Sunday, January 08, 2006

Dog sitting perils

I've been dog-sitting for years, so I am familiar with signs of distress, etc. I know how to look for ear infections, or when to go to the vet. I am not, however, first aid certified, and I should be. I went out Friday night to get a key from a client. I usually keep clients' keys, but they just moved into a new house, so I needed to see it and get the tour, etc. When I came back to this house, there were green bones lying all over the floor (Freshies, the fake Greenies. A bright green bone supposedly good for the teeth). Evidently I hadn't adequately latched the treat cupboard. The cat can open the door, and he and the dog are in cahoots. Anyway, luckily only the one bag was opened, but it looks as if the dog ingested ten bones. Hmmm...this might be a problem. I called emergency and the man told me the dog might have indigestion and diarrhea. Friday night no problems. Saturday afternoon we went to Dog Beach in Del Mar, and no problem other than bright green poop. Well, that all changed in the middle of the night. Multiple vomiting up green chunks and bile. Multiple needing to go outside because of diarrhea. Not pretty. And pretty scary. I called in sick to watch him (I make almost $30 an hour on Sundays, so that sucks a bit, but the dog's health is waaaaaay more important). Do I go to emergency or wait until the owners get home? I looked on the internet, and it just made matters worse, because I discovered that unchewed pieces of these bones may cause intestinal blockage. I asked a neighbor what she thought, and we determined his gums are moist and he seems hydrated, he's still wagging his tail, he just seems (to use a word my dad used to use) punk. I'm hoping it's just indigestion. I try so hard to be careful, but things happen. Another client's dog was poisoned recently (not sure if it was accidental or what happened--it wasn't on my watch), but luckily she has training from the Humane Society and knew the signs. The dog is fine now. But first aid is definitely on my list of To Do Right Now.

5 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wow, maybe the cat was trying to get rid of the dog?!Okay sorry, bad joke... Hope all's well now. I wish that I had someone as nice and conscientious as you to watch over Pixie whenever I can't take her on vacation!

I just read this news story on Yahoo- did you hear about this dog food recall?
http://news.yahoo.com/s/space/20060106/sc_space/dogdeathssurpass100despitetoxicpetfoodrecall;_ylt=AqWB_YhyPfZrIHkH62nM2HEPLBIF;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA--

9:43 AM  
Blogger The Calico Cat said...

O.K. at first I giggled when you mentioned the bright green poop - after I sobered up... I hope the dog is o.k. - keep us posted. (I never thought it was funny that the dog might not be o.k. - but the bright green poop was just so visual... o.k. in a teen boy visual, but visual none the less.)

10:56 AM  
Blogger my house is cuter than yours said...

doggie first aid would also look really good on your resume' for pet sitting.

1:13 PM  
Blogger Billie said...

I hope everything turns out okay. It's sounds scary. I just completed my first aid/cpr training for kids, which is required for my job. I think it would be a good thing for animals (I never knew). I hope doggie is okay.

8:01 PM  
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6:12 AM  

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