Simple game of fetch takes frightening turn

MONCLOVA, Ohio (WTVG) - If you spend time with dogs, you have probably played a game or two of fetch. While it is fun for people and their pets, it can also be dangerous under certain circumstances, as one local family learned.

What started with a simple game of fetch turned into a life-threatening situation. A dog was choking on a tennis ball. But thanks to the quick thinking of two people who were working nearby, that dog is back in action.

What looks like nothing more than a dog playing a game of fetch is actually a dog with quite a backstory.

He loves playing catch and it is something he does on a regular basis. But last month, the daily routine took a frightening turn.

“I thought for sure that was it, I lost Little Guy,” Andi Plocek, the owner, said.

Plocek said the tennis ball she was throwing for her family dog became lodged in Little Guy’s throat.

“I could immediately tell it was stuck in his throat. His mouth was a little open, he was heaving,” Plocek said. “I had no idea what to do, to be honest with you.”

But talk about being in the right place at the right time. Plocek’s family lives next to a doggy daycare. It has a new owner but was started by Plocek’s mother and that is exactly where she went for help.

“I panicked, completely panicked and then I ran to Rover Come Over. Thank God, they are right next door because I was the only one here and I had no idea what to do,” Plocek said.

Ellie Helton is one of the Rover Come Over Monclova employees who jumped into action.

“I was right where I was supposed to be in that moment,” Helton said.

Helton said it was shocking to see Little Guy.

“Guy was in their field, not breathing, frothing at the mouth,” Helton said. “Honestly, I didn’t think, I just did, you know?”

“My coworker helped by reaching in there. I held part of his mouth, she held the other. I held the ball up with my finger and she reached in and grabbed it and he was ok,” Helton said of her coworker, Myranda Portentoso.

In another amazing twist to the story, Helton had seen a video about this very thing just weeks before.

“I watched a video of a vet’s office performing a procedure of removing a tennis ball. You do your fingers in a J-motion up the throat to pop the ball out of there,” Helton said.

This is a cautionary tale for all of us and an important teaching moment.

“The ball for your dog should always be larger than their mouth. They should not be able to get a full grip on it. It should also have holes in it, so that if anything happens, your dog’s airways are not blocked,” Helton said.

And while all the people involved with Little Guy’s emergency were still taking in what had just happened, he was ready for another game.

“Right after it happened, he got up and was ready to go. At that point, I decided no more tennis balls,” Plocek said.

Plocek now only tosses frisbees to Little Guy. She and her family are forever grateful to the people who helped.

“I don’t know what I’d do without them. They were special angels that day,” Plocek said.

“I am just glad he is ok. It’s refreshing to see him. It could have gone wrong, but we’re here and he’s ok,” Helton said.

Little Guy had no medical issues because of the choking incident.

If you would like to learn more about what to do if something like this happens to your dog, click here.

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