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My husband and I are new puppy owners- this is our first dog together, and we're working through what it means to be puppy parents!

Tuesday, September 14, 2010

No pictures today...

You'll thank me in a minute.

Kirby's favorite treats are bully sticks. He only is allowed to have them in the living room, and only when we're home. We always toss them when they get to be about 4 inches long, so he won't swallow one on accident (or on purpose!)He was happily munching away on a new stick, laying at our feet while we chatted about our day, and suddenly I hear this... I don't even know... sad gulping sound? I had never heard a sound like this from a dog before. It was definitely sad, and I don't know what the other part of the sound was.

I looked down and asked, "Where's his bully stick?" Stan and I search the floor, and Stan suggests maybe he took it outside... (as if we wouldn't have noticed him picking it up... but hope is hope, right?) so we go out and look. No such luck. Kirby then starts coughing and ... wretching I guess is the right word. I was already on the phone with the vet. They told us to wait it out, watch for diarreha or vomiting. I was skeptical. This thing was over 6 inches long! He wasn't quite half done with the foot long stick. If anything could block his intestines, this definitely could. On the other hand, besides the coughing and occasional wretch, Kirby was acting totally normal, happy, and playful.

I didn't know what to do, so I had Stan call back. They said to bring him in if we were that worried, but unless he exhibited any of the specific symptoms he would probably be okay.

While I was waiting to hear what happened, Kirby started wretching again. I turned around in time to see all 6+ inches of the bully stick come up, along with all of the other contents of his stomach... and they were bright red. I, of course, began to panic. I started looking a little closer at the pile Kirby made, while he recovered. The red wasn't blood. Kirby had eaten a cherry, pit and all. We haven't had cherries in this house... ever? No wait, once. We had cherries here once, back in July(pre-Kirby). I'm pretty sure this wasn't a July cherry, so who knows where he got that. There was also a feather in the mix, along with pieces of treats.

Kirby recovered quickly, and once again we were on the phone. The receptionist told us just to watch him. He'll probably be sore for a few days, but if we notice any outstanding lethargy, or a refusal to eat, bring him in.

Refusal to eat? Kirby? No. Once he got the bully stick up and out, he was ready to go again. He was running, jumping, and just a ball of energy.... so we took him to the dog park, where he played and played, without a care in the world. It was a little too dark for photos. Next time though! :)

We're currently feeling pretty lucky that this went so well. Needless to say, Kirby will not be recieving any more bully sticks. Nylabones will have to be enough!

7 comments:

  1. I'm glad everything is ok. It is good he recovered quickly too. And no vet bills. Even better.

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  2. Yikes! That's so scary. We have found we even have to keep an eye on the Nylabones.
    Hope he doesn't have any more trouble. I had to laugh at the "feather" part. They seriously will eat anything, won't they!

    Emma Rose and the Duchess

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  3. I eat everything too, just ask Mom. But I've never eaten my whole bully stick. Wow, Kirby, you are awesome!

    PS. Mom says she's glad Kirby didn't have any major problems other than scaring his Mom and Dad.

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  4. Oh dear, I'm glad Kirby is alright at last! That's really scary! Nothing can really scare a puppy, LOL!!!

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  5. Wow, Scary indeed! But bully for you Kirby, vomiting up that thing. Mom told me what a bully stick was made of and I still love them...but I am a very delicate eater believe it or not.
    I love Christmas time when the cats are pooping package ribbon!

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  6. Hi,
    For the Vintage photos I used this link, it's free. Mywebface http://home.mywebface.com/fxApp/
    Kirby is just getting more handsome every day!
    Ryker's mom

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  7. Wow! Kirby! What a stinker. Been there, and done that. If Simba didn't have allergies, I still wouldn't give him bully sticks after a similar accident we had. I am glad that he threw up the cherry pit - because that is actually very harmful to dogs. I would say that him swallowing the bully stick is a God-sent because if he wouldn't of done that, the cherry pit would have gone straight throw his body and who knows what would of happened!
    You guys did the right thing. I've had to stick my hand down Simba's throat to grab a peice of a bully stick before...he couldn't breathe! After that, I said no way Jose! LOL. I hope you guys have better luck with them than we did.

    Paige & Simba

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