The danger of throwing sticks

It's Not All Fun And Games!
It's been an unusually warm and sunny start to the year and most of us dog owners have been enjoying more time out doors with our furry companions. That's probably why I've seen my first stick injury of the year already. A lovely wee Jack Russell was out playing fetch with his owner when the stick became lodged between his teeth, across the roof of his mouth. Understandably the poor wee dog was frantic trying to get it out but it was too far back and stuck to be removed by him or his owner, try as he might. By the time he arrived at the clinic, the dog and owner were both very upset. We had to sedate the wee dog immediately before anymore damage could be done and the stick you see in the picture was successfully removed without any lasting damage.
It caused me to reflect on all the stick injuries I've seen over the years and saddened me to say that not all were as lucky.
It's natural for dogs to want to play fetch and we as owners beam with pride when our dog returns an object to us. I have a Beagle, so nothing gets returned but others have told me it's a nice feeling! But when we throw sticks, we run the very real risk of injuring our pets. The sticks themselves can cause traumatic damage to any structure they hit but they also splinter leaving fragments of dirty wood travelling through the dog. I have seen two cases where the stick has torn through the oesophagus ( the tube that carries food to the stomach) and sadly both times these dogs did not survive. I have seen a stick penetrate the eye and result in the loss of the eye. But mainly its the annoying splinters that cause the most problems. They do not show up on x-ray so can be very difficult to find but even a tiny splinter can carry bacteria on its surface and cause untold damage. We often battle for months, even years to find and remove splinters that cause abscesses to develop far from the site of initial injury. These are the cases I hate the most. The dogs suffer pain and infection, repeated anaesthetics and a forever uncertain outcome. My heart sinks when owners ask me if there beloved pet is going to be fine, when the answer is, we just don't know. And for the owners themselves I am sure the guilt of causing the initial injury must be hard to bear. I often ask myself why people still throw sticks for their dogs when the results can be so devastating but I suppose the answer is, most of us don't realise the danger. So I am writing this in that hope that after reading this you will maybe think twice before throwing a stick and consider carrying balls and toys to fetch from now on. I found this fun toy and website some of you might enjoy www.safestix.co.uk which has some good links on stick injuries.

Ruff Dawg sticks + twigs

Safestix