A West Lothian dog was rushed to a Livingston vets after nearly chocking to death after her tongue was punctured by twig while out on a walk.
The hidden injury caused Lola the four-year-old dog's tongue to swell up, so much so the dog couldn't breathe.
Owner Daniel Mainland raced to the local vet clinic in Livingston to try and save his beloved girl.
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At first the animal specialists were left baffled when there was no obvious cause for the injury but following a CT scan they discovered two pieces of stick lodged into her tongue.
The twig had punctured the dogs tongue in two places causing the dramatic swelling.
Dr Sam Woods, clinical director of the Livingston vet clinic explained: “Lola arrived after suffering from a severely swollen tongue, with swelling extending under the jaw.
"She was struggling to make any movement with her mouth and tongue and was continually drooling.
“The cause of the swelling was unknown and there were no obvious signs of impact or injury, so advanced imaging using a CT scan was performed to investigate the problem.”
The vet could not work out what was causing the which identified the source of the problem – two pieces of stick embedded inside Lola’s tongue.
She said: “As the stick was embedded in the tongue and, therefore, could not be seen on visual inspection, ultrasound examination of the tongue under general anaesthesia was used to pinpoint its exact location.”
The problem was that Lola’s tongue was so swollen that it proved difficult to place an endotracheal tube to anaesthetise her and, as a result, a tracheostomy tube was inserted.
Dr Woods took charge of the procedure and said: “We identified two pieces of suspected stick, one about 3cm and another of around 5cm.
“An incision, under ultrasound guidance was made at the site of the sticks and released a large volume of pus.
"I then used forceps to grasp and successfully remove the two separate sticks."
Luckily following the procedure Lola's condition improved dramatically.
“Lola recovered really well and we were able to remove the tracheostomy tube two days after surgery, as the swelling subsided.
"Lola was then allowed home when it had subsequently resolved and she was eating well again.”
The pups grateful owner Daniel was delighted to welcome back his beloved pet but was left mystified as to how the pieces of stick had become embedded in Lola’s tongue.
He said: “My first reaction was disbelief at what was happening and obviously I was extremely concerned as it was an emergency situation.
“When I was told they’d found a foreign object in Lola’s tongue I was amazed and couldn’t imagine how or when it had happened.
“Lola loves tennis balls so we can only image that maybe she has opened her mouth to pick up a ball and the sticks have gone in then.
“The vets were really good and kept us fully informed at every step of Lola’s treatment and progress."
