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My dog just ate a latex balloon. What emergency steps should I take?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Mixed Breed Small (up to 22lb) | Female | spayed | 1 year and 2 months old | 7 lbs

Hi , my 14 lbs mixed rescue just ate a latex ballon, what do I do?

1 Answer

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Dr. Melanie, BVSc MS

Veterinarian

Published on February 29th, 2020

You can take Rowena into a vet now to have vomiting induce, or you can keep an eye on her. If you see vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, or a loss of appetite, you need to have her seen by a vet immediately.

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1Pet Parents found this answer helpful

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Hello and welcome to Boop by Petco. Balloons can either pass uneventfully, or can cause a blockage. Balloons are more likely to cause a blockage as they often fill with stuff in the stomach and then become a big ball, so we recommend getting to a vet ASAP to induce vomiting. If you can't get to a vet, monitor very very carefully and any signs of vomiting, not eating, painful abdomen, get to a vet right away as surgery might then be required. Best of luck with Enzo!
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Some other pieces of the glove could actually be still inside her gastrointestinal system and cause obstructions or quite dangerous gastroenteritis. A clinical examination at your local veterinarian is immediately essential to confirm/rule out these clinical suspicions and treat appropriately. Antibiotics and possibly further investigations (like abdominal imaging as ultrasound or radiographs) may be needed. Hope this answer was helpful, but please do not hesitate to contact us again on the forum or by requesting a consultation if you have any more questions or to discuss it any further. If this answer was helpful please let us know, this will be used to improve our service!
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At some point today, my dog ate an unknown # of large balloons. He threw up some food. He threw up again and some balloons were in it. How will I know if there’s an obstruction or if he eliminated them all? He seemed fine all day. Even after he vomi
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Last night Beau ate a disposable rubber gloves, the whole thing. I've been watching him and he seems ok so far. Is this something I should be worried about?
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I have a shih tzu puppy (almost 3 months old, he is roughly 6-7 pounds) he ate about 5/6 small rubber bands, they're about less than an inch long...will he be okay, or should I take him to the vet?
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