Dogs love to play with toys and while parents try to find ones that are safe, some situations are unforeseen.
Large dogs are usually given tougher toys that they cannot easily rip or destroy. Most of the toys are made of rubber or a ball to play fetch with. While rubber is not easy to destroy, dogs left unattended while playing can get into trouble.
Helen and James Hartley were horrified when they found their Labrador’s tongue stuck in a rubber ball toy. Apparently, their dog named Poppy managed to get her tongue stuck in the air hole of a rubber ball. The couple found Poppy with her tongue stuck after returning home from work one day and were unsure how long it had been stuck. After struggling to remove the ball, they finally managed to remove it.
Poppy started to act strange, so the couple rushed their beloved girl to Foxhall Veterinary Clinic in Ruskington, Lincolnshire. After being examined, Poppy ate a treat, so she was prescribed a medicine to help with the swelling and scheduled to return the next day for a checkup.
As the days progressed, Poppy’s tongue did not improve but instead began to smell foul. The parts of her tongue that were trapped in the rubber toy became necrotic and needed to be removed.
The clinic posted, “Unfortunately the red line gradually changed in to bruising, the bruises then started to smell and formed white plaques on top, which eventually turned black, necrotic and died off. Poor Poppy was left with two great big slits on either side of her tongue where the ball had been and was struggling to eat and drink because of this, so she was booked in for surgery with Sophie our Vet!”
The vet removed the dead areas and stitched up Poppy’s tongue with dissolvable stitches. Poppy is a resilient pup and is on the road to recovery. She can eat, drink and give kisses like normal and her parents are so grateful to the medical team.
Helen said, “It was really traumatic for us all. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for looking after Poppy. She’s been so well loved by everybody at the surgery and we couldn’t have asked for a more dedicated team. Well done to you all, Poppy sends sloppy kisses.”
