Vet Dresses Up As Mouse To Help Anxious Dog Wearing Cone Of Shame

A vet dresses himself up as a giant mouse to soothe the nerves of a rescue dog that needed surgery. Hey, if it works, it works.

Mike Farrell stepped into his grey and pink onesie so he could examine Rupert, a dalmatian, who needed an operation on his leg.

Rupert's owner Sonya Schiff brought the mouse-suit in so the pooch could sleep on it, as it smelled of her and helped to calm his nerves.

SWNS

But as Mike attempted to treat Rupert, he found that his canine patient had a reluctance to be handled, so the vet came up with the bright idea of popping on the onesie to help calm the situation.

Sonya, from London, said: "When I adopted Rupert from Dogs Trust a couple of years back, he had some quite serious guarding issues and aggression, which we believe were pain associated.

"It took a year for him to bond with me after his rehoming, at which point he developed separation anxiety if I left him."

Poor Rupert developed a lame leg, so Sonya took Rupert to Davies Veterinary Specialists in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, to be looked over. He was diagnosed with hip dysplasia and cruciate ligament problems, and 18 months later was told he had to undergo surgery.

Mike, an orthopaedic specialist at the clinic, said: "Initially Rupert growled when I tried to examine him in my usual clothes.

"His owner was worried about his aggression towards strangers and how he would respond to being in hospital."

Now, while some would give up, Mike didn't. He decided to wear the mouse outfit to see if Rupert would be more open to being handled - and it worked.

Wearing the onesie, Mike was able to check over Rupert and carry out the required surgery on the poor dog's leg.

Monika Kafno, a dog behaviourist at the surgery, said: "As dogs have a superior sense of smell and ability to smell between 10,000 and 100,000 times better than people, their brain processes information in a very short period of time.

"This triggers an association of the smell with a particular experience or event in their life."

Ah, see, not all heroes wear capes. Some wear giant mouse all-in-one suits.

Topics: UK News, Feels, Animals, Dogs

Claire Reid

Claire is a journalist at LADbible who, after dossing around for a few years, went to Liverpool John Moores University. She graduated with a degree in Journalism and a whole load of debt. When not writing words in exchange for money she is usually at home watching serial killer documentaries surrounded by cats. You can contact Claire at [email protected]

@ClaireReid19