WARNING...Grossness ahead

[Kerri B. & Zoey]

Uggh...Had our first vet scare this morning and I feel like a bad mommy. Zoey managed to get her hands or rather her mouth on a tampon wrapped in tissue out of the trash this am (eeeww...GROSS...I don't know WHY they are so enticed by this.  My GR did this too...disgusting). I am usually very good about keeping the trash cans up, but she found me at a weak moment and of course once I realized she had it a game of keep-away ensued.  By the time I got my hands on her and was able to pry her mouth open, all I was able to retrieve was some of the tissue it was wrapped in and part of the string.  I put her in her crate, then got in the shower.  In hindsight, I feel like a terrible mommy for not immediately calling the vet.  I was so used to my mature GR eating crap all the time I guess I just was not thinking straight about how little Zoey is and that this might be a MAJOR concern.  Also, she continued to act normal all morning, eating and drinking. 

 

So Zoey slept while I got ready for work.  As I was leaving for work, I called my mom (my doggy day care provider) to tell her what happened, and asked her to keep an eye on Zoey's poops.  Then after calling her, decided that I should probably call the vet to ask them their thoughts, if this was something she would be able to digest or not.  They of course asked me to bring her in so they could try to induce vomiting.  So off my mom went to take her to the vet for me since I was already on the road to the office.  The good news is that the medicine they gave her to induce the vomiting worked and she threw it up.  THANK GOD...no surgery (which would have not only been traumatic for Zoey and for me, but major $$$).  The bad news is that I suck.  The vet said if we had waited a few more hours to bring her in she could have potentially died!  I am going to be beating myself up about this one for awhile. :( 

[Traci -Bexter & Maggie]

Are doodles worse than other breeds for eating things?  Or do pretty much ALL dogs have this issue?  Bexter just ATE a sock and I didn't even know it until I woke up to him puking in his crate.  When I looked, I saw that he had puked an ENTIRE sock up!  I couldn't believe it.  The sock was COMPLETELY intact, so he evidently swallowed it whole - no chewing marks at all.  How crazy is that?  I took him in to the vet anyway because at that point I was totally paranoid that he swallowed more than just one (because he continued to puke).  After X-ray, vet said he didn't have anything else in there, but his stomach was still irritated.  She also told me that once dogs have this issue of eating things, that they continue their whole lives having that.  She said that they don't really grow out of it.  I just thought it was puppyhood.  Have any of you had a dog that USED to eat things as a puppy, but outgrew it?  She said to definitely keep my health insurance because she was confident this would not be the last episode.  I am really concerned.  Gee - I never remember reading anything about this when I researched doodles extensively.

[Suzanne & Jack]

Don't feel so bad.  At least you called the vet.  About a year ago Jack got a hold of the bathroom trashcan.  I knew he had eaten several tampons.  I figured they would come out eventually.  They did over several days.  I think he was lucky because he is fairly large.  Last December he swallowed a small tennis ball at the dog park.  Fortunately it came up on Christmas day.  Needless to say if there is any "nasty" trash in the can I put it in a tied bag and up high.

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

So you called the vet and did as instructed, you are a great mom! Everything is fine now and I bet you NEVER forget to put the garbage up again. You are also very brave for posting this! LOL!

[Tessa, Ellie and Wheezy]

You are a wonderful doodle mom....I would never have thought to call the vet a assumed it would have came out the other end?  I'm glad Zoey is ok!!

[BG and Gavin]

If you are bad, I am brutal!  Gavin ate a tampon minus the string when he was a pup too and I never gave it a second thought other than to think "well that was disgusting!"  That it may cause problems for him never crossed my mind.  You are a role model doodle mom!

[Bonnie and Kona]

You are not a bad doodle mom! You did call the vet. Zoey is okay. And, you have alerted everyone to this danger. Thank you.

[Donna K & Quincy]

I am willing to bet that most doodles have eaten something they shouldn't have at one time or another. We learn from our mistakes and move on. So glad Zoey is fine and it all turned out well.

[Doris]

We all make mistakes and we learn from them.  I am glad this story has a happy ending!!

[Camilla and Darwin]

glad everything turned out fine...

[Michele, Biscuit & Mo]

Don't beat yourself up, Kerri!  This is how we all learn, and you did the right thing by NOT ignoring it.  You handled it beautifully.  I did a similar thing with a dog we had years ago, when he ate a dryer sheet.  I didn't panic at the time but then had second thoughts and called the vet.  Turns out that the chemicals in the dryer sheet could have been harmful.  You feel bad at first, but remember - you're a good doodle Mom!