My dog ate a foreign object. When should I go to the emergency vet?

It's difficult to know for sure, because the there are different types of styrofoam and there's a concern for causing an obstruction in the stomach or intestines. If she ate it within the last three hours, then it's possible that it can be retrieved from the stomach if you take her to the vet. This will require anesthesia and special instrumentation though, so it would be expected to be somewhat costly - especially at an emergency clinic. This is the best option though. It will also be best to identify the brand and contents of the styrofoam and make sure there are no other concerns with toxicity. The other option is waiting to see if it passes OK. Normal GI transit time is 3-5 days for such things. During this time you would just be waiting to see if she has any signs of an obstruction. Signs of an obstructions are vomiting, not defecating, acting very painful/depressed and a decrease in appetite. If you notice these signs, then Akela would need to go to the vet immediately for emergency surgery. I hope that helps and all is well with Akela.

Hello, thank you for the question. Based on the symptoms that you have described as well as the passage of foreign material in his stool I would recommend having your dog seen by a veterinarian. It is possible that there is more foreign material in his GI tract or he may have residual inflammation from passing something abnormal. It sounds like he seems stable overall, so I think it would be ok to wait to see your regular veterinarian tomorrow. If he develops severe vomiting or any other concerning symptoms overnight I would recommend consulting with an ER veterinarian. Hope this helps, good luck!

The only thing you should do right now is to monitor her for any signs of an obstruction which includes: excessive vomiting (especially water), decreased appetite, lethargy and little to no stool production. This sounds like something that should pass through with no problems, but just keep an eye on here tonight and definitely get her seen by a vet tomorrow if she develops any concerning symptoms. You can also try feeding her a piece of bread 1-2 times a day to help bind up the rubber and help facilitate its passage through her GI tract. I do hope that Sage does well after ingesting this foreign object. Best of luck and take care.

She will likely pass it within the next 24 hours. Monitor for lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea, loss of appetite or abdominal pain. These are symptoms that may indicate an obstruction. If you want to be 100% safe, have her seen at the nearest veterinary ER. Vomiting can be induced via injection which should bring the scrunchie back up. This is most successful when done within 2 hours of ingestion.

Hi there and thank you for using pet coach to address your concern. The soo we the foreign material is taken out of the stomach the better. I know it is not causing a problem now but if it decides to pass through into the intestines, this could cause far worse problems than just sitting in the stomach. I would advise against waiting so thst you are not faced with an emergency surgery. If the object passes into the intestines, it could cause a lot of trauma which may lead to part of the intestines dying due to lack of circulation from squeezing on this object. It is difficult to say if this is soft tissue or not but it has the characteristic of an ingested foreign object. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns.

It may be serious but not necessarily. You should take your dog to your vet to take an x-ray to see where the needle is (it could got stuck in esophagus and it this case it should be removed). If the needle is in the stomach you will have to wait 24-48hrs for the needle to be passed. If in any doubts the second x-ray should be taken. If your dog develops signs of vomiting, vomiting blood, abdominal pain, lack of appetite he will need emergency surgery to remove the needle. However, most of the dogs will pass a needle and surgery is not required.

I would continue to watch Midnight. If she ate part of a bedsheet that gets stuck in her small intestine, dogs will often be lethargic, have a decreased appetite, belly pain, or vomiting. Sometimes things like a sheet will move slowly through the intestines, and it could take 3-5 days to come out. If the dog is feeling ill, then often IV fluids and enemas can help it pass a little faster. If the dog is very ill, then surgery would be needed to remove the obstruction.