Dog Ate a Wooden Bamboo Skewer – What to Do Next

How dangerous the ingestion of bamboo skewers or bamboo sticks is to dogs will depend on a number of factors including how sharp the end of the bamboo stick is and whether the bamboo stick is new or used.

What happens when a dog eats a bamboo skewer?

Bamboo is considered non-toxic to dogs but there are still other health risks that bamboo skewers may introduce if a dog was to accidentally swallow them. For example, bamboo sticks may cause obstruction in the dog’s gastrointestinal tract. They dog may have chewed the bamboo sticks into smaller pieces but these pieces may still be large enough to get stuck in various organs like the small intestines. Obstructions need to be resolved quickly. They can manifest themselves into life-threatening conditions like canine bloat.

There is also the danger of used bamboo skewers having residues of ingredients that are toxic to dogs. For example, a bamboo skewer may have been used to piece together a kebab or a barbecue meat. These foods may contain toxic ingredients like garlic and onion. A dog that accidentally consumes too many of these toxic substances may suffer from serious gastrointestinal distress.

What to do if your dog ate a bamboo skewer

We would call the vet to be on the safe side (use online sites like Vetster if your go-to vet is busy). There are certain pieces of information you should note down ahead of time, such as the number of bamboo skewer pieces the dog ate and whether the bamboo skewers have already been used or not for cooking purpose. With this information, the vet will be able to advise whether further diagnostics is needed in the clinic.

In the meantime, keep a close eye on your dog’s behavior. Your dog may end up being fine if the bamboo skewer he swallowed is enough to pass through the digestive tract. It may take up to a few days before you see the pieces of bamboo skewer getting passed out along with the dog’s stool.