Family Can't Believe What Was Causing Dog's Stomach ache
When Mortimer first started having some stomach issues back in April, his mom took him straight to the vet, but neither she nor the veterinarian was too worried about it just yet.
"At the time he was diagnosed with an unrelated vomiting syndrome that we hoped would get better with medicine," Emily Shanahan, Mortimer’s mom, said in a press release.
Mortimer’s vet, Dr. Doug Brum of MSPCA Angell, prescribed him some medication and sent the 3-year-old bulldog home, and his family hoped that would be the end of it. But unfortunately, the medication only helped temporarily, and by mid-May Mortimer was so sick that he had become a completely different dog. He no longer followed his mom everywhere around the house and spent most of his time sleeping. When the poor dog stopped eating in early June, his mom knew something was seriously wrong.
Shanahan rushed Mortimer to MSPCA Angell’s Animal Medical Center, where he underwent some X-rays that led to a shocking discovery.
The dog had 19 baby pacifiers in his stomach, blocking his digestive system.
"I was shocked because even though I have two small children at home I'd never imagined he was eating their pacifiers," Shanahan said.
Apparently, Mortimer had been stealing the pacifiers one at a time over the span of several months, and he was so subtle about it that his family never noticed any were missing. The veterinary team sprang into action, and Dr. Erika De Papp was able to do a simple endoscopy and remove all 19 pacifiers safely from Mortimer’s digestive tract.
"It's likely that Mortimer started nabbing these pacifiers in April, perhaps one at a time, and that started a cycle of nausea and vomiting, which are symptoms that can be caused by so many other health issues," Dr. Brum said in a press release. "If not for the urgency with which his family pursued veterinary care, things would have gotten much worse for him."
Mortimer is now recovering at home, and is doing wonderfully. He’s completely back to his normal self, and his family is absolutely thrilled that he was able to get help in time.
"We absolutely love this dog and would do anything for him — and I'm relieved that this was a problem that could be solved,” Shanahan said.
It is not at all uncommon for dogs and cats alike to get into things they’re not supposed to, which is why it’s so important to always secure items that could be harmful to your pets. Mortimer’s family had no idea that he had such an addiction to pacifiers, but now that they do, they’ll no doubt make sure they’re always out of reach of their mischievous bulldog.
Original post here.