In the last two years or more of running my pets corner feature on Midlands radio I have been struck by the amount of queries relating to animal behaviour and training-not Veterinary medicine issues. These are the areas that vets arent formally educated to deal with but will learn by their own interest and experience at the cutting edge of animal science.
Some of the issues that crop up require a degree in Psychology, not Veterinary,and a liberal helping of innovation.
We had a young male labrador recently who demolished and swallowed a stiletto. This was diagnosed by x ray- showing the four inch heel clearly lodged in the stomach. The cost of the enterotomy procedure to remove this half shoe was - I was reliably informed by the irate lady owner - matched only by the cost of buying a new pair of shoes to match the new outfit for ladys day at punchestown. Brucie's next trick was to swallow an equally expensive silk stocking complete with suspender clip- fortunately this did emerge out the other end with the help of liquid paraffin .
This adventurous if somewhat deviant Labrador was christened Brucie the Canine Cross Dresser by the staff of Groome PetVets. Undoubtedly this behaviour would be a nightmare for any owner and illustrates the difficulties antisocial animal behaviour can cause. The simple common sense solution we proposed was neutering to calm young Bruces ardour and to ban him from the house. His owner invested in decent outdoor fenced and secure paddock area and both are now happy with the new arrangement.
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