Teddy swallowed who knows what

[Ellie May]

No diarrhea?
No new treats, chews, or an ingredient change in his food?

[ladyjane]

Sometimes they eat grass and then throw up. That just happens. I don't call the vet unless the vomiting continues. They get upset tummies just like we do.
How was he all day at day care?

[My lil friend]

Originally Posted by Britster

Ugh, sorry. Jackson is ridiculous with putting things in his mouth. He will find the littlest piece of plastic somewhere on the floor and start chewing it. Luckily, he usually brings it over to me, almost as if he's like "Look Ma! Got something in my mouth! You gonna come get it from me?" and I snap my fingers and tell him drop it, and he does with the saddest look on his face. He finds pen caps, Barbie dolls, and whatever else happens to be on the floor.

I hope it's no big deal. Feel better Teddy.

I am so glad to hear that it isnt just at my house! My sewing room door was closed, Mina was right at my feet in the kitchen,,,crunch,crunch pulled a straight pen out of her mouth!!! Sense it was from my daughters sewing area in the den, I was pretty sure that we were going to have one less child in the house and I dont mean the dog. The latest list has been straight pen, plastic (no idea what it was),tensil from package (after vaccuming),tissue paper,thread,oh ya and a spool of DMC embroidery thread. This would be YESTERDAY and me standing next to her. Im not blind and I scan each room as we walk into it. WTH!! Where does she find this stuff? Even my kids didnt' pick this much stuff up!

[roseylovestosho]

I gave him peanut butter yesterday for him to try. It was literally the size of my fingernail...because I know better than to just give him a lot of something new since anything new might upset his tummy. I introduced sweet potato treats about a week ago while on the metro. While on metro he has not vomited or had diareah at all...today was the first day he vomited...apparently after I dropped him off at daycare. Everyone said that he acted like his usual self after vomiting...but he's never lethargic when sick only when he gets heartworm medicine/k9 advantix once a month he's a little slower than usual but it doesn't last very long.

Yeah...it drives me INSANE when he swallows something because that means I have to inspect his poop thoroughly to make sure whatever he ate is out. I don't know what it is but it's just that the CRUNCH he made scared the crap out of me.

I don't want to run to the vet for every little thing but I just don't want to confuse the symptoms for obstruction for something else...especially since he vomited this morning and a couple times a week ago.

[BabyGirl Rosie]

Poor baby! And poor momma. It stinks when they don't feel good. Prayers and hugs that Teddy pulls out of this quickly!

[Ellie May]

Just my thoughts.

Ten days of Metro may be okay for two episodes of vomiting, but it seems extreme. The xray was a good idea, but with just two piles of vomit..not something I'd rush into. Xrays do help rule out obstruction, but barium is needed too for the best look. If there is a pattern of throwing up, then it is time for bloodwork. However, I wouldn't yet call this a pattern unless it happens again.

That said, he had demodex and you said he gets a bit lethargic after taking his heartworm and flea drugs. That's not normal. So IMO blood should be done even if he wasn't vomiting. The drugs may also need to be changed. I'd be doing a blood panel with CBC just to see what is going on in there if one hasn't been done in the last few months.

No treats or edible chews right now. I'd do one food and water only for a few weeks. Adding extras in will just complicate the process trying to figure out what is causing the problem. It's normal to throw up after eating grass, but a lot of dogs eat it in the first place because they are nauseated. Depnds on the dog.

The foreign object thing - you just have to go with your comfort level.

[roseylovestosho]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

Just my thoughts.

Ten days of Metro may be okay for two episodes of vomiting, but it seems extreme. The xray was a good idea, but with just two piles of vomit..not something I'd rush into. Xrays do help rule out obstruction, but barium is needed too for the best look. If there is a pattern of throwing up, then it is time for bloodwork. However, I wouldn't yet call this a pattern unless it happens again.

That said, he had demodex and you said he gets a bit lethargic after taking his heartworm and flea drugs. That's not normal. So IMO blood should be done even if he wasn't vomiting. The drugs may also need to be changed. I'd be doing a blood panel with CBC just to see what is going on in there if one hasn't been done in the last few months.

No treats or edible chews right now. I'd do one food and water only for a few weeks. Adding extras in will just complicate the process trying to figure out what is causing the problem. It's normal to throw up after eating grass, but a lot of dogs eat it in the first place because they are nauseated. Depnds on the dog.

The foreign object thing - you just have to go with your comfort level.

Okay, thank you....I'm sorry I should probably clarify. The heartworm medicine is not causing the lethargy...Teddy did have demodex but he did fine on the ivectermin. What causes the lethargy is the k9 advantix. He vomited the first time he took it, but since then he has not vomited. I should also probably specify that I define lethargy in Teddy when he takes longer naps. He's usually extremely alert/takes short naps but wakes easily but when he takes the advantix his naps are a little longer....but other than that when he's awake he's playing/eating/the usual. I told the vet when he first vomited from the k9 advantix...he said that that's normal and to see how he reacts the next month and to discontinue if he vomits after applying...he didn't so I'm still using it.

Okay, I will give him water and food only. Poor guy...he loves his bullysticks Teddy doesn't usually eat grass, which is why I thought he had an upset stomach in the first place. I've never done bloodwork so I don't understand what cbc means...but can any vet correctly analyze bloodwork? I have no problem getting bloodwork done but I'm concerned about the results not being read properly/misinterpreted etc. Again, since I've never done it before/understand it is the reason why I'm concerned about the results. If the metro is extreme should I discontinue it?

[Ellie May]

No, I wouldn't discontinue it. It shouldn't hurt a darn thing (generally). But if there is still a problem after this round, I'd refuse to give it again without getting to the bottom of the problem.

CBC = complete blood count. It checks platelets, blood cells, etc. The chemistry checks liver, kidneys, etc. If he has never had bloodwork, then it is way overdue. All vets can read the results. There is skill to interpreting it. They should have learned how in vet school. If they can't read blood results, they wouldn't touch my pups..

Unless there is a tick problem there, Advantix is not needed.

Yes, pull the bullies for now at least. They can be full of bacteria and aren't going to do his tummy any favors. I'd consider discontinuing them for good. They are far from a great snack and can cause some nasty GI issues (clostrium most notably).

[ladyjane]

My advice is to Google these terms bully sticks and vomiting

You might have a solution to Teddy's problem right there.

[roseylovestosho]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

No, I wouldn't discontinue it. It shouldn't hurt a darn thing (generally). But if there is still a problem after this round, I'd refuse to give it again without getting to the bottom of the problem.

CBC = complete blood count. It checks platelets, blood cells, etc. The chemistry checks liver, kidneys, etc. If he has never had bloodwork, then it is way overdue. All vets can read the results. There is skill to interpreting it. They should have learned how in vet school. If they can't read blood results, they wouldn't touch my pups..

Unless there is a tick problem there, Advantix is not needed.

Yes, pull the bullies for now at least. They can be full of bacteria and aren't going to do his tummy any favors. I'd consider discontinuing them for good. They are far from a great snack and can cause some nasty GI issues (clostrium most notably).

Okay, just wanted to say thank you again. I didn't know that Teddy needed bloodwork...how often should I get it checked? The vet has never recommended it to me even though it's come up (I've been going to the same vet for 5 months). There's definitely a tick problem here which is why I started using it. Pulled 5 ticks off Teddy one time...and one remained hidden for about 2 days and it was engorged Don't want to go through it again. I've been giving Teddy bullysticks and freeze dried liver treats since he was 16 weeks. He's going to be a year old on the 13th of September...do you think I may have caused him too much damage? I guess I'll try and start looking for other treats for him.

[roseylovestosho]

Originally Posted by ladyjane

My advice is to Google these terms bully sticks and vomiting

You might have a solution to Teddy's problem right there.

Ah...why did I not know that! I thought bully sticks were a popular treat here

[Ellie May]

They should have bloodwork "at least" once yearly and preferably twice when they reach about age 6. However, that is really pushing it. Really they should have it 1-2 times yearly at this age too. My dogs gets yearly bloodwork and usually a U/A. Should have been done before his neuter..

No. I doubt you have damaged him for life. And it's a bit hard to decide what they can and can't have when internet forums are full of bully stick praises. I'd discontinue the bullies, the liver treats, the peanut butter, the sweet potato treats, and anything else that is not his one and only dog food. See what you get. Then if there isn't a problem for a few weeks, start adding things back in (although I'd still skip the bullies).

[roseylovestosho]

Originally Posted by Ellie May

They should have bloodwork "at least" once yearly and preferably twice when they reach about age 6. However, that is really pushing it. Really they should have it 1-2 times yearly at this age too. My dogs gets yearly bloodwork and usually a U/A. Should have been done before his neuter..

No. I doubt you have damaged him for life. And it's a bit hard to decide what they can and can't have when internet forums are full of bully stick praises. I'd discontinue the bullies, the liver treats, the peanut butter, the sweet potato treats, and anything else that is not his one and only dog food. See what you get. Then if there isn't a problem for a few weeks, start adding things back in (although I'd still skip the bullies).

Okay thank you. I will do just that. Should I wait to do his bloodwork? Can he get bloodwork done while on the metro or does that not matter? If the metro will not stop the symptoms of an obstruction I guess I can wait on the x-rays or barium like you suggested.

[Ellie May]

They are popular. Doesn't make them good though. There are a lot of things that are recommended on YT that don't come near my dogs.

Go to articles and research by licensed veterinarians when considering new chews, diets, and the like. There is a write up from Royal Canin online. They had a little write up about bully sticks written by a board certified veterinary nutritionist. This person had some very unfavorable things to say. And you can Google "bully sticks clostrium". That's a good one to look at.

[Ellie May]

Originally Posted by roseylovestosho

Okay thank you. I will do just that. Should I wait to do his bloodwork? Can he get bloodwork done while on the metro or does that not matter? If the metro will not stop the symptoms of an obstruction I guess I can wait for that...but just want to know how soon I can get the bloodwork done.

You can do it anytime.

My dog is on Metro and is getting blood drawn tomorrow if that makes you feel any better.