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Home / Lifestyle

Prickly pups: Dogs injured by porcupine quills

Herald online
4 Nov, 2015 11:00 PM2 mins to read

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Photo / GoFundMe

Photo / GoFundMe

The owner of three dogs who came off on the wrong side of a porcupine attack has raised thousands of dollars online to help fund their vet bills.

Dennis Mazur, a youth worker in Saskatchewan, Canada, was walking his dogs - Mahalo, Nestah and Solijah - when they came across the porcupine, which punctured all three dogs with its quills.

Mahalo was the most seriously injured, requiring extensive surgery to remove the spikes from her heart and lungs.

"Quills are a tricky thing," Mazur told CBC News. "They go in and they're just sort of barbed and they migrate and travel and that's the fear now. Mahalo had quills that migrated up into her lungs and into her heart, and the fact that she's alive right now is a full miracle."

Photo / GoFundMe
Photo / GoFundMe
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Mike Gerrand, a friend of the upset owner set up a crowdsourcing page on GoFundMe to help cover the mounting vet bills, which have reached NZD$9,000.

Photo / GoFundMe
Photo / GoFundMe

"These dogs are the love of my dear friend Dennis' life," Gerrand wrote. "They are loved by the special needs clients Dennis works with."

He said Mazur has taken weeks off work as a youth worker at the Street Culture project to be with his beloved pets.

The online account had raised more than NZD$16,000 by Thursday morning.

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Photo / GoFundMe
Photo / GoFundMe

- nzherald.co.nz

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