# My Dog Ate My Headphones...



## GoldenIke (Jun 28, 2018)

Sigh... 

Well, they weren't _my_ headphones. 

My brother came to visit for the weekend and hadn't realized how much Ike had grown in the last few weeks. So, he put his bag down on one of the seats that was too high for Ike to get to a few weeks ago not knowing that Ike could easily get to it now and left a pair of Apple headphones on top of the bag. 

I didn't even see the headphones at all. I just saw Ike go for the duffle bag because he always does that when my brother leaves it there. I was downstairs with him about to feed him when I saw him snatch the headphones.

I panicked and tried desperately to remove them from him but when I did this, he became VERY aggressive - and this is not the first time he's behaved like this. Ike is a sweetheart. He's a very loving puppy. He's like a little magnet. 

But when I tried to get the headphones away from him, he stiffened up and jumped backwards and away from my reach and when I got near him, he growled aggressively and tried to bite me (really bite me, not play bite me) and within seconds, the headphones were gone. He swallowed them whole. I couldn't believe it. 

I was so scared. He didn't chew them at all, he swallowed them whole. Wire, earbuds, everything. 

I took him to the vet immediately. They did an x-ray and it was right in his stomach. They said it was about 50/50 that he'd pass it but that it was definitely not a given. Ike was acting completely normal, he was eating, he had a few regular bowel movements, so we basically agreed that I'd monitor him closely for a day or two, we'd see how things went and would go from there. 

I know now that I made a big mistake on Saturday when I made this decision. I should have had the endoscopy done immediately. He still seemed fine on Sunday. He was eating, drinking, full and normal appetite but I was watching him carefully to make sure nothing seemed off. 

We went outside and he just sat down out of nowhere and started acting a little weird. Then he vomited and I knew immediately we had to go to the pet ER. 

They did another X-ray to see where the headphones were and they had started to move into his intestines which really complicated things because that meant he'd need a more invasive surgery to remove them. 

Money was no object at this point - I just told them whatever had to be done to get the headphones out of him, I would pay for it. He was still acting normal, but he was throwing up and no longer keeping food down. 

I've had him for 5 weeks. He's just over 13 weeks old. I was a complete wreck. I couldn't believe this was happening and I felt so awful and irresponsible even though I knew it was a completely honest mistake and there was nothing I could do. 

So, they told me they were going to have to operate and that he'd have to stay the night. I was totally freaked out until I got a call about 2-3 hours later saying the procedure was complete, the headphones were out, and that Ike was awake and doing great. 

Even better, they were able to push the headphones back up through the intestine into the stomach and were able to remove them from there without needing to make an additional incision in the intestine. Which is what I was REALLY upset and worried about. 

I picked him up yesterday. He's a conehead and is going to have a bit of a scar on his belly, but he's already back to his charismatic, energetic self. He's eating, holding all his food down... if not for the remnants of the surgery, you'd never even know he had it. 

But the bottom line is that he's home, he is completely fine, he's going to recover fully within 2 weeks, and he's getting all the love he can handle. 

Crisis averted. I haven't stopped thanking my lucky stars since. 

NOW.... 

Here's the issue I need to figure out how to correct. 

I am guessing because of the way he was raised in his litter, he has some sort of anxiety and possessiveness issues because when I feed him, he literally INHALES his food like he's petrified of someone taking it away from him before he finishes. 

We have the same issue with sticks outside. He picks them up and if I try to take it away from him, he gets angry. He actually bit me hard a couple of weeks ago when I tried to take one out of his mouth. 

I'm not aggressive - I try to do it calmly and lower my energy level so he doesn't feel threatened but I need to figure out how to get objects away from him that he shouldn't be eating because I absolutely cannot put either myself or him through anything like this again (nor can I afford it!) 

I've done some reading and it seems like the best thing to do is keep treats/kibble in my pocket and have something to offer him when he has something I want him to drop. 

I'm just a little concerned about the aggressive behavior. He's not learning that from me - I am always very gentle with him. But when he has something he shouldn't and doesn't want me to take it from him, he will bite me hard if I put a hand anywhere near his face to take it away. Which I understand - it's a defense mechanism - but if anyone here has been through anything similar and can offer up some advice for the best way I can correct this, I'd really appreciate it!

Also - to anyone who got through this entire post - thank you! I know it's a doozy...


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## GoldenIke (Jun 28, 2018)

Also, the sticks are just another thing I can't get him to stop. 

