Shaved, sutures and sleep...

This was a big week for me - I decided to spay Darcy and Thursday was the big day. I really had mixed emotions going into this day but none of my anxiety revolved around the surgery itself. As odd as it seems, I found myself stressing about the little stuff and worried about her whining and crying in the cage all day. I wonder if my clients are more nervous about the surgical procedure and anesthesia or the cage??? I was completely confident in how the surgery would go and knew that I'd make sure she wasn't hurting but if she cried all day... how would I cope with that?

One of my dearest friends had a tiny chihuahua that needed to by spayed so we agreed to schedule Paprika and Darcy on the same day. We decided we could support each other as veterinarians and nervous (neurotic?) pet owners. They both are between 4 and 5 pounds so I went carefully to my calculations - how to create the perfect blend of sedation, pain control and anesthesia? Well, I suppose my fear of her crying in the cage won out because man did she sleep! I can honestly say that she felt no pain and had no stress while caged - I doubt she even knew she was in the cage! I was so happy that she was calm for her catheter placement, had perfect vitals during the procedure AND slept the day away peacefully after it was all said and done. The only evidence of the day is a shaved belly, 3 little stitches and a missed grooming appointment! Her usual Friday spa treatment was postponed until next week but she certainly isn't objecting to that!

I guess my confidence is restored. I'm so proud of my anesthetic safety, pain control protocol and staff training. I love the fact we can monitor EVERYTHING and keep the little ones warm while they are asleep. I know the results of lab tests and examinations and can tweak my protocol as a result. I KNOW that my clients "babies" are safe, sound and comfortable and that the day of spay or neuter is just a bump in the road. However I know that it may be a day full of worry, stress and fear. I was able to hold my girl before, during and after the surgery. I checked on her constantly and had lots of people helping me out. I never doubted she was OK. So I realize that we need to educate our clients about the procedure itself and the finer points of anesthetic safety but it wouldn't hurt to spend a little more time telling them about how much lovin' they get too! We cushion their heads, cover their tootsies and tell them over and over that it's going to be OK. We open up cans of yummy, stinky canned food and take them to potty. We pick out the perfect blanket, bed or towel for each one as they are waking up. I guess it's some kind of female coping mechanism for dealing with stress! Fuzzy, warm blankets and comfort food make everything better!

So Darcy has almost forgotten about that scary day and is being really good about not licking her sutures. She peed on my lap during the drive home because of all those wonderful hydrating fluids! She is 36 hours out and back to tormenting the cat. She ate all her dinner tonight and was chasing bugs in the yard (all time favorite game).

After an overall good experience I can say that I've really stepped up my game on brushing her teeth - lets put off that first dental cleaning for oh, 10 or 11 years!

6 Months Old!

Well Darcy is 6 months old and finally had a big girl haircut. I decided that she was almost unrecognizable as a puppy - looking more like a red miniature sheep! Halie her groomer has taken great pains to carefully tease, trim and scissor her into quite a beauty. It is a pretty stressful situation because no matter what great marks I may get as an understanding boss - my staff seems to think I'll blow my top if Darcy's haircut was botched! Now I know that I really like her to look pretty but... seriously!

I've seen clients get MAD (I mean mad!) about their dog's eyelashes being trimmed. I've seen soccer Moms, sweet Grannys and well mannered gentlemen show their "not-so-nice" side when Fluffy's topknot didn't measure up.

I know I'll be just fine if Darcy's haircuts have highs and lows - just make sure her nail polish and bows match! The funniest part of this whole story is that Darcy's current playmate and best friend is a hairless Chinese Crested puppy named Andy (you can see his nose in the picture). They seem to accept each other - one furry and one bald - and will wrestle for hours. Darcy has ninja like reflexes and can grab the one patch of hair on Andy's head and hold on like a bull rider! Until Andy is adopted they will continue to be the oddest couple I've ever seen!

Why do puppies chase feet...

... and why would I shoot several minutes of video of her chasing my feet? I'm sure all of you out there understand - I'm addicted to taking pictures of my dog. Darcy is naturally a calm, well mannered little girl, loves to get into adorable poses and so I guess my instinct is to snap a (few) pictures! Nothing wrong with that right? I feel so accepted, I know everyone reading this probably has several (hundred) pictures of their dogs on their camera... right? OK so it's not that bad but I do have to balance it out - one of the kids, one of Darcy - and so on.

