The 3-year-old Great Dane was miserable and retching when its owners rushed him to a northwest Portland emergency animal hospital.

It was something he ate.

X-rays showed a stomach full of foreign material. After nearly two hours of surgery, Dr. Ashley Magee had the answer — the dog had consumed 43 ½ socks.

DoveLewis Emergency Animal Hospital spokeswoman Shawna Harch said it's perhaps the strangest case in the hospital's history, The Oregonian reported.

The hospital entered last February's tale, complete with X-rays, in an annual contest sponsored by the vet magazine, Veterinary Practice News, and won a prize.

The DoveLewis says the Great Dane was sent home a day after surgery, and is still alive. There was no word on what he's eaten lately.