My dog ate a tea bag staple. Should I worry about her health?

Naughty Benny! No, there's no need to take him to a vet immediately. This small amount of staples and the size of the staples should not cause any problems. I would feed him a slice of whole wheat bread now in order to wrap around the staples to cushion them as they go through the intestines. I would give him the bread at each meal to bulk up his feces, and monitor his feces for the staples. They should pass through in 24-48 hours. If they haven't passed through in that time, or if you are seeing any blood in the stool, black stool (this indicates bleeding in the stomach), vomiting, or lethargy, you need to take him into your vet right away. Of course, if you want to be safe, you can take him into your vet now, and your vet can try to retrieve them. Vomiting wouldn't be indicated in this case because they could puncture the esophagus on the way up. Your vet could use an endoscope to retrieve them.

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.

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.

You will have to monitor her in the next few days, it could pass without causing problems but it could also get stuck in the small intestines or stay in the stomach, in that case at some point you should see some acute changes such as lethargy, vomiting and lack of appetite. if that happens you will need to take her urgently to the vet to get it treated.

Unfortunately once a foreign object has been ingested there are only 3 things you can do for your pet: 1) Give 1 slice of bread to help bind the foreign object, 2) Feed the pet canned food to hopefully help bind the object for easy passage through the stomach and intestines, 3) Take your pet on a brisk walk for 20 minutes to encourage intestinal motility (only do this if your pet is not lethargic or acting abnormal). Then you just wait and see if this thing will pass without causing any disruptions to your pets gastrointestinal tract. Look for signs of obstruction, which include excessive vomiting, painful abdomen, severe lethargy and listlessness. If Peaches is going to pass this well she will most likely do so within the next 48-72 hrs, so monitor her feces well. However if she should present with any of the symptoms mentioned above, then the best thing to do for her is to get her seen for medical care with your vet.

This will likely not cause a problem. However, make sure you are watching him for any signs of discomfort including diarrhea, vomiting, acting painful or lethargic, or decreased appetite. If you notice anything unusual, it would be best to take him in to your vet for an exam.