Dog Ate Latex Glove? It’s Not Too Late(x)- Here’s What You Should Do

If you’re a repeat visitor to our site-

First of all: Thank you! I love having you here, and hope that I have been able to help you in some way 🙂

Secondly: You might have been here before to consult a few others of our famed “Dog Ate:” Series-

Dog Ate Earplugs

Dog Ate Combat Roach Bait

Dog Ate Airborne Tablets

Dog Ate Pacifiers

You get the drift.

The point is: A curious dog will have a good go at a myriad of different things that it can get its paws (and mouth) on- even if said things are usually ill-advised!

And so, now, here we are.

“What’s going to happen if my dog ate latex gloves?

As always, I’ll be glad to answer that for you!

Whilst latex gloves are not toxic, they are completely indigestible. As a result, this means that they can be quite easily lodged within the throat, or somewhere along the digestive tract.

As you might suspect, this isn’t a good turn of events.

Whenever issues in relation to choking or internal obstruction arise due to the fact that your pup just ate some gloves, you should consult with your vet immediately.

Initial treatment methods can involve induced vomiting, endoscopic removal or the canine version of the Heimlich Maneuver. In severe cases where there is an internal blockage, surgery could be required.

However, in most other cases of glove consumption, dogs tend to poop out the foreign material within a few days.

Your vet may recommend a bland diet in lieu of its regular food for a few days. This can include foods such as canned pumpkin or boiled chicken and rice.

These types of foods will promote bowel movement, and increase the chances of the gloves uneventfully passing through the intestines and out with your dog’s feces.

(Side note: I am a member of the Amazon Associates program. From time to time I like to recommend products in my posts that I feel may truly be helpful to readers and their pets. If you do end up buying something by clicking the links on my site, I may receive a tiny amount of commission from the big guys. 

And if you do end up buying something- Thank you! I really appreciate your support and I’ll always do my best to put out more quality content for you 🙂 ) 

What Happens If A Dog Eats Latex Gloves?

What Happens If A Dog Eats Latex Gloves?

If your dog ate latex gloves, they could experience one of three things:

  1. Nil. Nada. Absolutely nothing at all. Free to go on its merry way!
  2. Choking.
  3. internal blockage.

First things first: Most dogs should be fine after eating gloves- regardless of the material it is made from.

Dogs over 50lbs are less likely to experience issues when compared to smaller dogs. This is because larger dogs have wider digestive pathways which allow foreign material to pass though more easily.

It is also rare for dogs- large or small- to swallow gloves whole like some kind of demented land-based whale shark.

Instead, they’ll gnaw and chew at the stretchy material, culminating in little pieces of latex or cloth being ingested. While still indigestible, small pieces of fabric are much less dangerous in a canine’s digestive system.

Generally, dogs will excrete the glove through its feces within a few hours or a few days. The timeframe for excretion depends on its diet, and on the regularity of its usual bowel movements.

If your dog is behaving normally, has a normal appetite, and is having healthy bowel movements after chomping up your pair of latex gloves, you will not have too much to worry about.

Choking

While in most cases a dog will tend to be just fine, consumption of gloves can cause choking if it ends up blocking the pooch’s airway.

This will be a more pertinent possibility if the dog is a small or toy breed, or if it for some reason tried to swallow a larger piece of glove than it could chew (as the saying goes).

Signs of choking typically include:

Intestinal Blockage

If your dog is not behaving normally- yet does not appear to be choking- it could instead be suffering from an internal blockage.

Signs of an internal blockage can take a few days before they properly appear, but once they do it warrants an immediate, urgent visit to your vet.

Symptoms of intestinal obstruction include:

Stomach blockages can be dangerous as they can stop blood circulation, cause peritonitis or gastroenteritis, and result in tissue death. In serious cases, surgery is often required to remove the offending foreign material.

What Should I Do After My Dog Ate Latex Gloves?

What Should I Do After My Dog Ate Latex Gloves?

After you discover that your dog has eaten latex gloves, immediately contact your vet and explain the situation so they can determine what should be done next.

If your dog behaves normally and shows no signs of discomfort when eating, drinking, or otherwise moving around, it should be fine. You may be advised by the vet to wait and see for a few days as most dogs will excrete the gloves (or glove pieces).

However some vets will advise you to take certain actions depending on the situation, as outlined below:

1. Removal From Mouth

If the latex gloves are still in the dog’s mouth, see if you can remove the gloves safely with your fingers.