Every single time we go outside, he picks up sticks, chews them, and eats them. When he picks up big ones, I'm usually able to get them away from him, but the smaller ones - forget it. 

I'm not terribly concerned about it - he chews them up and it's not making him sick or anything, but I'd prefer he not do it. He pulls up grass and dirt sometimes too and just chews on it. 

It's frustrating because I want to let him sniff around and learn his surroundings, but almost every time he puts his face near the ground, he's coming up with something in his mouth and he gets pretty angry if I try to get him to go back inside because of it. 

I just don't remember my first GR snapping once in a while like this or being as defiant but I may just be misremembering.


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## nolefan (Nov 6, 2009)

Ok, all's well that ends well  I'm sorry for your scare. He's going to be ok and you've learned some very valuable lessons. He absolutely cannot have access to anything he can get in his mouth, this includes the t.v. remote, socks, pens, books, shoes, plastic bottles, trash, sunglasses, you name it. He is a danger to himself. Use the crate or tether him to you. (I've spent thousands on surgery for a blockage, I'm not judging you, it's just something you have to be supercareful about.)

Next you are going to need to teach this puppy to trade. Never go anywhere without a baggy full of treats in your pocket and keep a bowl or bag of them handy on an out of reach counter so that anytime he has something, you can trade. There is a book called "mine" https://www.amazon.com/Mine-Practical-Guide-Resource-Guarding/dp/0970562942 read it and learn that this is normal puppy behavior but it's something you have to work through. If you know there are specific things that are high value to him, the best thing you can do is avoid the opportunity for him to get them. This is something you can work through but it's a long process.

Do not bother him when he's eating, leave him alone. YOu can practice hand feeding him some of his kibble at every meal, walk by his bowl and drop in something wonderful and keep walking. 

If you're not enrolled in obedience classes yet, it's important to do this immediately. You all need a strong obedience foundation and daily on leash practice to establish your roll as the leader and help him learn confidence in you and in himself. It's also good to have a trainer who knows you both to help you work through issues. A good obedience training club is the best resource, not Petsmart. 

You are right to be extremely concerned about his guarding behavior, it's not ok and needs addressed immediately.


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## eeerrrmmm1 (Apr 15, 2018)

Oh, wow, I'm sorry you went through that! I've been terrified of a scenario like that for months. You can be the most careful puppy parent but they are fast and determined to eat everything at that age. 

Definitely teach "leave it" as soon as possible. Practice, practice, practice. Give him something safe but you know he'll love like an elk antler (but not more than the high value treat you're going to exchange it for!) and practice trading it. Try string cheese or hot dogs as the high value treats. The more you practice, the more automatic the behavior will become until you can use it with low value treats and then no treat.

I'm glad you're little guy is ok!


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## GoldenIke (Jun 28, 2018)

nolefan said:


> Ok, all's well that ends well  I'm sorry for your scare. He's going to be ok and you've learned some very valuable lessons. He absolutely cannot have access to anything he can get in his mouth, this includes the t.v. remote, socks, pens, books, shoes, plastic bottles, trash, sunglasses, you name it. He is a danger to himself. Use the crate or tether him to you. (I've spent thousands on surgery for a blockage, I'm not judging you, it's just something you have to be supercareful about.)
> 
> Next you are going to need to teach this puppy to trade. Never go anywhere without a baggy full of treats in your pocket and keep a bowl or bag of them handy on an out of reach counter so that anytime he has something, you can trade. There is a book called "mine" https://www.amazon.com/Mine-Practical-Guide-Resource-Guarding/dp/0970562942 read it and learn that this is normal puppy behavior but it's something you have to work through. If you know there are specific things that are high value to him, the best thing you can do is avoid the opportunity for him to get them. This is something you can work through but it's a long process.
> 
> ...


Thank you for the advice. I am absolutely going to look into obedience classes as soon as he's back to 100%. 

I admittedly am not consistent enough with trading. I do it as often as I can, but there are times where I just want to get him outside ASAP to avoid an accident because I know he has to go. 

It's less of a problem inside the house (except for this incident) - but a friend came by to meet him and brought him a big chew treat and when I went to just pet his head when he had it, he got defensive and growled thinking I was going to take it from him even though I never had any intention of doing so. 

I can say that since he's been home, I've never taken his food from him while he's been eating. I bring the bowl into the kitchen, fill it for him, bring it back to his crate, ask him to sit and stay until I place it down and then I let him go at it. He listens to me and sits and stays until I put it down - he's doing well with that. 

He's a sweet boy and loves to learn and is eager to please like most other golden puppies are - but there's definitely an aggressive behavior here that I need to correct. I hated feeling so helpless when he had those headphones. It was like there was nothing I could do. He just wanted to do anything to make sure I couldn't take them from him which is why he swallowed them whole. 

I've done well keeping all of the other dangerous stuff away from him. This was just a freak thing, unfortunately. 

At the end of the day, I'm just massively relieved that he is home and is going to be fine. I was a wreck all weekend long. But I know I have my work cut out for me with this one.


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## NJGoldenMom (Jan 11, 2018)

How scary for you and Ike! I am glad he is ok. Thank goodness they were able to do the less invasive surgery! Mia has gotten some dangerous things in her mouth too but luckily she is so food oriented that I can usually get her to drop the item for a treat. Sometimes if I need to act quickly, I will just drop the treats on the floor and she'll drop whatever she has to get to the treats. The thing that's the hardest is staying calm. When the puppy senses you really want the object, it makes him or her want it more. Of course that's easier said than done when you are in a panic about your pup having a dangerous item. I have also been lucky that Mia will let me open her mouth to get something objectionable out if the treat trick fails (if I have her on the leash). We haven't had any resource guarding issues (yet). I am sure a good trainer can help you with this issue. Good luck


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## CedarFurbaby (Jun 6, 2016)

Reading your story I was just so scared for you, so very glad everything is ok now. So many cuddles for your puppy. 

When Cedar was little he ate all sorts of stuff, sticks and stones and anything that was worth chewing up. I was just paranoid about him picking things up, which also had the effect of him anticipating that I was going to snatch his interesting object away, therefore making him more possessive. So yes teach “leave it”, and carry high value treats on you like chicken, raw meat, cheese. If you’re not sure your command will work, scatter the treats on the ground to trade. 

The getting upset about having his food or toy taken away is natural, and he’s finding that growling or biting works to get what he wants. By trading and giving him lots of good things in return (you could for example also produce a new toy to play with or a game or lead him home to dinner), you would be teaching him that it’s not a big deal to give up what he has, and therefore there’s no need to protect it so much.

I also noticed for me that Cedar started chewing sticks when he got a bit over tired, and his “level of possessiveness” increased if we have been walking too much. Not sure if this is the case for you but it is also a good idea to monitor how he is going and ensure he is well rested and not overtired or overstimulated.


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

Oh my! That is really scary! Good that everything worked out for Ike!

The underlying emotion that drives resource guarding is fear of losing what they have. In the dog world, 'I have' out ranks 'I want' and socially appropriate dogs adhere to the rule 100%, even if the one who 'has' is a puppy. So if we are going to behave like an inappropriate, rude dog by taking/stealing things from our puppy they learn very quickly that sometimes they have to get really 'loud' (growl, snap, even bite) to protect their 'right' to keep what they have, and unfortunately in doing so, will often quickly swallow the item in order to keep it. And it follows that the more we want what they have, the more often we take stuff from them, the harder they are going to try to keep it -they may learn to swallow it more quickly, they may run off with it, or if cornered they may feel forced to defend their right (in their eyes) to keep it . They don't growl snap/bite because they want to, or they have 'nasty' attitude but because we make the feel they have no other choice.

'Pick your battles' - when he has something take a second to assess whether it is harmful to him, ask yourself if you really need to take it away from him. Keep in mind that puppies explore the world with their mouths, sticks and leaves, bits of paper, you name it (I have a 16 week old pup, so it is fresh in my mind what you are going through) even that ill gotten shoe is something to explore, and often a chew toy for them - puppies love toys. Small sticks they chew up and mostly the pieces fall out of their mouths, large sticks (branches, not lumber) can be wonderful and relatively safe chew toys for them.

Be super consistent with trading, no matter what you are asking him to give up, be prepared to highly reward him for doing so. At this point in time he is in the learning stages, learning to trust you will not steal but will play fair and trade up, and most of the time he will get the item back. Something that has worked well with my pup, is that when I say his name, he looks at me and he gets a treat, so when he does have something and I say his name, more often than not he will drop what he has in his mouth to get the treat. If he is reluctant to give up what he has, then I up the 'ante', say his name and toss some treats, sometimes a handful, away from where he is at, and most often he will drop what he has to go and get what I have tossed, and then I can make the item 'disappear' if it is something he cannot have, if it is safe for him, I give it back to him. The goal is to help them choose to voluntarily, to want to, give up what they have. 

