dog ate his collar

Question
I think my dog may have eaten his collar (chain).  What should I do?

Answer
If you suspect your dog ate a chain collar there is an easy way to determine whether he has.  Metal shows up very nicely on an xray so taking your dog to the vet for a quick xray can give you a definitive answer. If he has eaten the collar, the question remains whether it will pass through his intestinal tract without getting hung up. If it cannot pass then your dog will need surgery to remove it. This can be an easy procedure if it is done early on when the foreign body(chain) has not been stuck in the intestine for long. If the obstruction has been going on for a while then the surgery becomes more complicated and may require removal of a piece of the intestine which is a much more complicated surgery and your dogs prognosis becomes more guarded. If you suspect your dog has a foreign body of any kind, a trip to the vet is always the right thing to do.
Dr. G.