Cat swallowed string, I pulled it out. What symptoms should I watch?

Just monitor her for the moment; unfortunately strings and any type of linear foreign body can sit in the intestine and stomach for ages before coming out!. As long as she eating fine and drinking ok and passing feces and urine normally and being normal in terms of demeanor and activity level she will be ok and she won't need any check up. You could potentially give her some mineral oil (2mls every meal )like paraffin oil to lubricate the gastrointestinal canal and help to get rid of the strings if there. Please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation (where you can post pictures ) if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further.

Once he threw up the balloon and the entire length of string, he should be fine. The offending foreign body has left his gastrointestinal system. However you should really check your house for any more items like that including string, as a linear foreign body (string causing an intestinal blockage) is a serious problem and would need surgery to remove. So since your kitty regurgitated the entire string and balloon he should be okay.

Hello and thank you for contacting Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. The symptoms of linear foreign body are usually evident within a few days (1-3 days) after ingestion. The most consistent symptom is vomiting, which can be persistent (every few hours) or infrequent (for example every other day). As long as Tommy is not vomiting and he is not showing any other worrying symptoms like poor appetite, abdominal pain, difficulties to defecate you should continue monitoring him at home for another few days. If after that time he remains asymptomatic, it will mean that he is out of trouble.

That's not good. Open Apollo's mouth to see if may be caught around his tongue or back teeth. You may not get a good view, so take him into the vet in the morning to have them check if it's there. If it is there, it can be removed, and prevent problems. Otherwise, he may have swallowed it completely, and you have to monitor him for signs of a linear foreign body. If you see vomiting, diarrhea, anorexia, or lethargy, take him into a vet right away. Best of luck.

1.5 " of a string should not really be a problem and will likely come out the natural way. It is too short to cause a linear foreign body obstruction. If you check her poo for the next 3-4 days you should be able to find it eventually. Apart from that I would monitor her for diarrhea and possibly retching/vomiting. If that occurs, please see your vet right away.

Yes, this would not be uncommon but I would continue to monitor for any additional vomiting and for normal bowel motions for the next few days as a precaution in case not all was vomited up. Objects can stay in the stomach for months and do not always cause clinical signs (these are mostly related to actual obstruction of the GI tract so many small objects do not cause significant pain or vomiting if food can move around them)

Hi Sam! I can understand being worried about G. If he is the same as usual, I wouldn't be too worried. I would suspect you may have missed it. Continue to monitor him, and if he does start to appear to be sick, have him seen by a vet. Best of luck.