Vets at Vale Vets in Portishead are urging caution to pet owners after performing lifesaving surgery on a Greyhound who swallowed a discarded fishing hook.
Eight-year old Greyhound Sean’s owners had been out for their regular evening stroll along Portishead Marina when they noticed something wasn’t right.
Angela Reed-Fox, a 40-year old nurse from Portishead said: “My husband and I were chatting, Sean was wandering around like he normally does. As Sean returned to us, he was making a strange gulping noise. He got closer and we noticed a long orange wire sticking out of his mouth. My husband jumped up to take a closer look, then we drove to Vale Vets immediately.”
Arriving at Vale Vets, the wire that was coming from Sean’s mouth had shortened considerably, meaning that whatever was at the other end of it had made its way further down.
The Greyhound was given an x-ray and the team confirmed that the mysterious artefact he’d swallowed was a crabbing hook. Vets performed surgery on Sean right away, which was successful meaning he was allowed to go home the following morning.
Angela added: “I’m so relieved that everything aligned, and it all went well. The hook could have caused fatal internal bleeding. Not only that – had we not known what had happened at the time, the hook could have caused sepsis, which could have killed Sean.”
Following the incident, the practice issued a warning on their Facebook page urging local dog owners to be mindful of litter when out walking with their pets.
Although a little subdued after his operation, Sean has begun a gradual return to his usual self and has been enjoying small walks and his favourite ‘dog tapas’: rice and scrambled eggs.
Angela describes Sean as suer-chilled, quirky and trusting. And Angela isn’t the only one who’s full of praise for the kind and trusting Greyhound as Sean was on Vale Vets Portishead’s blood donors list from the age of 4 and donated blood to a dog in need just before retiring due to his age.
Angela said: “The staff at Vale Vets were just brilliant. The practice is open 24 hours, which appealed to us massively when we were choosing a practice 6 years ago. It’s nice to have that reassurance. If we couldn’t have got Sean seen to immediately, things would have been much more complex.”
