THANK YOU!!!!!!! This is just wonderful. All of the advise about cotton balls was right on the ball. After writing the list, the answering service at my vet's had a vet call me and I brought Smokey in. After an X-ray and some examination it turns out that smokey swallowed the bulb whole!!! That's right--it is one of the those small vanity mirror bulbs and he just swallowed it in tact (you can actually see it on the X-Ray-- I have saved it and when I make a webpage I am going to scan it in!). Anyway, long story short, the vet said to give him soft foods and cotton balls soaked in cream--just in case there are a few splinters.
For future reference to anyone else, the vet also said that it is very, very important to go in right away if a dog swallows glass. The reason is the shards can cause internal bleeding and serious damage to the stomach and esophogus. Cotton balls soaked in cream or milk as well as soft, solid foods (like soaked bread) can stave off the impact and should be given immediately (which I did based on the list advise). But if the bulb is only half crunched out surgery may be necesarry as the pieces will be too large to pass without injury. If the bulb is mostly intact or thoroughly crunched up it can be passed but the dog must be watched. This was quite the heart attack. I never imagined a dog would eat a lightbulb!! Why? Well thank goodness it was whole so that surgery wasn't necessary. Smokey is uncomfortable (but more from eating the cotton it seems than from the bulb). And it seems like everything will be okay but I am to watch his stools for the next few days and then take him back. If it doesn't pass, then we need surgery to remove it but it looks to be a reasonable size and shape that it will pass (what luck he chose that lightbulb to eat and not a standard 60W bell-shaped bulb). >From the bottom of my heart thank you to everyone who responded to me. It really made a big difference both to know what to do, to hear that this has happened before, and to just keep me from panicking while I waited for the vet to call back!! Love to all, Radha and a very guilty Smokey Princeton, NJ __________________________________________________ Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Platinum - Watch CBS' NCAA March Madness, live on your desktop! http://platinum.yahoo.com
