A dog that chewed its owner's big toe 'to the bone' could have inadvertently saved a man's life. David Lindsay, 64, woke up in a stir to find his puppy gnawing away at his toe after he heard his wife's screams.
The retired builder's big toe covered in blood with the bone being fractured by seven month old dog Harley, with the nail of his toe left hanging off, reports the Mirror.
What was a terrifying incident turned out to be a potential blessing, as the father-of-five was told by doctors that he had lost the feeling in his feet due to blocked arteries in his legs.
David was rushed to Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge where he has been for a total of nine days, and has been put on intravenous antibiotics for an infection caused by the dog's bite to stop it spreading to his bone. The 64-year-old also suffers from diabetes.
He said: "I was asleep on the couch when my wife walked in and shouted, 'Dave, the puppy's chewing your toe!'
"My puppy had near enough chewed my big toe off! It chewed down to the bone and cracked it.
"But because of all this, I discovered that my foot is completely numb, I can't feel anything."
CT scans revealed that two blocked arteries meant he had lost feeling to his toes. The issue could put the grandfather of 11 in danger of needing his leg amputated.
David is being assessed by medics for stents but is hoping he can go home this week and revealed he has no intention of getting rid of mischievous pup Harley after the event.
"You've got to laugh about it. He's done me a favour by chewing my toe," he said.
"So I'm waiting to find out if they can put stents in. I'll be keeping the dog.
"I'll try to keep my toe too, but if not I told the doctor to cut it off and I can take it home for him!"
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