A miracle Staffordshire bull terrier who survived a shot to the head with a crossbow has been celebrated as PDSA Pet Survivor 2015.
Three-year-old Ziggy won the coveted title after vet charity PDSA launched a search for the UK’s most incredible stories of pet survival.
Late last year Ziggy was found wandering alone in woodland near Wansford, Peterborough, by dog walkers.
They were horrified to see a 20 inch crossbow bolt through his head and took him straight to a nearby vet practice. Despite his shocking injury, Ziggy was still bright, friendly and wagging his tail.
The vet, Mr Cees Bennett of Vets4Pets in Peterborough said:
“X-rays revealed that the bolt had deflected off the exterior of his skull, miraculously missing all vital blood vessels, nerves, his eye and his ear canal – it was a one-in-a-million chance that he survived.”
After closely examining the x-rays, Mr Bennett conducted the delicate operation to remove the carbon fibre weapon.
He continued: “Ziggy’s recovery was nothing short of astonishing; he was discharged to boarding kennels just a few days later. Within two weeks of having the surgery it was hard to tell that anything had even happened to him.”
