Derby Dalmatian's tumour turns out to be kebab skewer

Megan said Shenzi was huge part of the family's life

A three-year-old Dalmatian whose owners thought she had a tumour turned out to have swallowed a kebab skewer.

Shenzi is believed to have come across the bamboo stick while rummaging through the bin at her Derby home.

By the time her owners - Megan Bates, 29, and Matt Stewart, 26 - had rushed her to their local pet hospital, the six-inch (15cm) skewer had started to pierce Shenzi's skin.

Vets carried out emergency surgery which, they said, saved Shenzi's life.

Warning: This article contains graphic images.

Megan said Shenzi was recovering well

Ms Bates said: "Shenzi appeared a little under the weather. Initially we thought she was just feeling a bit unwell and would be fine.

"We were shocked when we saw a lump on her back the following day.

"We feared the worst and were terrified that it could be cancer."

As the day went on, the lump grew bigger so the couple called the PDSA Pet Hospital in Derby.

The couple said the skewer was horrifying to see

"The vets took Shenzi to the consultation room and by that time the object, which we now know to be a kebab skewer, was sticking out by a couple of inches," said Ms Bates, a carer.

She added: "We couldn't believe what we were seeing.

"It was absolutely horrifying to see. We'd had a Chinese a couple of nights before - we were distraught.

"We were told that the vets would do everything they could to save Shenzi but were warned to prepare for the worst."

The skewer pierced Shenzi's stomach but missed her other vital organs

Shenzi was put on a fluid drip and given sedation and pain relief so X-rays could be taken to check where the skewer was sitting.

The images revealed it had not gone into her chest cavity, where it could have punctured or collapsed her lung.

The next step was emergency surgery to determine exactly what damage had been done in Shenzi's abdomen.

PDSA vet Chris Furniss, who performed the surgery, said: "This was a highly unusual case.

"Shenzi was extremely fortunate the skewer did not cause her a fatal injury or infection.

"During surgery we found it had pierced through her stomach before passing through the abdominal wall, amazingly missing all of her other internal organs on the way.

"Once we had fully inspected Shenzi's abdomen for any further damage, and taken measures to prevent any gastric leakage, a drain was placed into the wound to help any fluid and infection drain freely - helping her to recover as quickly as possible."

PDSA said Shenzi was extremely fortunate

She was kept in the hospital overnight and was able to return to her family the following day.

The family, who did not have pet insurance, qualified for free treatment from the PDSA for the operation - worth thousands of pounds - due to their financial circumstances and the fact they live near the hospital.

Ms Bates said: "I genuinely cannot explain the relief we felt when the vet called to say the operation was a success and Shenzi was recovering well.

"We were bracing ourselves for the worst news and just couldn't believe she was OK.

"The last thing we would ever have imagined to be causing the problem was a kebab skewer.

"We had no idea that she had swallowed it.

"It was a huge shock.

"Shenzi is a huge part of our life and we would be lost without her."