What to do if dog eats string?

[Dan Roberts]

Our West Highland Terrier appears to have eaten the string off the Sunday
joint of beef. It was one of those net/mesh type pieces of string which hold
a piece of meat together. Is this something that needs a vet's attention
immediately? Is it safe to "wait and see" until tomorrow morning? Being
Sunday evening here it's not easy to find a vet but if there's an immediate
risk obviously it's not worth waiting. Thanks for your help,

Dan

[buglady]

"Dan Roberts" <dan...@BLOCKvirgin.net> wrote in message
news:echMb.1112$JL4....@newsfep4-glfd.server.ntli.net...

.........How big is it? Was it like a mesh bag which covered the whole
roast? In these cases you have to decide pretty much immediately, if you're
going to make the dog vomit. I don't know if it would come back up now or
not. Personally if this thing was sizeable I think I'd call the vet and get
an opinion as you're dealing with a fairly small dog. I hope it makes it
out OK.

buglady
take out the dog before replying

[Dan Roberts]

Thanks for the reply, it was the kind of string "bag" you're talking about,
but it had been cut up and was a pretty small one. Didn't realise she'd
eaten it straight away and read you should only induce vomiting within the
first half hour. She seems ok at the moment but we'll phone the vets first
thing tomorrow and at the first sign of anything she'll take a trip down
there (or maybe even if she doesn't show any signs). Thanks again,

Dan

"buglady" <bugl...@bigfootdog.com> wrote in message
news:lNiMb.4007$i4....@newsread1.news.atl.earthlink.net...

[WalterNY]

Let your vet know of the situation and see what they suggest. No one
on the internet is going to be able to make the best suggestion. For
now all you can do is monitor the dog.

With that said, for me, the key is to make sure the string passes in
the dogs feces. I would watch him carefully for vomiting, or any signs
of bowel discomfort. But the key is to SEE that string pass even if
that means taking a rubber glove and pulling apart the feces for the
next few days to see if the string is in there, do it. If it does not
pass it could remain in the system causing problems later on. I would
say that in a week's time if you do not see the string, you need to go
to the vet if you haven't taken my first suggestion, although know
that strings will not usually show up easily on x-rays. I have seen
dogs swallow parts of tennis balls that passed months later, but in
the mean time caused partial obstructions which caused weight loss in
the animal. Odds are good it will pass naturally, but odds are not a
guarantee. I have had dogs eat carpeting, rope and everything else
that one might think is trouble only to find it eventually came out
the other end. Sometimes not. Know that you might find a scenario
where as the dog is pooping, he seems to be struggling a bit to relive
himself. Look at his anus. You might see a piece of feces attached to
the string, which might still be partially in him holding on to the
dangling piece of feces. If you feel comfortable very gently pull on
it. If it comes out easily, remove it. Normally it will. If it resists
you pulling, take you dog to the vet for an emergency visit and let
them pull it out. Just know that this happens quite a bit and most
all of the time all turns out well. But outside of what I said you
must call your vet and ask him for his suggestion.