AN ALSAGER vet is urging parents to correctly dispose of used nappies after a dog needed emergency treatment.
Otto, a five-year-old black Labrador, was rushed to Alsager Vet Centre by his worried owner after he picked up a soiled nappy on a walk and swallowed it before they could persuade him to drop it.
At the vet practice in Crewe Road, Alsager, which is part of VetPartners, Otto was given some medication to make him sick.
He vomited up the nappy and was able to go home none-the-worse for his ordeal. However, vet Dr Tara Lowe said if Otto hadn’t brought the nappy back up, he would have required major surgery to remove it. She added that the nappy contained human faeces, which could have caused a stomach upset.
Dr Lowe said: “Otto was a perfect patient and I was pleased I could save him from having major surgery. He was very lucky that his owner acted quickly and brought him into the practice so we could help him bring up the nappy before it caused him any major harm. The nappy was made from materials that wouldn’t break down in his stomach and because of its size it would have caused a serious blockage in his digestive system, which could potentially have led to life-threatening issues such as peritonitis and sepsis
“The nappy put Otto’s life in danger and caused a stressful experience for his owner, as well as being unpleasant for the veterinary team as we had to check through the vomit to make sure he’d brought it all back up. I would urge anyone to put used nappies in bins or, if they are out and about, to take them home and dispose of them correctly. It might not be something you’d expect a dog to pick up, but as Otto has shown, some pets will eat anything.”
Otto is now home with his owner Neena Cleary, who says he found the nappy while they were walking along the Salt Line nature trail.
Neena said: “We walk the Salt Line often and it’s usually unspoilt and we don’t see any rubbish. On this occasion, we were close to the viewpoint when I noticed Otto sniffing something and then he picked it up and ran off. I went after him but as I tried to take what I then realised was a nappy out of his mouth, he swallowed it.
“Alsager Vets were great when I called them, and they told me to bring Otto straight in. They clearly explained how they were going to treat Otto and I can’t praise them enough. I was so relieved when they said he wouldn’t need surgery and, although he was a bit sheepish for a few hours afterwards, he was back to his usual self very quickly.
“I can’t believe anybody would knowingly throw a nappy on the floor like that and I hope it was an accident and it fell out of a bag unnoticed, but it’s frightening how ill it could have made Otto.”
Alsager Vet Centre is part of Willows Veterinary Group, which is a mixed vet group delivering the highest levels of care to pets, horses and farm animals. It includes 22 small animal surgeries across Staffordshire, Cheshire, Manchester and the Wirral and is part of VetPartners.
Article by Jo Browne, PR & Communications manager (South), email: [email protected]