I understand your panic with the head phones, had a similar incident with a small bone my pup had found in our yard, (have no idea where it came from) and he was very determined to keep it, and I understood there was no way I was going to just 'take' it from him but I always have a 'plan', always keep high value treats ready, if not on me, in the house ready to grab. I had to run in the house to grab a bunch of treats, yes, there was a risk he would swallow it if he could, but pressuring him, trying to catch him would have increased that risk, when I got back I tossed a bunch treats on the ground near him, but far enough away that he had to get up to go get them. He hesitated at first, but he did go for the treats, and I scooped the bone while he was busy. 

I know it is tough when we think (or know) they have something that will hurt them, but we really need to be prepared, have a 'plan', to stay calm and focus on how we are going to encourage/entice them to give it up.


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## Prism Goldens (May 27, 2011)

The learning thing here is that anytime a dog eats something linear, it should be removed before it gets into the intestines. Yarn, string, dental floss, anything long. Linear foreign bodies have the ability to cause horrible damage -too much to risk! I'm glad your pup is ok.. https://www.vin.com/apputil/content...c&catId=34572&id=5124316&ind=189&objTypeID=17


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## GoldenIke (Jun 28, 2018)

Thank you all for the kind words and advice as always - this place is such a wonderful resource for this type of thing!

Ike is doing great, first and foremost - so I'm just extremely relieved of that. 

I try not to get crazy about the sticks outside. Especially the smaller twigs, because I know at the end of the day it's not likely to cause any real problem. Obviously I keep an eye on everything he picks up out there and he's always on a leash with me when he's out in the yard. I don't want to be hounding him non stop to keep dropping and releasing everything, so I need to pick and choose my battles better I think. 

My challenge is when I have him outside, he just constantly wants to venture into the bushes, grab at them, go into all the corners, etc. He just always wants to go into the areas he shouldn't be. If he picks up something he shouldn't have, he will drop it immediately if I offer him something better (treat or kibble) - the issue is that whether he gets the treat or not, he will just go right back to the item he dropped and try to pick it back up. 

I don't want to train him to think that by picking up objects outside on the lawn, he is getting rewarded. So, I'm having a little bit of trouble figuring out how to handle it the right way. 

As soon as he sees me go in my pocket for something for him, he sits and will drop what he has. So, that part is good. It's just that if I then give it to him and reward him, he will eat it, and then just go right back to what he was doing. It only seems to deter him until he gets the kibble or treat. Then he will just go at it again. 

The other question I have is how to address him doing things like chewing at his bed or corners of the furniture, etc.

Bitter apple doesn't do anything. He licks it up and is unfazed by it. Again, he will stop the behavior if I offer him something more desirable, but he will usually just go right back to what he was doing once he either gets what he wants from me or doesn't. 

He's a pup, so - this is all stuff I expected and sort of remember from my first.

It's just always amazing to me the way they want everything BUT the things they're supposed to have sometimes.


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## GoldenIke (Jun 28, 2018)

Also, yes - this was absolutely a learning experience for me as far as understanding what to do when a dog eats a foreign object like this. The headphones were in a ball in his stomach at first, so I was sort of optimistic he would be able to pass them. 

But as soon as they moved into his intestine and started to unravel, I knew how dangerous that could get and made sure they were removed immediately. 

The mistake I made was obviously not having them removed endoscopically right away. It wasn't even so much that I thought I could save thousands of dollars or that it was the deciding factor, I just really believed there was a decent chance he would pass them. 

I'd like to think there is no way this could ever happen again. But at least if anything similar happens, I will know the correct way to approach it now.


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## rabernet (Feb 24, 2015)

To our forum mentors - I have a question. When I was reading this - I was thinking - I probably would have given Hydrogen Peroxide as soon as it happened to induce vomiting. But didn't want to offer that for future reference, as I wasn't sure if that was a good idea for ear buds/ear phones or not? I'm picturing the small earbuds as what he swallowed. 

