Saturday, March 19, 2016

Puppy saved from sticky end after eating tube of expanding glue

A cocker spaniel puppy found himself in a sticky situation after snacking on a tube of expanding glue which led to a ball growing to 15cm wide in his stomach. Seven-month-old Marley devoured the glue and was rushed to the vets, Highcliff Veterinary Practice in Hadleigh, Suffolk, by his worried owners Simon and Beverley King. When he started vomiting and not wanting to eat, X-rays were taken.



A large obstruction could be seen in his stomach so vet Gemma Ninnmey sent Marley to Dick White Referrals in Six Mile Bottom, near Newmarket in Cambridgeshire. Jan Wade from Dick White Referrals said: "At first, his owners thought he had just got it all over his paws and he seemed to be okay. The vet had decided to refer him to us because he didn't know what was happening. It had expanded but it was not attached to his stomach so they knew it wasn't a tumour. Sometimes Marley would be able to eat and it would pass through and other times he would not be able to eat at all.





"It was just bouncing around in his stomach." A thorough examination and an ultrasound showed a large "foreign body" in his stomach. Surgical specialist Pieter Nellisen conducted an hour-long operation to remove the glue – which had expanded to a 15cm ball in Marley's stomach. Jan said: "It came as quite a surprise to his owners when they saw the photographs of the ball of expanded glue, which measured about 15cm in diameter. You could see when it was removed that it was the same shape as his stomach, it had completely expanded. It was incredible.



"It's not often we have to remove a large lump of expandable glue from a puppy's stomach!" Thankfully, Marley's operation was a success and he recovered well. The pooch was ready to return home within 24 hours and has seen no ill effects from his adventurous snack. Jan added: "We were a bit worried doing the surgery when he was only seven months old but he just bounched back, we couldn't believe it." Marley's owner, Simon, said: "The care that Marley has received here is second to none. The vets were brilliant and kept in touch with us throughout to let us know what was happening."

1 comment:

Barbwire said...

I've never heard of expandable glue. It's obviously not something you want around dogs or little kids.