Dog rescued by firefighters after..............

......getting stuck on door handle



A STAFFORDSHIRE bull terrier was rescued by firefighters after getting her mouth jammed around a door handle.
Eight-year-old Lu got more than she bargained for when she jumped up to greet her owner.
The freak accident left the much-loved family pet hanging in mid-air.
Firefighters
spent more than an hour performing a delicate operation to release Lu,
which they did by removing the door – with the dog still attached
– and then unscrewing the handle from the door.
Amazingly,
Lu was back to her normal self and bounding around the family home in
Burlington Street, Vauxhall, just minutes after the ordeal.
The only injury she suffered was a 2in split in her tongue, which was quickly stitched up by a vet.
In
fact, Lu’s owner John McMahon said the family was more
traumatised by the experience than the pet. Since the accident on
Wednesday afternoon, they have removed every door handle from the house
to prevent a repeat of the bizarre accident.
Mr McMahon said: “The dog is always really excited to see my mum.
“When
Lu jumped up to lick her hand as she opened the lounge door, the
dog’s mouth became stuck on the door handle and she ended up
hanging off it.


“It was horrible, like something off a 999 programme on TV. The fire crew were shocked when they arrived.
“I was holding the dog for an hour while the firemen struggled to release her.
“I could feel the handle under the dog’s chin and inside her mouth.
“My mum could not look, she had to go outside and sit in the car until it was over.”
The
firefighters took the door off its hinges and managed to unscrew the
door handle before slipping it out of the dog’s mouth.
Mr McMahon added: “Lu only howled twice. The most important thing was she was still breathing as it was happening.
“The amazing thing was Lu was just fine afterwards.
“She is a bit of a crazy dog and we have taken all the door handles off to make sure it never happens again.”
He also paid tribute to the fire crew who came to the dog’s rescue.
He said:“The firemen were the real heroes. I do not know what we would have done without them.”
Andy Burton, watch manager at Canning Place fire station, said it was the most unusual rescue he had ever performed.
He added: “When we got the call, it had a lot of us scratching our heads, wondering how a dog could be trapped in a door.
“Our first plan was to get a vet and sedate the dog, but that would have meant waiting for the RSPCA.
“I
was quite comfortable with the situation and, after calling the RSPCA,
it was decided to try taking the door handle off with the dog still
attached to it.
“Once the door was taken down and the handle removed, it was easier to get it out of the dog’s mouth.
“It
was surprisingly very calm, though it struggled to free itself and
caused lacerations to the inside of its mouth. It was disconcerting not
knowing how the dog was going to react with all the firefighters round
there to take the door handle off the door, but I was very surprised
about how calmly she reacted.”

http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/local-news/2009/04/03/dog-rescued-by-firefighters-after-getting-stuck-on-door-handle-100252-23303950/2/

poor dog could'nt handle it
:2445:
bless her... glad she's ok now :love:

a door handle