My dog ate trash, now restless and nervous. What should I do?

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! If you aren't sure if she ate anything the best thing to do is to monitor her. Watch for vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy and not wanting to eat. Those symptoms can indicate that something is stuck or has caused an upset stomach. If this happens bring her to the Vet. I recommend making sure all trash cans have lids. Close all bathroom doors and put the trash cans up high on counters or tables. Start with basic training: "come" and "leave it" using treats. When you are not home crate her or lock her in a room that is free of things she could get in to. Hope this helps! Good luck!@

Monitor her for the next 24 hours. Watch for lethargy, vomiting, loss of appetite, straining to defecate or abdominal pain. If she goes beyond this with no symptoms, then she may be in the clear. If she develops any of the above symptoms, have her physically examined by your veterinarian. Pancreatitis or intestinal obstruction are real concerns after such a "meal".

If Ana is still continuing this behavior, I recommend to have her seen by her veterinarian. Toxin exposure, severe abdominal pain, or perhaps a severe anal gland infection could all cause this type of restlessness and discomfort. Sewage can carry toxins. Try to keep the dogs away from that area. Best of luck and please feel free to post any additional questions.

Hi, I would recommend that you have her checked over as symptoms related to toxins can take a while to show and once you have symptoms the condition is much more difficult to treat. In particular I am worried about mouldy food. I have had a dog that suffered prolonged seizures and his temperature was very high for a long time and sadly did not recover. Another dog last week was fine for a day after eating a rotten chicken, but then went down hill and had severe signs of central nervous system disease and twitching because of the toxins. Hope this helps !

As he is otherwise well this is likely an enteritis due to stealing something spoiled from the trash. Continue to monitor closely for any other signs and feed small meals of bland, low fat food. A probiotic supplement may also speed recovery

Vomiting and restlessness can be the first signs of a poisoning, so I would check to see if it's possible that he got into any medication, drugs or other chemicals. If he did get into something, then he should go to the emergency vet for treatment. If he is eating and drinking still, then that would be encouraging that this is not a big problem. Check to see that his gums are pink (not white) and that his belly is not very tense. If those two things are OK, then I would not worry too much tonight and take him to the vet tomorrow if things don't get better. If he vomits continuously and/or starts to have tremors, then this would be signs that he needs emergency treatment. Otherwise, may sure he has plenty of water and avoid feeding anything other than his normal food until he gets over this. I hope that helps and Pugsley gets better soon.

Not necessarily--most dogs do just fine with occasional forays into the trash! Watch for excessive vomiting that lasts longer than 1-2 hours, and be advised that Lucy might develop diarrhea at any time as well. As long as she is bright, alert, eating, and acting like her normal self there is probably no need to take her to the clinic.