Meet Dexter! Dexter came in to see us lethargic, with a fever and abdominal pain. He had stolen a pork souvlaki skewer and ate it whole the week before, but only started to feel sick the day his owners brought him in.
We took X-rays which showed a loss of detail of his abdominal structures which increased our suspicion of peritonitis (when a dog’s abdominal cavity is infected or inflamed and fluid builds up) and went into surgery to search for the cause.
We found that the wooden skewer he ate the week prior had perforated through the duodenum (small intestine) and caused a severe infection (peritonitis) making him extremely sick. Peritonitis is a severe illness that can be fatal if not quickly treated.
To treat Dexter we surgically removed the skewer, closed his perforated intestine and flushed his abdomen profusely with sterile saline to get rid of as much of the infection as possible. With supportive medication and intensive care Dexter quickly rebounded back to his happy puppy self! Moral of the story: wooden sticks and skewers are very sharp and can cause GI perforation! Please be cautious when your pet is chewing on any wooden objects!