Ham, a two-year-old Pug mix, was always a happy, energetic pup, barking and getting excited over the smallest things.
But recently, her mom, Victoria Northwood, noticed something was off—her usually lively companion seemed a bit under the weather.
Worried about Ham’s health, Victoria called the vet. While the doctor didn’t think it was anything serious, he still advised her to bring Ham in as a precaution.
Neither Victoria nor the vet could have anticipated what they were about to discover that day.
Utter Shock
When Victoria took Ham to Newtone Clarke Veterinary Surgery, the vet immediately performed an X-ray. At first glance, something unusual appeared in Ham’s stomach, but it was unclear what it was.
Source: Newton Clarke Veterinary Surgeons
After taking another careful look, the vet had a suspicion about what it might be, but he chose not to say anything just yet, not wanting to alarm Victoria.
However, he determined that Ham needed surgery and quickly handed her over to his colleague, Emily Whitby, a veterinary surgeon.
Once the operation was successfully completed, Emily delivered some shocking news. According to the BBC, she revealed that they had removed “around 50 to 60 hairbands in total” from Ham’s stomach.
Source: Newton Clarke Veterinary Surgeons
As shocking as that was, another detail made the case even more unbelievable. According to a Facebook post by NCVS, the hairbands removed from Ham’s stomach weighed nearly 7 ounces.
Given that Ham herself weighs only about 2 pounds, it was astonishing that she had been able to function at all with so much foreign material inside her.
Meanwhile, Ham’s mom, Victoria, was relieved that the surgery had gone well, but she couldn’t hide her shock over everything that had unfolded so quickly.
“We knew she ate the odd hairband as we had noticed them coming out the other end, but nothing prepared us for the amount they found in there,” she told the BBC.
Already Back To Her Mischiefs
Source: Newton Clarke Veterinary Surgeons
Ham didn’t have to stay in the clinic for long, as the vets soon allowed her to recover at home.
In a Facebook post, NCVS shared that Ham was slowly recovering, adding, “She is back to causing mischief at home (and hopefully, no longer on the hunt for hairbands!).”
While relieved that everything turned out well, Victoria vowed to do everything she could to prevent such a situation from happening again.
“We were really shocked that this could happen and so grateful to the vets for their vigilance and for listening to us when we went to them with a hunch that all was not well,” she told the BBC. “We are keeping a much closer eye on her now — it is such a relief that she is okay.”