Thought she was a gonner

[Maze]

So about 2 weeks ago Maze was behaving odd when pooping. Watery, milky poops, thought she might have ate something from the kids possession but then she was throwing up her food! And I was like okay this is definitely something more than just an isolated foreign thing she ate.

Turns out she ate not 1 but two baby socks and wads of toilet paper. She was pooping her brains out. Blood alarmed me but I was hesitant to take her to vet due to the excessive price for surgery or medication or any procedure that might arise......so I did what any poor man would do, allowed her to fight it and push through.

She wasn't eating but she also wasn't pooping much, slowly the blood stopped and she worked up an appetite and now she is back to normal.

Moral of the story, if stray dogs can survive dumpster diving, my Maze is strong enough to survive two socks and toilet paper. Sometimes we are "conned" into forking over tons of money we may or may not have to solve a problem than could have solved itself with due time.

So the next time your dog ate something, don't be alarmed, her digestive system will push it through or reject it by vomiting.

 

[Rits]

I'm glad Maze is ok!!!

I'm going to disagree with your comment...you are very very lucky and that's a dangerous statement to give others. @Ddski5 or @Viemarangelrock I'm sure will give their thoughts who have been through it.

 

[Maze]

I'm glad Maze is ok!!!

I'm going to disagree with your comment...you are very very lucky and that's a dangerous statement to give others. @Ddski5 or @Viemarangelrock I'm sure will give their thoughts who have been through it.

Yes I was very lucky but I did monitor her and she was otherwise behaving normal despite her loss of appetite. Still playful still eager to see me when I come home from work. My wife was watching her while I was away. We studies her poop and noticed progression with every potty session. Her urine was healthy (looking) as well.

I know someone who took their dog to the vet and ended up paying roughly thousands of dollars and in the end of it all his dog died. I feared forking over that much money only to have my pet die.

But I know that I am lucky and she is lucky, she is okay!

 

[CRDobe]

I agree with Rits, you got very lucky. I've known too many dogs (incuding mutts) that have died from an obstruction.

 

[Tropicalbri's]

We see at least one FBO dog a week. I am not being rude but your statement of not consulting a vet is negligent and dangerous.
We have had dogs come in that have lived with an obstruction for a month with owners not aware that the dog did not pass all of what they had eaten.
That FBO that went undetected cause sepsis in the dog with a grim outlook for post anastomoses sx recovery. Anastomoses sx is intense and adhesions can develop causing further problems.

Getting them to the Vet early saves lives. If you think your dobe has eaten something and you go to the Vet immediately we can usually give apomorphine to make them throw it up while it’s still in the stomach and the cost and trauma for your dog is much less expensive and recovery is almost immediate

Insurance is the best way to keep the vet bills down and your dobe healthy.

The worst part of my job is facing owners with the news their dog did not survive because they waited too long to bring their pet in.

 

[LifeofRubie]

I forked over thousands for my dog to have surgery from which he died a couple days later. Still 100% worth it. He passed because the previous two times I told the vet there was something wrong, they dismissed me. Their overall negligence resulted in waiting too long to perform life saving surgery.

The previous two surgeries he had that cost thousands both saved his life because I got him to to the vet as soon as I knew there was an issue.

Glad she's ok.

 

[Marinegeekswife]

I'm going to second pet insurance. There are many options out there so you can find one to fit just about any budget. We use TRUPANION and it allowed us to keep our male alive with Addison's disease for another 5 years after diagnosis. We will always have insurance on pets from now on.

Use my referral link to check them out if you'd like: Recommended for a reason – Trupanion

 

[Oh Little Oji]

I, too, am very very conservative about taking my dog to the vet; and I believe folks do so way too much and waste thousands of dollars over the life of the dog. Obstructions, however, scare me based on the stories I've heard. You were brave, and yes it seems someone was smiling down on you and Maze. I don't know if you have a valid theory there on a dog being able to fight through something swallowed and a possible obstruction or not. I can just say I am exceedingly grateful that I've not yet had a Dobe that tended to eat inedible things!

I'm so glad Maze is okay!

I hear you on the dumpster diving stray and feral dogs though. I often think of this when I consider the lengths many dog owners go to to give their dogs the very best of foods.

 

[Rowledge2]

And this is why I buy health insurance for my dog. I have never had it with Amy other dag, bit knowing doberman history thought it was a good idea and it has been the best investment.
I like most would not have waited either, and I am a little over cautious as the last do I o had that acted that way and went for surgery for a blockage or perceived blockage turned out to be a pancreatic cancer tumer growing into his stomach and intestines and, needless to say there was no saving him

 

[Oh Little Oji]

With my next dog, I might make the case for health insurance. I've never yet had it.

 

[Kaiser2016]

I'm glad to hear she's ok. On one hand you took a gamble and saved thousands, so I can understand feeling victorious that she was able to pass it on her own. On the other hand, what if she hadn't made it? Thinking about such negative outcomes is probably what makes most of us feel overly cautious with our dogs. In particular because of all the time, care, training, and attention that is given to this breed. The description of her being so sick that she was "pooping her brains out" AND there was blood? That would have been where I would draw the line. I also agree with pet insurance, because there are some things in life that I just don't want to think about from a cost perspective. I hope there will be no more baby socks laying around!

