Dog stung by stingray saved by vet on holiday

Thursday, 19 July 2018

Toto and his owner Emily Swallow after he survived a dangerous encounter with a stingray.

A golden retriever with a penchant for ocean swims has survived a close shave with death.

Ten-year-old Toto was enjoying school holidays at his Blackwood Bay bach, in the Marlborough Sounds, on Sunday when he was stung by a stingray.

Toto, the golden retriever, was stung by a stingray in the Marlborough Sounds.

On three legs he hopped to the front of his neighbour's bach, a vet who saw his wounds.

Toto was doing what he loved, trailing behind his human relatives on kayaks and paddle boards, when they stopped in a bay just around the corner from his house.

Toto has a cone on his head, to allow the wound to heal without him 'annoying it'.

Toto was taken to the Vet Centre Marlborough where the sting was treated.

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The barb penetrated 4cm into Toto's leg muscle.

'We heard this almighty commotion, yelping like the dog had been stung by an electric fence,' neighbour vet Stuart Burrough said.

Burrough, who owned the Vet Centre Marlborough, said this was the first time he had treated a stingray wound in 36 years of veterinary practice.

When he heard Toto's barks and howls, Burrough and his wife ran down to the beach.

'We could see blood on his leg and he was pretty shaken and distressed.

'I was able to see a penetration wound that would be consistent with a stingray barb.'

Luckily, Burrough had painkillers on hand and gave the wound a good hosing off on the jetty.

Burrough was just about to head back to Blenheim, so Toto was carried onto the boat and taken back to the clinic.

His leg was put under local anesthetic while the wound was 'explored' to make sure no barb was left behind, before being thoroughly flushed with saline and dressed in a pink bandage. He also had a tetanus shot.

He spent Sunday night in the clinic, before being picked up by his relieved family on Monday afternoon.

Burrough said he thought there were two key factors that possibly led to the sting.

A few weeks ago, an orca bull and calf cruised into the shallows of the bay, which led stingrays to 'seek refuge' in the shallows, he said.

'Stingrays line up along our beach quite regularly, but when orca come in, we seem to get increased numbers.'

Burrough said there had also been a slip, which combined with heavy rains, had left the water uncharacteristically murky.

'I can only think that because the water is quite murky, that the stingray hasn't seen Toto coming.'

Toto's owner Mel Swallow said Toto was recovering 'very well'.

'It's quite a deep wound so it's going to take time to heal properly.

'We were a little bit worried that he might be scared off the water, but I'm please to report he had a little swim yesterday.'

Swallow said the yelp Toto let out was 'horrendous'.

Her husband heard it from 800 metres away.

'My sister tried to get him on the paddle board but he wouldn't get back into the water … but he managed to hop on three legs around some rocks and he managed to get to the front of Jenny and Stu's property and sat there, as if he knew that's where help was.'

Toto's little canine friend, a schnauzer belonging to the Burroughs, came and sat beside Toto in his time of need, Swallow said.

'It's like he knew something was wrong.

'He has a cone on at the moment so he doesn't annoy the wound.

'It's one of those things, I'm not sure we would have known to wash it out and try to remove any toxin or debris or barb from the wound.

'We were so lucky that they were in this weekend, and that Stu was able to administer first aid. A very handy neighbour and very kind people,' she said.

Burrough had some practical advice for stingray wounds.

'Often the natural inclination would be to use ice or cold water, but it seems that actually using a hot compress, or a hot towel … is one of the best things that can be done to neutralise the pain … it's important to make sure that there's none of the barb left inside of the wound,' he said.