Poopy Puppy

For the past few days, my sidekick..otherwise known as Ezzy, the dog, has been ill. There were times that I did not believe she was going to live through the hour..she was that sick. Now, I probably will get fussed at for not making an emergency run to the vet for this but you must understand that the worst part occurred at 2 AM and I had no clue just where any ER for pets was located. So..I home-treated. I was grasping for ideas of just what had made her so sick. For the first few days, she simply seemed to be drooling excessively and even vomited a couple of times. No biggie..I have dealt with this before when she would get into something that had upset her stomach. Occasionally, she will indulge in a few to many of the menhaden that I use for fish bait or she might get a mouthful of sand while playing fetch. These things do cause the drooling and vomiting effect. But this time it was different..it started out with these symptoms but then exacerbated into a near life threatening situation.

The worse night started out calm enough. Ezzy had eaten very little but then again sometimes she can be a picky eater. I did not worry. About 10 o'clock, she wanted out. Again, I did not worry as this was the usual routine. After about five minutes, she came back in, received her pat on the head and went to her bed. I, too, went to bed. Just as I was falling asleep...whine. Whine? She never whines...I got up to investigate. She seemed ecstatic that I had given in to her whims. I let her out again. After she returned, we both went back to our beds. Whine...ugh...ok..I got up..she was at the door, wagging her tail. Ahhh..my brother's dog must be visiting the yard..I let her out. There was no other dog, she ran directly down the hill to her "bathroom". When she was a tiny pup, I had trained her to do her business down the hill near the marsh edge. Here..there is a large sandy area that makes for the perfect "litter box". After a few minutes, she returned but seemed to be a mite winded. Hmmmm...she did not look so good. I felt her nose..nope..still cool..and wet..ewww. We made our ways back to our perspective beds. Four trips later, I noticed she was really spent..perhaps just an effect of the diarrhea that she was enduring. Then things went downhill...fast! The next whine had bad results. A huge UGH should be inserted here! Poor poopy puppy..poor floor. UGH!!!! I opened the door and she bolted leaving a trail behind her. Yes..this is a tad bit graphic and a huge bit disgusting but oh so true. I called Son!

Son made his way downstairs unaware of why he was called. He found out soon enough..when he entered the living room, I heard....."Oh, man!" He put his hand over his nose...Ugh! By this time, I was already armed with cleanser, paper towels, a mop and a pail of water. I was not going to make him clean at 2 AM but rather needed him to find some way to secure Ezzy outside. Our yard is not fenced and I did not want her to mosey over to my brother's place and deposit evidence of her illness on his porch! To tie her down the hill seemed a bit cruel and maybe even dangerous. I am not so certain that the alligator would not like a chubby dog for a meal if given the chance. So Son secured her inside the rose garden. It was probably not the best place for a poopy puppy but we had no choice. There is a large grassy seating area in the middle of the rose garden and that had to suffice as a nighttime loo for the dog. I was not going to keep "swabbing the decks" all night! She would have to stay outside for the first time in her life! Son moved her water bowl and blanket out so she would not be too uncomfortable. I cleaned. During the rest of the night, I sat in the rose garden with a miserable doggy. She was still having problems and seemed weak. I fed her a bit of cooked pumpkin that was seasoned with a slight bit of ginger root. She eagerly ate this and then fell asleep. Her stomach made all sorts of gurgles and groans and she whined some more. About an hour later..more pumpkin and ginger. This helped with the diarrhea..but not the dehydration. The water bowl sat untouched. Back to the kitchen to fix a remedy for dehydration. I had to get water in this dog..now. I pulled a pack of frozen chicken broth and quickly thawed it. This was watered down ten to one..it just needed a bit of flavor. To my astonishment she drank an entire quart! By sunrise, I could see that her problems were abating. She seemed much more at ease so I slipped inside and let her doze. Throughout the next day, I periodically gave her some more pumpkin with ginger root and watered down broth. She took both without hesitation and actually started looking a bit brighter. I moved her back inside so she would not get overheated. The outdoor trips to the sandy outhouse were now spaced to about every hour..she was beating this!

I still had a problem figuring out just what caused this malady. Could it have been tainted fish? Could she have found something dead and gotten a bacteria infection? Was she infected with some horrible disease by a stray dog? These things kept flipping about in the brain until I was talking with my older brother. I was telling him about her problem and how she smelled soooo bad that I had to wash her every day that she was ill. Aha! He had overheard a conversation at a restaurant about two dogs that had the same symptoms...explosive diarrhea, dehydration and an unbearable stench. Mushroom poisoning! Then I remembered that Hubby said Ezzy had eaten a mushroom a few days prior to the scary episode! My brother went on to tell me that the man said his two dogs had died even though he had taken them to the vet. Perhaps pumpkin and ginger root saved Ezzy? Perhaps she did not eat a fatally toxic mushroom? Who knows. I am glad to report that she is much better today! Still weak..still has a slight case of loose stools but better. She actually was able to walk a bit in the yard with me and is now eating rice with her broth. Hopefully this will have no lasting effects on her health..and hopefully she has learned her lesson about eating mushrooms!