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Optional Information: Age: 6; Male; Breed: yorkieAlready Tried: just getting him to drink water. he has thrown up 5 times in the past 3 1/2 hours since he ate dinner.
Could you provide more information as to how much sand, how large is your pet, and when he/she ate the sand? Is he/she vomiting or acting painful, or did this just happen. This information will help determine what may be the best course of action.
Ok this information was posted after I began my response....I'll look more at what you posted.
Depending on the amount of sand ingested, this may have caused him to have an impaction. I would recommend witholding food right now, and if he is NOT vomiting liquids, you can try giving him 2 to 3 ounces of Mineral oil. This MAY help loosen the sand. If he vomits this, or is vomiting water, do not give him more. This may result in him aspirating (sucking the oil into his lungs) and can cause serious problems. If he is keeping liquids down, you can also use 50 to 100 mg of Dioctyl sodium sulfate (marketed under many brand and generic names over the counter as a STOOL SOFTENER). This will cause diarrhea. If he continues vomiting or acts weak or lethargic, you will need to have him checked by a veterinarian, and they will likely want to do x-rays. This will determine if medical or surgical intervention is needed. Also there are new anti-vomiting medications available through a veterinarian that may be helpful.
I hope that this helps.
Dr. G
Reply to Pets_Doc's Post: Did you receive my initial response regarding the specifics?
I saw that you added the specifics while I was asking for more information. Unless you added more specifics than are listed in your original edited posting, in which case I have not received this information.
Let me know if I can provide further help or information.
Hi - I just wanted to make sure you have the answers to your questions in order to properly advice me. My Yorkie is 15 pounds. He ate sand via sniffing the sand then licking his nose ... maybe 5 times approximately 6 hours ago. He ate dinner at 6pm ... he vomited about 5 times after dinner over a 3 1/2 hour period of time. He is calm now, but I wanted to know if I can give him anything or is this more serious than I may be thinking. thanks
If he only ingested a small amount of sand off of his nose, then an impaction is not very likely. This may have caused some irritation to his stomach and resulted in the vomiting. The vomiting also could be completely unrelated to the sand ingestion as well, and witholding food for 12 to 24 hours may stop the signs. If he continues to vomit, or cannot keep water down, then he may need to be seen by a veterinarian. Again, a small amount of sand should not cause more than GI irritation and does not require treatment with stool softeners or mineral oil. I apologize for any confusion in this matter and hope that this is more helpful.
Dr. Gordon.
Experience: Chief of Staff, Senior ER Clinician