Lily swallowed a piece of string!

Lily jumped on my bed at 8am this morning and woke me up with a (literally) 13 INCH LONG piece of string (like a thin cotton string) hanging out of her mouth!!
I thought it was just in her mouth so I pulled, and she made a choking noise so I stopped straight away and freaked out - I called the vet immediately and they told me to come in ASAP, so I got dressed and got the carry cage out, but when I went to put her in it, she no longer had the string sticking out of her mouth... and I live in a really small place, and she was with me nearly the whole time, so she hadn't spat it out...
I was at the vet surgery by 8.30, and he said that it was more of a "monitor it and see" sort of thing. He had a feel around and looked down in her mouth and stuff and could see no trace of it... he said she's probably just swallowed it completely. He gave her a shot to help her digest it (or something, I don't know) and said that I had to monitor her eating and pooping. If she kept eating and pooping then it was a good sign. So far I've gotten nothing but good signs so fingers crossed. He said to call him straight away (at the vets down the road from me they have a vet to take phone calls 24 hours, even though they're only open 7am till 7pm) if I saw any blood in her feces, or if she started vomiting or stopped acting normally, and nothing's happened yet.
A few days ago I put the electric blanket on my bed for winter and the tie on it was starting to fray at the end, I think she must have gotten the end of it and just kept pulling...
Anyway... I really hope it's nothing to be worried about...
Just looking for lots of for Lily!
She's also getting her tooth pulled out next week, it chipped and left the nerve exposed... my poor baby is costing me the earth...!

Oh my goodness, you are in for a scary couple of days! Here's hoping she passes it OK.

You did exactly the right thing by taking Lily to the vet.

Sending pass the string vibes to Lily.

Please keep us updated.

How scary! We'll all keep our thoughts and prayers coming for Lily. Please keep us up-to-date on how she's doing.

Good vibes for poor Lily

Originally Posted by Tobi

...She's also getting her tooth pulled out next week...

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Since you mentioned the dental work.....

Please have a read here and share that information with your dentist. It may be only one tooth, but it is surgery - and that is serious business for any cat.

Originally Posted by BLAISE

Since you mentioned the dental work.....

Please have a read here and share that information with your dentist. It may be only one tooth, but it is surgery - and that is serious business for any cat.

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Oh my GOSH, just when I was freaked out enough already!!
I hate asking vets these sorts of questions... I feel like I'm telling them how to do their job! But what I'll do is print it off and take it in, and just tell them that I'm paranoid and want to make sure my baby will be okay!! Thanks for that!

Lily has only done one poop but she's a one-poop-a-day cat, (she doesn't eat wet food or anything) and to me it looked like an ordinary cat poop, so definitely a good sign.
She gets furballs a lot, and I'm worried that I'll mistake her coughing one up with her choking on the string... Could be an expensive mistake either way... Expensive in terms of prolonging getting her to the vet because I think it's nothing, or expensive in terms of the phenomenal vet costs if it IS nothing! Obviously I'd rather be safe than sorry, though.
In the two years or so that I've had Memphis, he hasn't had to go to the vet once, other than to get neutered, and for a checkup. I knew Lily was going to be high maintenance... it's in her personality

I'll keep everyone updated... poor Lily, every time she jumps on my lap I have to check to make sure everything's okay
Thanks for everyone's support again, it's really appreciated

I just looked at Lily's picture in your siggy...
what a beautiful girl.

My two sweeties just had their teeth cleaned.
It is one of the best things we can do for our kitties, to prolong their lives.
The more information you have, the better, because you can then make informed decisions about your cat's care.

My vet always does a blood panel before the surgery to be sure their kidneys, liver and other organs are functioning OK.
It is a bit of an ordeal for cats and their caregivers and where I live, it is very expensive but...
it is one of the best investments you can make in your kitties health.

Poo more pretty Lily.

Get some organic catnip and start giving her small pinches to eat. This will aid in her passing the string.

Never, pull string, thread or ribbon hanging out of your cat. Always contact the vet straightaway. If the string is cotton it is hopeful her stomach acids and enzymes will break it down and she won't get into problems. Organic catnip, canned pumpkin (if available) is a good source of fiber for her. Also long-bladed grass that doesn't have pesticides on it will work as well.

Good luck-

Oh no!!! I pray she will be just fine.

I hope she will be ok. One time Coco was Couhing like crazy and I thought it was her Asthma then she threw up. There was 5 Rubber Bands in it. I was scared and we called the Vet. They said watch her and we did. I also yeslled at my Husband for leaving the on the Counter. Now they get put in the drawer. They were big rubber bands too. That happened about two years ok. Then last Christmas my Sister got my Cats Toys one had stuff in the middle. Coco starts Coughing and throwing up. It was the middle part of the toy she had ate the whole thing. It came up whole. Now we do not buy those kinds of toys. She was ok.

Originally Posted by Tobi

Oh my GOSH, just when I was freaked out enough already!!
I hate asking vets these sorts of questions... I feel like I'm telling them how to do their job! But what I'll do is print it off and take it in, and just tell them that I'm paranoid and want to make sure my baby will be okay!! Thanks for that!

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Oh my...I would never want to do that!
As xocats said, though,

The more information you have, the better, because you can then make informed decisions about your cat's care.

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I couldn't agree more with that!

I also think that a good Vet will respect you for doing something like that...I would perhaps turn it around and say, IF a Vet respects you for doing something like that, he/she MUST be a good Vet. Any Vet who might be intimidated by an obviously interested/concerned/"educated" client, I think, will be unsure of their own abilities...and, not someone I would want caring for my furkids.

:vi bes:

I can relate, Tobi, about hesitating to ask the vet questions. So many questions popped in my head when my cat Pooch went to the vet because he had trouble urinating.

Sending tons of for Lily.

Not much of an update for Lily. I did get a letter in the mail today saying that my pet insurance was now activated so at least money isn't a worry anymore. I only have to pay 20% of the bills, insurance covers the rest.

If the string is cotton it is hopeful her stomach acids and enzymes will break it down and she won't get into problems.

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That's exactly what I thought.

Organic catnip, canned pumpkin (if available) is a good source of fiber for her. Also long-bladed grass that doesn't have pesticides on it will work as well.

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I can't find organic catnip (I don't know where to look!) and she won't eat pumpkin or grass. She's picky, she eats her dry food and nothing else.

She just did a big poo then. Nothing out of the ordinary. And she's eating like an absolute pig (as usual!)

Thanks for everyone's support, it's really appreciated

Cleo was a taster of things and I took him to the vet twice because he was throwing up. I would find all sorts of stuff in his throw up. Then he swallowed a string and we took him for an Xray and there it was. It passed through to his poo. He doesn't do it anymore.

One time I found paper in his poo.

She will be fine.

Originally Posted by CC12

Cleo was a taster of things and I took him to the vet twice because he was throwing up. I would find all sorts of stuff in his throw up. Then he swallowed a string and we took him for an Xray and there it was. It passed through to his poo. He doesn't do it anymore.

One time I found paper in his poo.

She will be fine.

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That makes me feel a lot better.
Tomorrow's my first day back at work since she did it.
It hasn't passed yet but now I'm confident it'll be fine.