'Dogs aren't concerned about what they eat'

"Life's never dull in a veterinary surgery. Every week a dog comes in having eaten something strange. Only this week we had a dog who'd swallowed a piece of corn on the cob off a barbecue and needed urgent surgery. Dogs aren't too concerned with what they eat, which can cause havoc.

- Julian Norton

Take new puppies, for example. We had one who swallowed a pack of party poppers. We weren't sure how he had eaten them. If whole, they could cause a blockage; if chewed, there was the risk the poppers would explode inside the dog. The little lad who owned him came in with a list of things he thought the puppy had eaten. He looked very pleased with himself. It included a pair of cufflinks. Fortunately, the puppy was OK and little bits of chewedup party poppers were later retrieved...