The dogs of my life have brought me great joy, endless love, and moments of intense heartache.
Our dogs can also be the source of great surprise, which was the case yesterday evening when Sox decided to eat a couple of screws.
Screws. You heard right. Small, about 1 cm, screws that I had removed from a massage table that I was repairing. They looked a little like this:
Sox has never shown any interest in eating inedible things. In fact, with his inflammatory bowel disease, it is often more of a struggle to get him to eat consistently. But last night Sox was super hungry. He finally finished his breakfast in the very late afternoon and wanted more food, so I fed him his dinner and filled up his snacking dish. A short time later as I was cooking my dinner, I heard a crunching sound like he was eating biscuits. I looked up just in time to a screw lapped up off the floor, briefly chewed, and swallowed.
Oh my God. I counted the screws, two were missing. Time to turn off the stove and get to the After Hours Vet. Luckily, he had just eaten a lot of food and so there was a buffer in his system because the best way to get the screws out of his body was for them to go out the way they came in. After dosing Sox with an emetic, the vet staff watched as he threw everything up (turkey, kibble, pumpkin, rolled oats and two screws). The screws were cleaned up and brought out to me in the waiting room in a biohazard bag – in perfect, reusable, condition.
I was able to take Sox home; he had a rough night because he was still nauseous and wanted outside to eat grass. Of course, we had the inevitable flare of his IBD.
This incident is a good reminder and lesson:
- Accidents happen, even to pet professionals
- Our dogs are full of surprises
- Thank heavens for accessible, after-hours, veterinary care
- Keep small items out of reach of your dog; they are a little like babies and toddlers and explore with their mouths
- Always have money in a savings account or available balance on a credit card because payment is expected at the time the services are rendered
- Pet insurance buffers the blow of unexpected healthcare costs; Sox’s visit came to just under $400 (I’ll pay a $175 excess). I filed my claim first thing this morning.
I have a subdued Sox today. I’d love to say he was ashamed at his behaviour, but of course we know that dogs live in the moment and rarely make a connection between cause and effect. It’s my job to be extra diligent to avoid any future cases of ‘ingestion of a foreign body.’
Kathleen Crisley, Fear-Free certified professional and specialist in dog massage, rehabilitation and canine fitness, The Balanced Dog, Christchurch, New Zealand
DoggyMom.com 