DEAR ABBY: I took my dog fishing with me to a lake in the mountains near here. He's well behaved and I had him on a leash, but he was attracted to some discarded, balled-up fishing line with bait on it. He gulped it down. I didn't see this, so when I turned around I had a dog with fishing line leading into his mouth and down his throat.
This involved a rush trip down the mountain to the emergency vet clinic, hours of anguish and lots of money.
The vet told me he sees about one dog a week who has swallowed a fishing line with a fish hook. Dog owners: BEWARE. And fishermen: Never drop a discarded line with a hook. It could be your own dog you catch! -- KEITH JACKSON, DENVER
DEAR KEITH: What a harrowing experience! Fishermen should remember they are sportsmen. And good sportsmen respect the environment and never leave litter behind. To leave items lying around that could be dangerous to pets, children or wildlife is unconscionable.