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!