Pipi

Veterinary staff at PDSA's PetAid hospital, saved the life of four-year-old Pipi after the mischievous moggy ate a ball of string.

Pipi's owner noticed there was something wrong when his family pet went off his food and started vomiting. When Pipi's sickness didn't stop after a few days Martin began to worry that something was seriously wrong and took Pipi to PDSA.

The PetAid hospital's veterinary team became concerned when Pipi didn't respond to treatment after a few days and decided to investigate further, with x-rays and blood tests. When these failed to determine a cause for his symptoms, they decided exploratory surgery was needed to see what was causing his illness.

In the operating theatre, PDSA Senior Veterinary Surgeon, Tanya Palmer, soon found the cause of Pipi's discomfort - a ball of string in his stomach.

Tanya said: "Because of the material it didn't show up on the x-rays. He's a very lucky cat, the string could have blocked food passing through him, causing persistent vomiting and leading to severe dehydration. It could have been fatal."

Just a few hours later Pipi was well enough to go home, and with a few days rest and pampering he was back on all four paws in no time.

Rooster

Three-year-old Cocker Spaniel Rooster's drama began one morning when he didn't come for his breakfast and was found sitting bolt upright at the top of the stairs, not moving.

Rooster was rushed to PDSA, where he was immediately examined and admitted into intensive care, suffering from a disc protrusion (slipped disc).

With no improvement over the next 48 hours the owners had to make a difficult decision:devote the time needed to care for their paralysed pet, or have him put to sleep?

In the next two weeks Rooster's owners provided 24-hour-a-day care and under close PDSA guidance, personal physiotherapy. He was taught how to walk again, as the feeling slowly returned to his limbs.