Tess, the Trash-Eating Dog

I've had Tess, my little mixed terrier dog, for nearly nine years. If you've met her, you know that she's a pretty well behaved little dog and, while she sometimes might be a bit sassy, she rarely does some of the evil things that I hear about other dogs doing. Sure, she's done the rare rotten thing, like getting in the trash, but we've never really had a problem...until last week.

Early last week, as best as I can guess, Tess was mad at me about something and decided to retaliate by getting into the bathroom trash. She didn't just drag trash throughout the house, but instead decided to eat a lot of things that no animal should ever eat.

I was a little pissed, especially when I realized she'd vomited on my area rug, but didn't really worry, until I came home Friday and found that, over the past day and a half, she'd vomited at least 12 times. So, I called the vet and made a flying trip out to El Reno. They hospitalized her for some tests and soon determined that she needed emergency surgery to clear an intestinal obstruction.

Luckily, she came through the surgery with flying colors and, in fact, didn't even have to have her intestines or her stomach cut -- they were able to manually work the blockage out the back end. She was hospitalized until Monday evening, at which point I finally was able to bring her home. Now, nearly a week later, she's faring relatively well and, while still very obviously sore, wants to play and be her normal self. I'm so happy and thankful!

I can't even begin to explain the emotions I experienced when I learned she needed surgery. I was terrified and felt horribly guilty. Luckily, everything turned out just fine.

So, what's the lesson in all of this? Even if your dog has only gotten into the trash a time or two in his or her life, make sure that the trash is inaccessible to ALL pets. Tess never has been the type to pull stunts like this and I seriously doubt that she will repeat this performance, but I've moved my trash and removed any temptation from her little paws. I'm not taking any chances, because, had I not kept an eye on her and taken her to the vet when I did, I could have, very easily, lost my little dog.