the process.

The first thing to do if your dog swallows an object before your eyes is therefore to call your veterinarian.The use of vomitals to bring it out is contraindicated, because unlike toxic foods, there is a great chance for a solid object to make the return journey.There is therefore no urgency to intervene just after the offense, the veterinarian will not be able to do much.

On the other hand, if the state of the dog evolves, and symptoms appear, it will be necessary to intervene immediately.Hence the interest in contacting, at least by phone, with the veterinarian from the start.Failing to bring you for nothing at the beginning, he will at least know that he has this case pending and will plan his appointments to be able to bring you in an emergency if there is a need.

The foreign body is therefore a clinical entity that dog owners must know.Depending on its character, it will be more or less vigilance, but as with children, small domestic accidents arrive quickly, and you must therefore be able to react in a measured way, without panicking, with precision.

Dr Stéphane Tardif Veterinary Doctor and Writer for Wamiz

Read also: Poison: beware, the cars antifreeze is toxic to dogs and cats!