Foreign Body Obstruction

Foreign Body Obstruction (Object stuck somewhere in the GI tract)

• Dogs and cats often eat strange things and when these objects cannot pass through the intestines safely they need to be surgically removed.
• The most common surgical foreign bodies are: corn cobs, sticks, underwear, cloth, string, bones, and rocks.
• Symptoms of a GI foreign body obstruction include vomiting and diarrhea for several days and severe lethargy.  Most patients with a an FBO, cannot even hold down water.
• Diagnosis of an FBO is usually determined by abdominal x-rays, plus or minus a barium study, and in some cases, abdominal ultrasound.

In the photos below, you can that this Chocolate Lab ingested 5 golf balls that had to be surgically removed. Labrador Retrievers are notorious for ingesting foreign bodies.