# My dog just ate a turkey breast carcass



## slechner (Sep 5, 2008)

My nine month old just ate a whole cooked turkey breast carcass. What should I do?


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

I'd be calling the emergency vet to see what, if anything you should do. That's a whole lot of cooked bones he ingested. Please let us know what you find out and how he does.


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## Joanne & Asia (Jul 23, 2007)

definately call a vet just to be safe. I hope all goes well.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Was there a lot of bone? I'd call the emergency vet. I definitely don't have the medical expertise to give advice here, but when Gus at a chicken leg bone, the vet had us give him some bread to help pad the potential splinters. Given that there's probably more bone involved here, I'd definitely be in touch with a vet.


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## Bob-N-Tash (Feb 24, 2008)

Not good... a lot depends on whether he swallowed bones whole or did he break and splinter them. I'd be calling a vet. 

Meanwhile, I hope your baby is okay.


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## Pointgold (Jun 6, 2007)

Call the vet. Bones are the first issue, and acute pancreatitis the second.


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## Dreammom (Jan 14, 2009)

My Sibe did this 2 Christmases ago, he was fine. There is a tip I read on a Husky forum. Feed Vaseline sandwiches, (spread vaseline on slices of bread) it will help coat the bones so they are easier to pass. By all means call your Vet, but if the dog seems ok right now, it could probably wait until morning. The vaseline will cause the poop to be really shiny, but that's no big deal.

good luck,

Julie


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

I would talk to the vet before offering anything. Like PG said with that amount ingested, it's not only the bones but also the possibility of pancreatitis.


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## Heidi36oh (Feb 27, 2007)

I would call the vet first before giving anything. Please keep us updated!


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

This is a genuine question, not a rhetorical one: is there really a significant danger of pancreatitis from turkey meat? I thought it was fat that triggered that, and I didn't think a turkey breast would have that much. Or is there more fat in a carcass than I think?


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## slechner (Sep 5, 2008)

*my dog just ate a turkey breast carcass*

Thank you all for the advice. I did call the vet and he said just to keep an eye on him. As long as he didn't choke on the bone, which he didn't he thinks the stomach acids are strong enough to break them down. I am sitting here with tears in my eyes because of the worry. My old dog just died last February, I couldn't bare to have something happy to our new guy. He is almost nine months old.


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## Pointgold (Jun 6, 2007)

tippykayak said:


> This is a genuine question, not a rhetorical one: is there really a significant danger of pancreatitis from turkey meat? I thought it was fat that triggered that, and I didn't think a turkey breast would have that much. Or is there more fat in a carcass than I think?


THere can be, particularly if there is skin. And this is a young dog.


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## Bender (Dec 30, 2008)

I don't think there's enough fat on a turkey carcass to cause pancreatitis unless the dog is predisposed to it for some reason - I used to feed raw turkey frames all the time, back with all the meat, skin and fat and breastbone. Some were huge and apart from gas they had no issues at all.

Expect some dry, hard poops over the next day or two, or white chalky loose stools depending on how he is - you may want to feed some extra veggies when you're clear to feed him again to help things along. If you have slippery elm they'd be a good idea.

Lana


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## Jo Ellen (Feb 25, 2007)

I think the fat concern comes from basting, doesn't it? Turkey meat by itself is not high in fat.

Slechner, don't cry  Your pup is most likely going to be just fine and you'll never see a hint of those bones ever again. 

Make sure you give us an update in the morning or tomorrow sometime.


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## slechner (Sep 5, 2008)

*my dog just ate a turkey breast carcass*

There was no skin because we had just eaten all the meat and put the roast pan on the counter. It was mostly the bone and not a big turkey breast. Oh well, please keep your fingers crossed. This guy sure gets into everything although I will admit in this case, it is my fault.


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## Jo Ellen (Feb 25, 2007)

Bender said:


> I don't think there's enough fat on a turkey carcass to cause pancreatitis unless the dog is predisposed to it for some reason - I used to feed raw turkey frames all the time, back with all the meat, skin and fat and breastbone. Some were huge and apart from gas they had no issues at all.
> 
> Expect some dry, hard poops over the next day or two, or white chalky loose stools depending on how he is - you may want to feed some extra veggies when you're clear to feed him again to help things along. If you have slippery elm they'd be a good idea.


