Help! Bear ate a non-used Tampon

Jager's Mom

Jager's Mom

New member
Bear ate a non-used tampon! I called the vet, they said not much to do right now...unless he starts throwing up (then I need to bring him in immediately). I gave him 2 slices of bread (as she suggested) to help bind and pass the tampon (and string).

After loosing 2 of my dogs in 6 months...the last thing I can deal with is loosing the love of my life (Bear).

Is there anything else you all would recommend doing?

Has this happened to anyone else?

I'm worried about the string... and worried since the tampon was un-used, it will swell up huge in his system.

BTW, he did NOT eat the wrapper, nor the plastic applicator.

Your thoughts and advice are welcome.
 
ElvisTheNewf

ElvisTheNewf

Active member
Yikes!! I'd be terrified it would expand as well. I find it odd the vet said there's nothing to do but wait. Is there another emergency vet in the area you could call? Maybe there isn't anything to do but wait, but hearing that from another professional may help ease your mind a bit.
 
ElvisTheNewf

ElvisTheNewf

Active member
Oh, but maybe he didn't swallow it whole? If he chewed it into pieces then the expanding wouldn't be that bad I guess.
 
Jager's Mom

Jager's Mom

New member
I think he swallowed it whole...but not sure. Only saying that because only found one tiny piece of it on the floor...didn't appear to be shredded.

Unfortunately, we are in the middle of no-where...and that vet is 45 minutes away to begin with.

I am calling 2 other vets to see what they say.
 
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new_2_newf

new_2_newf

New member
the bread will help push it through his system. the only other thing I could think of was pumpkin, but given the fact it might be whole, I really wouldn't give anything else unless a vet recommended it.

1) he doesn't need it...he's got enough going on in there right now. I can't imagine what passing a tampon through your gut feels like, but I bet it's not super fun.
2) dogs pass weird stuff all the time...I bet you'll see it in a day or two.
3) I'm not sure if something with moisture would make matters worse or not, which is why I'd stick with the vet recommendaion.

Really, there isn't much they can do for him at this point unless he is in distress....they can hope it passes without issue, or they could bring him in for x-rays to see where it is and possibly open him up and remove it, but I don't imagine they'd go for that unless he was in trouble. Vomiting would be a sign that he's got an obstruction, which means he needs the vet to determine what's really happening.

Fingers crossed for a tampon poo tomorrow morning!
 
pecanpiepatti

pecanpiepatti

New member
Thor ate a used coffee bag (like a tea bag - single serving); we panicked about the caffeine (not a lot since it was already steeped) and took him to the vet who said the same thing - wouldn't induce vomiting due to concern about what string would do on the way back up (and this was after speaking to poison control). Sold us some case of food that was supposed to help push it thru - never saw it again (and I looked!) but never had any effects either.
 
nowhavethreebears

nowhavethreebears

New member
I did a little research. Cotton is, unfortunately a somewhat dangerous thing for them to eat due to the fact you mentioned....it is very absorbant and swells in the intestinal tract.
If he starts acting lethargic, uncomfortable, or sick have a plan. Take him in right away.
If he is okay overnight I would still take him in first thing tomorrow so they can get an X-ray and assess his intestinal status...
Hoping sweet Bear is okay. Let us know what the other vets suggest...
 
Jager's Mom

Jager's Mom

New member
Talked with two more vets (one from the same practice, the other from a different practice). They both agreed, at this point (3hrs later) it is just a waiting and watching game.

One vet did say that he would have induced vomiting if it was within the first hour.

So far, nothing unusual going on. But I'm not good at this "watch n wait" thing. My mind and fears are getting the best of me.

Also, thank you to all so far that have posted...
 
L

lmfoltyn

New member
Jake ate a whole bath sponge once. It does the same swells when wet. It came through just fine. Hopefully yours will be the same too...best of luck...
 
Brittany

Brittany

New member
I have no advice. Sorry : ( Just wanted to let you know we will keep paws and fingers crossed that it passes without an issue. I would be going crazy playing the wait and see game.
 
Jager's Mom

Jager's Mom

New member
Well, he has pooped 3 times since the "incident" (which was just about 12 hours ago)...but haven't seen anything yet.

I slept with him last night (okay, I didn't really sleep)...he slept well until about 4 am, then he became a little restless...but I'm not sure if that is normal for him (to start waking at 4am).

Fed him about 30 minutes ago, now he is back to sleeping and content.

I'll keep you posted.
 
new_2_newf

new_2_newf

New member
pooping is a good sign. It's still early for him to pass the culprit, and if it has swollen up a bit, it might be slow going getting it to move along.

Eating is a GREAT sign. all the more in there to encourage his intestines to keep wiggling away doing their thing and pass that on out of there.
 
padkins

padkins

New member
I had a Yorkie that had to have surgery to remove several (best count is over 30) hairbands (ponytail holders) from her intestines. She became really lethargic, wouldn't eat, wouldn't drink, wouldn't move, then she started throwing up. It was very obvious that something was wrong. She had to have part of her colon removed due to damage, but she live six years after that and continued to eat things that she shouldn't (although not in bulk like that incident). I would just watch for normal drinking, eating, pooping. Keeping my fingers crossed for you and Bear.
 
Acadia

Acadia

New member
Come on Bear, poop it out already so your momma can put her mind at ease! And the rest of us!
 
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