FOR a week Cody the cat was not herself – and the reason why lies in a needle and 20cm of thread.

Cody, owned by Netherton woman Chelsey Pickles, had swallowed a needle which stuck in the roof of her mouth.

But she also consumed the thread, which ran through her body, while still attached to the needle.

Vet Keith Lennoard, of Ashfield Vets in Meltham, did some investigation work and discovered the painful problem.

He had to give Cody an anaesthetic and was able to pull the needle out of Cody’s mouth, but was surprised to see that the thread kept coming.

Chelsey, 21, and little brother Lucas, 11, are now giving Cody some TLC as she recovers from her ordeal.

Chelsey said: “Originally I took her to the vet because her tooth had come out. He thought she had an infection and said to bring her back if she didn’t improve.

“When I took her back he looked into her mouth again and there was a needle stuck in the top of her mouth.

“The thread was still in it but she’d swallowed that.”

Chelsey added: “None of us can work out where it came from.

“Cats like to wander off so she could have been anywhere or in someone’s house – we’ve no idea but we’ve not done any sewing here.”

Cody is now getting back to her playful self with the family’s other cats Purdy and Minnie.

“Once it was out she purred for the first time but her throat is still a bit sore,” Chelsey added.

Vet Keith, who works at Ashfield along with owner Sally-Anne Pimlott, said: “The sewing needle was stuck about an inch in the top of her mouth.

“A cat could easily pass a needle without much harm, but the thread could have caused many problems, it could have tied to the gut or wrapped around it.

“Many people don’t realise the damage that can occur when cats pull at clothing, wool or thread and then swallow it.

“Thankfully the cat was ok in this case.”

AN animal charity has revealed the most dramatic pet operations and cases dealt with by its vets over the past year.

The PDSA (People’s Dispensary for Sick Animals) has this year seen 400,000 pets and carried out operations ranging from reconstructing broken limbs and removing foreign objects.

Among the PDSA’s most memorable cases from 2010 is one-year-old Labrador Leo who had life-saving surgery to remove three items of hosiery from his stomach. It was the second time the dog had an emergency op – he got a pork chop bone lodged inside his bowel in 2009.

Seven-year-old Dalmatian Cassie, astounded vets when they rushed her into surgery to remove a suspicious object in her stomach, only to find 600g (1.3lb) of blanket inside her.

Also featured in the list is Cinderella the cat from Gravesend, who nearly died in a horrific road accident. But the brave cat dragged herself home despite suffering some of the worst injuries vets at PDSA’s Gillingham PetAid hospital said they had ever seen.

It was touch-and-go during the operation, but the veterinary team managed to fix her shattered pelvis and ruptured internal organs, and after months of treatment Cinderella is back to her old self.

PDSA senior veterinary surgeon Sean Wensley said: “Pets can be remarkably resilient and some of our patients this year have survived terrifying ordeals.”

PDSA said it had experienced an unprecedented surge in demand for its services recently, seeing a 50% increase in pet patients from 2006 to 2010.

For more information visit www.pdsa.org.uk.