Denim Dinner Gives Great Dane Digestive Disaster

It didn’t take long for Cassandra and Matthew’s enormous Great Dane puppy Myles to blend in with the family at their home in Poughkeepsie, N.Y. Myles has become a constant source of fun for the family’s toddler members, Emma and Norah. However, Myles’ playtime activities have been marred by the puppy’s odd obsession with eating random items of clothing, which nearly turned deadly after the he swallowed an entire pair of pants. Myles’ appetite for attire and heartwarming recovery has earned him the title of March’s “Most Unusual Claim of the Month” by Nationwide, the nation’s first and largest provider of pet health insurance.

In the weeks leading up to the mysterious munching, the family began to notice that small articles of their daughters’ clothing had gone missing. The mystery was solved when Cassandra caught Myles running to his crate with a tiny toddler sock in his mouth.

“We figured out his routine. He would steal clothes and run to his puppy crate to eat them,” said Cassandra. “We were finding pieces of socks and fabric in his stool out back. Even though he weighs more than100 pounds, he’s still a puppy and his training is still a work in progress.”

On the night of the ingestion, Cassandra and Matt were getting their two daughters ready for bed when Myles ran into the room and clumsily attempted to climb onto a rocking chair. As the couple was changing the toddlers, Myles sneakily snatched up Norah’s recently discarded trousers and took off towards his crate. Cassandra noticed the behemoth’s familiar sprint and gave chase.

“I knew he had grabbed something, but I couldn’t tell what it was,” said Cassandra. “He had only been in his crate for a few seconds, but by the time I got there, he had swallowed something. I checked inside his mouth and in his crate for clues, but I couldn’t find anything.”

Later that night, neither Cassandra nor Matthew could find Norah’s pants from earlier in the day. They searched throughout the house with no luck. Their suspicions began to grow that Myles may be the culprit.

“All signs pointed to Myles, but we didn’t think it was even possible for him to swallow something that large in that short period of time,” said Cassandra. “We kept an eye on him just in case, but he acted like his normal self until nearly a week later.”

Days after ingesting the pants, Myles started to vomit in the middle on the night. After his condition continued through the night, the family called their veterinarian and took Myles to Arlington Animal Hospital PC for treatment. Upon arrival, the veterinary team ran tests and took X-rays of Myles’ stomach. The results showed a large blockage in the big puppy’s intestines. The veterinary team informed the family that Myles was going to need surgery to survive.

“It was definitely a scary time,” said Cassandra. “We stayed at the veterinary office with him until his surgery. We knew he had eaten something, but we still weren’t convinced it was the pants.”

When the veterinarians finished the procedure, Cassandra received a text message from the veterinary office. The message informed her that Myles’ surgery was successful and included a photo of Norah’s missing pants, which were still completely whole. The veterinary staff washed the pants and returned them when the family arrived to pick up Myles.

After nearly two weeks of recovery and monitored meals, Myles made a full recovery. Since the incident, the family has worked to resolve Myles’ gluttonous habit by enrolling him in specialty training. Cassandra is relieved to see Myles back to his playful ways and grateful for all the support she received during the ordeal.

“I still can’t believe Myles ate the entire pair of pants,” said Cassandra. “I can’t thank the veterinarians enough for the tremendous work they did. They were wonderful, and having Myles insured with Nationwide helped out tremendously. The process was easy and it allowed us to focus on his recovery.”