Dog’s miraculous recovery
Published: April 12, 2007
Gary and Linda Pontin are hailing the survival of their dog Copper a miracle.
The couple’s beloved three-year-old Labrador, who helps raise money for the eye care unit at the Great Western Hospital by collecting lost golf balls, nearly came a cropper when he swallowed a 15-inch long piece of wood during a Saturday afternoon walk.
Barton Stephen of Elms Veterinary Surgery in Faringdon operated on Copper, and told the Pontins it was the first time he had seen anything like it in 25 years as a vet.
Mr Pontin, a 49-year-old plumbing and heating engineer from Shrivenham, said: “The Saturday before last we went for a walk at the golf course by the military college.
“Copper had swum in the stream and we were walking by the second hole when I threw a stick for him. When he didn’t return with it I doubled back and found him by the tee being sick.
“I checked his mouth and there was only a bit of blood in there, but there was something sticking out of his ribs on the right side.
“I didn’t know whether it was a rib, but it was obvious something was wrong so I called Linda on my mobile.”
Mrs Pontin left her shopping at Tesco in Swindon and drove to the golf course, where her husband had covered Copper in a blanket.
He said: “We were diverted to Elms vets in Faringdon where they operated on him. The vet said we should be prepared for him not to survive because he had never done an operation like that.”
After a few hours the Pontins were told that Copper had survived the operation to remove the stick from his side.
Mr Pontin said: “The vet cut a hole in his side and literally pulled the stick out of it. We took him home and the vet said he wasn’t out of the woods, but he has been getting stronger since then.”
Copper is now enjoying a few of his favourite chicken and sausage dinners as he makes his way back to full fitness.
Mrs Pontin said: “It is nothing short of a miracle that he has survived. He has been a wonderful pet and we hope the stick hasn’t damaged him permanently.”
When Copper is fit again Mr Pontin will take him back to the golf course to carry on a charity sideline that is close to his heart.
Mr Pontin said: “During our walks Copper sniffs out golf balls which we collect in a bucket. Linda and I put the balls into a bucket and we sell them to raise money for the eye care unit at Great Western Hospital.”
It was the care that Mr Pontin received after two major eye operations that prompted him to start selling the balls.
He said: “I had a double vitrectomy which involved surgeons cleaning blood vessels behind my eyes. The treatment I received was excellent, and they suggested I take regular exercise afterwards.
“Linda and I had always wanted a dog so we used that opportunity to buy Copper from a kennels in Marlborough.
“It’s great to think that Copper has been helping us raise money for the eye care unit and now the vet has worked such a miracle to save him.”
If you enjoyed this good news Subscribe to Good News Blog
If you like this, you'll love Good Animal News:
Share this
To share this simply copy and paste one of the below URL's: