Maggie's owners were shocked to find she had been on TWO scavenging sprees
A double dose of lockdown scavenging left a naughty Doberman needing urgent middle-of-the-night surgery.
Owner Julie Christie, from Paisley, feared for four-year-old Maggie after she ate a leather glove – only to discoverer the hungry hound had scoffed a yogurt pot, too.
With the plastic container trapped dangerously in her small intestine, an immediate operation was required.
Despite the current coronavirus lockdown, Vet Now’s network of out-of-hours clinics and hospitals are open to carry out urgent treatment on the nation’s pets. And a dash to the state-of-the-art Vets Now pet emergency hospital in Glasgow saved the day.
“I’d worn the leather gloves one day when I was out and then I couldn’t find one of them,” said civil servant Julie, 44.
“I searched everywhere for it and while I worried that Maggie may have eaten it, she seemed fine so I thought I must just have just lost it.
“Then, three days later, she was suddenly sick six times and I thought then that it might have been the glove and it may be causing a blockage.
“What I didn’t realise until later was that it wasn’t just the glove and there was actually a separate problem. The kids are obviously about because they are off school, I think they had maybe left out a yogurt pot which she’d eaten, too.”
Julie phoned the hospital, in North Street, and was told to bring Maggie in straight away.
Strict Covid-19 protocols are in place and Julie was directed to the car park at the rear of the building where Maggie was safely handed over so Vets Now’s vets and vet nurses could take her for an examination.
“It was very well-handled,” said Julie. “I was told to go back to the car, go home and I’d get a call to update me.”
After a series of blood tests and scans, Maggie was sedated so x-rays could be taken. These showed not just the missing glove but also the plastic container.
Following consultations with Julie, the team went ahead with the vital surgery.
“We located two foreign bodies,” said vet Elena Androutsou.
“The glove was in the stomach, but we also found the plastic item in the small intestine. We were able to remove both carefully and then suture the wounds back up.
“Thankfully, Maggie recovered rapidly from the operation and she was bright and comfortable by the following day. It’s great to hear she is now on the mend as she’s such a beautiful big dog.”
Throughout the worrying time, Julie was kept fully informed of what was going on.
“It was after midnight when I was told there was the blockage in the small intestine and that she needed surgery,” said Julie. “They had to explain possible complications and you just worry that she might not pull through.
“I had a really sleepless night until I got the call about 6.30am to say she’d had both the foreign bodies removed and was recovering well.
“In fact, she had come round so quickly from the anaesthetic, she tried to jump off the table which sounded so like her.
“All of the staff were so calm and helpful, and it was just brilliant when I was able to go and get her the following day. It was so reassuring that, with everything that’s going on, this help was still there when I needed it.”