Did you know that your socks can be deadly for your miniature dog? What to do if your dog ate socks What to do if your puppy swallowed a sock.

Dogs of any size, including decorative ones, love to play with their owners' socks. This prank, in the opinion of most dog owners, is absolutely safe. That is, the sock, of course, can suffer. But not a dog. Breeders even advise the owners of the purchased puppy to give socks as toys.

But veterinarians strongly disagree with this approach to entertaining dogs. The fact is that every year they have to perform a huge number of surgical operations to save dogs that have swallowed socks and other items of clothing of their owners.

And if you think that a miniature dog is not capable of swallowing a sock, then you are very mistaken. Very capable indeed. Especially if the sock is for children. There are documented cases of entire socks being removed from small dogs such as toy poodles and French bulldogs.
A dog that swallows an item of clothing needs immediate veterinary attention. Often surgical. If this assistance is not provided in time, the animal will die.

Unfortunately, owners do not immediately notice that their pet’s “toy” is missing. And when they notice this, it often doesn’t even occur to them that the “toy” was swallowed.

Symptoms that your dog has swallowed a sock or other piece of clothing include:
- nausea and vomiting;
- loss of appetite;
- lethargy.

The maximum time after an item of clothing is ingested that a dog can be saved is 48 hours. The situation is further aggravated by the fact that tissue in a dog’s stomach and intestines cannot be detected using x-rays.

So, be very careful and let your little dogs play with your socks and other small items of clothing.

Everyone knows that dogs, especially at a young age, are very curious. They will definitely try to chew on everything that is out of place. While our dog was growing up, he spoiled so many things. The corners of the blanket were chewed, a bunch of children's toys had to be thrown away, shoes, chair legs. But it was the socks that suffered the most!

Fortunately, our habit of eating socks did not lead to fatal consequences, and everything went more or less smoothly. But this doesn't always happen. Often this strange love for socks (no matter whether clean or already worn) in four-legged pets leads to emergency surgery.

Not long ago, a Pekingese puppy named Bagel came to our clinic with signs of poisoning. Vomiting, refusal to eat, depression, painful stomach, signs of dehydration due to incessant vomiting. The owners did not deny that the animal could have picked up something on the street, and therefore we made a preliminary diagnosis: a foreign body in the gastrointestinal tract (we assumed a chicken bone). But the X-ray showed a stomach filled with something, but definitely not bones (possibly a plastic bag). An emergency operation was performed and FIVE socks of different colors and sizes were removed from the stomach. According to the owner, there were socks that had disappeared from the laundry basket more than two weeks ago. That is, for some time the puppy freely feasted on “fragrant delicacies” from the basket with dirty laundry, some came out naturally, some remained lying at the bottom of the stomach, and until the stomach was completely filled with socks, symptoms did not appear outwardly .

After the operation, the bagel was put on a strict diet, the owners promised to hide the socks away.

By the way, in the United States several years ago they performed surgery on a Great Dane. Experts removed 43 and a half pairs of socks from the dog’s stomach (that is, 87 pieces!!!). This case surprised even the most experienced doctors, and as one of the veterinarians who performed the operation said, such an incident with socks was the most unusual in the entire history of the hospital.

What to do if you notice that your dog has eaten a sock

1. If this happened before your eyes, then first of all you need to induce vomiting in the dog. To do this, you can give the animal a strong solution of salt or sprinkle the same salt on the root of the tongue. You can induce vomiting by simply pouring a large amount of water (from half a liter to three liters, depending on the size of the animal). Naturally, the animal will not voluntarily drink such an amount of water. You will have to draw water into a syringe without a needle (it is more convenient to use a large syringe) and pour the liquid into the animal’s mouth, holding it tightly and making sure that the dog does not choke. If you do everything correctly, the hosiery will soon come out along with the vomit.

2. If some time has passed after the sock disappeared or it did not come out with vomit, it is better to wait until the item of clothing comes out naturally. To speed up the process, laxatives can be given. The simplest is Vaseline oil, at the rate of 1 ml per 1 kg of animal weight. After giving a laxative, carefully inspect the piles left by your pet on the ground to make sure that the eaten sock came out.

If the sock does not come out of your pet within one or two days, be sure to contact your veterinarian. The dog may require surgery.

