Comment

Comment by Cassie and Jaunty on August 12, 2009 at 11:58pm

I think that some catapillars have prickly hair that they can actually let go of when threatened. Think of their hair as tiny little porcupine quills, but not hard in texture. Maybe Faye got some stuck in her throat for a while. But I'm sure they would soften and fall apart eventually. My Ibizan sniffed a wooly bear catapillar one time and came away sneezing, now he won't go near one. The great hunter was foiled by a bug!

Comment by Erin & Faye on August 12, 2009 at 11:14pm

Thanks everybody, I think Faye is fine... She is acting pretty much normal as far as I can tell. The thing that made me so mad was that when she saw the caterpillar i told her "leave it", and she DID! She sat down and looked right at me with her silly corgi smile. I was so proud I looked away for a second to brag to a person on the street... then she grabbed it :-( I thought for a second that she really got the "leave it" thing... I guess we just need more training, it was totally my fault.

Comment by Heather and Ella on August 12, 2009 at 9:43pm

It seems that when dogs throw up it's frothy looking. Ella's friend Bogey ate too many doggy biscuits during a play date and threw them back up in a frothy mess.
Ella likes to try and eat ants, flies, and beetles. I'd just look up the caterpillar types that live in your area for poisonous ones, and keep an eye for any weird reactions. The texture was probably weird and may have irritated the throat.

Comment by Nancy and Harley on August 12, 2009 at 9:08pm

Harley loves to pick up clods of dirt and grass out of the back yard, along with leaves. We have to watch him outside, because he will pull up grass... don't know if he actually swallows them, but it's quite common for dogs to eat grass. He hasn't grabbed anything alive yet, because he still has another week before his last Distemper and Parvo shots, and can't go on walks until then.

Comment by Bev Levy on August 12, 2009 at 8:08pm

Sparty used to grab the dried up dead frogs off the road! Yuch! The first time he did it I grabbed him and the only thing sticking out was the foot. There was no way he was releasing it either. I called the vet and they said just to keep an eye on him. He was fine and is older now and less likely to eat stuff like that. He has an iron stomach so rarely suffers for his bad decisions. Izzy is slower and will let things go when you tell her to. They do get better about this as they get older but they are close to the ground and definitely think everything is food!

Comment by Nicole, Stanley and STELLA! on August 12, 2009 at 6:57pm

How's she doing? Hopefully, she's not like Stella and it actually DID teach her a lesson. However, don't be surprised if it didn't! This is something I worry about with Stella all the time. She Hoovers things up so fast, and being so close to the ground makes it easier and sometimes it's too late to stop it. Stella eats bugs, rocks, leaves, dirt, and is ALWAYS on the lookout for dead birds and other small animals. Something that I do when I'm on walks with her is I take treats so she has more of an incentive to "leave it." She learned "drop" at a very early age (3 months) but then unlearned it at her "terrible 2's" puupy stage, which she is currently in. If I don't have the treats, she won't let go. So you might want to try that when you take little Faye on walks. I hope she's feeling better!

Comment by Erin & Faye on August 12, 2009 at 5:20pm

Thanks Nicole. It calms my nerves to hear that frothy is "normal." As normal as eating bugs can be... We'll just keep an eye on her till she stops this coughing/gaging thing. Hopefully this taught her to listen when i say "leave it!"

Comment by Nicole, Stanley and STELLA! on August 12, 2009 at 4:56pm

The same think happened to Stella when she OD'ed on lightening bugs--she had caught and eaten 5-10 of them. She threw up and it was frothy, like you said. Usually most bugs are ok. They eat them and if there's a problem, just throw up and move on. There are certain things that have a poison or venom that can be bad--stinging bugs or some toads, but most bugs are OK. If I were you, I'd look up the type of caterpillar just to be sure. Maybe someone on here will have more specific experience with caterpillars, but, like I said, most bugs (june bugs, ants, etc.) won't hurt them or if they do, will just end up in a mild reaction. I hope this helps some!