Bone Warning for all Dogs

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

Today started out like any other day. I was in the backyard taking pictures of Doodles. Mine and Elizabeth's (Bailey & Bruin). They have been staying with me for the past week while Elizabeth was out of town. She came to pick them up today and of course there was LOTS of excitement associated with her homecoming! I noticed that Lucy had a bone in her mouth and was carrying it around. That is unusual for her but I gave it no real thought. Sometime after Elizabeth and her babies left, I noticed Lucy still had the bone in her mouth and went to take it from her. Imagine my horror when I saw this:

Because her hair is about the same color as the bone, I really didn't notice it. My guess is that she had been like like that for about three hours before I really paid attention. Lucy is the sweetest most laid back dog and she never  wimpered or let me know in any way that she was in trouble. DH and I tried to get it loose but it was not budging over those teeth. I coated the bone and Lucy's teeth with vaseline and still it did not help. We put her in the car and took her to the vet which is about a 12 mile drive. When we got there, I took her out of the car and then took these pics with my iPhone. We walked about 10 feet toward the door of the vets office when Lucy stopped and appeared to be gagging. I just kept tugging on the leash telling her we were going to get her some help. When I got inside the door and explained to the vet tech why we were there, she said "let me take a look" So I bent down to show her and to my amazement, the bone was gone! I went back outside and it was lying on the ground where she was when she started "gagging". Maybe the vaseline helped her, I don't know but I do know that I never want her or any other dog to go thru that! Please don't give your dogs these kinds of bones! If you do, then you must watch them very closely. I can only assume they would have had to put her to sleep to get it off or somehow cut the bone off of her. Thankfully I will never have to find out! I will never buy these bones again!

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

Thank you Laurie! She is getting some extra love tonight!

[Laurie, Wally & Charlotte]

Oh, my goodness -- how frightening, but I'm glad that it came off without any help from the vet. I have eliminated bones of all kinds, shapes and sizes. When Wally cracked one of his molars recently from chewing on an antler, I decided that it simply wasn't worth it. After the tooth incident, I decided to heed our vet's repeated warning that unless you can make a dent with your fingernail into the item to be chewed, it's best to keep it away. Thanks for sharing your story; it's a good reminder for everyone.

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

Thanks for that great advice too Laurie! We have to be really careful with our babies!

[Camilla and Darwin]

Oh my goodness, how bizarre! I am so glad that she's alright and that it came off without a big procedure. Thank you for the heads up!

[Emily, Bentley, & Maserati]

Oh my! How scary! I'm glad Lucy was able to get it off safely. I'm glad she's ok! 

[Carole]

Poor puppy!

[Mari Bezanson]

That must have been so scary.  I am glad she is alright!

[DonMarie and Picco]

Who would have thought!  Poor Lucy!  Picco doesn't get any bones, he gnawed one down then swallowed it. I know it was my fault for not paying enough attention but that was his last!

[Lonnie & Libby Lu]

Wow!   How scary and when I saw the pictures it gave me chills!   Poor baby and she is so easy going, she didn't even complain.  That would be Libby too!   I am so happy it finally fell out before they had to do any medical procedures on her.  I'm sure those bones will never be in your house again.  Big hugs to Lucy and Mommy too:)

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

I must admit I am no good under pressure. When I saw it I immediately did what DH always accuses me of.."When in doubt, panic!" Lol!

[Lucy & AnnaBelle's Mom]

So happy that this had a happy ending!  Our house because of Lucy's allergies is a bone free zone, but this is still good to know.  Hug them extra tight tonight.

[Lori, Daphne, Lucy & Pippa]

You know I did!