Dog owners are being warned to watch out for litter after a Labrador chomped his way through potentially fatal litter. Mishap-prone Paco munched his way through mutli-coloured foam letters spelling out "Happy Easter" that had been left on the floor following a village egg hunt.
Emergency medics Vets Now says Paco's ordeal highlights the importance of making sure to tidy litter – and the potential unforeseen consequences of leaving rubbish out in public spaces. Paco, from Ayrshire in Scotland, thought it was his lucky day when he arrived at the aftermath of the egg hunt.
There he discovered a large ball of pipe cleaners that had rolled down a hill. The ball had multiple hard-boiled eggs in it and had the foam greeting attached to its sides.
And so, the sight that greeted greedy Paco was an irresistible tangle of foam letters, pipe cleaners and smashed egg. Paco wolfed down all the eggs – along with the foam letters and also had a good chew of the pipe cleaners.
The pipe cleaners, used for arts and crafts, had sharp metal rods inside which could have punctured one of Paco’s vital organs or severed one of his arteries. So, the pooch had to be rushed to emergency vet care – a scenario his owner Paul McDowell is well familiar with after a string of previous incidents.
Paul said: “Paco is a typical Lab – always on the look-out for something or anything he shouldn’t be eating. He’s mad for eggs – he once ate a whole half dozen he stole off the kitchen counter and we’ve had to take him to the vets quite a few times before.
Once it was after he ate a slice of Christmas cake with all the currants and raisins which can be really toxic for dogs. Another time was when he broke through into our neighbour’s garden and managed to get hold of some chicken bones left on a plate. So we know the routine – get him seen quick.”
Paco’s mishap came when Paul and his wife Amy were walking him at Morton Park in Kilmaurs, where they live. The egg-rolling was over by the time Paco got there but he still managed to make the most of it while he was off the lead.
Paul said: “It was our usual evening walk – and I think Paco thought all this stuff had been laid on for his personal enjoyment. He seemed okay and didn’t have any immediate signs of any symptoms – but we didn’t want to leave anything to chance.”
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Paul and Amy took Paco straight to our 24-hour pet emergency clinic in nearby Kilmarnock, where our team gave him an injection to make him sick and clean out his stomach. Paul said: “It’s safe to say a fair amount of bright coloured foam came up – but, fortunately, no pipe cleaners, which it turned out he’d been chewing but hadn’t actually swallowed.”
Before long, and with Paco now feeling slightly sorry for himself, he was well enough to head home with Paul and Amy. And after a couple of days he was back to his boisterous normal self – playing hide and seek with his toys and lurking in the kitchen in case of any crumbs being dropped.
Paul said: “Paco’s part of our family and we couldn’t forgive ourselves if any harm ever came to him so it was really important to get him checked over. But I really do hope we’re not back at the vets again for a very long time.”
Amanda McCool, principal nurse manager at our Kilmarnock clinic, said: “The team remember Paco very well – we’ve never heard of a dog eating foam letters before! Paul and Amy did absolutely the right thing bringing him in because if Paco had swallowed any of the pipe cleaners it could have had very serious consequences for him due to the metal inside.”
Paul and Amy met when they were working at a school in Madrid, hence Paco’s Spanish name. But loveable Paco, who was aged two at the time of last year’s drama and is now three, doesn’t understand instructions in Spanish.
Paul quipped: "In fact, we’d be pretty pleased if he just started following some instructions in English occasionally. If anything, he seems to getting more daft as he gets older – not more sensible.”
Vets Now has issued Paco's story ahead of Earth Day on Saturday. If your pet has eaten anything potentially harmful you should call your vet for advice as soon as possible. If you’re unsure whether your pet needs veterinary treatment, you can book an online video consultation with Video Vets Now.
