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sick puppy update
just...ew: Talked to vet and there's...no news. No idea what the hell is going on, what he might have gotten into, etc., but a day's course of antibiotics made them feel confident enough to stick a needle in the giant neck lump. Unfortunately, it revealed very little goo, which was not what anyone expected. There are all kinds of tests being done, but no results as yet. Still entirely up in the air whether this is bacteria or fungus or even both.
I was told he had developed a new swelling along his jaw, but I was still unprepared for the egg-sized bulge dragging his lip down. I was told he was still having eye goo, but it hadn't gotten so far as to be a gooey red crust around each eye when I'd dropped him off yesterday. The neck mass is still huge, but now it's shaved, so he looks lopsided and frankendoggish and just...weird.
As soon as we got home, which is always and forever the part of the car ride where he finally believes I am not going to abandon or kill him, he got very happy-dancey and tail-waggy and seemed almost fine. Once inside, he ran upstairs to my "office," did a little dance, and then flopped down on his bed and made himself comfortable. He then began some grooming, which included using his forearms to rub/scratch his eyes and snout. He looked up at me and...
God. This was so gross.
Okay. He looked up, and he had thick, gooey, red blood oozing like paint out of both eyes and down his face, with strings of reddened pus stretched between top and bottom lids. He was busy trying to wipe this onto his legs and bed so he could...be a dog and lick it up. I ran into the bathroom and got a bunch of tissue and tried to wipe it off of him without puking, which was touch-and-go for a moment there. See, up close like that it...it kind of stank. Gah! It seemed to hurt him for me to touch the mess, which is no surprise. Once I got the worst of it off, it seemed best to let him handle it in his own fashion. Of course, now he has blood staining the pale, brindled sections of his legs, his bed, and still gooey around his eyes. But at least it's draining, I guess.
I was going to totally baby him and bring him up on the couch (if he'd do it - he won't usually) and later the bed...but I don't want bloody dog-eye pus all over everything. I don't even want it on the dog, after all. Of course, it has been recommended that I try to find a way to put a warm compress of some sort over the lumps in order to (at which point the vet snickered) "bring them to a head." I am preparing myself to use the word "pustacular" in earnest tomorrow, if not sooner.
My poor, disgusting baby. And, as mentioned, we still have no fucking clue what's wrong, what he might have gotten into, or why he's reacting like this. And now I'm half-worried that it is somehow contagious and I'll have goopey red pus dripping from my eyes any minute now.
I was told he had developed a new swelling along his jaw, but I was still unprepared for the egg-sized bulge dragging his lip down. I was told he was still having eye goo, but it hadn't gotten so far as to be a gooey red crust around each eye when I'd dropped him off yesterday. The neck mass is still huge, but now it's shaved, so he looks lopsided and frankendoggish and just...weird.
As soon as we got home, which is always and forever the part of the car ride where he finally believes I am not going to abandon or kill him, he got very happy-dancey and tail-waggy and seemed almost fine. Once inside, he ran upstairs to my "office," did a little dance, and then flopped down on his bed and made himself comfortable. He then began some grooming, which included using his forearms to rub/scratch his eyes and snout. He looked up at me and...
God. This was so gross.
Okay. He looked up, and he had thick, gooey, red blood oozing like paint out of both eyes and down his face, with strings of reddened pus stretched between top and bottom lids. He was busy trying to wipe this onto his legs and bed so he could...be a dog and lick it up. I ran into the bathroom and got a bunch of tissue and tried to wipe it off of him without puking, which was touch-and-go for a moment there. See, up close like that it...it kind of stank. Gah! It seemed to hurt him for me to touch the mess, which is no surprise. Once I got the worst of it off, it seemed best to let him handle it in his own fashion. Of course, now he has blood staining the pale, brindled sections of his legs, his bed, and still gooey around his eyes. But at least it's draining, I guess.
I was going to totally baby him and bring him up on the couch (if he'd do it - he won't usually) and later the bed...but I don't want bloody dog-eye pus all over everything. I don't even want it on the dog, after all. Of course, it has been recommended that I try to find a way to put a warm compress of some sort over the lumps in order to (at which point the vet snickered) "bring them to a head." I am preparing myself to use the word "pustacular" in earnest tomorrow, if not sooner.
My poor, disgusting baby. And, as mentioned, we still have no fucking clue what's wrong, what he might have gotten into, or why he's reacting like this. And now I'm half-worried that it is somehow contagious and I'll have goopey red pus dripping from my eyes any minute now.
I have some experience with this sort of grossness
One --
get an antibacterial handwash. Use it before and after touching le poochie.
Two --
Warm wet cloth gently over the oozing areas and then a firm swipe down (Folling the lids). Maturating or suppurating are nifty terms for a pus-filled abcesses. *g*
Three --
Wipe off dirty bits on legs, and contaminated bedding. Throw old sheets over it, maybe, or towels -- it might be easier.
Four --
Stinky? Vic's Vaporub or mentholated ointment or something under the nose. Tiger balm, even. Cuts smell to zero.
B
Re: I have some experience with this sort of grossness
Re: I have some experience with this sort of grossness
Sister works with animals. We get the wounded and the sick.
So maybe helpful.
Wish my proofreading was better. The ideas, faster than my fingers!
grr.
Still. I don't mean to sound like a know-it-all. My life's just offered me some weird (and sometimes gross) experiences.
B
Re: I have some experience with this sort of grossness
Re: I have some experience with this sort of grossness
I know I get sorta pedantic, so I worry.
Thank-you for the kind thought.
B
Re: I have some experience with this sort of grossness
The bed has a cover that zips off, but I think that for tonight I'll just do as you recommend and throw some towels over it or something.
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Thank you so much for your concern.
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Once when my dog seemed really sick I had to take her in right away, and my usual vet wasn't there and it was so awful!
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He was very happy to get home, though.
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And by the way, I accidentally hit the send button before I'd signed the email so I didn't mean for the end to be so abrupt. Sorry.