Dogs, especially puppies, are curious by nature and will investigate just about anything by putting it in their mouth. Occasionally, a dog will swallow something that's too large to go down and begin choking. More often than not, the object will become dislodged on its own, but here's what to do if your dog continues to choke.
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Try to Dislodge Manually
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This is a tricky situation because your dog may panic and bite you, but you can try to dislodge the object manually. Open your dog's mouth and try to dislodge the object by grabbing your dog's tongue and sweeping it from side to side with your dog's head and throat pointed toward the ground (this will allow gravity to help, and the object may just fall out on its own). If this doesn't work, try the Heimlich Maneuver.
Dog Heimlich Maneuver
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The Heimlich Maneuver works the same way on a dog as it does a human. To perform it, get behind the dog and lift it under its front legs so that its back is against your chest. Then place your hands under the dog's ribs with one hand over your fist and perform five rapid thrusts inward and upward. Keep checking the animal's mouth after each time and repeat as necessary. This could cause your dog to vomit in the process but, if that happens, you know the procedure worked.
Sharp Jabs to the Back
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Another method to dislodge an object caught in your dog's throat is to lift your dog by the hips so that its head hangs down and give it five sharp jabs between the shoulder blades with the palm of your hand. The vibration caused by the jabs should be enough to shake loose anything caught in a dog's throat. If all these methods fail, get your dog to a vet immediately to receive expert medical treatment. Hopefully, you'll never have this problem, but it's always good to be prepared just in case.
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