A playful pup almost lost his life after swallowing two plastic balls which lodged in his stomach. Gus, an 11-month-old crossbreed, needed life-saving surgery after downing the balls which had burst while he played with them in the garden.
His quick-thinking owner rushed him to Beechwood Vets at Temple House in Seacroft where he underwent an operation to remove the toys to prevent them causing a dangerous blockage that could have proved fatal. Due to their location in his stomach and slippery texture, it wasn’t possible to retrieve the balls by endoscopy – a procedure which allows a vet to insert a flexible tube through a pet’s mouth and into their stomach to help remove a foreign body with specialist tools.
Instead, Veterinary surgeon Dr James Tate instead carried out the delicate operation to surgically remove the balls through a single incision in Gus’ stomach. Thanks to the skills and expertise of the Beechwood veterinary team, Gus was back at home the same day, and has now bounced back to his lively self.
