A young pup is on the road to recovery after swallowing an 18 centimetre piece of fence wire.
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The kelpie was brought into the Animal Medical Centre in Launceston on Sunday after it had been unwell for sometime.
Veterinarian Dr Rob Schaeche said it was an unusual discovery with the wire measuring about two thirds the size of the dog. He said this type of obstruction could lead to peritonitis (inflammation) or death.
“We pull out all sorts of things from dogs including skewers, corn cobs, stockings … you’d be really surprised what they can get down there,” he said.
“We have some serial offenders, some dogs come in and they have eaten kids toys multiple times over a lifetime … I don’t think you can confidently change their behaviour but you can avoid the situation by not leaving items around.”
Owners concerned about pets swallowing items are advised to contact their veterinarian for advice.
“Vomiting is the number one symptom and sometimes not passing faeces.”