Nebraska man puts dog above digits
Robert Larsen was playing fetch with his chocolate Lab, Nick, when a ball got lodged in his dog’s throat.
Rushing to his side, Larsen reached into his dog’s mouth. Nick bit down, severing Larsen’s fingertip.
What happened next is why we like Robert Larsen, 72, of Lincoln, Neb. – even though we don’t know him.
Rather than looking for his severed fingertip, uttering a few choice curse words, or rushing himself to the emergency room, Larsen took his dog to the veterinarian first.
The ball was still lodged in the dog’s throat when he arrived at Omaha Animal Medical Group. Vets removed the ball and revived the dog, and Larsen was taken to Methodist Hospital, then transferred to the Nebraska Medical Center, where he was treated and released. Larsen was visiting a family member’s home in Omaha when the accident took place.
Part of Larsen’s index finger was found in his coat pocket, where it apparently had fallen off when he reached for his keys to rush Nick to the vet. Because doctors couldn’t guarantee the operation would be successful, he opted not to have the fingertip reattached.
“The finger was secondary,” Larsen told WOWT-Channel 6 News. “The dog was priority.”
Experts don’t recommend sticking your hand into your dog’s mouth if he’s choking, advising instead a Heimlich maneuver or blows to the dog’s back.
Posted by jwoestendiek March 12th, 2009 under Muttsblog.
Tags: airway, animals, ball, bite, bitten, choke, choking, dog, fetch, finger, fingertip, gag, heimlich, hospital, lodged, mouth, nebraska, omaha, pets, priorities, priority, robert larsen, severed, vet, veterinarian
