Trader Joe’s Shopper Buys a Popular Chewy Treat for Her Dog — Then the Pet Had a Medical Emergency

Whenever their dog is lonely, bored, anxious, or maybe hungry, many pet parents give them a “bully stick,” a chewy treat made from dried bull penis also called “pizzle.” It is often roasted, wrapped in assorted shapes, and flavored with salt and natural wood smoke for added taste, explains Bully Bunches. As a bonus to its chewy texture, the stick helps doggies with dental hygiene, a rich protein supply, and digestibility. But when Reece Lopez (@reecelopez), an Atlanta-based woman, left her dog Oakley with a Trader Joe’s bully stick, it turned into a risk.

Lopez started the video by sharing that Oakley typically loves Trader Joe’s bully chewers, which is why she got a packet for her. While feeding the dog, she thought that the sticks were safe for her to chew. “They were, maybe, the size of my hand, and my dog is like 50 pounds. So I thought it would be okay as long as I supervised her. I gave it to her, and I made sure to check to see her progress on how much she was chewing.” After 20 minutes of giving Oakley the stick, Lopez returned to check and see what was going on with her. What she saw left her horrified.

Instead of just chewing it, Oakley had swallowed the entire stick in her mouth. “She, basically, had all this left still, just kind of white. She had chewed it open. I was just keeping an eye on her, and then she swallowed it. And I was like, what was that noise?” Lopez described the scene to the viewers. At first, after noticing that Oakley wasn’t chewing the stick anymore, Lopez took solace in the idea that the stick wouldn’t do any harm to the dog. After all, it just contained some color additives and flavors, and preservatives, that’s it. But a little research revealed that swallowing a whole bully stick could harm the dog’s digestive system.

“So I made her throw it up. Thank god. I just bought the hydrogen peroxide a few days ago,” she shared. And even when she collected the stick from her vomit, the stick seemed to be as hard as a rock. “It was fully intact still and I didn't even realize how much of it was, like, fully hard still, […] almost as hard as these original ones.” She took to TikTok to share an informative PSA for all the dog moms out there. After this experience, she decided that she wouldn’t feed Oakley any more bully sticks and urged all the doggo parents to consult a doctor before inducing vomiting. 

In the comments section, hundreds of people resonated with Lopez’s advice. Some of them shared personal experiences of feeding their doggo pets with these chewy treats. “The same thing happened to my dog with these,” commented @jbfeverluver. @al said, “My puppy swallowed a huge one. The vet said not to feed him for a day or two so that it can digest. He was fine.” One TikTok user shared a similar experience they had with the bully sticks they bought from Trader Joe’s. They said they had to stop feeding their dog Yak chews because they were so much harder than those from regular feed stores.

A veterinary doctor chimed in to share a quick tip. “Our rule of thumb is, if it’s too hard to make a dent with your fingernail, throw and toss it,” wrote @t1na. Other people suggested that the chewing sticks should first be soaked in warm water before putting them in the microwave because directly warming them in the microwave can turn them into hard biscuits that the dog won’t like to chew. @opedanielle suggested, “You can also hold it while they chew! It helps prevent food aggression.”

You can follow Reece Lopez (@reecelopez) on TikTok for cool things and content related to clothing and lifestyle.