Dog Survives Swallowing Wii Remote

This is another story to remind pet owners of what not to leave around our curious and hungry pets.

The Becknell family took their three-year-old Labrador retriever to the veterinarian when the dog started vomiting blood. The animal hospital took X-rays of the dog’s stomach and it appeared that there was a TV remote in his stomach. The veterinarian induced vomiting on the dog. Pieces of an old TV remote came out from the dog’s stomach, but there was something else in there besides the TV remote.

“The vet started massaging the dog’s belly and it just came flying out of the dog,” said Marie Becknell. “I knew what it was right away by the color and shape of it. It was my son’s video game remote. The dog had swallowed the boy’s Nintendo Wii controller.”

The curious dog had to undergo surgery to have the remote removed. He recovered from his ordeal, but the Wii Remote did not fare so well. It had to be tossed into the garbage. The son’s punishment for leaving the controller out was two weeks allowance to replace the Wii remote.

Here are the top ten most common items surgically removed from pets, according to Veterinary Pet Insurance:
1. Socks
2. Underwear
3. Panty Hose
4. Rocks
5. Balls
6. Chew Toys
7. Corn Cobs
8. Bones
9. Hair Ties/Ribbons
10. Sticks

Other frequently ingested objects include nails, sewing needles and nipples from baby bottles. But VPI has also received medical records for pets that have swallowed pagers, hearing aids, drywall, snail bait, batteries, rubber bands, toy cars, and sand with bacon grease poured on it.

The best thing pet owners can do to prevent costly foreign body removal surgery is keep a clean living space. This includes making sure that personal items are not left on the floor or within easy reach of pets and remaining aware of each pet’s chewing tendencies. Certain objects may appeal more to some pets than others. Knowledge of a pet’s tastes and tendencies can help pet owners exercise caution when letting a pet near objects that could be accidentally swallowed. Also remember that table scraps can contain excessive grease, bones or other objects not easily digested by pets.

[Source: Itchmo.com]