Courtesy across the country
Giles, a New York cat, won the Nationwide Hambone Award for the most unusual pet insurance claim of the year.
CNN –
Giles, a charismatic black kitten, took home a trophy and some stitches after getting stuck between a pillow and a hard spot.
Giles won the 15th annual Hambone Award and the competition was fierce this year. Finalists included a labrador that unexpectedly jumped off a 36-foot bridge, a parrot that slammed into a door and a puppy that chewed a phone charger.
The Pet Awards program was created by Nationwide Insurance when a dog became slightly hypothermic after getting stuck in the refrigerator and eating an entire ham.
“When they opened the door of the refrigerator, they found him and the bone,” Heidi Sirota, president of Nationwide Pet Insurance and chief pet officer, told CNN.
“This inspired us to create the Hambone Awards for the most ridiculous medical claims we have for the pets we insure,” Sirota said.
Courtesy across the country
Giles with his Hambone Award.
When it comes to Giles’ owners Kaitlyn and Reid, there’s only one rule in the New York couple’s apartment: “When you put the couch back together, you have to make sure Giles isn’t under the couch,” Reid said in one Video about the award.
Reid’s parents were visiting for a few days and slept on the sofa bed during their stay. Immediately after they arrived, Reid told his parents about the rule, he said.
Everything was going well until his parents prepared to leave for the airport.
While Kaitlyn and Reid were still sleeping, “his stepmoms and stepdads went to work reassembling the sofa – but forgot to look underneath first,” a press release about the award said.
“Something happened and we’re really sorry,” Reid’s stepmother said, explaining that Giles was trapped under the couch.
“The mechanism or whatever hit him pretty hard in the face,” Reid said.
“We need to take this cat to the vet immediately,” he recalled.
Giles’ injuries were not life-threatening, but the black cat required stitches.
He had a “meow-ouch,” Sirota said. “He’s doing much better now.”
Although Giles was fine, his nine lives will never be the same.
“He has a particular phobia of anything related to it,” Reid noted in the video.
The Hambone winner’s family will receive a trophy, a gift card and the opportunity to donate to an animal charity of their choice.
“We highlight these stories because they show how valuable protecting pets through pet insurance can be,” Sirota said. “And that’s worth its weight in gold for most people.”