# How does rice help?



## Bailey&Me (Mar 8, 2010)

I remember reading somewhere a while back that if your dog eats something he shouldn't and you know he will probably get an upset stomach from it, you should feed him some rice. Is that true??? How does it help? 

Last night, I took Bailey for a walk and he got in to some "stuff" before I could realize and fish it out of his mouth. I think maybe one of my neighbors spilled some of their trash while taking it out and there was a little bit on the ground. I couldn't see it at first glance in the grass, but Bailey found it and had it in his mouth. It was some nasty rotten potato peels (YUCK!). Of course, I grabbed it out of his mouth when I saw but he had already swallowed some. :w00t: :smilie_tischkante:

When we got home, about 30 minutes later he threw up. I could see the nasty potato peel junk but mostly it was a lot of white foamy stuff (sorry, so gross!!) He seemed to be fine after that and was running around like normal. I gave him some ginger mint tonic and was debating whether to give him his dinner or not but he was really hungry so I gave him about 1/4 of his normal portion of canned food...I mixed in some boiled white rice because I read it helps when a dog has eaten something he shouldnt have. He kept it down fine and was acting normal the rest of the night.

Did I do the right thing? How else could I have handled this?? Short of making him throw up by giving him some hydrogen peroxide (which I don't feel comfortable doing)...what can you do when your fluff eats something they shouldn't have and you know it will upset their tummy? Do you know if giving them rice will actually help???

Note: Of course, if Bailey had eaten something I know could be harmful to him (like chocolate, raisins, etc) I would have taken him to the vet immediately. But I would like advice on what to do if he eats something that's not necessarily dangerous but may cause an upset tummy. Thanks!!!


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## Snowbody (Jan 3, 2009)

Nida - I don't know about the rice. I know when my son was sick the doc used to suggest rice to firm the stool but other than that not sure. As long as it works for Bailey that's good. I hope he's feeling better now.

I think the main thing I'd concentrate on is working on a very strong "Drop it" command so that you won't be trying to wrestle him from things he picks up. We're doing that in obedience now and I was clear that Come and Drop It were most important to me for Tyler to learn. You don't want to set up something where you're very alarmed and sounding scary to Bailey when he gets something in his mouth he shouldn't because then they are more likely to run away with it. Work on the drop it and reward a few times a day...as a game.


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## Aarianne (Jul 22, 2005)

I think white rice is considered to be good for an upset stomach (human or canine) because it's a low allergy, relatively easy-to-digest food. I don't know if it would have any additional benefits in your situation. 

Perhaps it would help by slowing down the absorption of any toxins present in the moldy/rotten food by diluting their concentration in the stomach? (Just a guess.)


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## CrystalAndZoe (Jul 11, 2006)

Vets often say rice because it's soft and bland. And usually they say chicken and rice so it's also easier to digest being a limited diet. I prefer oatmeal to rice. But with Bailey's digestive history, I would not have given him anything other then his regular food, which is already a limited and very bland diet. Remember to try not to give anything out of what his limited diet is already made up of. And I would not ever do anything to induce vomiting unless it's something poisonous. Especially with Bailey's history. So you did exactly what I would have done....or not done lol....by not inducing vomiting. And I LOVE the Ginger/Mint. It really does help to settle the tummy. My vet swears by the stuff herself.

btw...usually doing the chicken/rice thing is when they have thrown up for some unknown reason like they have a touch of a stomach bug. And then it's usually thought to withhold food for 12 hours and then start in with the chicken/rice. Bailey's body did the perfect thing by upchucking what he shouldn't have eaten. Zoe has free run of her G'ma and G'pa's yard and so she unfortunately eats yucky things more then she should and it's usually followed by her upchucking the yucky thing and then she's fine. :blush:


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## Bailey&Me (Mar 8, 2010)

Snowbody said:


> Nida - I don't know about the rice. I know when my son was sick the doc used to suggest rice to firm the stool but other than that not sure. As long as it works for Bailey that's good. I hope he's feeling better now.
> 
> I think the main thing I'd concentrate on is working on a very strong "Drop it" command so that you won't be trying to wrestle him from things he picks up. We're doing that in obedience now and I was clear that Come and Drop It were most important to me for Tyler to learn. You don't want to set up something where you're very alarmed and sounding scary to Bailey when he gets something in his mouth he shouldn't because then they are more likely to run away with it. Work on the drop it and reward a few times a day...as a game.