 

[PhilT]

So pleased to hear Maze has recovered, I do agree with the pet insurance opinions, without our pet insurance Kings ongoing treatment would have cost a fortune adding all the tests and specialist cost without the monthly cost off his medication for the rest off his life.

 

[Maze]

I'm glad to hear she's ok. On one hand you took a gamble and saved thousands, so I can understand feeling victorious that she was able to pass it on her own. On the other hand, what if she hadn't made it? Thinking about such negative outcomes is probably what makes most of us feel overly cautious with our dogs. In particular because of all the time, care, training, and attention that is given to this breed. The description of her being so sick that she was "pooping her brains out" AND there was blood? That would have been where I would draw the line. I also agree with pet insurance, because there are some things in life that I just don't want to think about from a cost perspective. I hope there will be no more baby socks laying around!

Definitely no baby socks or opened bathroom doors. We got lucky. She's a bad bitch! (In a good way)

 

[Viemarangelrock]

So the next time your dog ate something, don't be alarmed, her digestive system will push it through or reject it by vomiting

Not the greatest statement to make when others have lost their dogs to an intestinal blockage, like myself. My boy lost his life on the operating table.
So no, I don’t agree with what you’ve said. Not always will a foreign object work it’s way through or back up. It can be life threatening.

 

[MyBuddy]

She wasn't eating but she also wasn't pooping much, slowly the blood stopped and she worked up an appetite and now she is back to normal.

Not eating and not pooping is usually a bad sign. Did I miss something? Did she ever poop out the socks? If you know she ate those and she did not poop them out I would still be concerned. And remember that dumpster diving dogs usually eat food. Not a foreign object that gets caught in the intestines.

 

[jazzies mum]

I'm glad Maze is ok. I know the dilemma about when it is time to go to the vet but agree with others that if I know that something like socks has been eaten I would take my girl in anyway. Our vet has payment options that can help in an emergency.

The only time I have been worried that Jazz had an obstruction was after she had eaten a brisket bone. She had obviously swallowed some larger chunks and she was not right. She had two huge vomits and was not eating but she was drinking. I live a very long way from a vet and, of course, this happened on a weekend! So I watched her like a hawk and inspected every poop. She did keep pooping but it had bloody mucous for a day or two. She did start eating again late on the second day and I fed her nice soft food with a little milk to ease things along and she was right on day three. BUT I spent those three days in a state of high anxiety and if it had been a weekday she would have in to that vet right from the start!

I wouldn't recommend waiting if they have definitely eaten something indigestible.

 

[JanS]

She wasn't eating but she also wasn't pooping much, slowly the blood stopped and she worked up an appetite and now she is back to normal.

I'm glad she's okay but don't let 2 weeks fool you. Sometimes the objects can just move to a different spot and cause worse problems down the road. I'd want an x-ray as a minimum to know what may or may not still be in there.

 

[Maze]

Not eating and not pooping is usually a bad sign. Did I miss something? Did she ever poop out the socks? If you know she ate those and she did not poop them out I would still be concerned. And remember that dumpster diving dogs usually eat food. Not a foreign object that gets caught in the intestines.

She threw up Socks and toilet paper. Up till today she has been doing great just like her old self. I feel she is more grateful for us (she's adopted and been with us for about 9 months) now that we attended to her with the utmost care.

 

[Maze]

I'm glad Maze is ok. I know the dilemma about when it is time to go to the vet but agree with others that if I know that something like socks has been eaten I would take my girl in anyway. Our vet has payment options that can help in an emergency.

The only time I have been worried that Jazz had an obstruction was after she had eaten a brisket bone. She had obviously swallowed some larger chunks and she was not right. She had two huge vomits and was not eating but she was drinking. I live a very long way from a vet and, of course, this happened on a weekend! So I watched her like a hawk and inspected every poop. She did keep pooping but it had bloody mucous for a day or two. She did start eating again late on the second day and I fed her nice soft food with a little milk to ease things along and she was right on day three. BUT I spent those three days in a state of high anxiety and if it had been a weekday she would have in to that vet right from the start!

I wouldn't recommend waiting if they have definitely eaten something indigestible.

That's exactly how I felt and it did happen over the weekend. Sunday morning at 5a.m. was when she regurgitated the socks and TP. Then she was on her way yo recovery back to her normal behavior. She actually learned her lesson I believe. She saw a sausage on the floor and after the first NO she walked by it and did not bother sniffing it.

 

[Lizbeli]

I pay $35 a month for pet insurance for these scenarios. You are lucky she made it out okay. I understand the dilemma us dog owners face in terms of the cost of emergency vet care- but please consider pet insurance.

I can pick up Jasper and go to an ER and not worry about the cost of emergency surgery (or even cancer treatments). In fact I already took him in twice under suspicion of bloat, thankfully I was just over reacting. Didn’t have any worry because I had pet insurance and a financing card through the vet just for him.