[Dailydrool] Rock eating dog

[Noah Goslowah]

Sylvie,
   
  Thanks for your considerable effort in replying to us regarding the rock-eating Snoopy.  Nancy, I think we should get that insurance ASAP for him....The rescue will talk about all the other options you have suggested.  He is a beautiful and sweet dog.
   
  Many thanks,
  Janice

Sylvie McGee <sylviemcgee at comcast.net> wrote:
        st1\:*{behavior:url(#default#ieooui) }                HI, Janice and Nancy,
   
  This is a post I wrote to another list about having a rock-eater. I know I’ve sent one or two to the DD, but I can’t pull up anything except recent posts on the archives, so this one will have to do. Sorry, I’m on grant deadline today, so you’re both getting “recycled” info. If you have any specific questions that I haven’t addressed here, drop me a line and I’ll respond tonight or tomorrow...
   
  I thought I would write to you, since I 
have Surprise the Rock-Eating Basset. She has had surgery four times, and 
has had at least three other rock-passing incidents that I am aware of, 
probably more.

So, I do have a couple of pieces of advice....

1. Get her insured. Now! At www.petcareinsurance.com, you will find an 
accidental injury policy that is very inexpensive - Their Quick Care policy 
specifically covers surgery for "ingested objects". It's about $10/ month, and 
they pay up to $2,000 for surgery for rocks, socks, and other items that 
have to be removed surgically - your only cost is $50 deductible per 
surgery. They covered my girl Surprise after she had already had two 
surgeries, and they didn't blink an eye at covering her next two surgeries - 
a total cost of $3,500 that they reimbursed, and although I was convinced 
they would cancel me after the 2nd surgery, they never have. I figure I can 
cover her for life for what I would pay for one more surgery. Don't wait for 
her 2nd surgery - at the rate she's going, she's going to need another one, 
so don't delay. There's a two-day wait period for the insurance to be 
effective.
   
  Go fill out the application for insurance, and then come back and read the rest of this. I’m really not kidding.

2. Take this very seriously. There are only so many times your vet can go 
back in and remove objects. Each surgery carries a real risk - not only the 
immediate risk of surgery and anesthesia, but the long-term risk of 
adhesions. A relative of my girl Surprise ate a large number of rocks, had 
surgery to remove them, and a year later developed adhesions from the 
original rock surgery, his intestine got looped under an adhesion, and he 
ended up losing five feet of his intestine. He will be on a home-cooked diet 
for the rest of his life because of the damage to his digestive system.

3. Put her on concrete or concrete block. She's a proven rock eater, so you clearly cannot trust her not to keep eating her way  towards the ground. It's not just rocks that can damage the intestines -  even without harmful preservative chemicals, wood does splinter and break up and can lead to intestinal perforation or blockage.


  Until you can contain her, block her access to the yard unless you are standing there watching her. Put a muzzle on her if you must, (a cage muzzle is best for long-term wear) but don’t trust that entirely. Surprise’s last rock-eating surgery was the result of her getting the muzzle off during a 20 minute phone call I was on with my mom, and eating a BIG rock. Thank god she was insured at that point – see point number 1 above and go buy her insurance right now...
  
I built Surprise a 40 X 40 foot fenced concrete block patio. It's a pain in the 
butt, because *all five* of my dogs now have to wait until I open the gate 
to go out into the fully fenced 1/3 acre yard to play - but I cannot take 
the risk of further rock eating by Surprise, so she cannot have free access 
to the yard.

My co-owner has her sister, who also has a taste for rocks. She had a 
different solution - her dogs have access only to a gravel yard. She went 
down several feet, laid landscape cloth, then screened dirt, then sand, then 
pea-gravel, which will pass through as long as they don't ingest huge 
amounts at one time. 
  
Sorry to be the voice of doom - but I cannot tell you what it's like to wait 
out a fourth surgery, not knowing if your beloved bitch will pull through 
one more time. I've been very lucky, because Surprise has lived and 
thrived - but only because I opted to install industrial-strength 
protection!

RE: Causation - I've heard the minerals stuff, and I feed a high quality 
diet and supplement with minerals and vitamins. A lot of this is what people 
have heard about human pica. Not sure if it works the same way with dogs...
   
  I talked with one Bloodhound breeder who had a 
number of her rock-eating dogs tested for irritable bowel syndrome (she had 
punch biopsies of the bowel done while they were under anesthesia for rocks 
and/or spays) and she says that she found 100% correlation between 
rock-eating and irritable bowel syndrome. I haven't personally seen any 
indication of irritable bowel problems in my girl, so I'm not convinced on 
that and I'm not going to put her under to do the biopsy when she's had so 
many abdominal surgeries already....That's all I've heard on causation so 
far...

Good luck....Feel free to write back if you have any questions.

Sylvie McGee
  HeavenScent Bassets and
Cascadia Basset Rescue
sylviemcgee at comcast.net
   
   




Janice Henry Colvin
  gardener, dog rescuer, spiritual director, mother, grandmother and friend

       
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