Stick-throwing alert after dog impaled by 11in branch
VETS have urged dog owners to stop throwing sticks for their pets – after a labrador was impaled by an 11-inch branch.
Three-year-old Willow needed a two-hour operation to remove the huge stick lodged under her tongue and halfway down her throat after a walk with her owner.
But miraculously, it had missed every vital vessel, nerve and organ.
Owner Helen Speirs, 50, said she was nearing the end of a stroll in Rugby, Warwickshire, when she heard a ‘bloodcurdling cry’.
Miss Speirs, an HR business partner, recalled: ‘We were getting near the end of the field when I heard a bloodcurdling cry, it was horrible.
‘I got her back into my car and took her straight to the vets. It had just missed her spine and all her major nerves and vital organs. They removed it through her shoulder. They said she was very lucky – if she had been a cat she would have used two of her lives on this.’
She added: ‘I will do everything I can to ensure everybody is made aware how easily it can happen to them.’ In a video released on Facebook by the local Bilton Veterinary Centre – which has been viewed 21,000 times – the experts said: ‘Every year, we see at least one dog that receives a serious injury as a result of playing with sticks.
‘This is one of them. Willow the labrador had been playing with a stick when she caught it awkwardly and it ended up impaling her into the mouth. It transpired that the stick (nearly 30cm) entered under the tongue and continued to about halfway down the neck.’
They continued: ‘ Luckily it appears to have missed every vital vessel, nerve and structure in that area. Her owner allowed us to share this story to help educate people about the dangers of sticks.
‘Please never, ever throw sticks for dogs. This is not an uncommon injury and is often far worse – and can be fatal.’
In 2016 Sean Wensley, president of the British Veterinary Association, said on average one dog a month is treated for an injury from a piece of wood at each of more than 5,000 UK veterinary practices.
He estimated that more than 60,000 are treated every year for what are often ‘terrible’ injuries.
Safer alternatives such as balls and frisbees are recommended.