Consult with your vet as soon as possible if you feel uncomfortable doing this yourself.

2. Heimlich Maneuver

If the gloves cannot be found inside your dog’s mouth and it starts to display the aforementioned symptoms of choking, they could instead be lodged deeper down its throat.

You should immediately perform the Heimlich Maneuver to dislodge the foreign material.

If the glove cannot be dislodged from your dog’s throat, contact the emergency hotline or your vet immediately for assistance.

3. Induced Vomiting

If your dog is not choking and the glove was swallowed within the last 2 hours, your vet may advise you to bring your dog to the clinic to induce vomiting.

You should never induce vomiting by yourself without consulting a vet first, though in cases of emergency your vet may instruct you to do so.

It can actually be more dangerous to bring the gloves back up, as the foreign object could get stuck again in its throat. The accompanying stomach acid can also be harsh on the esophagus.

To induce vomiting, you will need a solution of 3% hydrogen peroxide.

The proper dosage for dogs is around 1ml per pound of bodyweight. The total amount to be given at once should be limited to 45mls at maximum.

Prior to administering your dog with hydrogen peroxide, it is recommended to feed them a light meal in order to make it easier for them to vomit.

The hydrogen peroxide can also be fed with milk or broth if your dog does not willingly consume the solution.

After administering the peroxide solution, allow the dog to move around to mix the solution internally.

If your dog does not vomit within 15 minutes, provide another dose. If your dog again does not vomit, you should contact your vet as they may be able to provide a more potent emetic agent to induce vomiting.

If the glove is successfully thrown up, you should provide fluids and electrolytes in the form of unflavored Pedialyte or Gatorade to rehydrate your dog.

After 2 hours has elapsed following ingestion of the glove, owners should not attempt to induce vomiting as it will no longer be effective to remove the swallowed glove. At this point, the gloves will have moved past the stomach and into the intestines.

4. Non-Invasive Removal

Another option that may be available if the gloves were swallowed within the last 2 hours is non-invasive removal of the lodged material.

Again- Within a 2 hour period, the gloves are unlikely to have travelled beyond the stomach.

In this situation, the vet could utilize a procedure called an endoscopy to displace the embedded object.

An endoscopy involves the insertion of a long tube down the dog’s throat which grabs onto the foreign object. This is a non-invasive approach and reduces overall recovery time.

After removal, a bland diet should be fed for 2-3 days before slowly returning your dog to its original diet.

5. The ‘Wait and See’ Approach

The ‘Wait and See’ Approach

If it has been more than 2 hours since your dog ingested the gloves, the vet may advise you to simply hold tight and observe.

This is because in most cases, foreign objects will pass through the digestive system without any problems and be excreted with the feces.

To promote bowel movement, your dog’s diet should be altered to contain more bland, fibrous foods that can surround the swallowed glove for smoother excretion.

These foods can include rice, boiled chicken and ground beef. You should also provide more bulky substances such as whole wheat bread and canned pumpkin.

Do not provide laxatives or other oils/fats to try to speed up the elimination process. Regular exercise and high fiber foods is all that is usually needed to promote smooth bowel movements.

With this approach, there’s an extra-fun element: Every time your dog eliminates, you will need to check its poop for the gloves by manually picking the feces apart. Yay!

6. Surgery

An immediate consultation with your vet is required if:

  • No glove or glove fragments have been spotted in your dog’s poop within three days following ingestion; or
  • Your dog is showing symptoms of internal obstruction.

Once you are at the vet, they may physically examine your dog first to identify changes in blood circulation and to determine whether your dog is suffering from dehydration.

After resolving these initial issues, your dog will then be clinically examined using imaging techniques such as ultrasounds or radiographs. Contrasting agents such as barium dyes are occasionally used to identify the location of the blockage.

If surgery is assessed to be required, it would be performed under anesthesia. The surgery will usually be laparoscopic in nature, where the abdominal region is operated on to remove the gloves.

Following surgery, dogs are generally hospitalized overnight– though it is not uncommon to be required to stay for longer periods of time for monitoring and supportive treatment.

Once your dog can be taken home, ensure medication is administered as prescribed. You should also restrict your pup’s physical activity over the upcoming days or weeks. Make sure that it is still drinking plenty of water to avoid dehydration!

