A seven-year-old Maltese named Blossom needed emergency care after being badly bitten by a dog.

Blossom has a special bond with everyone in her family, but especially with her owners Karen and Stuart, who are both from Nantwich, Cheshire.

Stuart said: “She has the most cheeky and fun attitude in life. She’s always happy to meet everybody and is so easy-going. We love everything about our special girl. 

“Both Karen and I have various illnesses, and Blossom knows when we are not well. She showers us with love, reminding us that everything is going to be alright. We don’t know what we’d do without her in our lives.” 

Blossom was enjoying a leisurely walk with one of Stuart’s friends, as Stuart and Karen were both at an event at the time when tragedy struck. Out of nowhere, Blossom was badly bitten by another dog and had to be rushed to Stoke PDSA’s out-of-hours emergency service.

Stuart, a part-time show jumping judge, was working at the event when he got the phone call about Blossom. He said: “I was on the verge of tears when I heard the news. I just couldn’t believe it. I was so upset for Blossom. I didn’t know if she was going to make it. As soon as we heard the news, we rushed to see her.”

The out-of-hours vet team examined Blossom and discovered she had been bitten in multiple places on her body. She was given pain relief and sedated, to allow them to fully assess the extent of her injuries and flush her wounds out to clean them.

Later that evening, once Blossom had received treatment and recovered from sedation, she was allowed home with her owners but with strict instructions to get plenty of rest and to go to the PDSA Stoke Pet Hospital the following day for another check-up.

When Blossom visited Stoke Pet Hospital the next day, she was again thoroughly examined by a vet. Sarah Flanagan, Senior Veterinary Surgeon at Stoke Pet Hospital said: “Sadly, Blossom had several wounds over her body including on her neck and her chest. Although these wounds seemed to be relatively small, we knew that dog bites often cause a lot more damage than initially seen. 

"It can take a few days or weeks for the full extent of dog bite injuries to become obvious as bruising and the impact of damage to blood supply to the area develops, as well as the risk of infection from bacteria found in dogs’ mouths. Because of this, we made the decision not to stitch Blossom's wounds straight away, so any infection could drain and allow us to assess how much damage the skin had suffered."

"Blossom was prescribed antibiotics to prevent infection alongside plenty of pain relief, and Stuart was given guidance about how to care for Blossom at home. We knew we would need to monitor her closely to make sure the wounds were healing and to see if any further treatment would be needed, including surgery."

"We re-examined Blossom every few days, thankfully most of the wounds healed well, however sadly one on the left side of her chest did cause problems, as we were worried it might. It was apparent that the trauma from the dog bite had damaged the blood supply, meaning the skin around the wound began to die so needed further treatment."

"We admitted her to the Pet Hospital and anaesthetised her so the wound could be flushed again, the damaged tissue could be removed and the wound surgically repaired."

Blossom had a long road to recovery from the severe bite wounds, including further surgery, but thanks to the skill of the PDSA team and the care from her loving owners at home, her wounds healed completely.

Now, Blossom is back home and healthy. Stuart said: “Blossom is back to her usual cheery and funny self. When she is happy or pleased to see you, she’ll howl. But while she was unwell, she didn’t do this, which was upsetting. So as soon as she started howling again, we knew she was on the mend and getting back to her old self.

"We got Blossom when our old dog, Ben, passed away. A friend's son had Blossom and was looking for a home for her, so she came to us and brightened up our lives. She is the love of our lives, and we could not live without her."

"Without PDSA, we would have lost Blossom as we wouldn’t have been able to afford the treatment. The support from PDSA means everything to us. We are extremely grateful for everything they do and know we can turn to them at any time."

Total cost of Blossom’s treatment: £759.05

PDSA is the UK’s leading veterinary charity. Through our 48 Pet Hospitals and Pet Care scheme, we save the lives of poorly pets who would otherwise be left untreated.

Every year, we helped over 388,000 pets. Without us, emergency cases like Blossom's would be left untreated and many pets could lose their lives or be separated from families who love them.

We wouldn’t be here for dogs like Blossom without your support. Please consider donating today.

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