At some point in time, even the most cautious pet parents will face a situation wherein their dog has eaten a non-food item or just something your dog wasn’t supposed to eat. No matter how gross the item might be, it is pretty natural for your dog to want to eat or taste anything they come across around them.
Be it a balloon, a ham bone, or even a living thing that’s the way of your dog to explore the world, with its MOUTH. The most basic impulses in your dog are making him or she react to the things and food around your dog. You will find the answer to what to do if my dog ate a toothpick.
But, if your dog has eaten a toothpick it is best to call up your vet immediately. Toothpicks are really dangerous for dogs. Remember, in a situation like this the first thing for you to do is call your veterinarian!!!
What is the correct thing to do if My Dog Ate a Toothpick?
There can be times when due to certain issues or situations you cannot contact your vet to seek advice from them or you cannot take your dog to the vet or there can be times when a few pet parents in situations like this consider solving the problem themselves to avoid spending money.
If you have no knowledge about treating your dogs in situations like these do not do anything yourself. Unintentionally you may tend to worsen the health of your dog, which you will not forgive yourself for later. Hence, it’s best to avoid those types of problems and do the correct thing.
After your dog has eaten a toothpick there is a list of things you can do at home but make sure you don’t sit to wait for any symptoms to be shown by your dog. Waiting for symptoms before you take your dog for a visit to the vet is not the correct step to take, since it could be too late then.
If one of the reasons why you wanted to handle the situation yourself is to avoid spending money then by waiting for symptoms you worsen the situation yourself. Why? Because waiting for too long leads to expensive surgeries since it may be too late now…
Plastic V/S Wooden toothpicks
There are toothpicks made out of wood which is most of them whereas on the other hand there are toothpicks made out of plastic. None of these two material types can be considered to be less dangerous than the other for your dog. Both wooden toothpicks and plastic toothpicks have qualities that can easily harm the good health of your dog, especially if they swallow toothpicks.
When it comes to wooden toothpicks there are good chances that your dog may have chewed on the toothpicks way before swallowing them, which is definitely good. Why? Since your dog has chewed on the wooden toothpick before he could swallow it, this action has the ability to lower the possibility for them of getting wounded internally.
The gastric acids inside your dog will find it very difficult to dissolve the toothpick. Especially when it comes to plastic toothpicks, your dog’s gastric acids are not strong enough to dissolve them.
What does this mean? This means that the entire toothpick is going to travel through their entire digestive system which easily welcomes wounds that cause internal bleeding. Hence, it is important to contact your vet as soon as you get to know that your dog just ate a toothpick.
How to help your dog in this situation?
If you want to take immediate action yourself at home we are going to tell you about the easiest and most useful things that you can do to make your dog feel better after he or she eats a toothpick. The first thing you need to do is feed them more food but only soft food items. Soft food items like what? For instance, White bread, but make sure your dog doesn’t consume too much bread.
Peanut Butter
Since raw bread isn’t going to complete the job, applying some peanut butter to it and feeding it to your dog would be the ideal solution after they swallowed the toothpick. Wrapping the stick with soft food so that it can quickly and easily pass through your dog’s intestines without causing any damage to them is the main goal. It’s as good as calling the white bread covered in peanut butter a shield.
The next step is to identify if your dog has expelled the entire toothpick well or not. We know this step isn’t completely pleasant for you but to ensure the good health of your dog this is a step you have to take. Use gloves not too thick to feel the toothpick that remains in the feces of your dog. Squeeze and Rub the pieces between your fingers to feel the toothpick.
Since for obvious reasons, the toothpick is not going to come out the same way it went in your dog’s body, you have to be very alert while looking for it. This will be worthwhile knowing there is no lingering bits in your dog’s system and I am sure is not what you were expecting when searching “dog ate toothpick” or “dog swallowed toothpick”
Sauerkraut
For those of you who do not know what sauerkraut is, pay attention because we’re telling you about it right now. Sauerkraut is raw cabbage that is cut into really thin strips and then converted into salt and fermented later.
It’s a German recipe. It is easily available in most of the supermarkets near you. Mixing this sauerkraut with beef broth is a good way to make it more appealing for your dog. But you don’t have to worry about making beef broth now since probably your dog won’t go crazy about it and be stubborn.
If you want to avoid feeding your dog too much fat like peanut butter then sauerkraut is a good alternative for it. Since too much fat is not healthy for their diet to contain, you can always consider providing your dog with 1-2 tablespoons of sauerkraut for a few days along with lots of water and observation.
How does feeding sauerkraut to your dog help? Just as we called the white bread covered in peanut butter a shield the same name can be given to sauerkraut too. Since the thin strips of cabbage can get into your dog’s body and cover the toothpick which deletes the sharp ends of the toothpick completely making it harmless. This helps in digestion.
What should you avoid doing if your dog ate a toothpick?
You might be thinking to yourself that this situation is very similar to your dog eating a popsicle stick since both objects are made out of wood. But here’s the difference, a toothpick is much smaller than a popsicle stick in size which makes a difference.
The main and only procedure at the start of the situation used is inducing vomiting after your dog has eaten any object it didn’t have to. Inducing vomiting is a step you have to completely avoid doing after your pet has eaten a toothpick. It may be a solution for other situations, but not this one.
Why can’t you induce vomiting in your dog after he eats a toothpick? There are chances that the toothpick may do damage as it comes back up through your dog’s esophagus.
The aforementioned procedures are another thing you have to avoid. These procedures are only emergency procedures; they should not be substituted with consulting your vet instead.
Conclusion
Your dogs are capable of eating anything and everything around them. You should be the more responsible one in this friendship with your furry friend and keep harmful things out of their reach. In such ways, things will get by better.
Always remember the average size of a toothpick is pretty small when it comes to a big dog and that’s why it might be easier for them to digest without problems. While on the other hand, it is absolutely difficult for small dogs to digest them. The pointy ends can cause wounds. Either way, contact your vet first!!!!