A vet is telling pet owners not to give a dog a bone after what was supposed to be a tasty treat turned into a disaster after a puppy got a donut-shaped bone wedged around her jaw.
Black Labrador Jess was left in serious distress as owner Ben Prince, from Driffield, East Yorkshire, struggled to free the bone – and she could only be freed through the intervention of Priory Vets, part of the network.
“Jess really loves chewing things and although balls are her favourite, she does get stuck into bones,” said Ben. “We used to get them for her quite regularly and there had never been any problems.”
Recalling the incident that led to the bone being stuck to Jess’s jaw, Ben added, “She was playing with it in the kitchen when I put her to bed, and I didn’t think twice about leaving her with it.
“When I came down to feed her the next morning, she kept going to her bowl and running off. She usually wolfs it down and I couldn’t see the bone, so I didn’t appreciate the problem. But my heart sank when I got down to look and saw the bone was totally wrapped around her lower jaw.
“I don’t know how she got it on, and I thought I might just be able to slip it back off. But every time I tried, she was in quite a bit of distress. I called my dad, who looks after her when I’m at work, and we realised we just couldn’t budge it and needed help.”
Ben called Priory Vets, and was told to bring Jess in straight away.
“The bone was stuck very tightly around Jess’s lower jaw,” said senior vet Cheryl Driskell. “We placed her under general anaesthetic with the aim of drilling through the bone to remove it.
“But whilst she was under anaesthetic, our vet managed to slide the bone off from her jaw successfully without having to drill. Luckily in this case, there was no serious damage caused and Jess made a full recovery.
“We strongly advise against feeding bones to your pets as they can cause life-threatening obstructions if ingested and small pieces can be found stuck in the mouth.”
Accidents like the one that befell Jess are not the only danger when it comes to feeding bones to dogs. Vets regularly treat animals who have consumed cooked bones and become lodged in the stomach or intestines. In many cases, surgery is required to remove the bone and, occasionally, the blockage can be fatal. Raw bones can also be a hazard and many of those that end up getting stuck on dogs’ jaws are packaged and sold as treats.
Images by My Family Vets