Lately she is a bit more wild when outside running in the tall grass. It seems to be some sort of energy source. She almost turns into a different dog when her ears are blowing in the wind and the sun warms her red ringlets. How amazing to experience your first Spring and honestly not have a care in the world. Darcy has found everything about the change of seasons to her liking and is right at home with the top off the Jeep. She sees birds, hears the frogs and has experimented by chewing on some pretty icky stuff in the yard. She seems to fear nothing and I'm already thinking about all the fun the summer will bring. I decided tonight to buy some sort of contraption that will allow her to ride along on my bike.

So I've posted the video of her running around chasing my feet. It will be so fun when she is an old lady to look back at this moment in time and remember all that fuzzy hair. When she looks up at the camera the expression is priceless. I've caught evidence that she DOES potty outside and also some evidence that when I call her name she doesn't always come running. She and my 4 year old son seems to be in the same stage of development. In my defense she usually comes when I call but the 4 year old still needs some work.

Darcy and JJ

Hey wait, Darcy is supposed to be MY best friend. I am so torn - as a vet I'm so proud that Darcy is a happy well-adjusted puppy that LOVES everybody but as THE owner I kinda wish she liked me the best! I'm the one putting in the hours here - OK, I'll admit she's being raised by the village but still, she's MY dog. I know - get over it. I'm trying. It would probably drive me nuts if she followed me everywhere, cried when I left the room, wouldn't let anyone else hold her, etc. I'd be embarrassed that my puppy was so dysfunctional and would make up a crazy syndrome about unbalanced hormones or something.

Today, Darcy spent a sunny afternoon playing outside with all the Hard Luck Hounds in our rescue program. I know she has developed such trust in other dogs because of the special bond she has with our lab, JJ. He is 10 and pretty slow but let me tell you she doesn't care. He is her BFF and will sit for hours while she growls, jumps, chews and pulls on and over every part of his body. He glows with love and reminds me of a grandpa watching over his grandkids. He is so patient and they are forging such a sweet, tender relationship that I can honestly say I'm not jealous. Seriously, do you think I'd admit to being jealous of a dog?

I've posted two pictures of them posing together and one of Darcy sleeping in my friends baby carrier. It took her 30 seconds to realize it was warm from the baby and she made herself at home. Luckily my friend is a vet and didn't care one bit!

Puppyhood is passing me by...

As a mother I find myself either oblivious to the fact that my kids are growing up or acutely and painfully aware that they are becoming little people right before my eyes. Sometimes you look at them and think, "Wow, when did that happen?". Other times you slow down and really take a moment in because it might be the last! EVERY time that Owen falls asleep in my arms I worry that he will soon be too big and it will never happen again.

Darcy is growing like a weed and so I am forced to stop and realize that all too soon I am going to have a real dog - not this clumsy and fuzzy little pup. I don't know if I should be sad the puppy is going away or excited the dog is coming? Will it really be any different?

I'm like so many of my clients in one respect - we all LOVE puppy fur. It's just so amazingly soft, fluffy and adorable that we secretly hope they will stay like that forever. I have had to break the bad news time and time again - their hair just doesn't stay like that! Bummer! So I'm rebelling by refusing to cut any of her hair off.

Darcy has mastered jumping off my bed, jumping up and down off the couch and dumping all of the toys out of her basket. I'm still pondering how to teach her how to put them back. She usually walks from my car to the clinic every morning which some people may fail to see the significance of. However I'm sure some of you know that some puppies do very little actual walking! She can sit for a treat and has really been working on developing a real bark. I'm glad that she has a cute little warble and usually only pulls it out when engaged in full on cat wrestling.

Today in itself was quite a milestone. Our rescue group, Hard Luck Hounds, had a dog returned to our program yesterday. "Alice" is an adult female standard poodle and didn't understand why she wasn't with her family anymore. They had their reasons for returning her but she was confused and scared. My parents have agreed to foster Alice for a while so this afternoon my Mom, Alice, Darcy and myself all took a nice long walk. It was actually Darcy's first real walk and she took right to the leash. She likes to walk herself by holding the leash in her mouth, a phenomenon usually displayed by Golden Retrievers. She was happy and excited because dry, blowing leaves are her favorite toy! Darcy did a great job of showing Alice the ropes and would have made the dog whisperer proud.

