Monday, November 05, 2007

Poor, Poor Red Dog

The patient convalesces.

My poor baby!!

He's super out of it. For starters, Big RD never does anything in half measures. The tooth he broke off fence fighting with houseguest Mona was the tip of the iceberg, so to speak. The piece I found on the floor was the only piece which was intact. The rest of it was cracked and fissured into a kajillion pieces below the gum line, which necessitated a prolonged surgery to remove all the hunks - because any chunks of tooth left behind could cause an abscess. So the poor guy was under for a long time while the patient and awesome Dr. Shaw at Kitsilano Animal Clinic removed all the chunks he could find.

When dogs are anaesthetized they are frequently done so with Ketamine (some of the more party animal types among you may recognize it from wild nights at Luv-A-Fair when you called it "Special K."). Ketamine can induce, in some animals, "visions of dragons" in the words of Dr. Shaw. When RD started coming around from the Special K, he was definitely seeing dragons. He was having hallucinations of epic proportions, and had to be sedated with both valium and another drug to control his nightmares.

Now his chart says, in big bold letters, NO KETAMINE EVER EVER EVER. We all figure he's had enough nightmares in his life.

So the end result was a very wobbly Red Dog who slipped and slid all over the waiting room while I was trying to pay the bill.

He says his mouth really hurts:

When we got home, he weebled and he wobbled (and he didn't fall down!) his way straight to the sofa and with a little boost from me, got up, laid down and passed out. Where he remains still.

I took advantage of this opportunity of One Dog Down to take Mona for her first visit to the park. Regrettably, the stupid time change means it was almost dark and there are no photos. But I did have to tell you what a WONDERFUL time Monsie had! I dropped her leash and let her run, and she responded to recall almost flawlessly. And Mona likes to play ball!! She is a very enthusiastic fetch machine. And now she too is passed out with her puppies. This makes her a lot more likable in the house, so from now on it will be regular exercise for the Monser. My baby is growing up!

Now I am off to cuddle my poor wee beastie through his pain. And amuse myself by watching the dogs, who do not understand time changes, wonder why their dinner is an hour late. God I'm such a sadist.



9 comments:

Anonymous said...

Pleased the surgery is over and RD gets hugs, kisses, and TLC. In the last pic of him, he looks like a stoner.

Anonymous said...

Oh that poor big baby. :( Having to go through that kind of "waking up"... ugh!! I hope he's feeling better soon.

Anonymous said...

Poor Red Dog! I hope indeed that he has no more nightmares. Happy his surgery went well if his recovery went less well. Lots of cuddles for him and a dream free sleep tonight or dreams of happy times.

Good news about Mona's first walk. It sounds like she was a loved dog at some point - doG knows how they end up on the street. She is safe now.

Anonymous said...

Pleased to hear RD... or perhaps it's now sRD has come through surgery. The right drugs, are a very good thing. The wrong drugs, not so much.

Mona's first walk does make you wonder how in the world this dog ended up at the shelter.

dp said...

Don't tell me that she likes to play ball! I LOVE her! Willow took almost 24 hours to recover, so I imagine RD will be laying low for a while. He looks pretty chill about it all.

Anonymous said...

awwww...poor little stoney reddog...his little tongue makes me want to hug him! i'm glad he came through ok (cept for the nightmares) and is back in your arms again.

sounds like mona will be a wonderful addition to someone's life when she is ready...my cousin is in love with catahoula's and thinks she's gorgeous.

Anonymous said...

Lots of cuddles to Red Dog - poor thing sounds like such an ordeal.

River

Anonymous said...

Glad it's all over, RD! Feel better soon!

mammalsandbirds said...

Hugs to Red Dog and you too. You've had more than your fair share of stressful stuff going on, but Karma is on the way. I just feel it.

Red Dog was on my mind all day Monday. I'm very, very happy he came through such a difficult surgery. He's a strong boy. I've witness the "dragon visions" with my last dog. Not pretty, but I'm glad for the note on his file.

How about Tweed. Hopefully, he's doing better too.

Mona is a sweetheart. I'm so glad for every dog who has found you. Multiply that by 8 when considering her pups. Guess they're still growing at a crazy rate. Hope all going well as they begin to explore their world.