Brea, Calif. (Sept. 16, 2008)—Crawford’s poisoning wasn’t a case of raw food, but rather bra food. The two-year-old Brittany spaniel is officially cutting underwear out of his diet after a snack of gel inserts from his owner’s bra sent him to the veterinarian’s office with some uncomfortable gastrointestinal issues.

“I was running late for work and changing and I didn’t shut the drawer all the way,” said Tara Claxton of Camp Hill, Pa. “When I got home from work, half the bra was gone. The veterinarian said there was no blockage, but that the gel from the pads may have been mildly toxic. He put Crawford on a special diet and after a few weeks all of the bra passed and his appetite returned. Needless to say, all my bras are tucked away in a drawer and won’t be left out again.” Claxton’s claim was one of more than 85,000 claims received in the month of August by Veterinary Pet Insurance, the nation’s oldest and largest provider of pet health insurance. Her dog’s uncommon incident was considered along with other abnormal claims submitted in August and selected by VPI as the most unusual of the bunch.

As the most unusual claim submitted in August, Claxton’s claim will be placed in the running for VPI’s first Hambone Award. Each month, VPI will nominate a claim and in July 2009 ask the public to vote for the most unusual claim of the year. The Hambone Award is named in honor of a VPI-insured dog that got stuck in a refrigerator and ate an entire Thanksgiving ham while waiting for someone to find him. The dog was eventually found, with a licked-clean ham bone and a mild case of hypothermia.

Honorable mentions in August included a pug that required antibiotics after drinking from a portable restroom that had been tipped over, a Labrador that ate a two-pound chocolate cake, a dog that was hit by a running 90-pound dog, and a dachshund who got mixed up in a fight with a skunk. All pets considered for the award made full recoveries and received insurance reimbursements for eligible expenses.

About Veterinary Pet Insurance

Veterinary Pet Insurance Co./DVM Insurance Agency is the nation’s oldest and largest pet health insurance company. Providing pet owners with peace of mind since 1982, the company is committed to being the trusted choice of America’s pet lovers and an advocate of pet health education. VPI Pet Insurance plans cover dogs, cats, birds and exotic pets for multiple medical problems and conditions relating to accidents, illnesses and injuries. Optional Pet WellCare Protection^SM for routine care is also available.

Medical plans are available in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. More than 1,600 companies nationwide offer VPI Pet Insurance as an employee benefit. Policies are underwritten by Veterinary Pet Insurance Company in California and in all other states by National Casualty Company, an A+15 rated company in Madison, Wisconsin. For more information about VPI Pet Insurance, call 800-USA-PETS (800-872-7387) or visit petinsurance.com.

Note to editors: Digital image of Crawford the Brittany spaniel available upon request. Send request to gbiniasz@petinsurance.com.