why eat the non-edible?

Re: why eat the non-edible?

Lorna McHardy — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 18:57:37 GMT

[quote user="Chris Geddes"]

On seeing the title to this thread, I thought finally I might get an answer to something that makes me wonder: Why do people eat at McDonalds?

[/quote]

Their chips are good, thin, and slightly crisp, and not greasy, and if you get them without salt, they're absolutely lovely.

The burgers, on the other hand.... taste sort of compulsive initially and half an hour later

Have you seen Supersize Me?

Re: why eat the non-edible?

Chris Geddes — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 18:43:00 GMT

On seeing the title to this thread, I thought finally I might get an answer to something that makes me wonder: Why do people eat at McDonalds?

Re: why eat the non-edible?

Hannah Wynne Richards — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 13:51:30 GMT

I think Richard (the VS involved ) had probs persuading others in the practice (who were out on farm calls at the time ) that it wasn't a wind-up-rad taken of dog lying on top of knife

Wynne

Re: why eat the non-edible?

Lorna McHardy — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 12:58:01 GMT

[quote user="Hannah Wynne Richards"]

The dog made an uneventful recovery and the case made the VDS newsletter-15/16 years ago

[/quote]

I remember that one! Incredible.

Re: why eat the non-edible?

Hannah Wynne Richards — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 10:17:49 GMT

Not mine-but a case that happened to a neighbouring practice-they were the good guys A dog had been to and fro a few times to it's own practice-no diagnosis for it's regurgitation It came to this area on holiday, and was taken to my neighbours-where a veterinary surgeon palpated something odd in the neck It was radiographed and it had 1/2 swallowed a carving knife-blade 1st-it was wedged in the cervical oesophagus GA and it was removed very gingerly-I'm glad I wasn't the one doing that The dog made an uneventful recovery and the case made the VDS newsletter-15/16 years ago

Wynne

Re: why eat the non-edible?

Mark Hedberg — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 22:54:23 GMT

[quote user="Lorna McHardy"]

I'm sure we all have a long list of odd things removed from dog's insides. I think my best one might be the 12 year old spaniel whose owners had gone on holiday, leaving friends to look after him. During the two weeks, he - presumably as some sort of protest since he'd never done this before - decided to eat a mouthful of gravel drive every time they took him out. They brought him in when he started vomiting. At explap, we removed what I can only describe as a small shrubbery of leafed branches and twigs, along with, if I remember correctly, 427 stones. Never palpated anything like it before or since.

[/quote]

Something similar was in my 4th year at uni...the dog had what could only be described as bladder ROCKS, not stones. It was basically a distended bladder full of what felt like (and later looked like) coarse rocks. The professor had great fun getting the students to palpate - you could see them go up with a look of concentration, start feeling, and then get a sudden look of just shock...

Re: why eat the non-edible?

Utlendigur — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 22:22:32 GMT

I wonder whether some of it is a throwback to the differences between wild canids and felines, given that most canine species hunt as a pack with a tendency for competition in feeding - so tend to bolt down large amounts of food quickly - and felines which tend to be solitary. Dogs are more inclined to just swallow it in case it's edible, especially if an owner is attempting to "steal" the lovely morsel of carrier bag or underpants.

I had one day a few years ago when I did three enterotomies in one day - one gut biopsy, one retriever with a stone, and a GSD with a pair of underpants. Both the retriever and the GSD were back in having enterotomies again within 10days having swallowed further FBs (another stone and a teat towel respectively).

Does anyone remember the puppy that swallowed a kitchen knife? http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/1136558.stm Long time ago but definitely not the sort of radiograph you want to see - especially on New Years eve!

Re: why eat the non-edible?

Lorna McHardy — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 21:54:08 GMT

Dogs are natural scavengers, cats are not. Mouthing, chewing, and picking up pretty much everything is not abnormal in a dog but I wouldn't expect a cat to do it - the only FB you're at all likely to get in a cat is a needle and thread or similar which it's been playing with and even that's rare. They're more likely to swallow it if there's something tasty on it (I'll bet your teaspoon was of that ilk), or if they're particularly bouncy, hyper sort of dogs especially if they're bored (labradors and boxers for instance appear to be over-represented) - or if it simply smells particularly enticing to the dog (various bits of intimate laundry being quite common).

Then there was the labrador with the pair of tights, the miniature poodle with its third baby's dummy, the boxer that ate three mobile phones and followed them up with the muzzle and the kennel the owner tried to use to stop him (well, he didn't actually eat his kennel, he just chewed it to bits), the boxer with the 12 pub butter tubs, and innumerable bits of any number of chewed toys...

They exhibited a selection of FB removed at Bristol vet school on an open day years and years ago, when I was a student. I was very impressed, especially with the gear stick and the meter-long bit of heavy chain link. The former made me laugh (well, it wasn't my car), and I still can't imagine what possessed the dog to eat the latter.