So I'll embrace these fleeting displays of puppyhood but also note and treasure these accomplishments. I know that I want my kids to be well adjusted and confident so I must have set these goals for Darcy as well. I am never at a loss to tell Harper and Owen how wonderful I think they are (Mom's prerogative) so we continue to lavish Darcy with verbal accolades and praise. I really think she has earned it - don't you?

Reunited!

OK -- I'm the freaky lady who doesn't like to leave her dog. I make a living assuring people how I am more than capable and our facility is adequately prepared for caring for pets! Sure - they would rather be at home, I understand that but geez why is it so hard to leave them? I am now crystal clear on why people give me that tragic look of longing when we walk down the hall and separate them from their pet. I get it now - it's hard to have fun on vacation when your baby is in a cage! (Is this really me typing this?)

I learned from my mom (Darcy's MiMi) that Darcy was quick to learn how to escape the pen I had fashioned. Amazingly enough I am still surprised when she does anything naughty! We may have taken a few steps backward in the potty training department because she pretty much ran loose in my Mom's house all day! She got to be top dog and go fun places but... it was difficult to drop her into that little pen and walk away! At least I was leaving her in my Mom's kitchen which was familiar to both of us. Let me picture dropping her off at a kennel... NO THANKS! What a conflict of interest! Why is it OK for my clients to trust me/us with their pets but I'm unable or unwilling to leave my own dog? This is one of those situations I'm placed in with my job - the two sides of my brain just don't agree! The science and fact vs. the emotions. 10 years later and it doesn't get any easier.

Don't get me wrong. We have so much fun with dogs while they are boarding. 99% of them do really well, get into a great routine and have a terrific time playing with other dogs. It is fun to see them experience things and interact with each other. They are really cherished and loved during their stay. But... at the end of the day they aren't in our arms. They aren't in bed with us and we aren't making sure that everything is just so. I've spent EVERY minute of the last month with this little puppy and it's a hard transition to expect someone else to me the mommy.

So what I'm saying is I get it. I had the humbling experience of doing a house call euthanasia tonight. When I walked away from their home carrying the dog they had loved for 12 years it really opened me up to thinking about this. That pet was gone but it still took incredible trust for them to let me take her away. I don't want to pretend that it isn't a big deal. It is a big deal but it's still part of my life. For me to do my job there is pain. Sometimes it's just a tiny twinge when you have to leave your dog for the day or night. Sometimes it's a great big in your face pain.

Hopefully we won't have to leave Darcy for a while. In San Diego and Coronado there were dogs EVERYWHERE! The stores, restaurants and parks were full of reminders that Darcy was stuck back here in the cold! I'll post a picture of the fancy new collar we bought her and her first official jewelry! (I can't really believe how much thought I have put into that collar and name tag.) I bought her a pink leopard snuggly fleece at the street fair in Palm Springs. There were incredible handmade dog clothes and custom harnesses. We bought a fun book about going to the vet in a very cool store www.warmheartcoldnose.com. Fun dog toys and a sticker for my car ("wag more, bark less") in a San Diego pet boutique. I'm on my way to being a savvy traveler who brings the poodle along for the fun. I know she's ready but we still have to convince Dad!

Prep for separation

We are leaving town Wednesday! Darcy will be vacationing at Mimi and Papa's house while we are gone. Sunday I had lots of cleaning to do in preparation for our Super Bowl party so we had dry run #1. Darcy and the kids spent the day with Mimi and Papa while I spent a good hour vacuuming up dog hair. The official report was: no accidents, very well behaved but was MIA for a short time. After a brief panic and search of the basement she turned up unscathed.

I'm going to take her kennel although she really hasn't spent any time in it. It has a new tray and custom fitting "cinnamon" colored fleece bed - just hasn't been used... I plan on fashioning a puppy playpen with the baby gate but don't know how that will go over - turning the kitchen into doggy daycare. I'm a bit concerned about the fact that Darcy really hasn't ever been away from ME and that she likes to sleep on my bed. You can't really leave detailed instructions for a puppy sitter about how they should tolerate romping, chewing and tug-of-war at 5AM right after her first morning potty break. At least my parents are early risers!

I know she will be fine but we will sure miss her. I am however getting really excited about visiting a certain little doggy boutique that I discovered in San Diego last fall. I'm confident Harper and I will find that perfect something to help dull the pain.