Dice Lands Louis on the Operating Table!

A nine month old Lakeland terrier called Louis from Godalming took more of a gamble than he realised when he swallowed a 1 cm wide dice at his home in Khartoum Road.    The dice became wedged in his intestine and has had to be surgically removed.  

Georgie Wilkinson,  our veterinary surgeon at our Godalming surgery, who carried out the procedure, said that the dice was firmly embedded in his small intestine and causing a blockage that would have ultimately proved fatal  if left untreated.

Louis is owned by the Coleman family from Witley and is normally a lively and fun loving puppy.  The family first noticed he was under the weather on Thursday 9 July when he started to suffer from vomiting and diarrhoea.   At this stage, the family also noticed that several toy soldiers owned by Lucie Coleman’s sons, Oliver (5) and Toby (11), were missing.  They took him to Pet Doctors, where with the aid of an X-ray, vet Georgie realised that, while the toy soldiers had, indeed, been eaten and were passing through his intestine, they had then become totally blocked by a dice he’d obviously also eaten.

“At this stage, I had no option but to operate,” commented Georgie.  “The surgery went well but Louis was quite shocked by the whole experience and had to spend the night in our hospital in Woking.  He is now recovering well at home but won’t be back to his normal self completely for several weeks.”

Lucie Coleman said:  “The change in Louis from happy, bouncy puppy to sad little chap, obviously in great discomfort, was awful to see.  When we realised the toy soldiers were missing in action, we suspected the worst, but we didn’t realise he’d swallowed the dice as well!
“It’s wonderful to have him home again and to know he’ll soon be back to normal.   Thank goodness he was insured as his mishap was expensive but, knowing that he was covered, gave us peace of mind at a difficult time.  We’re very grateful to Georgie and will be keeping all the children’s toys under close guard from now on!”

Georgie added: “Puppies are naturally curious about everything in the home, especially the toys our children play with. This case just goes to show the range of objects dogs will and can eat. The other important factor in this case was how quickly Mrs Coleman brought Louis into the clinic, meaning he could be treated quickly.   We’re so glad the story has a happy ending for all concerned.”

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