Finally got the call, I could pick Chloe up! First we wanted to get her an Everlasting Treat Ball so she has something to keep herself occupied during the next few weeks. Then off to costco to fill up on gas and to get her a big comfy bed. So my dad and I split up (he got gas and I went into Costco). After asking where the dog beds were I wandered to the aisle and saw some small beds, but nothing that would be good for her size. I then saw a woman with the perfect sized bed, but didn’t see any more of those anywhere. I enquired as to where she got the bed and she informed me that it might have been the last one in the box. I told her that I was looking for a bed like that size because I would be picking up Chloe soon from surgery and that she would need a big comfy bed. I went to the front of the aisle to see if there was another large bed. Not a one. Great. I then went to ask an employee if they have anymore and no they didn’t. I felt bad because I didn’t think to bring a blanket at least for the car ride home. As I looked up to the large, industrial Costco ceiling and sighed with frustration knowing that I would leave empty handed. The woman who I had asked about the bed, approached me as I was getting ready to leave and said the most wonderful thing to me, ” You can have the bed”. I stared at her and asked,”Really?” and she said that she was just getting a replacement bed for one of her three dogs, but felt that my dog coming home from surgery would need it more. All I could do was sincerely thank her over and over again and explained the story of why my dog had surgery. Then at the checkout line, the man behind me offered to let me rest the dog bed on his cart while I waited to pay (bulky and awkward and I didn’t want it to drag on the dirty floor). It is in these moments that the little acts of kindness from strangers can make all the difference.
Off to the vet we wemt!
So while I wait for the time when I can pick up Chloe (this afternoon, yay!), I will write a little more about who my dog is. When we first got her at 8 months of age (petco adoption), she was an awkward, big footed pup with a flair for chasing squeaker toys. Unfortunately when we got her home, we found out she had worms (another thing I discovered). We quarantined her, but every time I left the area she would whine to no end. My solution? I slept on a cot in her area until she was worm free. I guess I have come full circle and will be doing something similar for her amputation recovery… Anyway Chloe is very mild tempered and kind of a big baby especially toward our cat Asieke. My brother rescued a siamese looking kitten (mother was all black, so father must have looked like him) last March and he has grown up around my dog. And let me tell you, she lets him get away with everything! He likes to eat out of her food bowl, play chase with her (she goes after the ball, he runs beside her, sometimes even getting in the way and at the last second jumps on the planter), and he play attacks nearly every body part (legs and tail are his favorite). Whenever he eats her food or play attacks her limbs she just looks at me with the most pitiful face like, “Mom, he’s eating my food again and I can’t do anything about it,” or “He’s attacking my legs again“. Reminds me of what a little brother does, just pokes you and says,” Are you annoyed yet? Are you annoyed yet? Are you annoyed now?”. He wants to play with her all the time and I am convinced he thinks to himself, “Sometimes I just don’t know about this big, smelly animal, but right now I am going to see what I can get away with!”. She doesn’t realize that she is 60 lbs heavier, but in all honesty I think their relationship is better this way and it is certainly hilarious to watch. Asieke won’t admit it, but I think he wants to be a dog. My dog can be such a wimp when it comes to Asieke, but you just gotta love her more for it. With suspicious people however, she will bark. Luckily this has only happened a couple times during my life, but I feel good knowing she will protect me from someone possibly wishing to harm me.
Aside: Our now adult cat Asieke has an interesting story behind his name. It is chinese for “a knockoff” because he is not full siamese, but looks like the traditional ones with brown stripes on his body and dark limbs (don’t ask, my teenage brother came up with this).
The only thing my dog is afraid of is thunder. Or things that sound like thunder such as fireworks. 4th of July is not a fun time for her. Chloe doesn’t realize how big she is and tries to climb in my lap when she gets scared. She really isn’t a lap dog, I mean she is just over half my weight! That doesn’t stop her from trying to come to me for protection from the loud, scary noises. Sometimes she sells me out for my dad who is 6’3″ because he is the biggest one in the house. This is what happened when the three of us were on a camping trip in a log cabin and a thunder storm hit. Guess I am not as the best protector when it comes to the choice me myself or my father… but I would rather have her feel safe than pacing in circles worried about the sky falling. It has taken us years to figure out the best calming meds for her (vet prescription mellows her out), but we finally did and these events are much more manageable.
T-1 hr until Chloe comes home!
Asieke caught in the act!
On the drive back from the vet, I had to keep reminding myself that Chloe would be fine. Her vet is a good guy, but somehow that didn’t prevent me from worrying about any complications that might occur during her surgery. I knew that I had a long wait ahead of me so I did what I could to keep myself occupied. With a newly cracked windshield (about 10″ long!), I certainly had a convenient diversion. After advice from my dad about which company to use, I managed to schedule an appointment for that afternoon at my house. No extra charge and I didn’t have to leave my car anywhere but parked across the street (my car has room for my dog in the back, and I certainly wanted to have it safe and fixed when I picked Chloe up). Since this scheduling only took about an hour, I still had another 5 hours to kill… I tried watching tv, browsing the web with my computer, but I still couldn’t help wondering how she was doing or where she was in her surgery. After the window of time passed where the vet technician told me I would be contacted I started to get nervous. I knew that the vet had a few surgeries that day, but still I had to wait some more. Another 2 hours passed and I FINALLY got a call!
Her vet that performed the surgery told me that Chloe was just waking up. I asked him, “So did it go well?” (intended to mean, there were no complications?). He replied and told me that he doesn’t really like doing this type of surgery, but that what needed to be done was done. Well I certainly could not have been in that field for that exact reason. But yes, the surgery went smoothly and depending on her condition the following day, I might be able to take her home. He also told me he would call again before he went home to give me another update. So far so good, but more waiting…
That evening the vet called and informed me that she is doing remarkably well! No residual bleeding, she doesn’t seem to be in pain (probably so stoned she has no clue) and that she is resting in a warm soft area. We had already discussed the fact they wanted to keep her overnight to monitor her condition and the vet assured me that two technicians would be there overnight with her. Tomorrow, they would try to walk her in a sling and if she started walking “comfortably” I could take her home. What the definition of “comfortably” is, I have no clue. She was still using all 4 legs pre surgery so I don’t exactly envision her walking around perfectly. He would call with another update in the morning.
So the next morning I get another call and was told that Chloe did well last night and that they were starting to wean her off the pain meds. She seemed to be handling the pain well considering the amputation (such a good, tough girl!). My dog was apparently still too high as a kite to walk, so they would try again in a few hours to see how she fared. The vet also told me that since she was still using all 4 legs before her amputation that she would take more time relearning how to balance. He explained that because this surgery is mostly performed on dogs with bone cancer, their affected leg is usually very painful causing them to start relying more heavily on the other three. This gives them the advantage of having more experience pre surgery and once their bad leg is gone, they pretty much take to the three legs right away. No marathons for Chloe for quite some time (not that she ever ran one with 4!). Unfortunately because of this fact, he wanted to keep her for another night. He was very optimistic about her condition and confident I could take her home the following afternoon before they closed. Another night, sigh. I suppose I now have time to “prep” the house for her. He recommended having her in an enclosed cushy space, so I decided I would barricade myself with her in the living room (carpeted!). Even though I do not have baby gates, I do still have all my packed boxes from moving back home from college (still packed because I am waiting to move up to grad school). Cheap barricades!
So yet another night at the vet, which means more waiting…