KOLD News 13 Anchor Heather Rowe

The next time you take your pup on a trip to the pet store make sure it doesn't lead to a trip to the emergency room. It's quite surprising the objects they can take down, according to Tucson Veterinarian Mike Matz.

Dr. Matz says, just because toys are sitting or hanging in the aisles at a local pet store doesn't mean they are safe.

Teree Bergman a pet owner had a terrifying experience when she was throwing the football for her dog Henry and all of a sudden instead of catching it, Henry swallowed it. Bergman says,"the football was big enough that it stuck out of both sides of his mouth. It was not something you would have thought a dog would swallow." Bergman rushed Henry to the emergency room and Dr. Matz took the x-ray.

Though the nerf football was the biggest object Dr. Matz has ever seen a dog swallow, the kind of object wasn't unusual. "I think we underestimate what they can do with their mouths," Dr. Matz says.

Toys many of us give our pet's are items that could kill them.

"A lot of toys you can buy like squeaky balls, dogs can easily tear up and ingest them," according to Dr. Matz.

Dr. Matz goes on to say, other popular toys such as ropes can eventually unravel and cause a mess in your pets intestines, stuff toys are another big thing that are a problem, because a dog can tear them up and they are usually stuffed with something. The bowel keeps trying to push it out and eventually it will erode through which can be that can be fatal.

Even tennis balls can be dangerous, the plastic pieces can't be broken down in the stomach.

So what about bones? Dr. Matz says "bones rank pretty high on the list."

Rawhide bones are usually okay when they are large, but once chewed down can be choking hazards. Certain bones can splinter off and be hard for dog's systems to pass through. If it's in the small bowel it's surgery and 3 to 4 days hospitalization.

Dr. Matz says, "Sometimes they can flop around in the stomach for days and not cause any problems and then over time if gets lodged somewhere and that's when we see the clinical signs. "

If it stays in the stomach or the esophagus, often surgery isn't needed.

Amazingly Dr. Matz can use a tiny tool called a fiber optic endoscope to pull out the foreign material. It can work on objects as big as a football.

So what is safe to shop for?

Dr. Matz recommends, "looking for items that are not destructible".

Toys like Nyla bones; bones made with heavy nylon material that is harder for dogs to penetrate. Something that is virtually impossible to break, tear, or swallow.

After Henry's successful operation, he's retired from football but still receiving. One thing that Bergman has learned is, "when you purchase a dog toy you have to read very carefully."

Bergman suggests being careful what you give your dog to play with, things like a football that is bigger than the dog's mouth should never considered, because your pet will find a way to swallow it.

Dr. Matz says it doesn't mean you shouldn't ever buy these dog toys. He says owners just need to watch their dogs when they are chewing them.