VPI Hambone Award

Jean Pierre first developed a lump on his side and the veterinarian thought it was a bee sting. A couple of days later it had nearly tripled in size, so the veterinarian drained it and put him on antibiotics. This continued for several weeks, but things didn't get better. About two months after the first lump appeared, the veterinarian performed surgery and found a corndog stick. The stick had slowly worked its way through Jean Pierre's stomach lining and was pressing on his body cavity trying to find a way out.

Denise Uphus says she was baffled at first but it “clicked” after she remembered she had given her 1½-year-old daughter a corndog. “She likes to feed the dog and she must have given him some of her corndog, including the stick, which he swallowed whole," she recalls. "You really can’t turn your back on them — kids or pets.”