A DOG is lucky to be alive after being impaled by a metal bar whilst running around in the woods.
Poppy had been running around in a woodland area in Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk last month (OCT 18) when she fell on a rusty bar that was sticking out of the ground.
The thick metal pole went right through the Labrador’s body and out of the other end – leaving her stuck.
Fire crews were called to the scene to cut her free.
She was rushed to Swayne and Partners vets who performed emergency surgery to remove the bar before keeping her in intensive care for two days.
X-Ray images show how the bar just narrowly avoided piercing any of Poppy’s vital organs.
Now, four weeks later, Poppy has made a full recovery and is back to her normal self.
Last week (SAT) the vets posted an update on social media, writing “Not much surprises our Bury St Edmunds team, but this day certainly did.
“Our team were called to assist the fire service with a rescue.
“Poor Poppy had been running in the woods and unwittingly ran into a solid metal bar sticking out of the ground.
“The bar had passed straight through her body and out the other side, leaving her firmly stuck.
“When our team arrived on the scene, Poppy and her owners were amazingly calm.
“Claire and Laura sedated Poppy, allowing the fire service to safely cut her free.
“Poppy was then rushed back to the practice, where it was all hands on deck to get her to x-ray to assess the damage, and then into emergency surgery to safely remove the rest of the bar.
“Incredibly, the bar had missed all of Poppy’s vital organs, and after two days of intensive care from our nursing team, she was home with her family.
“Two weeks later, she has made a full recovery and has even been to visit the firefighters who rescued her.”
They added: “Poppy has been the perfect patient from start to finish, and her owners deserve a medal for keeping a cool head in an incredibly nerve-wracking situation.”
The post gained over 2,000 likes and hundreds of comments from animal lovers who were shocked by the graphic images and surprised at how lucky Poppy had been.
One person said: “Poor poppy. So lucky, and brilliant team work.”
Another wrote: “I’m amazed that it didn’t cause more damage, well done to everyone involved, and to her owners for keeping such a level head.
“I would have been a mess to be honest, but it’s amazing how you go into automatic drive when you’re in a crisis. I bet the shock set in after though. So glad Poppy is on the mend.”
A third commented: “If that happened to my dog I think I’d pass out. And I’m a vet.
“Well done to them and to the team, removing that must have been nerve-wracking.”
Poppy’s owner Sally Rawlings said: “We will never be able to thank all involved enough for what they did that day for our poppy, hero’s all of them.
“She is doing really well, [she’s] certainly got some impressive scars to show everyone.
“It was an awful experience, but she was brilliant throughout the whole thing.”
A spokesperson for Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service today said: “Working with vets, we released the puppy using cutting equipment to cut posts, then the dog was in the care of the vets.”
