Last month Toby made a good run at trying to rack up the highest emergency bill possible. He gave it three tries - four if you count the one in CA at Mom's house. We'll stick to three for now.
Toby is a very curious young puppy. At 1 1/2, he still explores with his nose and taste-tests the world around him. Goose poop, cat poop, sticks, bugs, plants...these are all on the "try it and see if I like it" menu. Our first "quick trip" to the vet stemmed from Toby waking up one morning not wanting to eat. Then he threw up. Then he went in the back, ate grass, and threw up again. This part he is very good at. He chomps down grass and right on cue, everything comes back up. He was lethargic, whiny, and not his peppy self. Off to the vet we go. Turns out, yes, he ate something weird, everything is fine, but just in case, they gave him the hydration shot under the skin behind his shoulder blades. This literally makes a humpback of fluid and is soon absorbed into the body. It's like turning your dog into a camel for a short period of time. All better!
Scenario #2 is much like the first - except it was Monday night and he threw up 7 times in 45 minutes without drinking water. Kyle had come home from work early hoping to get a good night's sleep, and we wound up in the emergency vet until midnight. By the time we sat there and saw the doctor, Toby was fine (of course), and whatever he ate has passed through his system. Kyle, however, was asleep in the chair with his head in the corner, hoping we could go home soon. Again, we were awarded the fluid humpback shot as a parting gift.
Scenario #3 was much more exciting and involved leaving Toby with Dr. Emily for most of the day. We are slowly trying to let Toby have free roam of the house while we are gone, but still leave his crate open so he can go there for security. I went out to dinner with friends, Kyle was working, and Toby had free run of the house. I come home to find his big fluffy bed torn apart and green stuffing pieces everywhere. Now, if they are everywhere, then they are also in his tummy. Watched him that night, he drank a little, but ate nothing. By the next morning he was not a happy pup. One call to Dr. Emily's office and they said "bring him in" followed by the dreaded words of "you'll be leaving him here for most of the day". Argh.
Turns out, they did x-rays every few hours to make sure the stuffing was passing through. Eventually, he did eat, they gave him fluids, and they took more x-rays. When I was called to pick him up, Dr. Emily came out, gave me a hug, and said "I know you like us but you can stop coming by so much." and smiled. Again, this is why we love Dr. Emily.
I did win a free prize of getting all the x-rays on a CD to take home, and these I share with you below, mostly just because they are neato-skeato to look at.
Here he is laying on his right side. His head is to your left, his tail to your right. You can see his ribs on the left. The dark area is gas in his intestine. (I thought it was the stuffing.Wrong.) You keep taking x-rays, follow the gas, and as long as it is moving through, then the stuffing is moving through. Of course, at the end, you check the poop. Always check the poop. I'm convinced this is the answer to all animal and child problems - check the poop.
More x-rays, more dark gas. Besides the fact that we had to take Toby in when he was sick, these are pretty interesting. I could have stayed back there all day and had Dr. Emily explain x-rays to me.
It is at this point she puts her arm around my shoulders and says, "During the x-rays, we found something I need to show you."
GULP. Really? That's how you bring it up?
Proof that our little guy is happy as can be, we finally caved again this year and bought the pass to the doggy park. He has a blast running around, and has grown a bit older since his puppy summer last year. He is more weary of large dogs, happier to run up to dogs his size, and always ready to jump in the doggy pool they have full on hot days.
I still say sometimes Toby thinks he is British. Just picture him below with a little monocle on. He even has that snaggle tooth on his right side that catches his lip every now and then.
And here he is right now, sitting behind me as I type, and I can literally hear him smiling. He just finished the bone I gave him and he's good for about 45 seconds of puppy crazies before he crashes into his morning nap. One smile like that and all doctor visits and expenses are forgotten. He's our little fuzzy guy and he's the best dog ever.
Big hugs,
Mandi, Kyle and Toby
