Naughty Benji needs emergency treatment following misdemeanor
Opportunist thief Benji knew exactly what he was doing when he pinched a pair of pop socks.
But his decision to swallow the stolen goods landed him a trip to the Vets Now pet emergency clinic in Peterborough.
The one-year-old Lhasa Apso needed urgent veterinary treatment over fears the pop socks – short stockings with elasticated tops – would get stuck in his intestine.
Our emergency vet, Stamatios Bouses, performed a thorough physical examination on Benji as well as various diagnostic tests but could not detect any abdominal pain, which suggested the socks had not passed from his stomach.
He then gave Benji an injection to induce vomiting and, as our photo shows, he quickly brought the socks up completely intact.
It’s not uncommon for dogs to be rushed to Vets Now having eaten foreign objects such as socks, tights or even knickers.
Materials like this can cause a physical obstruction if they ball up, or can unravel and cause a linear foreign body that can lead to the small intestine bunching up and being cut through like cheese wire.
Carla Green, head nurse at Vets Now in Peterborough, said: “Some foreign objects are small enough to pass through a dog’s system without causing any problems but others can get stuck causing dogs to become seriously ill quite quickly.
“These intestinal obstructions often require surgery which poses its own risks. However, in Benji’s case, because we knew he’d only recently swallowed the socks we were confident inducing vomiting would bring them back up.”
Benji was staying with his owners’ daughter, Sarah, at her home in Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, and she was witness to his crime.
Sarah said: “The socks were in a box above the TV cabinet, and he just reached up and grabbed them before running away to hide.
“Benji’s well-known for stealing things, and if he knows he’s not supposed to have something he’ll get quite snappy and defensive. When I went near him with biscuits to try to get him to drop the socks, he just swallowed them whole!”
Sarah searched online for advice on what to do, and, as it was out of hours, was advised to call Vets Now in Peterborough to see if our vets could remove the offending items.
Owners who suspect their dog has eaten a foreign object are urged not to wait for signs or symptoms to appear before they act.
Instead, they should telephone their vet immediately or, out of hours, their nearest Vets Now.
Vet nurse Carla added: “Sarah definitely did the right thing by bringing him in to see us straight away and it’s great to hear Benji’s back to full strength.”
Our pet emergency clinic in Peterborough – where Benji received treatment – is one of a nationwide network of Vets Now clinics and hospitals that are open through the night, seven-days-a-week, and day and night on weekends and bank holidays, to treat any pet emergencies that may occur.
All of Vets Now’s out-of-hours clinics and 24/7 hospitals have a vet and vet nurse on site at all times.