A bland diet should also be started for 2-3 days after surgery before slowly transitioning your dog to back its normal diet.

To prevent your dog from touching the sutures following surgery, use an Elizabethan collar if needed. If the wound swells or discharges at any point, contact your vet for further advice.

Finally, after a recovery period of 7-10 days, the sutures can be removed.

If you feel distressed and uncomfortable at any point in time during the process, feel free to contact your vet for advice and reassurance.

Are Latex Gloves Toxic? Does The Material Of The Glove Matter?

Are Latex Gloves Toxic? Does The Material Of The Glove Matter?

For the most part, it does not matter what the material of the glove is. Latex gloves themselves are not toxic and are indigestible, so should not cause any biochemical issues internally.

The main dangers of ingesting gloves are still predominantly choking and internal obstruction, especially if your dog ate a thick piece of glove or many pairs of gloves at once.

Cotton and leather gloves can actually pose a greater risk of internal blockage or choking when compared to rubber or nitrile gloves. This is because they are less flexible and travel as a thick piece of foreign material through the internal tract.

Another specific risk of cotton and leather gloves are detached threads. If there are any strands of thread, string or cord caught in your dog’s mouth, do not cut it or try to pull it out.

Thin strands should be removed by your vet, as doing it yourself can create the risk of cutting your dog’s throat. Strands may also cause injuries within the walls of the intestines.

All in all, regardless of whether your dog ate rubber gloves, nitrile gloves, cotton gloves or leather gloves, most vets will advise you to wait and see if the glove will be naturally excreted.

Why Does My Dog Eat Gloves?

Dogs are naturally curious creatures, and as such will pounce at every opportunity to have a taste of something they can easily access.

Furthermore, it is completely normal for dogs to bite objects as it is in their primal instinct to do so. Remember: mouths are to dogs as hands are to humans!

Here are several other possible reasons why your dog would eat random objects like gloves:

1. GI issues such as food intolerance or allergy

2. Teething

4. Boredom

5. Learned behavior to gain attention

6. Contaminated with appetizing or intriguing smells

In serious cases, your dog could have a psychological condition called pica whereby they eat everything around them. Pica can be caused by mental health problems such as anxiety, abandonment, poor diet or medication.

To read more about pica and how to combat it in your dog, click HERE to read our comprehensive post!

How Can I Prevent My Dog From Eating Gloves Again?

How Can I Prevent My Dog From Eating Gloves Again?

The first (highly-effective) thing you can do to prevent your dog from chewing inappropriate objects is to simply keep your possessions out of its reach!

Dog-proof your house by limiting access to rooms and locations that contain inedible and potentially dangerous materials. Alternatively, locks and cupboards can also be used to secure containers.

If your dog is alone or is not being watched, it may need to be crated if it has not yet learnt to behave inside the house.

Another method is to provide different chewing options, such as treats or bones, so that your pup is entertained by more dog-appropriate objects. A guide to dog-appropriate wooden toys can be found by clicking here!

Note that it is important to supervise your dog whenever they are chewing on anything.

Another option to stop reckless eating is to spray pet-safe deterrents such as bitter apple or apple cider vinegar, as these nasty-tasting substances will make a dog have second thoughts about giving something a chomp.

Extreme cases of excessive chewing may require the use of a basket muzzle whenever your dog is left alone. A muzzle will be able to prevent your dog from eating everything in sight, while still allowing them to breathe and drink normally.

It goes without saying that long-term treatment will involve proper training. Consulting with a behavioral specialist or a dog trainer may be the most sustainable way to stop your dog from eating inappropriate materials now and in the future.

In Summary

If your dog ate latex gloves, there are a variety of different ways it could play out.

The most likely scenario is that they will be completely fine after the incident, with only a poop-encrusted glove to remember the saga by.

Regardless of whether the gloves were made from latex, nitrile, rubber, leather or cotton, most owners will be advised to go with the ‘wait-and-see’ approach.

In more serious cases, it is possible for a canine to choke on the glove or to suffer from an internal blockage.

Latex gloves are not toxic, but the potential risk of obstruction exists and it is more likely to occur in smaller dogs due to narrower intestinal tracts.

Consulting with your vet is the first recommended option if you have discovered that your pooch has eaten a latex glove.

Otherwise, contact an emergency hotline to ensure you carry out the appropriate actions to prevent subsequent problematic issues from arising!

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