Shasta's Ravenous Appetite got her into some Trouble

Shasta had been doing quite well on her raw food diet, although depending on what she would get into would determine her overall health. Shasta is very tall and can reach countertops and trash cans. We try to be diligent in putting things away and out of reach, but it is not always possible with kids, guests, etc. I had noticed that her determination to get to human food had become very strong in recent months and have had to reach in her mouth to grab something she shouldn't be eating quite a few times, but I NEVER thought at her age (5 at the time) that I would have to keep her stuffed toys away from her. One day I took her to visit my parents, who have a little dog and lots of toys that Shasta loves to play with. She literally has a field day and gramma and grampa's house! Well all the sudden she went from squeaking one of the toys to suddenly devouring it before I could stop her. I was advised to feed her 2 pieces of dry bread a few times a day between meals (because she takes her meds and enzymes with meals and we don't want her absorbing the stuffed animal), for several days and to watch her stool. Several days and weeks, and even a month or two had passed and never saw anything in her stool. She acted normal so I figured the acids in her stomach had dissolved it or something. One night she suddenly started vomit and was having very dark, runny stool. I took her to the vet and the Xrays showed an obstruction. Low and behold there were actually 2 stuffed animals in Shasta's tummy and had to be extracted.

This not only cost more than a pretty penny, but was a very invasive procedure for Shasta. She handled it like a champ though. The procedure was successful and she had immediate relief. The doctors were very nervous of the fact that she was on long term steroids and therefore were apprehensive about doing the surgery right away. Dr. Plechner confirmed that their fears were not necessary and we had them proceed. Shasta bounced back right away! We ended up increasing her dose of Medrol after another EI-1 panel and this helped to alleviate her ravenous appetite!