Intestinal Obstruction - How long to watch for?

    • Gold Top Dog

    Intestinal Obstruction - How long to watch for?

    Molly had a pig skin roll ( not ear) last night. I always take it away from her when it gets small and throw the rest away. 5 inches long to start with. Well last night I check it and she had a piece she was trying to get off the rest of the chew about 1 or 1 and 1/2 inch. This was really soft. I told her that I was going to the bathroom and then I was going to take the rest away. How long does it take a person to pee. Not long (me anyway). Well I came out and the whole thing was gone. That was 6.30 last night (central time) I am thinking she swallowed about 3 inches whole, but that was kind of soft but not really soft. She pooped right after the swallowing of the pig skin. Then she pooped this morning A-OK . Ate once today + treats ( these are good ones like california natural healthy bars) Pooped again like she does again A-OK. But she has to eat tonight and poop again tonight. Mollys schedule.
     
    Anyway to stop rattling on. My question is how long do you watch a dog eating food, poop, ect when they have eaten something that may cause a problem (intestinal obstructional) She is acting normal also.
     
       Spay/Neuter Pets   Animal Abuse
    • Gold Top Dog
    typically 24 - 48 hours -- and it totally depends on the dog and the 'thing' and whether it's a partial or full obstruction.
     
    You watch for nausea and vomiting FIRST and often a cessation of pooping (because either they will be 'empty' from the obstruction on out or it takes a while to get that way). 
     
    Often they will be completely 'normal' UNTIL the body 'fills up' from the obstruction back to the stomach -- THEN the food can't exit from the stomach and the stomach acid keeps pouring in to try to 'digest' what's there so it will leave. 
     
    A couple of years ago we had a pup who had been abused (her abuser broke her back with a broom and she couldn't walk, which was part of my 'worry').  She was completely paranoid about food (she'd been abused in more ways than one *sigh*) and she would literally 'panic' while you were trying to fix her food.  And take something away?  hoooooooo boy.
     
    I gave her a bully stick -- and when I saw it was getting too 'short' I leaned over to take it and she SWALLOWED it right in front of me.  About 5" of one. 
     
    I worried about that thing for days -- had her x-rayed, etc. (this dog couldn't 'stand' to poop, nor could she exercise to move things along .... sorry if that's too much information ...) but eventually it did just plain move along and by the time it exited, it was pretty well 'digested'. 
     
    That's the one good thing about what your dog took -- it is a 'natural' thing and the body will TRY to digest it if at all possible.
    • Gold Top Dog
    Thanks for the reply calliecritturs. Molly did her poop this evening and it looked ok. Some was a type of yellow ( The pig roll I hope) but firm. She is a hard dog to feed as she likes no kibble for more than a month unless I put something on it. I scrambled and egg and put of her kibble tonight ( Innova) so she would eat it. The food is all gone. So far so good.
     
    Again thanks for the reply.
    • Gold Top Dog
    This is a reply when I asked the same question on another board after I thought one of mine had swallowed a "Cuz Ball Foot":
     
    "If there's a blockage somewhere, the dog will show obvious signs of stomach cramping (back hunched up and occassional stretching of the body in an effort to help their tummy feel better). The dog will not be able to have a bowel movement but may try in order to move the blockage out (nothing will come out, obviously). The dog will also begin to vomit. It may begin as undigested food as the food is not moving through the GI tract and therefore does not get broken down. They may drink a lot of water and will also vomit up the water. Once all of the food in their system has been vomitted, they'll begin to vomit a brown mucousy fluid that has somewhat of a pungent odor--almost like the smell of feces. By this time, the dog will be showing very obvious signs of discomfort. They may act lethargic as if they aren't feeling well. They will probably run a fever as well."

    My vet said it could take weeks too - because things can sit in the stomach for quite a while.  Probably not a concern in your case because it will eventually break down unlike a rubber foot.
     
    Hopefully she's okay.
    • Gold Top Dog
    I agree with the cramping. My dog has had bowel blockages before and she's ALWAYS tender in the belly region if things aren't moving right. Even when there's no actual obstruction, she'll be tender if there's anything out of the ordinary going on. You can tell if your dog is tender in the belly by pressing gently on it when they're standing up. You can feel them really tense their muscles in that area if they're a bit sore from your touch.

    Sounds like everything is fine, but in future, I've used paraffin in the past with a fair amount of success. Sometimes all they need is a little lubrication. A dose of about 10mLs of paraffin oil is usually enough. It's tasteless, so they don't mind taking it. I use a syringe and either poke it in her mouth and let her lick it up, or squirt it on her food.