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Mindy had been out for a walk with her owners and was playing fetch with a stick. We forgot to take her tennis ball with us, so we used a stick we found on the ground without a second thought. We were playing along quite nicely, but then the stick shattered as it landed and it was poking up from the ground. As Mindy went to retrieve the stick from the top, it impaled in her mouth so deep it was wedged as far back as her voice box! Mindy was so brave, she didn't even whimper and there was fortunatwly no blood. We rushed her to the vets where Mr Daniel and Fiona Clegg examined her and admitted her to the hospital to have the stick removed and the check the extent of the injury. She was operated on immediately and after a few hours she was awake enough to come home - like nothing had happened! She was back to her normal self after a few days, and we are so pleased, and so lucky in that the injury could have been alot worse! Thank you for Mindy's swift treatment. Shes a bit of a star too having made it into the local newspaper!
Notes from the Nurses Mindy was admitted at around 1pm in the afternoon, and she seemed completely unconcerned that she had a stick embedded in the back of her throat! Such a brave girl. Unfortunately, stick injuries are not uncommon, so we treated Mindy very carefully as in the past dogs have been lost to stick injuries when the embedded stick has puncture blood vessels resulting in massive blood loss. Fortunately for Mindy, the stick acted like a cork and prevented any excessive bleeding. In order to track the path of the stick into her throat, we aneasthetised Mindy and checked her mouth and neck thoroughly to make sure no other damage was done to her larynx and trachea. The stick was carefully and slowly pulled out and the remaining hole was flushed with sterile saline to remove any debris. We did not suture the wound up in order to allow drainage andMindy was started in a course of antibiotics and anti-inflamatories to fight infection and discomfort. Once Monday was awake enough, she was discharged back to her grateful owners with simple instructions of feeding with soft food and to monitor closely for any problems. A few days later the wound was no longer visible, Mindy was her usual bright and cheery self and she was signed off by Fiona as having fully recovered. We are hugely pleased that this stick injury resulted in a happy ending, however, some aren't so lucky. So please be very careful and avoid using sticks to play fetch. From the Nursing Team Pet of the Month Archives |
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