Posted on 02/22/2012 11:13:50 PM PST by nickcarraway
Crispy Bacon can do tricks and he gets attention everywhere he goes. His owners call him a rock star. But he took that status to the extreme when he overdosed on human medicine.
"My husband and I were at work, and when we came home there were pills just everywhere," owner Teresa Praus-Choe said.
Praus-Choe's home is piggy-proofed, but Crispy's natural rooting behavior caused him to play with the leg of a table and knock it over. Medicine fell to the floor, and Crispy Bacon ingested acetaminophen, ibuprofen and more.
When his owners returned home, he was vomiting. He was rushed to an emergency animal hospital, where he was admitted for three whole days for drug toxicity.
"It was very scary, because he's like my baby," Praus-Choe said.
She got Crispy because she's allergic to pets with fur and dander. She got him insurance because he's part of the family.
Veterinary Pet Insurance Co says Crispy may be an unusual companion, but drug overdose is actually the most common type of drug toxicity for pets.
"That kind of makes sense if you think about it. Because everybody's home has human medication in it, and that can be dangerous and even deadly for your pet," VPI's Curtis Steinhoff said.
Praus-Choe says it was a scary ordeal, but she can laugh about it now. "He's our little rock star. Whenever we come to the park everybody's pulling out the camera wanting to take his picture. The vet even said he took that status to the extreme- overdosing on medication," she said.
Crispy Bacon has made a full recovery.
He's in the running for VPI's "Hambone Award" for the most unusual pet insurance claim of 2012.
VPI says they have about half a million customers. It costs anywhere from $25 to $70 a month, depending on how old the animal is.
The company encourages all animal owners to keep emergency pet hospital numbers handy, just in case.
MMMMM...bacon!
(Don’t tell my cardiologist)
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