An Aberdeen spaniel, whose life was saved by a stranger with a nappy, is on the road to recovery.
Bridge of Don resident Steven Riddell’s dog, Hamish, was being exercised by a walker on Aberdeen Beach on June 23 when he started acting strangely.
Before long, the family pet was bleeding profusely on the sand and it was discovered the animal had suffered severe lacerations to his legs and broken tendons.
Extremely concerned for the dog’s well-being, the walker was poised to rush Hamish to a vet, but not before a passing Good Samaritan came to the rescue and helped stem the bleeding with a nappy – an act of kindness which saved his life.
Now, almost a month on, two-year-old Hamish is on the way back to good health, but owner Mr Riddell said he was still concerned at how the injuries were caused.
He added: “There’s a tunnel just to the east of the driving range at the beach, and it was there he noticed Hamish was bleeding pretty heavily, and he stopped moving.
“Thankfully, a kind lady stopped and, with some quick thinking, applied a nappy to the wounds and the vet told me that’s what saved Hamish from dying.
“The walker rushed him to the vet in Bridge of Don, and I had to rush over to the Kingswells vet’s bloodbank to get him some dog blood, and then go to Bridge of Don in time for a transfusion because it was quicker for me to do it.
“They spent about an hour putting the blood into him, and he was a bit out of it at first, but eventually he turned round for a belly rub, and that was him.”
Mr Riddell has never discovered what the objects were that cut up his pet, but advised dog owners to be alert to any hidden dangers on beaches this summer.
He added: “He’s doing all right now, he’s got another four weeks of being housebound, so I think he’s feeling frustrated, but he’s recovering fine.
“I managed to get in touch with the woman who used the nappy and thank her as well. If it wasn’t for her, who knows what would have happened to Hamish?”
