Greedy dog rushed to emergency vets after eating his entire lead
A greedy dog was rushed to the emergency vets after eating his entire lead while his owners weren't looking.
Seven-year-old labrador Max scoffed the lead during a short car journey, leaving nothing but the metal end.
When owners Brian and Christine Hillman realised what had happened, they sought treatment from the emergency clinic Vets Now in Newport, south Wales.
There, a team of specialists worked quickly to recover the lead, which Max had chewed into neat strips.
Ms Hillman, 54, said that although the hungry hound has been known to chew on items of clothing, he had never before eaten anything he shouldn't have.
"We know to keep an eye on Max as he is prone to getting hold of things and having a good chew," she said.
"He is always at the socks and knickers from the washing, although he just bites holes in them, he's never actually eaten any.
"So, we never for a moment thought he'd do anything as crazy as eat his lead."
Max has osteoarthritis and was on his way to a hydrotherapy session when Mr Hillman spotted the missing lead.
"It's only about a 15-minute journey but when Brian went to get him out, all that was left was the metal end of the lead," said Ms Hillman.
"He checked the car and the car park just in case, but there was no trace, so it was obvious he'd started chewing on it and then just ate the whole thing."
Vets gave Max an injection to induce vomiting, and he obligingly brought up the lead in perfect 5cm segments.
Although they deal with all sorts of pet emergencies, the practice says this is the first dog they have treated who has ingested an entire lead.
Professional standards director Laura Playforth said: "This was an unusual case to say the least.
"Some foreign objects are small enough to pass through a dog's system without causing any problems but others can get stuck causing dogs to become seriously ill quite quickly.
"These intestinal obstructions often require surgery, which poses its own risks.
"However, in Max's case, because we knew he'd only recently swallowed the lead we were confident inducing vomiting would bring it back up.
"His case just goes to show some dogs, particularly labs, will eat almost anything."
Ms Hillman said Max has bounced back after his munching mishap.
"Max was a bit queasy when we got him home and it took three of us to get him out of the car, but, thankfully he was soon back to his old self," she said.
"It's still hard to believe what he did. We take no chances now and have both dogs off their leads when they get in the car."
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