Trish Kenyon came home one day to find every dog owner's nightmare: her 1-year-old Staffie, Bonnie, was choking with her neck wrapped tightly in lengths of white fabric.
Bonnie's mother, another Staffie named Pip, was desperately trying to save the pup. Trish and her human family jumped in to join the rescue effort, but to no avail — Bonnie passed away from being unable to breathe, trapped in coils of the white material.
Most horrifying of all was that the fabric came from the one place that was supposed to be safest for Bonnie: her bed.
"It was a nightmare," a heartbroken and guilt-racked Trish said. "I only left them for 25 minutes."
She'd bought the soft bed as a replacement for a plastic one. "We thought we were doing the right thing, buying a nice comfy bed instead of the plastic one I had," she said. "I can't get over what happened."
But Trish and her family didn't stay silent about the harrowing ordeal and tragic loss. Instead, her daughter Jodie Cooke took to Facebook with a warning about the potential hidden dangers of dog beds, particularly for active dogs who may tear through the fabric covering.
And it turns out that Bonnie wasn't the first dog to become entangled in a bed's filling. Jodie and Trish want to make sure she's the last.
"People have said their dogs have become entangled in the filling too," Jodie said. "Dogs chew through things and it’s dangerous. You don’t expect to leave your dog comfortable in its bed and to come home to find that. My mom is traumatized."
Their warning about a dog's bed-filling material has attracted thousands of comments and shares on Facebook. People are now much more aware of the dangers of something seemingly safe and normal.
Read on to see what Jodie and Trish had to say, and learn how to keep your dogs safe.
[H/T: Metro]
Bonnie the Staffie was only a year old when her life was cut tragically short.
Her owner, Trish Kenyon, came home to the horror of finding her being strangled by the long strips of fabric used as stuffing in a dog bed.
Trish's daughter, Jodie Cooke, posted a warning on Facebook in the hopes of preventing another tragedy.
I feel incredibly heartbroken writing this, but feel I need to raise awareness to any dog owners out there.
My mum and I bought matching dog beds. As you can see they are not made with average stuffing. It has also been stuffed with long strips of fabric.
My mum came back home after being out for only 25 minutes to find her one-year-old dog and her mother (dog) stuck in the strips.
These strips of fabric have unfortunately strangled and killed the young dog whilst her mum was trapped and couldn't release her pup.
There were many different designs, so please if you have a dog bed like this have a look inside and please share this post.
It may save a dog's life.
RIP Bonnie
Comments soon poured in, with people from all over the world sharing their condolences and, even worse, similar stories. Many people wanted to know where the bed came from.
"For all those asking, this bed was purchased from a local farm shop of which I will not hold accountable as they only sell them and don't manufacture," Jodie wrote. "However, I have seen them for sale in many places. I am doing all I can to get justice for our beautiful Bonnie and hopefully make a difference to other dogs and get these things banned."
If your dog is the type to chew through things, do a check on any dog beds or pillows to see what the stuffing is made of.
Jodie and Trish hope that if more owners are aware of this potential danger, then dogs' lives may be saved.
SHARE this story with every dog owner you know!
