Huge fish hook spears dog's lip

A DOG walker is warning other pet owners of the dangers posed by rubbish dumped on Great Yarmouth beach after her dog got a fish hook stuck in its mouth.

Sam Sullivan, 38, of Lichfield Road, was walking her eight-year-old dog Chelsea on the beach close to Britannia Pier when the Staffordshire Bull terrier greyhound cross bit on the hook.

It had been left on the beach on the bowling green side of the pier.

The hound, who was in agony, had to be rushed to the Haven vets on April 24 where she spent the rest of the day having the two-and-a-half inch long hook removed at a cost to Mrs Sullivan of �180.

Her pet's suffering has prompted Greenacre Primary School employee Mrs Sullivan to call for people to not dump their rubbish on the beach because of the risks to both animals and children, especially now that the busy summer months have arrived.

She said as well as fish hooks she had found other dangerous waste, including broken glass.

Mrs Sullivan added: “I walk my dogs on the beach every morning and every day I have to bypass all the broken glass and other rubbish that gets left by people that use the beach.

“I was walking along and my dog was not near me and I turned round and she had a fishing hook in her mouth.”

Mrs Sullivan, who has four other dogs - mongrel Monty, and greyhounds Mupster, Mac and Merlin added: “Having the hook in her mouth caused Chelsea to be aggressive to the other dogs. She was definitely uncomfortable with it. When she first got it in her mouth she was trying to dislodge it with her paw.”

The hook did not draw blood, but Mrs Sullivan said: “I am glad it was only in her lip because if it had gone in anywhere else it could have been very nasty.”

Yarmouth Borough Council spokesman Steven Reilly said: “The cleanliness of our beaches is important to us and we try to ensure they are clean. We tractor-sweep and litter pick on a daily basis on Yarmouth and Gorleston beaches during our busiest season, from late May to the end of September.”