Question:
I have two chihuahua and pomeranian mixed dogs. One is 6.5lbs the other 8.5lbs. They jumped up onto the kitchen counter and ate a good bit of fruit cake and it seems like some of the foil too. They are fine now as it just happened but I am nervous about the foil. I don't know which ate it if not both. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Would it be best to just wait and see or should I give them something high fiber like potatoe to help pad and move it along or would a stool softener be better?

Answer:
keep a close eye on them, it might just pass, but if any thing weird give vet a call, keep us updated and good luck brenda and the 5 pins.

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I have no suggestions for you unfortunately... just wanted to let you know my for safe passing of the tin foil.

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Thanks. It wasn't that much of it, maybe a 2inch by 3inch section. But they are small and it is metal....:(

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If there is a 24 hour emergency vet around, phone them. I'm guessing they're going to tell you to feed him to help bung up the foil and help pass it through. A stool softener would be a bad idea because it wouldn't bung it up, and if the foil were to get lodged (partial blockage), the stool would just go around it. Also, foil is non digestable, so the stomach acids won't break it down (which brings me back to feeding him to help pass it through).

However, in situations like this, taking advice from a forum is a bad idea. Call your vet.

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What was in the fruit cake?

Most fruit in fruit cake would probably be fine for dogs, but I know my Grandma puts raisins in hers, and raisins can be toxic to dogs. I would call the vet and just double check that the fruit and everything is safe for doggy consumption. I'm a bit paranoid, but it doesn't hurt to check!

Good luck with everything! I'm sure your dogs will be fine, especially if they arn't displaying any signs of illness, but it only takes a few minutes to call and set your mind at ease.

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I'm sure your dogs will be fine. My monsters chewed on and swallowed much of the house as puppies.. I don't know if they ever got their paws on aluminum foil, but they must have ingested everything else.

You could call your vet just to be safe, although I don't think they'll have you rush the dogs in.

Answer:
I wish I could remember who told me this so I could give credit to the right person but just before the holidays I read a tip here about keeping cotton balls and half and half in the house for emergencies like this.

It has to be a true cotton ball-not a cosmetic puff made of sythetic fibers. You want the natural cotton. For a small dog tear it into pieces and dip it into the haf and half. This was mentioned in regards to the possibility of a dog eating an ornament so I would imagine it would be a good thing for foil aswell. The cotton is supposed to wrap around the shards and help protect the dog as it passes through.

I would double check with my vet before doing anything but I did stock up on cotton balls and half and half and plan to always keep them on hand.

I probably would avoid potatoes though as they're toxic for doggies.

Answer:
Originally Posted by joeysmama
I probably would avoid potatoes though as they're toxic for doggies.

Just fyi, potato (reg and sweet) is a common ingredient in many of the higher quality hypo-allergenic dog foods. It also works well in bland diets for dogs with diarrhea (potato, rice, pasta, etc).

I won't comment on the cotton ball remedy, as I can't say if it's safe or not. I've heard about this from some "non-professionals", and I STRONGLY dissagree with it (if you don't know what you're doing, or how many to administer based on the dog's weight, it can be dangerous to the dog). I wouldn't try it with tin foil, but I heard it works well if your dog eats glass (the fibers help protect the sharp edges).

Answer:
If it helps any, my lab ate an entire LARGE bag of hersheys kisses. He did pass the foil in a nice tight ball without too much incident. We later calculated that there was nearly an ounce of foil !!!! (thas alot). Granted hes a large dog and had space to pass, but the foil intake of your pooch souns relative in size. If he/she stops eating make a vet trip.

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How are your dogs doing?

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