Brea, Calif. (August 23, 2010) – Balboa didn’t mean any harm to the inch-long insect in the bushes. The year-old pug was out for a late night walk last month with his owners Eyad and Shereen Bahhur of Metairie, La., when he spotted the Southern Walking Stick camouflaged within the branches of a bush. Unfortunately for Balboa, Southern Walking Sticks defend themselves by spraying venom directly into the eyes of their “attacker.”
“Balboa was sniffing around like he usually does,” said Eyad, “but then he jumped back all of a sudden. He was foaming at the mouth and wouldn’t open his eyes. We took him inside the house and rinsed his eyes out, but he was still squinting.”
Within hours of the accident, the Bahhurs took Balboa to their veterinarian. The veterinarian hadn’t had much experience with Balboa’s type of injury and recommended the Bahhurs see a specialist an hour and half’s drive away in Biloxi, Mississippi.
The veterinary specialist treated Balboa for corneal ulcers that had developed in both eyes as a result of the toxins in the insect venom. If left untreated, the dog would have likely lost one if not both eyes. Balboa was given close to a dozen prescriptions including eye drops that required application every hour on the hour. Eyad took a week off work just to stay at home to put the drops in Balboa’s eyes.
For the next week, the pug was essentially blind. “Basically, he did a lot of sitting,” Eyad said. “I had to carry him everywhere, and it would be another three weeks before he was himself again. It’s a really rare case. This was definitely a time where I’m glad we had pet insurance.”
Eyad’s claim for Balboa’s insect incident was one of more than 80,000 claims received in the month of August by Veterinary Pet Insurance Co. (VPI), the nation’s oldest and largest provider of pet health insurance. Eyad’s claim was considered along with other uncommon medical claims submitted in August and selected by VPI as the most unusual of the bunch.
As the most unusual claim submitted in August, Eyad’s claim will be placed in the running for the 2011 VPI Hambone AwardSM. Each month, VPI employees nominate the most interesting claim submitted, and in September 2011, the company will ask the public to vote for the most unusual claim of the year. The VPI 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 hambone and a mild case of hypothermia.
Honorable mentions in August included a mixed-breed dog that had to have a chew toy removed from around its jaw, a pit bull that ate a jellyfish, a Yorkshire terrier that fell into a bucket of bleach, a mixed-breed dog that jumped from a two-story balcony, a Maltese that got its toe stuck in a VCR tape, and a Japanese Chin that ate 25 cherry pits. All pets considered for the award made full recoveries and received insurance reimbursements for eligible expenses. Stories and pictures of the Hambone Award nominees are at www.VPIHamboneAward.com.
Note to editors: Digital images of Balboa, the Hambone Award trophy, and the 2010 Hambone Award nominees are available upon request. Send requests to dshannon@petinsurance.com.
About Veterinary Pet Insurance
With more than 485,000 pets insured nationwide, Veterinary Pet Insurance Co./DVM Insurance Agency is the No. 1 veterinarian-recommended pet health insurance company and is a member of the Nationwide Insurance family of companies. 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 CareGuard® for routine care is also available.
Medical plans are available in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. More than 2,000 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. Pet owners can find VPI Pet Insurance on Facebook or follow @VPI on Twitter. For more information about VPI Pet Insurance, call 800-USA-PETS (800-872-7387) or visit petinsurance.com.