Thanks Sue! I thought I remembered reading a thread in which a member's maltese had eaten a rubber band and she had given the malt some rice because it helps fluffs pass whatever foreign object they might have eaten. And then I heard someone at my local pet store make a comment about giving her dog rice when he ate some mulch so he could pass it more easily. So that's why I was wondering how it helps in cases where a dog might have eaten something bad.

Great advice about working with Bailey more on the "Drop it" command - I really do need to do that more often. He does know the command and knows what it means - but most of the time he chooses to ignore it :w00t: unless I bribe him with a treat!! If I see him with something in his mouth, he is good about letting me fish it out but I do want him to get to a point where he just drops it on command...or better yet, not pick it up in the first place! His issue is that he is CONSTANTLY scavaging for something...his nose is always to the ground, sniffing for something and if he finds even the tiniest crumb or anything on the ground, it'll be in his mouth. I think I might contact Jackie (jmm) to see if she still does the one on one training (she's in my area). I've done two group training sessions with him and while they were helpful, I'd love to do something one on one so we can focus on his specific issues.


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## Bailey&Me (Mar 8, 2010)

Aarianne said:


> I think white rice is considered to be good for an upset stomach (human or canine) because it's a low allergy, relatively easy-to-digest food. I don't know if it would have any additional benefits in your situation.
> 
> Perhaps it would help by slowing down the absorption of any toxins present in the moldy/rotten food by diluting their concentration in the stomach? (Just a guess.)


Thanks for your post! I'm also thinking rice probably helped slow down the absorption of the toxins that might have been in the garbage he ate...but not sure about that. I'm wondering if a dog eats a foreign object like say a rubber band...does rice help in that case to sort of bind around the object and help it pass through the stomach and intestines easier? 

If nothing else, I know rice can be helpful soothe an upset tummy and firm up stools so that's probably all it did in Bailey's situation too. 

Thanks!!


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## Bailey&Me (Mar 8, 2010)

Crystal&Zoe said:


> Vets often say rice because it's soft and bland. And usually they say chicken and rice so it's also easier to digest being a limited diet. I prefer oatmeal to rice. But with Bailey's digestive history, I would not have given him anything other then his regular food, which is already a limited and very bland diet. Remember to try not to give anything out of what his limited diet is already made up of. And I would not ever do anything to induce vomiting unless it's something poisonous. Especially with Bailey's history. So you did exactly what I would have done....or not done lol....by not inducing vomiting. And I LOVE the Ginger/Mint. It really does help to settle the tummy. My vet swears by the stuff herself.
> 
> btw...usually doing the chicken/rice thing is when they have thrown up for some unknown reason like they have a touch of a stomach bug. And then it's usually thought to withhold food for 12 hours and then start in with the chicken/rice. Bailey's body did the perfect thing by upchucking what he shouldn't have eaten. Zoe has free run of her G'ma and G'pa's yard and so she unfortunately eats yucky things more then she should and it's usually followed by her upchucking the yucky thing and then she's fine. :blush:


Thanks for your always helpful advice, Crystal! I was really debating adding the rice because I didn't want to throw off his system more since he's been on a limited diet. I guess I freak out every time he has even the slightest symptoms of being sick...every cough, loose stool, throw up, etc really worries me. Kind of like a first time mom with a new baby, I guess. I've gotten better over the last year or so but still learning! It's good to know you've had the same experience with Zoe eating random things outside and having the same reaction but then being fine (well NOT good to know that she goes through that...but you know what I mean...it's reassuring when others have had similar experiences). I'm just so thankful I have SM as a resource because otherwise I would be calling my vet way too often!!! 

Thank you!!!


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