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Unfortunately, some animals, most often, are attracted to inedible objects like a magnet, and the owner does not always have time to keep track of his frisky pet. If you notice that a sock is disappearing from your four-legged friend’s mouth, but you haven’t had time to take your item away, the first thing to do is try to induce vomiting. To do this, you can give the animal a strong solution of salt or sprinkle the same salt on the root of the tongue.

A large amount of water (from half a liter to three liters depending on the size of the animal) poured into will help achieve the desired result. Naturally, she will not want to voluntarily drink more than she needs, or consume salty liquids. You will have to draw water into a syringe without a needle (it is more convenient to use a large syringe) and pour the liquid into the animal’s mouth, holding it tightly and making sure that it does not choke. If you do everything correctly, the hosiery will soon come out along with the vomit.

It also makes sense to go to a veterinary clinic, where doctors, using special medications, will induce vomiting in the animal and remove the foreign object from it.

Sometimes inducing vomiting does not bring the desired result, or the dog swallowed the sock several hours ago, and this method is no longer useful. In this case, it is better to wait until the item of your wardrobe leaves the dog’s stomach naturally. If you wish, you can speed up the process by giving your dog a laxative. It can be vegetable oil. Just add a spoonful of oil to your animal’s usual food and wait for the result. During walks, carefully inspect the piles your pet leaves on the ground to make sure that the eaten sock has come out.

When to contact a veterinarian

For many animals, eating a sock passes without consequences, and soon the object leaves their body naturally. However, you may also encounter unexpected difficulties. A textile product can clog a dog's intestines, causing obstruction. In the most severe cases, this can be fatal.

Cotton socks are especially dangerous. This tissue is able to effectively absorb moisture and swell in the stomach, which makes it difficult for it to move through the digestive tract.

If the sock does not come out of your pet within one or two days, be sure to contact your veterinarian. The dog may require surgery, but your pet will be healthy again.

There are often situations when a four-legged friend completely unexpectedly drags personal items of his owners into his bed - socks, underwear and even shoes. It is very interesting to find out whether she should be scolded for this.

Feeling bored or sad?

The most common reason why four-legged friends take your things or shoes into their bed, or simply gnaw them in the place where they took them, is the feeling of boredom, loneliness or strong longing for the owner. Most often, this behavior develops when the dog is left alone at home for a long time and is bored, or it is unusual for it, because before the owner was always nearby. The animal begins to look for the owner’s scent and the easiest way to smell it is from shoes, underwear and other personal belongings and objects that are used most often. This is how the dog subconsciously calms itself down and gets rid of the feeling of loneliness by smelling a person.

If your four-legged friend has become simply bored (this can happen if you don’t purchase one), then by taking people’s things, he can simply occupy his free time in this way. As a rule, due to boredom, an animal not only carries a person’s things, but also begins to chew them. For this reason, it is important to start early in puppyhood to break the habit of always taking the owner's things while family members are away from home.

Another common reason why animals actively steal their owner’s things is unspent energy. Any dog ​​is an active predator; it needs to move a lot so as not to experience discomfort or... If she often remains at home alone and does not have the opportunity to play properly, then she splashes out the accumulated strength only by “hunting” the owner’s shoes or personal belongings, and then deservedly gnaws on her prey or takes it to her personal corner in as a trophy.

How to stop a dog from picking up things

To prevent your pet from spoiling things or having to look for them around the apartment later, you need to not raise this issue. Before leaving your dog alone at home for a long time, give him a good walk with the opportunity to run, play and throw out pent-up energy. Then, left alone, she will most likely sleep soundly and regain strength. You should also always leave at least a little space for the animal to move around in the house - do not lock the dog in a small room. This does not put pressure on the animal’s psyche and does not make it feel disadvantaged and vulnerable, because because of this, many dogs also chew the owner’s shoes or socks - they simply relieve stress in this way.

If you notice that your dog is anxious and afraid to be left alone at home, you can try leaving the TV or radio on quietly. They create the effect of a person’s presence in the house and interrupt the silence that frightens the dog. Just make sure that the wires and antennas are not within the reach of the animal - it can chew them.

As for training, you only need to scold your pet at the moment when you directly catch him trying to take your things from their usual place. If you only see the moment when your shoes or socks are already in the dog’s bed, you need to demonstratively pick them up and take them to their place.