Dog owner's plea to fishermen after pet hurt on discarded fish hook

A DOG owner is appealing to fishermen to take their hooks home after her pet had to have a £300 operation after getting one stuck in its paw.

Julie Marley, from New Milton, was taking her dog Teddy for a walk along Barton beach when he suddenly started “squealing loudly”, she said.

“I rushed over to him, but he ran away. I then saw a fishing line trailing from one of his paws and when I managed to catch him, I realised he had a hook stuck in it,” she told the A&T.

“He was in tremendous pain and was making this awful noise. People on the beach rushed up to see if they could help because he was squealing so loudly. It was just awful.”

Julie rushed Teddy to a vet where he was sedated and had the three-centimetre hook removed – leaving her with a bill for nearly £300.

She said: “He is very subdued now. It was a horrid experience. I had noticed these lines with fishing hooks on the beach before.

“When I found some, I took them home with me and disposed of them. One time I gave some to two council workers on the beach who told me it was an issue there but there was nothing the council could do.”

She is now appealing to fishermen to take their hooks home with them, saying: “The beach belongs to everyone. Next time it could be a child who steps on a hook.

“It is not hard for a fisherman to count his hooks and make sure he takes them all home with him. That’s all I am asking them to do.”

A New Milton fishing tackle shop has agreed to put a poster in the window alerting fishermen to what happened to Teddy, she said.

Julie said she will continue to walk Teddy along Barton beach but from now on will keep him on a lead, adding: “I just don’t think it is safe to let him off which is a great shame as he loved being able to run along the beach.”

The A&T has previously reported how several dogs have been injured by hooks left on Barton beach.

A warning to owners about the problem was posted on a notice board at the top of a path down to the beach last year by a woman whose pet was badly injured.