Dori ate part of a plastic bag

I was wrapping presents and such this morning and then we left the house for a few hours. I made sure to pick up anything that Dori would get into as I normally do before I leave the house, but I missed a small little plastic bag of treats on the table. When I came home I found the empty bag with a hole about the size of a quarter in it. She ate the treats and along with it the piece of bag I assume because I can't find the rest of the bag anywhere.

I called her vets office and they said they don't want me to bring her in yet because all they could do is induce vomiting and they would rather not do that because it could get lodged somewhere coming up. She told me the signs of trouble: vomiting, diarhea, stomach tenderness, and not eating. She said the symptoms could occur between now and 5 days.

Is there anything I can do to help make sure she passes the plastic safely? I am worried with the holiday I would have trouble getting her seen if she does have trouble.

Just another reminder of how careful we need to be about leaving stuff laying around.

Poor Tanya, you've really been having such a stressful couple of weeks! I'm sure Dori will be perfectly ok. You're doing such an excellent job of monitoring her so carefully, and you'll have her to the Vet at the first sign of any illness or discomfort! You're so right, we have to be so very vigilant to ensure our babies don't get into anything potentially harmful!

Tanya- you can give her one of the following (but not all)

A teaspoon of slightly warmed mineral oil
A teaspoon of canned pumpkin
A small handful of organic catnip
A small bowl of cooked and mashed green beans with butter
A small bowl of cooked carrots
A small bowl of cooked yams
Laxatone

Any one of these will help her (hopefully) pass the obstruction quickly.

Thanks Steph. Your right, it has been a tough couple of weeks!

I am really worried right now... We have plans on Christmas Day that will keep us away for the entire afternoon and evening, do I need to be concerned about her having problems while I am gone? If so I will stay home of course. I have never had this happen. We don't have ribbon or string around for this very reason. No tinsil or icecicles on the tree as well.... I think what upsets me the most is that I made a mental note when I set them on the table not to leave them there because she literally gobbled up the treats I gave her. I knew she would tear open the bag, but I forgot all about it.

Originally Posted by hissy

Tanya- you can give her one of the following (but not all)

A teaspoon of slightly warmed mineral oil
A teaspoon of canned pumpkin
A small handful of organic catnip
A small bowl of cooked and mashed green beans with butter
A small bowl of cooked carrots
A small bowl of cooked yams
Laxatone

Any one of these will help her (hopefully) pass the obstruction quickly.

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Thanks MA, will they have the same affect if I mix them in with a bit of her wet food? Or maybe the mineral oil in with a small bit of tuna? I won't be able to get her to eat any of those items alone....

You can mix it- also try the catnip if you have any loose laying around, if not, cut open a small catnip toy-

Originally Posted by hissy

You can mix it- also try the catnip if you have any loose laying around, if not, cut open a small catnip toy-

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I do have catnip. I bought her some loose catnip for her stocking. I will give some to her now.

Ack...hopefully she will pass this just fine. I am so sorry to read this

Please keep us posted, I know we will all be watching for any news.

Prayer that Dori passes the plastic

If she's an only kitty then you may have it easier b/c you can keep an eye on what's coming out. As gross as it is you may want to use your scooper to 'disect' her stool to see if it's passed

Dori hasn't shown any signs of trouble since ingesting the plastic. She is playing, eating, and using the litter box normally. I feel much better about it now. The vet said she isn't in the clear until 5 days pass, so we still have until tomorrow afternoon.

I have a plastic eater in my home as well....tigger likes to eat the red trash bag handles. I've had to buy covered trashbins and keep all other bags in a closet. Tigger has been very fortunate in that he usually vomits the remains of the bag back up...but I'm not taking chances with him. I do hope all goes well for Dori.

Katie

Dexter munches on plastic bags. I try to keep an eye on him but sometimes he grabs one before I get them all put away.
I'm sending positive vibes that sweet Dori will pass the plastic with no problems.

Originally Posted by xocats

I'm sending positive vibes that sweet Dori will pass the plastic with no problems.

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Ditto!!!!

I've been following this, and keeping my fingers crossed that Dori is okay.

She still seems perfectly normal. I just cleaned out her box and there is also still no "evidence" of her passing the plastic. I wonder if the plastic could be somewhere else... Maybe she brought the treats to another area of the house to eat them after she got them out of the bag and the plastic is there. I am not sure, but as long as she is ok I think that's all that matters.

Or perhaps Brody was the culprit? I'm glad to hear that Dori got past the "critical time period".

I am just glad she's fine!

Originally Posted by jcat

Or perhaps Brody was the culprit? I'm glad to hear that Dori got past the "critical time period".

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Nope, she can't blame this one on Brody. He was stuck in his crate while we were out.

Today is Wednesday and the 5th day. The vet said if she made it past this day without trouble she is in the clear

Thanks for all of the good thoughts!

Way to go sweet Dori.