Prairie dog swallowed foreign object

[LeilaNami]

My prairie dog took a small chunk of rubber out of my phone case and ate it before I could grab her. I'm assuming she chewed it up before swallowing. I'm worried about obstruction. Is there anything I can do or do I just have to wait and see. Will she be okay?

[CritterMom]

If she chewed it up it should be okay - physical obstruction is what you need to worry about and little pieces won't do that. I believe my squirrel has consumed his weight in the silicone buttons off of TV remotes over the years.

Watch for food going in and poop coming out - as long as that happens - all is well. Vomiting with no poops is an issue.

[LeilaNami]

Thanks CritterMom!

[TubeDriver]

You might give a *tiny* amount (drop or two) of mineral oil orally just to help lube/coat his stomachs contents. It might help smooth things out but a tiny piece of soft rubber should be passed fairly easily!

[Sottinger]

I wonder if it’s possible to insure wildlife? I know I have emergency health insurance on my two dogs after I lost the sweet boy before to cancer. We have a brother and sister Malinois and they were no more than five months old when she found a furniture tack in my shop and swallowed it. Had my son not witnessed I can only imagine... furniture tacks had not been used since my Papa had an upholstery business there which closed in 1994 and this was just last year. We thought he was mistaken but an X-ray showed he was not. It had to be hiding in a crack somewhere. Anyway... $2200 later to have that booger removed. Within two weeks I received a check from the insurance company for all but my $250 deductible. If your pet is prone to chewing and eating things you worry about it might be something you want to look into? I pay $29/mo. per dog. The only thing it won’t cover is preventative medications and regular vaccines or checkups.