Dr Liesel van der Merwe is a small animal medicine specialist. Send her your questions: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Dr Liesel van der Merwe

South Africans love a good old braai. But lurking among all that good food and conviviality lurk several frequent offenders that cause your dog to visit the vet. Mielies, sosaties, fatty chops and bones . . . keep these away from your dog and you won’t be paying the afterhours vet a visit a few days post braai.

Mielie cobs are one of the more common causes of small intestine obstruction in dogs in our urban practices. They are sometimes a little tricky to diagnose. Bone shine up bright white on radiographs (X-rays), but you cannot always see a mielie cob. When you do detect it on an image, you can see the slight mesh of where the mielie pips were attached, actually a pretty image.

In big dogs with deep chests it is not always possible to feel these obstructions and we can generally only confirm them on abdominal ultrasound or during exploratory surgery. Luckily mielie cobs don’t have sharp points, so they don’t perforate the small intestine and cause peritonitis.

They are one of the better causes of obstruction, but still costly and requiring surgery. Collect them and throw them away where the dog cannot scrounge them out of the bin. Unfortunately, mielies are also often a “to-go” food and cobs are littered on the road. You also need to keep an eye out when you go for walks. These are often drier and less buttery, so less of a risk.

Sosatie sticks (kebab sticks) are a very great risk to dogs. And as one can imagine, a great temptation. Dogs are greedy; they will sometimes chew the sosatie stick properly, and other times they will just gulp it down.

The oesophagus is quite tough and the stick will generally move down into the stomach. This is where the problem starts. As the stomach contracts, the stick will become wedged. The dog may show some signs of abdominal discomfort and vomiting, but once again, due to being wood, the foreign object will not be apparent on radiographs.

Additionally, it is tricky to see on an abdominal ultrasound, as the air in the stomach interferes with the image. Because of its sharp point, the sosatie stick will start moving through the stomach wall and as the stomach contracts it is pushed further out into the abdomen. Because this happens so slowly, the body forms a capsule around the migrating stick, preventing peritonitis.

These sticks migrate along the attachment of the diaphragm and may emerge along the middle of the spine, causing an abscess in the muscles in that region. Abdominal surgery is required to repair any leakages as the stick is removed. Again a tricky diagnosis and an expensive surgery: best avoided by breaking up the sosatie sticks and disposing of them properly.

Then there are those fatty bits of meat. Large breed dogs can manage them. Small breed dogs generally not. Besides a routine upset tummy, high-fat meals can predispose to a condition called pancreatitis in small breed dogs. Inflammation of the pancreas, which secretes digestive enzymes for proteins, is an extremely painful condition and causes vomiting and inappetence. Severe pancreatitis can result in systemic illness and organ failure.

Bones too, especially chop bones with their sharp points, can be a problem. If your dog gets into the leftovers and eats a large amount of bones, the stomach acids will not be able to digest this and they will need surgery. If they do manage to pass into the intestines, it will often cause constipation due to all the bone meal in the stool.

So, while you enjoy your braai, make sure your dogs don’t as well. Ensure that your guests know the rules regarding the dogs: no feeding and no leaving leftovers where it can be accessed.