A SMALL dog named Betty had a lucky escape after vets in Hexham removed a large fish hook which she had swallowed during a walk.

The French Bulldog/pug cross was walking with her owner in Whitley Bay when she is believed to have swallowed the fish hook, which became lodged high in her oesophagus.

Amy Chapman, veterinary surgeon at Orchard House Vets in Hexham examined her and took an X-ray, before calling on Sophie Betts, of North East Veterinary Imaging, who came to the surgery and performed an emergency endoscopy.

Sophie said: “Fish hooks can be very damaging internally, and need immediate attention.

“This one was a quite challenging retrieval for us due to the large size of the fish hook relative to the size of the patient.

“However, happily we were able to safely retrieve it endoscopically using a protective rubber hood which fits on the end of our endoscope, and which allowed us to pull out the hook without it directly contacting, and therefore damaging, the lining of the oesophagus.”

Amy said that cases like this were unusual, but not completely unheard of – particularly when animals had been in coastal areas.

“This one was fortunate as it was brought straight to us,” she said.

“My advice would be to phone vets initially and get it looked at as soon as possible.

“Some don’t get picked up on or owners will try to pull it out, but if it’s hooked in there pulling it out can cause a lot more damage and make it harder to remove.”

Betty, who lives in Whitley Bay with her owners, but comes to Hexham to visit the vets, was fortunate that the hook had not caused any internal damage and was removed before she headed home with her owner.

“She recovered really well and she was really a lovely little patient to have in,” Amy added.