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Dog ate chicken bones, acting normal. What signs should I watch for?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | German Shepherd | Male | unneutered | 50 lbs

My dog ate some chicken bones yesterday and still hasn’t passed them through his stool, but there is no bleeding and he’s acting perfectly normal, what should I do?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Kevin Sanada, DVM

Veterinarian

Published on November 9th, 2017

The normal gastric transit cycle is about three days (can be more or less), so I would just monitor him for a couple of more days before worrying about the bones getting stuck or causing a problem. While bones have the potential to get stuck in the stomach or intestines, they usually pass through just fine. While I don't advise feeding bones, the truth is that many dogs eat bones (chicken, lamb, beef, goat, fish) on a daily basis for their whole lives and don't ever have any complications from it. I just mention this to help ease any big concern, because more than likely, Ace will be just fine. If they did get stuck, then it would be apparent. A bowel obstruction or damage, would cause vomiting and pain. Ace would not be active and would likely not want to do anything. If you do happen to notice this, then it's best to take him to the vet as soon as possible. Again, it would be quite rare for it to cause a severe complication, so wait it out and I'm sure all will be OK. I hope that helps and all is well with Ace.

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