Veterinarians who operated on an ailing 140-pound (64-kg) Great Dane in Oregon removed 43-1/2 socks from its stomach in an emergency surgery that likely saved the pooch's life, an animal hospital said on Thursday.
Lush, coloured socks
The 3-year-old canine, who had an affinity for chewing on socks but was not known to swallow them whole, was rushed to Portland's DoveLewis Emergency Animal Hospital in February, hospital spokeswoman Shawna Harch said.
"We see some very strange things, but this is by far the most socks we've ever pulled out of an animal," Harch said after X-ray images of the dog's belly won 3rd prize in a tongue-in-cheek veterinary industry prize called "They ate WHAT?"
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DoveLewis will use the prize money to fund emergency care for pets of low-income animal owners, Harch said.
Image: an XRay of the dog's belly and the socks that were removed. From veterinarypracticenews.com
The Great Dane appeared to favour lush, coloured socks in smaller sizes, images of the retrieved items showed. The sock-devouring pooch's owners are keeping the hungry dog's name private, Harch said.
"His owners wish to remain anonymous," she said. "But they are getting a kick out of the award."
Image: The winner of 2014 “They Ate WHAT?” Plano, Texas, USA. Kermit the frog's owner noticed the exotic frog eating the rock substrate in his cage, and radiographs confirmed the owner’s observation.More than 30 small ornamental rocks were removed in surgery and the frog recovered without complications. The owner wisely decided to remove the remaining rocks from the frog’s habitat.
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Image: Great Dane puppy from Shutterstock