My dog swallowed a needle. Is it safe to wait for it to pass?

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.

You should immediately take her to a petER, preferably to one where they have an endoscope with which they can take out the needle from the stomach before it travels on into the intestine and causes an intestinal obstruction as a "linear foreign body" or the needle perforates the stomach or the intestines. Please take Bebe to a petER now.

If the needle was the only foreign body ingested and it was brought back up without any noticeable additional sign (further vomiting, diarrhoea, lethargy and inappetence or abdominal pain/discomfort) I would suggest just to monitor him at this stage. Start feeding with a bland diet based on boiled chicken and rice in small portion every 6 hours for the following 48hours. Then gradually reintroduce the normal diet over 5 days. I would definitively recommend a veterinary check up if the signs persist or you notice diarrhoea, more vomiting, lethargy or inappetence or abdominal discomfort. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!

It's difficult to know for sure, but it's definitely a concern for causing trauma 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. They can take an x-ray and tell if the needle was eaten or not. This would be expected to be somewhat costly at an after hours clinic, but is the best option.The other option is waiting to see if there are any problems. Signs of a puncture is vomiting, not defecating, acting very painful/depressed and a decrease in appetite. If you notice these signs, then Elvie would need to go to the vet immediately for emergency surgery, because this can cause a severe infection.  I hope that helps and all is well with Elvie.

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. This certainly could pose a risk for causing problems as it passes through the GI tract such as a puncture. If you are unable to get to a veterinarian, then I would recommend feeding bulky food items such as canned pumpkin and bread and see if this helps create a layer around the safety pin as it passes through the GI tract. Of course, my recommendation is to still get Chiku in to be seen by a veterinarian as soon as possible. I would recommend endoscopic removal of the safety pin while it is in the stomach. It is not a cheap procedure but is cheaper than surgery and is non-invasive. I hope this helps guide you in the right direction. Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

I would recommend taking your dog to the vet to have an x-ray performed. Wooden skewers are usually not broken down in the GI tract and may need to be removed surgically. I have seen one case where the dog was able to pass the skewer on his own but using this "wait and see" approach carries a high risk for bowel perforation from the skewer and if that happens, you are unfortunately in an emergency situation. An x-ray can help determine if in fact the skewer was swallowed whole or if it was chewed up and broken down.

Hello! Fortunately that is a very safe medication that we even use in dogs. It can cause some vomiting and diarrhea that usually goes away on its own. Watch closely for signs of dehydration if vomiting occurs and if there are any significant behavior changes that concern you, than a vet visit would be warranted.