My dog ate glass! Some dogs have a habit of gobbling up anything that even resembles food. If you drop something on the ground, your dog will gleefully scoop it up without much hesitation.
Most of the time, that habit of your pet dog may be annoying and inconvenient, but that’s about it. That’s no longer the case if your dog ate something like a shattered piece of glass.
Find out what you should do if your dog ate glass by continuing with the rest of this article.
What You Must Do if Your Dog Ate Glass
If your dog ate glass inspect your dog’s mouth for any cuts or bleeding. Then, present them with foods that can envelop the glass as it passes through their digestive tract. Search for the glass in your dog’s bowel movements as well. If they have bloody diarrhea, vomiting, or lethargy, or they don’t pass the glass, take it to the vet.
Do These If Your Pet Dog Ate Glass
While washing the dishes in your kitchen sink, you may accidentally drop a glass causing it to shatter after hitting the floor.
The shards of glass are now everywhere and your kitchen floor has turned into a hazardous landscape.
Ordinarily, sweeping up some broken glass is not a big deal. Unfortunately, things may take a turn for the worse if your dog is in the kitchen during that time.
Out of curiosity, your dog may sniff the broken glass and give it a taste. Now, you have to worry about the piece of glass currently working its way through your dog’s body.
There are immediate measures you can take that will help protect your pet. These measures include checking your dog’s mouth, giving them food, and closely monitoring their condition.
What You Should You Look for in Your Dog’s Mouth if You Think They Ate Glass
You need to confirm that your dog did indeed eat glass. To do that, inspect their mouth.
The appearance of cuts or bleeding near your dog’s mouth should give you a good idea of what happened.
Be careful when conducting this inspection. Your dog may not allow you to touch their mouth because the cuts still hurt.
Do not force their mouth open if they are displaying any signs of aggressiveness. They may bite you out of instinct because they are feeling threatened.
Take your canine pal to the veterinarian if they have cuts near their mouth. The risk of infection is high when it comes to those cuts so seeking immediate treatment is necessary.
If you’re not certain that your dog ate glass, you can feed them instead.
What to Give Your Dog After It Eats Glass
The idea behind feeding your dog after they ate glass is simple. Since the glass is now in their digestive tract, you need to prevent it from doing any real damage.
You want to encapsulate the shard of glass in some food so it won’t scratch any of your pet’s internal organs. Mushy food is ideal for that purpose.
Give your dog some white rice or bread if you need to encapsulate the piece of glass inside their body.
The ideal food to offer your pet in this particular scenario is plain canned pumpkin.
Plain canned pumpkins can regulate your dog’s bowel movements and help them pass the shard of glass faster. It’s capable of doing that due to its high fiber content.
Just remember to feed your pet plain canned pumpkin. According to the American Kennel Club, the alternatives that contain additives can irritate your pet’s stomach instead of helping protect it.
What to Take Note of While Monitoring My Dog’s Condition
Now that you’ve given your dog some food that will hopefully keep the glass from doing damage, you can start monitoring them.
Doing it won’t be pleasant, but you will have to closely examine your dog’s poop. Look for anything shiny in the poop because it will likely be the piece of glass that your dog ate.
Continue monitoring the canine’s poop for the next two days. If you don’t notice any glass in your pet’s poop after two days, you must take them to the veterinarian.
Watch closely for symptoms that your pet may display during this time.
The number one symptom you should keenly watch out for is blood in their poop. The presence of blood confirms that glass is in their body and you need to do something about it as soon as possible.
Go to the veterinarian immediately after you notice your dog’s bloody stool.
Other symptoms you have to be wary of include loss of appetite, vomiting, and/or lethargy. You should also be concerned if your pet looks to be in a general sense of discomfort.
Err on the side of caution by taking them to the veterinarian for a closer inspection and potential treatment.
Those symptoms could be caused by the glass clogging up your canine’s digestive tract. If something like that happens, your dog may possibly need surgery.
Read about what to do if your dog ate jalapeno.
Frequently Asked Questions About What You Must Do if Your Dog Ate Glass
Should You Induce Vomiting if Your Dog Ate Glass?
Inducing vomiting if your dog ate a piece of glass is a bad idea. The glass shard may cause more damage as it moves through your dog’s digestive system with more pressure behind it.
Will a Dog Spit Out a Piece of Glass?
No matter how voracious your dog is, it won’t eat something that hurts them. If your dog feels pain from biting the glass, it will spit it out.
Conclusion On My Dog Ate Glass
If your dog ate glass do the following:
- Check your dog’s mouth for cuts and bleeding
- Present your dog with food to envelop the glass
- Check for glass in your dogs bowel movement
- Watch out for signs of bloody diarrhea, vomiting, or lethargy
- Consult a vet