Pet owner's warning about harmful jellyfish on Gold Coast dog beach
A Coast family have been left distraught after their beloved pet nearly died suddenly under tragic circumstances. THEIR WARNING >>>
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A GOLD Coast pet owner says she will never forget the horrific noises her beloved pooch made after ingesting a harmful jellyfish while at a popular dog beach.
Owner Natalie Mendez received a frantic call from partner Wayne earlier this week, concerned after 2.5-year-old Groodle Penny ate a blue button jelly at Tallebudgera.
Though the stinger is not deadly, contact with the creature causes severe skin irritation and burning when either touched or consumed.
Mr Mendez and Penny were out on their usual walk at Tallebudgera dog beach Tuesday when the pooch swallowed an unknown object before Mr Mendez could get to her.
What followed was moments of horror for any pet owner as realisation dawned that the animal could be in severe danger.
Ms Mendez told the Bulletin Penny went into immediate distress, even consuming a “crazy amount” of grass and even parts of a towel to soothe her pain.
“They were literally coming off the beach as it happened, but it’s managed to sting her mouth and throat” Ms Mendez explained.
“She was that frantic that she ended up stripping the towel my partner laid down in the car and swallowing chunks of it.”
The distraught owner said she was in a “flood of tears,” hearing the gut-wrenching noises coming from Penny, who the couple adopted last year, and feared they would lose her.
Specialists at Pet Doctors Palm Beach performed emergency surgery – clearing 6 grams of grass and chunks of towel from her intestines.
“The concern at that stage was obviously the pain but also the biggest issue for us was that she swallowed so much towel and grass which would become an obstruction,”
Unfortunately the ordeal took both an emotional and financial toll, costing the couple upward of $4000 amid surgery and an overnight stay at the vet.
“She’s home now but very sad and still drugged out. The vet told us that three other dogs had actually come in for the same thing,” Ms Mendez said, prompting the Elanora resident to issue an urgent warning to other pet owners on Facebook.
“For us, we’ll keep off the beach for a while now, but (the response to my post) was good because quite a few dog owners were saying they won’t go down until it clears.”
WARNING AFTER 'DISGUSTING LITTLE CREATURE' KILLS COAST FAMILY'S PET
September 30, 2021
A GOLD Coast family are distraught at their beloved pet’s sudden tragic death.
Southport’s Tania and Simon Cosgrove have shared their dog’s encounter with a paralysis tick in an effort to save the lives of other pets.
Tania said she first noticed something was wrong with her 11-year-old border collie, named Molly Jones, when the dog struggled to walk.
“She couldn’t quite walk up the stairs and I thought she had tripped and hurt herself.”
Unknown to Tania at the time, Molly was suffering paralysis from a tick bite. The dog died within 24 hours despite getting treatment from the vet.
Simon made the hard call to end Molly’s suffering after she went into cardiac arrest.
“This disgusting little creature can cause so much heartache,” he said.
“It was the size of four or five pin heads put together.”
Tick paralysis is one of the most common preventable causes of death in dogs and cats on the east coast.
Symptoms include wobbliness in the back legs, a change in the sound of the bark, gagging and vomiting.
Tick season usually runs from October to March.
The couple said Molly likely got the tick from the Smith Street Reserve, which their house backs onto.
Tania said she didn’t realise ticks could be deadly for dogs.
“She was strong, she was just like that character on the TV, Lassie. I can’t believe she’s gone because of this stupid little tick that I knew nothing about.”
The Cosgroves have urged other pet owners to apply tick control products as recommended by vets and be aware of the symptoms.
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Originally published as Pet owner's warning about harmful jellyfish on Gold Coast dog beach
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