Sav ate duct tape

[nepoez]

Hi all,

I was feeding my sav with an old tong that had duct tape on it. He ripped the duct tape off and swallowed it. Is this going to be a problem?

[Mikoh4792]

how much did he swallow? I'd call a vet.

[nepoez]

1 inch! of tape

[philbyi-guy]

How big is the sav? I'd have a vet check it out.

[LiL Zap]

I agree with the other members and would definitely bring him to a vet. I'm a vet tech (for dogs and cats, not reptiles ) and you would be surprised how much damage a small item ingested could do to an animal.

[Pirarucu]

Definitely go to a vet right away.

[MDT]

So...I am asking as someone who treats humans, not monitors....

You get a hunk of tape in your mouth...you chew on it for a bit, tape gets coated with saliva, you swallow and it goes down your slimy, mucus coated esophagus. There is gets mixed with your gastric acid (pH 2.0) and other digestive enzymes. Afterward, it passes in some form to your intestines and eventually out your bum mixed in with other fun stuff. No harm no foul. I have treated countless kids in the ED who have ingested all sorts of round things, square things, spikey things, and spongey things. Other than button batteries, there really isn't anything that is hugely problematic (maybe fish hooks)....as long as the object passes through the outlet of the stomach (pylorus)....

So here's my question....monitors will eat things of sizes and shapes of things that would gag most mammals. My guess is, that if the chunk of tape makes it into the stomach, it's a goner. I'm also guessing that if you take this monitor to the vet, he/she will do what we do and say "hmmmm...yep, that's a hunk of tape. We need to watch it and make sure it passes". Can anyone let me know, form a veterinary standpoint....what would the evaluation and treatment of this situation be? Is there something inherent to the tape that from a reptilian medicine standpoint, would require intervention (endoscopy or surgery)?

Starbuck...can you jump in and add some vet info? I really do want to know...

[Jim Smith]

MDT,

While I suspect that you're very probably correct that the 1 inch of duct tape shouldn't be too harmful to the monitor lizard, one thing that you left off of your list of very dangerous items for kids to swallow are magnets; especially rare earth magnets. They can be fatal if they swallow them especially if they swallow more than one. Just a thought...

[Starbuck]

Haven't gotten to specifics at this point yet regarding digestion etc, but i would suspect that YES, all a vet would do at this point would be to watch and wait. If no defecation occurs (and husbandry is correct), or the animal starts refusing food and losing weight, or passes only very thin, watery diarrhea, then is when you need to start evaluating surgical options. At most a very enterprising vet might suggest some mineral oil or equivalent, but i don't feel that thats necessary given the size of the tape and size of the monitor (i think i remember it is over a year old, and a fair size, right?)

Given what monitors eat in the wild (all kinds of chitin, carapaces and binding bits of fur, remember they don't chew(!), i think the duct tape should pass fine. Whether it gets digested at all is questionable, but it should pass alright i bet.

That being said, 2 years ago my 12 yo cat did need surgery for a foreign body removal, and it was a half of an almond (?!?!?!) so.... in that case my vet was pretty incredulous that it didn't pass on its own, but it just happened to get caught at the right angle just at the first bend of the duodenum.

Originally Posted by MDT

So...I am asking as someone who treats humans, not monitors....

You get a hunk of tape in your mouth...you chew on it for a bit, tape gets coated with saliva, you swallow and it goes down your slimy, mucus coated esophagus. There is gets mixed with your gastric acid (pH 2.0) and other digestive enzymes. Afterward, it passes in some form to your intestines and eventually out your bum mixed in with other fun stuff. No harm no foul. I have treated countless kids in the ED who have ingested all sorts of round things, square things, spikey things, and spongey things. Other than button batteries, there really isn't anything that is hugely problematic (maybe fish hooks)....as long as the object passes through the outlet of the stomach (pylorus)....

So here's my question....monitors will eat things of sizes and shapes of things that would gag most mammals. My guess is, that if the chunk of tape makes it into the stomach, it's a goner. I'm also guessing that if you take this monitor to the vet, he/she will do what we do and say "hmmmm...yep, that's a hunk of tape. We need to watch it and make sure it passes". Can anyone let me know, form a veterinary standpoint....what would the evaluation and treatment of this situation be? Is there something inherent to the tape that from a reptilian medicine standpoint, would require intervention (endoscopy or surgery)?

Starbuck...can you jump in and add some vet info? I really do want to know...

[MDT]

Originally Posted by Jim Smith

MDT,

While I suspect that you're very probably correct that the 1 inch of duct tape shouldn't be too harmful to the monitor lizard, one thing that you left off of your list of very dangerous items for kids to swallow are magnets; especially rare earth magnets. They can be fatal if they swallow them especially if they swallow more than one. Just a thought...

Yep....However (probably fortunately), most of what I've had to deal with on the indigestible side has been coins and Leggo's. Accidental ingestion of medications far out paces everything else with regard to my practice and what kids put in their mouths. Having said that, in the absence of obstructive symptoms, the duct tape won't be an issue.

[jarich]

I agree, watch and wait. As long as it keeps excreting wastes regularly, and is properly hydrated, then this too shall pass.

[KORBIN5895]

Why are button batteries so bad?

[nepoez]

Thx all for the feedback. He is pretty much 3 feet. I think it makes sense to just watch as many have pointed out, since the vet really can't do much. He did take a big poo today and still ate. I didn't see any tape in there tho. Maybe next poo.

[Lankyrob]

Originally Posted by KORBIN5895

Why are button batteries so bad?

Something to do with the way they react with stomach acid, cant remembere the specifics tho.

[KORBIN5895]

Originally Posted by Lankyrob

Something to do with the way they react with stomach acid, cant remembere the specifics tho.

I assume it has to do with the stomach acids releasing the battery's acid.