When Noah was about 8 months old, I had cooked a roast that was tied with butcher's string and threw the twine in the garbage. I turned around to find that Noah had stuck his head in the garbage and proceeded to swallow it (he had never been and hasn't been since, a dog to go in the garbage). I immediately grabbed the Hydrogen Peroxide and hung out with him outside until he "gave up the goods" and I could confirm the offending butcher string came up. 

One of his litter mates swallowed boxer shorts and his owner texted me frantically about what to do. I told her to call the emergency vet to confirm it was the right thing to do, but told her that I probably would do the Hydrogen Peroxide, since he'd just swallowed it. She did call the ER, and they did tell her the same thing, and she texted me once he no longer "owned" the boxer shorts. 

So - being that this wasn't fabric, but plastic and wires, would you have recommended Hydrogen Peroxide as soon as he swallowed them? Or would that have been bad advice?


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## GoldenIke (Jun 28, 2018)

rabernet said:


> To our forum mentors - I have a question. When I was reading this - I was thinking - I probably would have given Hydrogen Peroxide as soon as it happened to induce vomiting. But didn't want to offer that for future reference, as I wasn't sure if that was a good idea for ear buds/ear phones or not? I'm picturing the small earbuds as what he swallowed.
> 
> When Noah was about 8 months old, I had cooked a roast that was tied with butcher's string and threw the twine in the garbage. I turned around to find that Noah had stuck his head in the garbage and proceeded to swallow it (he had never been and hasn't been since, a dog to go in the garbage). I immediately grabbed the Hydrogen Peroxide and hung out with him outside until he "gave up the goods" and I could confirm the offending butcher string came up.
> 
> ...


I'm actually glad you brought this up... 

Because one of the staff members at the emergency facility on Sunday asked me if my vet had attempted to induce vomiting once they took the x-ray and saw that the headphones were entirely in his stomach still and hadn't yet moved into his intestine. 

My cousin is a vet (he has his own practice upstate) and I actually called him when it happened for advice as well and he also asked if my vet had tried to induce vomiting to get them out at first. 

I'm a little upset that it wasn't attempted or even suggested on Saturday when it first happened because I feel like they may have come out that way without any surgery necessary. 

I trust my vet - she was great with Hunter and has been really good with Ike so far. The issue was that this was sort of an emergency and she had just left for the day on Saturday when I took him in. So he was seen by another doctor there. 

What's done is done and all that matters now is that they're out of there and he's going to make a complete recovery in pretty short order - but I really want to know if the vet that saw him should have attempted or suggested that we try to induce vomiting first because I'm a little discouraged that he didn't bring it up if that could have gotten them out of there immediately and without needing to put him under. 

Perhaps there was a choking concern if they tried to get them back up that way? I don't know. But my cousin also wondered why this was never attempted or suggested. :/


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## GoldenIke (Jun 28, 2018)

Here's the little trooper today


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## megthechamp (Jun 14, 2018)

Wow, what a scary situation! We actually had a headphone scare the second week we had Apollo. My bf just didn't lock the crate fully while we were away (honest mistake) and Apollo got out and chewed on some headphones. We checked for all pieces and it was still mostly in tact. I was terrified that night that there was some mystery piece we didn't find and it was going to cause a blockage. Glad your pup is okay.


In terms on the mulch/grass/stick eating - I FEEL YA. Apollo still does this quite a bit outside. We finally resorted to an easy-lead head harness for our longer walks. He HATED it at first, but it keeps his focus on you and he's unable to grab anything since you're walking him by his head. Sounds worse than it is- but our trainer recommended it to us after we expressed our concerns. As for potty breaks, Apollo had started to grow out of it merely because he knows our potty spots and he knows to just "do his business" as soon as he's out there, so not as focuses on searching for things to snack on.


I would make a point of practicing the drop it and leave it commands. Leave it will help with the worry about "rewarding" him for grabbing objects in the first place. I'd also suggest some "it yer choice" games to help with your little guy's impulse control. That helped us a ton. Google them - very easy to practice and Apollo understood the game after a few rounds. That helps set a foundation for the command leave it so it's more reliable.


Finally, for the resource guarding/growling when you try to take things - leave it will help too. We had a flare up of resource guarding when our pup was about 12 weeks or so. We ended up taking the recommendation to drop tasty treats in his food so he'd learn us coming towards them with their precious object is a good thing. We also removed any object he resource guarded (mostly food chews) until he was older. Also, we make him sit and stay (sometimes far away, sometimes for a good length of time) before he eats every single meal.


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