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Posted: August 13, 2008

Dog recovering after swallowing fork

A Raleigh dog is recovering from surgery after he swallowed a fork.

Apachee, 10, endured surgery and multiple blood transfusions after his veterinarian identified the source of his distress. X-rays showed the fork lodged in the dog's chest cavity.

Doctors at Veterinary Specialty Hospital of the Carolinas in Cary said the fork had pierced a vein in his chest, releasing blood around his lungs. Dr. Gary Spodnick led the surgical team that patched the vein and removed the fork.

Apachee's owners think he must have snagged the fork from the kitchen sink sometime in early August. He developed a cough, declined food and later collapsed.

He is expected to make a full recovery, however.

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33 Comments

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Latest Comments

Just because the media does not focus on one specific group, does not mean it has gone unnoticed. It is a team effort from all perspectives, the parents of Apache included. One person could not have saved Apache's life. It takes a good group of people to accomplish the success in this story. Not only that, the parents of Apache deserve a recognition for seeking the right treatment for him. That is a commitment in itself. Let's focus on the positives of this story.

freelancing
August 18, 2008 5:01 p.m.

I do find it very unfortunate that all the hard working nurses/vet techs are not even mentioned! The doctors didhe surgery...but who do you think did all the post surgery care, the intital critical care, gave the drugs, blood transfusions, etc? I sure hope the vet hospital appreciates their staff, and that they actually take the time to acknowedge that while the surgeons had their hands in the dog for a few hours, it was the nursing staff that was essential to that dogs survival over the next few weeks.

GoGoPuppy
August 18, 2008 3:00 p.m.

I'm glad the doggie is doing better! For those of you who are questioning why this is news - apparently, you did because you took the time to read past the first paragraph and took even more to time to comment on it.

Tired of your excuses
August 14, 2008 4:22 p.m.

"Stick with the nylabones buddy!" but one should be careful w/ those. My golden loved them and once when she stopped eating and some other stuff took her in and after surgery found 2 pieces of nylabone stuck in stomach causing a blockage. Did some research at the time and there were lots of cases where nylabones caused such problems. Glad Apache is Ok and it is good news and nice to read for a change