The old dog has really been enjoying being cone-free. His leg surgery has healed nicely so the dreaded piece of plastic has been put into retirement. I decided to keep that thing knowing how many folks around here have dogs and how many of those dogs get themselves in some kind of predicament that requires a doctor's care. The cone is still in perfect condition and may come in handy some day. I carefully cleaned the thing and then pondered where to put it to dry. I really did not want to hang it on the clothesline as the sun would make the plastic brittle and useless. Aha! A brilliant idea hit me! Since the grandlittles will not be on the Bayou any time soon, one of their rocking horses could wear the cone while it dried. It worked! The horse now sports the "cone of shame".
My brilliant idea seems to have had an ulterior motive behind it. With Mr. PJ feeling better, he is starting to get more active. Being more active means he wanders about the house a good bit. Wandering leads to the kitchen, of course, and therein lies a problem. The cat's bowls are there and like most cats, Ms. Nycto, always leaves a bit of food in her bowl. Mr. PJ knows that and wants to "finish off" her leftovers. Well, that just makes me have to fill the bowls (he drinks her water, too.) several times a day. I am quickly running out of cat food. So! Another brilliant idea! When Mr. PJ starts being a busybody, I merely tap the cone on the horse's head and Mr. PJ returns to his good behavior. He still wanders about but does not touch Ms. Nycto's food! Tap! Tap! Tap!
I guess the memory of the dreaded cone is still fresh in PJ's mind and he perceives the tapping on the cone as a threat that it could be transferred back to his neck. Oh, Mr. PJ! You are a funny dog.
The old dog had surgery to remove a tumor from his leg almost two weeks ago. The thing had been there for several years without troubling him but in the past month or so, it started to grow at a tremendous rate. This made walking difficult and finding a comfortable position to sleep nigh on impossible. Enough was enough! I took him to the pet emergency room and they did a great job fixing up the old dog. Mr. PJ is healing fine and will soon be back to his old self...hopefully.
There is just one problem. Even though the incision site is almost healed and the staples are to be removed by the end of the week, Mr. PJ wants to gnaw on the wound. He has that huge "cone of shame" on but still can reach his back leg. For being an old dog with terrible bouts of arthritis, he sure can twist and turn when he wants. This dog is truly a contortionist. I have never seen the likes of this!
Today, I stepped out the door to put a box in the greenhouse and was gone a total of five minutes. I came back to catch him in action. Nope! Not going that route, Dog! So...a bandage was put back in place and now he sulks. How do you deal with a pouty dog?? Ugh!
I am not accustomed to this "dog sitting". No, I do not mean the normal type where you take care of someone's pet while they are away. I am talking of literally sitting here with a dog. Old Mr. PJ has had his surgery to remove a rather large tumor from his leg but, now, he does not want me more than ten feet from him. If I move the least bit, he panics and tries to follow. He is supposed to rest...I get no rest. Well, maybe I am getting too much of sitting even though I do not find it restful. I am not used to sitting for any length of time and it is driving me bonkers. I realize this is not his fault but it is tiring. During this sitting, I have to keep a constant watch on him so he does not pull at the staples in his leg. Yes, he does have that cone thing on his head but this dog is smart. He has figured out that if he squirms enough to get the cone pushed back far enough on his neck and then contorts himself in almost a pretzel position...he can reach the wound! Oh, my. He is also smart enough to know when I doze off at night so he can start his maneuvers. I think he plots this all day so he watches...watches and plots until I nod off. Thankfully, the cone is made of plastic and I can hear when he starts his squirming.
Like I said, I am not one to just sit around. This sitting and my lifting the dog has given me a severe backache which does not want to go away. Several times today, he collapsed as his legs just gave out from under him. To keep him from hurting the bad leg any further, I always tried to catch him before he fell. Sixty pounds of dead weight is not an easy catch for someone my age and it is starting to show. There is not much I can do about it, however, as this has to continue for the next two weeks. Hopefully by then, he will be well enough to do things for himself. Hopefully, my back holds out. It ain't easy being old!
Last night was a bit unusual for me. For the first time in several years now, there was no dog sleeping by my bed. Mr. PJ was in the hospital! While I knew he was in good hands, I still fretted about his well being. It was time, however, for him to go get repaired so all was good. For quite some time, he has had a tumor growing on his hind leg. The regular veterinarian kept a close watch on the lump but said it was best not to be hasty. Well, last week, Mr. PJ suffered an eye infection from a deer fly bite. Since it was the weekend, we took him to the pet hospital. They have an around-the-clock emergency room for just such things. The vets there were remarkable and soon Mr. PJ was back to his old self. While there, I asked about removing the tumor and they agreed that it could be done...so it was...and so PJ stayed overnight...and so I was lonely without the old dog.
Early this morning, Son and I headed to the hospital to pick up my buddy! He seemed as happy to see me as I was him. Once we got him back to the Little Bayou House, he had to check each room to make sure it was just how he left it and then he settled in by my feet and has not let me wander more than a few feet from him. "Nope! We are NOT doing that again!" he seems to be trying to tell me. Nope, buddy, we are not doing that again any time soon, I hope.
He is not showing any ill side effects of the surgery other than having problems with the dreaded "cone of shame". While he does not seem to mind it on, he has problems navigating that huge thing. Poor old pup gets stuck in doorways, gates and on furniture. I am sure by the time it is to be removed, he will have become accustomed to having the hood on but, for now, it is a nuisance. Surely, there is some other method that would achieve the same results of no pulling on the wound. Plus, this being the Deep South and the cone being a hard plastic, he is miserably hot! With temperatures in the triple digits, having any piece of plastic near the body is highly uncomfortable. Soon, buddy, soon. I promise. I am just glad you are home and minus that huge (1 pound) blob of misery!
