For months now, the old dog has been ailing. The poor, old pup just could not shake the maladies that vexed him so. Actually, there was not just one thing wrong but a build-up of a multitude of things. He had a fungal nasal infection, a fast growing tumor on his hind leg, a scratched eyeball (his doing), arthritis, the beginnings of congestive heart failure and...well, age. He probably could have shaken one or two but when all piled together at once, he was not faring well. That said, I started tackling one problem at a time. For some odd reason, the regular vet did not want to give him a strong antibiotic. He prescribed a weak one and only for one week. Allergy pills and pain pills, however, were plenteously plied. The tumor situation was not addressed "until we get the other things under control" and then "proceed with caution due to the heart". I was perplexed. Herbal concoctions brought a good bit of relief for the sinus situation but did not fully remedy it. Poor fellow suffered in silence.
Then, a deer fly bit him on the eye lid causing him to scratch. That scratch caused an injury to the eyeball and led to an emergency visit to the pet hospital. While there, I questioned the vet that owns the hospital about the tumor. He agreed that it needed to be removed and said we would do it right away. I felt a bit of turmoil about the risk but was assured that things would go safely. The surgery was a success and Mr. PJ came home the next morning with a bandaged leg and the cone of shame on his head. That cone seemed to be far more troubling than the surgery. He hated it! I hated it. First, because it did not keep the dog from reaching the incision site and second, with the thing the size of a bucket on his head, he knocked over everything in the house! The normally very easy dog magically turned into a bull in the china shop.
After two weeks of torture, it was time to have the staples removed and the incision checked. The cone came off and Mr. PJ is happier than I have seen him in a long time. While at the pet hospital, I questioned the doctor again. "Since PJ has been on the medicines you prescribed, the sinus problem has dramatically improved. Do you think we can continue?" YES!!! I came home with a new supply of the antibiotics. The cone came off and Mr. PJ is happier than I have seen him in a long time. Oh, happy day! Mr. PJ can breathe again, can rest easy with no bucket on his head and does not have a pound and a half of extra garbage hanging on his leg. He can actually trot again! It does the heart good to know that I made the right decision about his care. It would be so grand if he continued to heal and live the rest of his days pain free. It would also be grand if the veterinarians at the pet hospital could see him on a regular basis and not just for emergencies!
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!
