Oh, how very stressful last week was. I’m so glad to have it behind me.
Last Saturday (November 10th, 2012) Blaze woke from a nap on the couch, with a whimper and a limp. She began carrying her right rear leg, and was obviously in pain. We did what most sensible folks would do, and just kind of ignored it. Hoping it would resolve on it’s own.
Sunday morning she was worse, not eating, not drinking, even when I put the dish of water right under her nose. She would only walk if she was on leash and we made her, the rest of the time she just laid in her crate looking miserable. I offered her ice cubes, she loves ice cubes. No deal. Wouldn’t even lick ‘em.
We continued to act natural, doing the normal things. People go to church. Dogs rest in crates until we return. When we got home I was glad to hear Blaze barking at us from her crate as soon as we hit the door. She seemed more active, even used the poor, sad, hurting leg a bit. After her walk, I took her on my lap and offered her some ice, which she was happy to see. She still wouldn’t eat anything, until I got the peanut butter out, then she decided that was worth the effort.
I was so happy to see her eating and drinking, even if it was only ice and peanut butter.
Monday morning was another disappointment. She was listless, and obviously in pain, she wouldn’t look at food or water. So I called the animal clinic and got an early appointment.
It took Dr. Green about 2 seconds to find the problem. Luxating patella. Or as us rednecks say, a wonky kneecap.
Seven days of doggie Heroin and doggie Motrin, and tiny doses of people Pepcid (because of the tummy upset that Motrin can cause) and lots of rest and restricted activity, and we have our old dog back. She’s back to her old self. Same activity level, same everything.
However, while I was at the animal clinic AND while I was on the phone with Dr. Green a few days into treatment, there was talk of a doggie orthopedic surgeon, and pins being required, and a surgery that may cost $1,500.
Now, lets all take a minute and a few deep breaths while we ponder the concept of not really having pet medical insurance, and surgeries that cost serious money, for a DOG. Yes, this is MY DOG, and I love her dearly. BUT, that’s some real money. And we really aren’t the kind of people who spend THAT kind of money on a pet. BUT, here’s the stinker, I have that kind of dog. For me it’s a dilemma, not so much for my hubs. Fortunately, we didn’t have to have that actual discussion. Not for real. We talked a bit, but it was speculative, because the dog got better without the surgery. I realize this is the type of thing that will likely happen again, but we aren’t that far down the road yet, and that gives me time to start setting aside money to make Blaze into a bionic doggie.
Anyway, for now, that part of our lives is done. Last week is history. Hallelujah!
Now let’s talk about cats.
Our first country cat, Patsy, disappeared under mysterious circumstances. The local coyotes might have been involved, but we just don’t know.
Our second country cat, Lucy, died of extreme old age. She was >15 years old. She was old when we got her, but she had a happy retirement here with us.
Our third country cat, George, has now been missing for 2 weeks. I suspect the coyotes. George was our favorite, by far. He was a sweet kitty, a good hunter, and playful with our dogs. Sad to see him go.
We’ve decided that we’ll just not have a cat for the time being. We reserve the right to change our minds in the Springtime when everyone we know will have kittens to get rid of. We’ll see.
Anywho, pet-wise, I’ve had more than my share of stress lately. So, I did what I do best. Had a nightmare about it.
My dream life is usually very entertaining, and this time is no different. I’ll get right to the bad part.
We lived elsewhere, in town, and were getting ready to move, again. Blaze had gone missing and we expected foul play. You have no idea how sad this part was for me. I was extremely relieved when I drifted into wakefulness, realizing it was a dream.
I really have no sense of what order the events took place in the dream, and I don’t think it matters, but there were cats.
In dreamland we still had a cat we’d had years and years ago, her name was Muffin. We also had another mystery cat, who was a tabby. Then, we got a kitten, an orange tabby, about 7 weeks old. So, while I’m sitting there petting the new kitty, I realized that our old tabby was not much bigger that the new kitten, seriously small for an adult cat, baby kitten sized. It was weird. So I called our vet. Now, let me tell you right now, in real life Dr. Green has NEVER EVER said anything weird to me, EVER. But in the dream, when I asked her about this adult cat who was still the size of a 2 month old kitten her response was, and I quote, “Yes, this happens sometimes, but usually the cats turn out to be DEMON-POSSESSED.” (me: !!!!????!!!!)
But then I woke up, and my Blaze is still here, and still walking on all four legs, and we still have no cat. I’ll take it!
