Happy to hear your pup is doing well.
I'm not sure why anything short of endoscopy is being considered contraindicated here. Yes, scoping is good. It does not always work and cutting may end up being required anyway.
Maneuvering a basket or other tools in a tiny esophagus would be difficult. The vet didn't try to open the esophags which would be beyond a general vet's capability (generally). They just opened the stomach. I have no idea why people are upset over that.