Dog who swallowed owner's AirPods undergoes removal operation, and the headphones still work

15 April 2021, 10:43

By Alice Dear

The gorgeous dog mistook the AirPods in their charging case for an Easter treat.

Rachel Hick, 22, was forced to rush her golden retriever Jimmy to the emergency vets after she realised he had swallowed her AirPods in their charging case.

The woman, from Hull, was feeding her beloved dog an Easter dog treat when the headphones fell out of her pocket and were quickly snapped up by Jimmy.

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After realising what had happened, Jimmy was taken to the vet where he had to undergo an operation to have the headphones removed.

But more shockingly is that after they were removed, both the headphones and the charging case still worked.

Talking about the ordeal, Rachel said: "It was Easter Sunday and Jimmy has his own Instagram account, so I was taking photos of him getting his first dog Easter egg to use on Instagram.

"He was jumping up and running around going crazy, he was so hyped up and excited."

She went on: "As he jumped, he knocked my AirPods out of my pocket and they fell on the floor, and before I even realised they’d dropped on the floor, he eaten them whole.

"He looked up at me straight after and gave me a look as if to say ‘that wasn’t the treat, was it?’ My heart sank."

Rachel took Jimmy to her local Vets Now – who specialise in out-of-hours emergency care for pets –where they decided the best course of action was to operate to remove them.

Susana Jauregui, who is the senior vet at Vets Now in Hull, said: “Our vet on duty that evening, Steven, X-rayed Jimmy and the radiograph images clearly showed the AirPods case still intact in his digestive system.

“There was a risk of it causing an obstruction and, with it being a charging case, Steven was also concerned about battery acid leaking so, after discussing the situation with Jimmy’s owners, he agreed to operate."

She continued: “Jimmy’s a beautiful dog and he’s lucky his owners acted so promptly. Battery acid is highly dangerous to dogs as are large foreign objects, especially if they’re allowed to pass into the intestine.”

Jimmy is now recovering from the operation and is said to be "feeling sorry for himself", according to Rachel.

She explained: "We’re not allowed to exercise him so he has all this energy and nowhere for it to go.

“I have been so worried about him, it’s certainly a cautionary tale for other dog owners. I can’t believe the AirPods still work, they’ve had a good clean!”

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