Valentin and my Visa card

No, Valentin did not eat my Visa card, but they both could use some well wishes after this week's visits to the vet.

Poor wee Valentin is feeling rather tough today. Yesterday he had a broken molar extracted, his tear ducts flushed (for some reason they are starting to close up on him), his ears cleaned, a microchip installed, his nails trimmed and his anal glands expressed.

He hid his face in the crook of the vet tech's arm for the anal glands, ears and nails. I guess it doesn't hurt so badly if you don't look, lol. (This was only his second time at this vet and this is my fear aggression boy we are talking about here. He did very well with them).

His little face was swollen on one side last night and he ached from nose to tail. I know that he was not faking and sucking up to me. Normally when the oven timer goes off, the entire pack yells back at it, with Barky Boy in the lead. Pogo and Heidi swore at the oven timer last night, but Valentin did not react at all. He was curled up on my lap when my sister phoned and she could hear him moaning over the telephone. The vet had already loaded him up with pain killers, but I know that I can double dose with Sasha's Blend, so that is what he got. He seemed to be a bit more comfortable after that.

Normally, Valentin does not sleep in the big bed with me. It is too tall and I am so afraid for him when he jumps down. Last night I brought him to bed with me and the little man did not move all night. He just snuggled up to his mom and laid there with the occasional moan. He did not even attempt to jump down this morning. He seemed almost reluctant when I lifted him down from the big bed.

I am blessed that I can go home today at lunch time and check on him. We had some diarrhea issues this morning. That is nasty at any time, but with a long hair dachshund, it gets even uglier.

We have ointment for his eyes 3 times a day, and antibiotics twice a day for his tooth. For the next day or two, I am using my pill splitter to split his kibble in half and soaking it in water for him. Add antibiotics for Heidi and Daisy Mae and I hope I can keep everyone's routines straight. Pogo is feeling decidedly left out of all this, so he gets a placebo (an empty pill pocket, lol).

My Visa card??? Well, $1,500 later (exams, blood tests for the boys, the procedures yesterday, Revolution for the summer, meds for 3 of them, Heidi's acupuncture treatment), my Visa card is in ICU moaning right along with Valentin. Sadly, the only painkiller for my Visa card is extra hours at my part time job.

So much for central air-conditioning this summer. I think it will be more like an air mattress for the basement.

Vet bills $1,500, having my babies, Priceless.

Another sad good bye

Last night fellow rescuers had to say good bye to their 6 yr old Great Dane, Carson. Carson was a rescue, beaten by his first owners because he would not listen to them. Listening is very difficult if you are deaf, as Carson was.

He was a huge teddy bear, a real lover and I will miss working at rescue events with this truly gentle giant.

When people die, we gather for some form of ceremony and usually go to somewhere afterwards to reminisce. We don't have that same opportunity for our fur friends; and so, I would like to share my favourite Carson story here.

One day, in his forever home, Carson got something he wasn't supposed to have. He did not want to "hear" his owner saying No, so Carson looked at his owner and very deliberately closed his eyes, so that he could not see the hand signal for "give". Carson's vocabulary of sign language was truly impressive.

A character, a sweet, sweet boy who charmed everyone who visited our rescue booth and all of those who knew him.

I will always have a picture in my mind of my Heidi, barking her silly head off at Carson, and Carson looking at her as if to say "the mouth is going, but I don't hear you, naya naya....."

Dogspeed Carson