Dog Drama

Well, yesterday was definitely a harrowing experience!!!!! I had to take Brownie into the clinic in the morning for a scheduled spay. She was in heat the last 2 weeks and I definitely didn’t want to go through that again. I read online that there are a few associated risks with getting your dog fixed during or soon after a heat since their blood vessels are more open and prone to excessive bleeding.  However, when I talked to the vet at the clinic, he told me that it was not an issue . Plus the place was an actual spay and neuter clinic so I figured they had tons of experience anyways. I dropped her off in the  morning and they called me early to go and pick her up. Needless to say, she was pretty drugged up when I got there. She had to be carried and she could barely keep her eyes open. I was just glad to get her home though, and put her in my bedroom on her favorite blanket.  She seemed comfortable and I thought she would just go to sleep, so I came into my office at the opposite end of the house and sat down to work on the computer. A few minutes later, I realized Brownie had come in and was laying at my feet. I reached down to pet her when I realized she was bleeding from her incision site and when I knelt down, there was a pretty big puddle of blood on the carpet. Poor Brownie just looked up at me pathetically with those sleepy eyes like, “Mom, I don’t feel so good….”

So of course, by this point I’m freaking out! I called the clinic back and told them she was bleeding an alarming amount! The girl on the phone told me to bring her back in immediately. I was glad to have gotten a hold of them since they were scheduled to close in 15 minutes. I wrapped Brownie up in a blanket and raced up the street to the vet’s office which was luckily only 2 minutes away. A few people were in the  lobby picking up their dogs after their surgeries, so it must have been surprising for them when I came rushing in with Brownie in my arms, almost hysterical. She was still bleeding and half of the towel had already been spotted with dark red pools of blood. They took Brownie into the back while I waited impatiently in the lobby. After a few torturous minutes, a vet tech came out and without even saying anything to me, calls the emergency animal hospital and tells them about the situation! Keep in mind, I still had no idea what was going on and was close to tears. Finally, she ends the call and tells me the vet that performed the spay wasn’t even there! He left to get a root canal!!!!! Another vet tech asks me accusingly if I had left the dog alone and suggests that Brownie jumped up on the bed and might have done some internal tearing!!!! Brownie was way too drugged up when I brought her home. There was no way she could have done any jumping! I wanted to slap the stupid bitch!!! Why did they even tell me to come in when the vet wasn’t even there!??? The phone rang again, and the same woman that had just made me feel as af I were to blame, yells out to the other girl not to answer it. All the other clients had left and I noticed they were shutting off lights in the back and gathering up things. I guess I had interrupted the end of their work day!!!!! One of the girls hands me directions to the emergency vet office and tells me they are expecting me!! All they did was wrap gauze around her little belly, but at least someone carried her to the car for me! I was shocked with their careless attitude towards me and my dog!

A few minutes later, I got to the emergency vet safely and they took Brownie in immediately. I waited just a little while before the vet came out to tell me what was going on. Apparently, Brownie was freezing cold and her gums were almost white!!! Her body temperature was only at 94 when a normal dog usually maintains a body temp between 101 and 102!!!!! Basically, she was suffering from hypothermia…..maybe a side effect of too much anesthesia, is what they told me. They also performed an untrasound that showed a few pools of blood in her abdomen which meant that she was hemmorhagging underneath the crappy suture job they did. Her blood cell count was still normal though so they put her in a heating chamber and put a few staples into her belly to reinforce the stitches. They advised me to leave her there for the night for observation and periodic blood cell checks. If it dropped too low, they would have to reopen her up to see what was going on. Really at this point, I had no choice. Brownie is one of my kids. The vet also told me after reading the spay and neuter clinic report that they had given her a basic, bottom-line pain injection that wasn’t even a steroidal non-inflammatory reliever, so they gave her something a little stronger for the pain. I was appalled to say the least. That’s the last time I visit that spay and neuter clinic. Cheap assholes.

So finally, they got her stablized and I was able to leave for the night. All I could do was hope that her blood count would maintain normalcy so I wouldn’t have to put her through another surgery. They told me they would call me with updates throughout the evening.

I got home and tried to sleep, but everytime the phone rang my heart would start racing. Luckily, no calls from the vet, and when I called them this morning around 6 am, they said she had been eating and was looking a lot better. She started maintaining her body temperature on her own and her blood cell count had remained the same throughout the night. THANK GOODNESS! I picked her up around 9 AM, and her tail is wagging again and you can tell she is just happy to be home. I have to go back to the vet in 2 weeks to get her belly staples removed and hopefully there will be no more complications. The vet said that it could have possibly been due to the fact that she was just in heat, or it could have been a crappy spay job but I’m sure he doesn’t want to point any fingers since I bet the spay and neuter clinic sends him a lot of business. Overall though, I was pretty happy with the service the emergency vet provided. Everyone there told me how sweet and adorable Brownie was, which doesnt surprise me at all. She is an amazing dog, and I don’t know what I would have done if things had been worse yesterday. The receptionist even knocked off a few charges from my bill when I picked up Brownie this morning. She told me that she understood how upset I must be since I only expected to have to go through a routine surgery and ended up having to spend about 4 times as much! Totally appreciated!!!

 

 

Finally in other dog news, I  adopted out Brownie’s last pup just a few days ago! The vet that had been seeing her for her regular vaccinations surprised me and called to adopt her after her past appointment! I don’t think I could have found her a better home! At least I know that she will always he healthy!!!! I dropped her off the other morning at a house right around the corner. The vet has a few other small dogs, mostly chihuahuas, a couple of horses, and acres for the animals to roam! I am so happy! It’s just kinda weird knowing it’s all over now. Those puppies were basically my life for the past 4+ months. I loved them all, but I am so excited that they will all have great lives. Plus, I can pretty much see any of them whenever I want.

But seriously…..NO MORE DOGS!!!!! In fact, NO MORE PET DRAMA AT ALL PLEASE!!!!!!