Labrador Retriever Runs into Stick and Trouble During Game of Fetch

Sometimes you get the stick, and sometimes the stick gets you. That’s what Kirsten Myers of Menlo Park, Calif., learned late last year during a game of fetch with her 6-year-old Labrador retriever Phoenix.

“It was a freak incident,” said Myers. “My brother and I were at a park playing fetch with Phoenix. I threw a stick for Phoenix to catch. The stick landed, lodged in the ground, and essentially impaled him under his tongue when he ran into it at full speed. The stick pierced about two inches into the fleshy part underneath his tongue.”

Although the stick came free on its own, Phoenix had a two-inch deep wound under his tongue that required a trip to his veterinarian for cleaning and stitches. “I was with Phoenix when the veterinarian was working on him and almost passed out.” Myers said. “I literally had to take myself out of the room.”

That night, Phoenix was in a lot of pain. He shook, curled up into a ball, and wanted to be in Myers’ lap. After a good night’s sleep, however, Phoenix began acting like his perky self. “The very next day, he was gung-ho to play fetch again.” Myers said. “But no more sticks.” A few days later, Phoenix was off his prescribed pain medication and antibiotics, eating solid foods again, and the stitches in his tongue had dissolved.

“He’s perfectly healed now,” Myers concluded. “It was just one of those bizarre things. It could just never, ever happen again.”