My dog ate small staples. Should I take him to the vet immediately?

In most cases, a very small foreign object like this will pass through the GI tract with no problems - if this just happened, you can feed him a slice of bread to help add some bulk to his stomach contents, which should help to surround and cushion the staple as it moves through. To be safe, you should monitor him for the next several days for any signs of a problem. If he has repeated episodes of vomiting, begins acting lethargic, or doesn't want to eat, I would recommend taking him to the vet right away since it's possible that he might need surgery to remove the staple. As long as he is acting normal, I wouldn't worry - it will likely pass though without any problems sometime in the next 2-3 days.

Poor Zoey. With any sharp foreign body ingestion we get concerned for possible laceration of the intestines as the intestines work back and forth to grind up ingesta. Staples certainly have the potential to at the very least cause some moderate GI upset and inflammation of the intestines. Laceration of the intestines is also possible. I would recommend feeding Zoey 1 piece of bread in between meals, 2 times day to hopefully bind up the staples and blunt their edges. Also the fiber of the bread helps to bulk up the stool for easier passage and exit out the rectum. Take Zoey on 20-30 minutes brisk walks twice a day as well to help promote GI motility. Then monitor her stool daily and for any signs of trouble which would include excessive vomiting (even water), lethargy, and lack of appetite. If you see these symptoms then take her to your local vet right away. Hopefully these are going to come out just fine. There is a greater chance that they will exit ok, due to their small size, but you can never be too cautious with any foreign body ingestion. I hope things work out ok for your furry friend Zoey.

Thank you for submitting your question regarding Alex. If your dog was in another room and you have since vacuumed the area where you were working, then it is unlikely that he would have consumed anything. If he ate a staple, it has the potential to puncture his stomach or intestines. This would make Alex very sick. He would stop eating, become very lethargic and likely vomit. If this occurs, he will require emergency veterinarian care. I hope this information helps!

Hi and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sorry to hear that Jax ate a staple. I have to agree that I think it will pass in time but one never knows with foreign bodies in each individual patient. I would monitor Jax very closely over the next 2-4 days for nausea, vomiting, and/or diarrhea. If these signs appear and persist I would advise seeing your vet immediately for possible x-rays. You may see no signs at all and that would be the best scenario for this case. One thing I would advise is feeding 1 teaspoon of canned pumpkin twice daily with his regular food. Not pumpkin pie filling, just canned pumpkin. It's loaded with fiber and will keep the gut happy and things moving during the next few days, hopefully helping the staple along and out of the system. Good luck with Jax. Not sure if you will check the bowel movements but that staple might be really hard to find. I hope it passes soon and with no complications.

You can give your vet a call, and bring Justice in for the vet to induce vomiting if she ate the bandaid within the past 2 hours. If it has been over 2 hours, all you can do is wait and see what happens. You will need to keep an eye on your dog’s stools to see if the object passes through your dogs system as well as for signs of fresh blood or mucus. Fresh blood or mucus indicates inflammation within the large intestine while dark black or tarry looking stools indicate bleeding in the upper digestive tract. If your dog’s stools become black then your dog should see a vet immediately. If your dog begins to vomit, has a lot of diarrhea, becomes unresponsive to you or squats without having a bowel movement then you should take her to the vet immediately as well. As long as your dog is acting normally just monitor your dog closely to be sure the object passes through your dog's system. It probably will pass through his system with no problem though.

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.

How small is small? If it was a very small piece it should pass on it's own through his GI tract. If it was a medium to large piece then he should see a vet as that could get stuck in his intestinal tract. Any time a dog ingests something abnormal they should be examined by a vet.