Veterinarian Removed Condoms, Vibrator, Baby Nappies From Dogs’ Stomachs

Given how dogs are considered one of the more intelligent animals, one would expect that they would be able to differentiate between food and things that are not edible. However, more often than not, that is not the case, and as a result, canines will devour anything when they get the hunger pangs, a veterinarian said.

Veterinarian and internal medicine specialist Lisa Singer from Brisbane, Australia, told ABC News in an interview that she had removed an array of bizarre things from the stomach of dogs, including contraceptives, condoms, and even a vibrator.

"We see this almost daily. We've removed tea towels, baby nappies, feminine hygiene products, stuffed toys, bones. Most dogs don't know what's okay to eat and what's not okay to eat. Commonly they'll go after things that smell like their owner or go into the bin and have things that had food on them,” Singer said.

In one of the hilarious instances, Singer recalled a married woman bringing in a pet Labrador who was vomiting after having swallowed an unknown item. “The husband kept calling and asking, 'Do you know what it is?' We came out of the operating room and had a lacey pair of bright red knickers. We showed them to the woman and she said 'those aren't mine'."

Hence, it was important to train one’s dog or other pets to know what was included in their diets because it was not possible to keep an eye on them 24/7.

"It is very hard to be monitoring your pet 24 hours a day," Singer said. “Dogs are really naturally curious, but the thing you can do as an owner with a new puppy, or with a newly adopted older dog, is to actually teach them to release objects to you. You can trade them for other high value things. You can run around with treats in your pocket and teach your animal to release things."

She also warned pet owners to keep a lookout for telltale signs that the animals had swallowed something that they should not have eaten. This was because it was always better to remove any foreign objects from a pet’s body at the earliest in order to avoid health complications.

"If you can safely get it out of their mouth before they swallow it, that's one option," she said. “Some things that animals eat are actually safe for them to swallow and they'll pass naturally. If there is ever any doubt in your mind you should call your vet or seek the attention of a 24-hour emergency vet to help you answer these questions over the phone."