My multiple sclerosis brain and self came close to killing my poor Annie dog! If nothing else I sure caused her to undo suffering and unrest. Ok maybe kill is an over statement but it was one of the potentials on the plate.
Corn cobs are not good for dogs to eat. They get stuck in their intestinal tracks. If this happens surgery is required to remove the blockage or if caught early enough they go into the stomach. The obvious solution is to try and get the animal to up chuck before said corn cob reaches no mans land. Some times nothing happens and the dog lucks out but do you gamble on this?
KRP picked up some corn for dinner. We had baked potato and corn on the cob. I was heading to the kitchen to scrape the cob and remnants of the potato into the garbage. I had to Pee. Now days when I gotta go – I gotta go. I set the plate down and zipped into the bathroom. I came out and forgot about the plate. Annie ate the corn cob. I messed up. Rule around here is never leave foods out on the counter because we have never been able to break Annie’s bad habit of snitching food off the counter top. She is a sneaky lab -she is a lab!
Annie ate the whole dang corn cob and when she snitches off the counter chewing is the last thing her little lab mind things of – she is on a mission scarf the food – do not get caught! KRP noticed there were only two cobs in the trash can not three – the stuff was on. We called the vet and yeah bring Annie in lets get her to upchuck ugh! Not so happy Annie loaded into car, trip out to vet, and now decisions.
One of the vets was fairly new to the practice and did an xray for herself (yeah that means we not have to pay for it woo hoo). She shows us the evil corn cob now close to exiting the stomach area. Info make the dog throw up and if the cob does not make it back out she can choke. Don’t make the dog throw up and since it is a very large chunk of cob chances are this one will get stuck in the lower track. Ugh!
Thank goodness Annie got it up and out! Another xray on our dime to show this to us. I would love to tell you that I hung in there and helped make the decisions but when we hit the should she stay over nite to make sure all the cob pieces were out – a bunch of money there to stay over-nite – or just bring her home and hope for the best – I went out to the car – cause you know it was my fault! I was done I was stressed out so I flaked.
I went back in after chilling a few in the car and KRP had made the decision to bring Annie home and keep an eye or two on her. Since the the second xray did not show any large chunk and if we spent the bucks on the overnite and she did need further intervention . …
I spent all day feeling bad because I am the one that never leaves dangerous items that the dogs can get into out, it is my job and I failed miserably.
Annie has been doing great in the #1 and #2 department – and so I think we have dodged the corn cob bullet.
Next time I shall just piss my pants.
Oh no….poor Annie and poor you. Don’t go beating yourself up for too long, dogs will be dogs…hence they will eat just about anything, and most often do. I am glad things turned out okay.
Yeah I know just that I never leave stuff out that is dangerous cause I know Annie does this LOL she is a sneaky piglet.
Goodness Jan, Remember this – you didn’t do anything wrong. Annie did. Just because you can’t break her of the habit doesn’t mean it’s all your fault. It’s such a small thing.
I had no idea corn cobs could be so bad for dogs. Once when we had my niece and nephew staying here for the Summer we had corn on the cob for dinner. After dinner I had my 12 y.o. nephew take the scraps out to the compost pile. Well, he didn’t close the fence gate and our dog later went out and had herself a feast! Later we heard her in the kitchen up-chucking. Whoa! That was one big pile of corn cobs!!!
Didn’t even faze the dog.
This same dog ate or chewed on our dining table legs, our counter footstool, all the zucchini of three plants, and all the short garden fences. She finally died of internal bleeding that we think was caused by consuming all those chemicals in the treated wood of those fences.
Damn dogs.
Yeah they are not good for dogs at all. We have had this happen before and did no it happened and nothing bad happened. We have also had friends dogs that died from it so it is a toss up. Since Annie is older now and the piece was big . …
Good thing we went in because it was not chewed up and well on its way to the ugh oh land.
My upset with self was that I am very cautious and the had to P now now now and then my short attention span mind caused the result. Not to mention the money for the vet – yikes!
Jan
Ditto what Karen and Webster said about beating yourself up.
I’ve always been amazed that kids make it through all the dangers of being curious children and grow up. Add dogs to the list.
Here’s to hurling! Yay Annie!
Labs especially Annie love to eat ha!
All is well now so I am not as upset for my part in the snafu.
Jan
i’m so glad annie came out of this on the other side…. and IT’S NOT YOUR FAULT! dogs will be dogs…. i know what you mean though… we try to be so diligent and protective of our furkids but sometimes there are slips… for all of us… i would be beating myself up too… but don’t listen to me… STOP BEATING YOURSELF UP!
my beloved Maggie … God i miss that dog… a few years ago she helped herself to a reese’s peanut butter cup… and she had seizures afterwards from the chocolate… i was devastated…
you see Maggie was an angel of a soul… she never did anything she wasn’t supposed… really…she didn’t… she was amazing… i could put a steak on the floor and she wouldn’t touch it until i told her she could…. incredible mind that dog had… and because of this i never thought she would take the candy…but she did… and she almost died… and i cried and cried and spent the last 3 years of her life doing what i could to make it up to her!!
God i miss that dog… oh, wait, i think i said that already
Yeah ok all I stopped beating myself up now! Catfish is like that too he will not eat anything I put down or drop if I say leave it. That said I had to pull some plants up in the back yard area because last year he started thinking that they were yummy. They made him sick.
This year he has found one he loves so I guess I will plant it some where else although it is not on the poison for dogs list. I am not taking any chances.
My BuddyBoxer is the dog I miss ever so much. He was my pal we went everywhere together. He was well trained and a sweet heart unless you threatened one of us. He is the reason while I was upstairs bathing and someone kicked the front door down that they did not get further in – at least that is what the police thought.
and yeah I miss him
Jan
I sounds like a lot. I’m happy in the end things worked out. I’ve spent the majority of my life afraid of dogs. I know silly, but I ‘m working on it!
Nicole
Not silly at all lots of people are. Now my little Catfish would win over your heart. Not that you would appreciate his social self LOL but he is real calm and sweet.
Annie is a bull in a china shop at times.
Jan
I agree with what Karen said. I did not know about corn cobs and dogs. I guess we live and learn??
I was unaware of it till our dog class instructor said one dog was not there because – — not a happy ending story.
I have had dogs eat cobs and nothing happened but I am not willing to take the chance.
Jan
Not sure this will make you feel loads better, but your distress taught me something. I had no idea about the corn cob/dog issue! And I have a dog who’ll take food off the table and counter when our backs our turned, so no peeing for me when we’re eating corn on the cob.
Glad someone got something good out of her scarfing the corn cob! Some dos are sneakier than others. I think next time I shall take the plate to the bathroom with me – never again if I can help it will this happen again.
thank you for commenting – cracking up reading your post about the rattling door and the cat!
Jan
I am painfully familiar with your pain. For all their svelte outline, narrow dogs are as bad as any when it comes to eating stuff they shouldn’t have. And there’s no place they can’t reach! For some dogs, if there’s food, they just don’t have the neurological wiring to not eat it. Even Ernie, who was practically perfect in every other respect, had the adventure with the bag of Halloween candy. And the adventure with the bottle of Tylenol. Guilt. Pain. $$$.
I’m glad everybody’s OK.
Oh man Tylenol that is a big guilt getter and very scary and yeah expensive.
i was hoping that Annie would associate the unpleasantness at the vet with the corn cob but I suspect if she located another she would scarf it down!
Wish I could reach all the places the dogs manage to get into 🙂 skinny dogs, webbed feet dogs, and short legged dogs LOL they all seem to manage to find stuff to eat – especially really stinky gross stuff.