Doing one check at end of dog walk could ‘save you thousands’

A veterinary nurse has issued a stark warning to all dog owners by detailing a simple task you should perform after every dog walk that could potentially save you a significant amount of money.

Jade took to TikTok to explain that there’s one thing she does every time she gets home from walking her own canine friend. “If you’re not doing this one thing, you could end up paying hundreds, if not thousands of pounds,” she cautioned.

The expert continued: “At this time of year, grass seeds are rife – and if you don’t already know, these seeds can get stuck in your dog’s paws and in their ears, nose and throat and they can end up tracking under the skin, which can prove costly. Not only that, this can cause your pet a serious amount of pain and discomfort.”

Using her labradour as an example, Jade said she always thoroughly checks in between the paws followed by a look in the ears and inside the ear canals. “I check around the eyes, I check around the nose – sometimes I have a little look in the mouth too to make sure they haven’t eaten any grass seeds,” she said.

Proving her point, Jade soon spotted and extracted a grass seed from her dog’s front left paw, declaring: “Now that is what we are looking for. These can get stuck, especially if you have a long-haired dog like mine. The sharp bit on the end can basically pierce the skin and end up tracking and getting lost.”

But how does this become so financially costly? Jade explained that the removal of tracked grass seeds could require a general anaesthetic in order for the vet to go and explore and look for them. She reiterated: “It can be really dangerous, so next time you get home from your dog’s walk, please thoroughly check in between their toes on the front and back feet, their ears, aroud their eyes, nose and tail. They get stuck absolutely everywhere.”

She added: “It’s always important to seek veterinary treatment ASAP (the longer you leave it, the harder they become to find!). Signs that a grass seed is stuck varies depending on where the seed is stuck, but generally symptoms include: localised swelling and redness, excessive licking of a particular area (such as a particular paw,) limping, head shaking, eye/nose discharge, squinting and repeated sneezing or gagging.”

To help prevent injury, Jade also recommends keeping your dog’s hair trimmed short (especially around the paws, face and ears)
and avoiding walking your dog in areas of long grass.

Responding to Jade’s advice, one dog owner shared their staggering experience: “£12,000 for a dog that had one is his lung!” Another went through an unfortunate ordeal: “£600 for 2 of them. Can go to the heart.”

A third person recalled: “Cost me £750 last year and he was in immense pain – definitely check every day!” A fourth TikTok user added: “My dog got two in her ear as a puppy and ended up with an extreme fear of the vets that has taken nearly two years to overcome and cost 100s in vet sessions to fix!”

Whilst a fifth shared: “Yep my dog had one stuck in his ear, which cost me £££ to get it removed. Check for them every day now.”