Vet team saves dog impaled on iron spike

A vet rushed to the scene when a dog was impaled on an iron fence.

Staffordshire bull terrier-whippet cross Tilly had tried to jump a tall fence in the garden of her home in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, but became impaled on a spike that pierced her groin and abdomen.

With Tilly’s owner at work, a neighbour called Eastfield Vets in Cleethorpes to report the emergency and vet Jo Patrick rushed out with receptionist Karen Clark, who was able to contact the owner and gain consent for treatment.

Stretcher

Tilly was given immediate pain relief through an IV, and carefully lifted and placed on to a stretcher before being transported to the practice in Hardys Road.

Mrs Patrick said: “On arrival, initially it was hard at first glance to tell if she was dead or alive because she was so still. However, on examination, Tilly’s gums looked nice and pink, which is a good sign, and there didn’t seem to be too much blood loss. My first thought was to get some emergency pain relief into her.

“She was a really good girl and didn’t try to bite us as we lifted her off. We brought her back to the branch and put her on fluids as the shock was kicking in.”

Operation

Once stable, Tilly was transported to Eastfield Vets’ main hospital in North Thoresby. She was sedated and x-rayed by Magda Jarek-Ksiazczyk, with fellow vet Adam Slavicek operating that evening to check for internal organ damage, of which there was little, before cleaning and stitching up her wound.

She remained at the Station Road hospital for four nights on pain relief, supportive fluids and antibiotics.

Mrs Patrick added: “She is a very lucky girl. It was a dramatic day and a real team effort from the receptionists to those who cared for her after her operation. We are recommending physiotherapy and hoping the nerve function will come back.”