Thanks, Bender. That was reassuring.


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## Pointgold (Jun 6, 2007)

Turkey skin, and dark meat, are high enough in fat to cause pancreatitis in dogs - it's why there are are so many cases of acute pancreatitis seen at Thanksgiving. True, some dogs are more predisposed than others, but I wouldn't want to risk assuming that any dog isn't.


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## tannernoodle (Mar 19, 2008)

Eek! My last golden did this but he was an adult. He got the poops really bad.


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## BeauShel (May 20, 2007)

Hope he will be ok. Things the pups get into, just surprise me. Please let us know how he is doing tomorrow.


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## AmbersDad (Dec 25, 2007)

PG, Just for my own information, what are the signs of pancreatitis? Not that I plan on ever seeing it but if by chance something were to occur I'd like to have a clue what to look for. Thanks!


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## Pointgold (Jun 6, 2007)

AmbersDad said:


> PG, Just for my own information, what are the signs of pancreatitis? Not that I plan on ever seeing it but if by chance something were to occur I'd like to have a clue what to look for. Thanks!


Acute pancreatitis symptoms can include distended, painful abdomen, loss of appetite, "hunching" up, vomiting, diarrhea, dehydration, and yellow "greasy" or foamy stool. 

In clinic, we saw pancreatitis in dogs most frequently after holidays (it is often called "Thanksgiving pancreatitis"), dogs who got into garbage, and dogs who ate suet from backyard birdfeeders.


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## lgnutah (Feb 26, 2007)

When Brooks was 5 months, he got the leftover carcass (and I mean basically just the boney remainders with small scraps of attached meat) out of the trash and apparently ate the whole thing.
I can't remember how much afterwards, but he vomitted up a big wad of bone mash. I think it was a full day later. No other problems.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Pointgold said:


> THere can be, particularly if there is skin. And this is a young dog.


That makes sense, particularly if the humans cut off all the white meat and the carcass that's left is skin, fat, and bone.


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## slechner (Sep 5, 2008)

*my dog just ate a turkey breast carcass*

Good news, we are now two days after the turkey carcass incident and Boomer is fine. I have learned my lesson about leaving dangerous things within his reach and am very grateful he is ok. Thank you for everyone who gave advice to me.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

Hooray for Boomer!


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## Penny & Maggie's Mom (Oct 4, 2007)

Really good news. I was worried about him.


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## NuttinButGoldens (Jan 10, 2009)

I take it Turkey is bad for dogs?



Penny & Maggie's Mom said:


> I would talk to the vet before offering anything. Like PG said with that amount ingested, it's not only the bones but also the possibility of pancreatitis.


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## LOVEisGOLDEN (Jan 4, 2008)

good to hear he is fine! 

I lost my childhood dog (a dalmatian named Billy) to a turkey carcass, he bled to death over night.


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## tippykayak (Oct 27, 2008)

NuttinButGoldens said:


> I take it Turkey is bad for dogs?


In reasonable quantities, the meat is lean, nutritious, and healthy. Cooked bones, particularly cooked poultry bones, can splinter and injure a dog's digestive tract. That was the biggest worry.

The other worry is that there might have been a lot of skin and therefore fat on the carcass, and too much fat all at once can trigger pancreatitis, an inflammation of the pancreas, which can be dangerous for dogs.

Fortunately, Boomer seems to have dodged both bullets.


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## JohnTIZ (Jan 9, 2009)

Goldens have "good stuff in the garbage" radar. We found out the hard way back when Maggie was a pup and raided the garbage after we had KFC (you know what that means). Long story short, that crisis passed but we quickly invested in a non-raidable garbage receptacle. As Maggie grew older-bigger she learned how to defeat that and get to anything resting near the top so we made sure any time "good stuff" when in the garbage, it was transferred to the outside bin right away. I'm guessing every golden owner goes through this garbage emergency once and it is something I would hope all first-time golden owners are appraised of in their "puppy kits" from breeders.


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