Monday, July 7, 2014

Dog Days In Crescent City

Unable to convince ourselves to leave the comfortable surroundings at Village Camp Inn RV Park in Crescent City, it was beginning to look like we'd spend all of June here -- and that's okay! We're retired!

I ordered a new stroller for Lexie and Ozzie as we whiled away the beautiful summer days. The old pink stroller was looking a bit ragged but it still functioned well. We took it to the city's animal shelter along with a few other dog items in hopes someone else could use them. The new one is exactly the same except for color. It folds to fit in the car.


Lexie on the left, Ozzie on the right. The stroller is their favorite ride.

After the recent loss of Ozzie's tooth and the subsequent vet visit and double doggie dental cleaning, I'm committed to starting a regular tooth brushing regimen for the dogs. Armed with all the necessary supplies, including an infant toothbrush, I began by familiarizing Lexie and Ozzie with the feel of my fingers in and around their mouths. First step was to rub my fingertips lightly around their mouths -- then their lips and finally along their gums. Brushing their teeth can't begin until two weeks after the dental because of the extractions. By that time, I should have mastered the art of getting my fingers and maybe a tiny toothbrush into those little mouths.

Ozzie looking on while Lexie gets her teeth brushed.

Dog tooth brushing success came easily in the two weeks while Lexie and Ozzie's gums healed. Always sitting in the same spot and using the same set-up, they became eager for "tooth brushing time" because they got a cooked carrot treat at the completion of every step -- each getting 6-8 tiny cooked carrot treats at a sitting. Turned out, teaching them to like having their teeth brushed wasn't difficult at all. We had it mastered by the time the gums were healed and now we brush every night after dinner. At long last I can add this to my list of dog accomplishments along with grooming, nail clipping, eye drop administration and the dreaded anal gland expression.


The picture of success!
Ready for treats and getting her teeth brushed!
And so we began feeling pretty smug about all the good dog health habits. But alas! it was not to be. A week or so after his dental cleaning, Ozzie began having exceptionally loud, long burps accompanied by lip licking and frequent swallowing.  I went directly to PetMD armed with the list of symptoms and came away convinced Ozzie had a digestive obstruction and surely was deathly ill. Seriously, Ozzie's symptoms caused enough concern that we made a return visit to Dr Wood's office.  After a thorough examination, a long discussion of Ozzie's overall health history and all the symptoms, Dr Wood suggested we try Ozzie on a low dose of Pepcid AC as he might be suffering from acid reflux, or GERD.  As of this writing, Dr. Wood's thoughts seem to be "right on target" as the burping has reduced as has the lip smacking and constant swallowing.

Lexie on the left; Ozzie on the right; carrots on the mouths.

But like everything else, little dog health issues seemed to come in threes for us.  Less than a week after Ozzie's visit, on a Sunday morning, we woke up to find Lexie unsteady on her feet.  She ate well, looked fine, and did her morning business but seemed to be having trouble walking.  I made an emergency call to Dr. Wood, who by now, probably thought we were dog hypochondriacs but I didn't care.  I was afraid Lexie had suffered a stroke.  After hearing her symptoms, Dr. Wood suggested we watch her for the rest of the day (Sunday) and call him back if she seemed to get worse.  His words were comforting, especially when he said Lexie wouldn't be alert or be able to focus if she'd had a stroke or seizure.  She didn't drool, lose focus or behave differently... she just didn't seem steady on her feet and she moved slowly. We waited, watched and worried.

By Monday morning, Lexie showed great signs of improvement. I called Dr. Wood's office and told him what we thought; that she had injured herself going up/down her foam steps or jumping into her bed, which is a few inches below the mattress on our bed.  By Tuesday, Lexie was nearly back to normal.  We held her carefully for several more days and I massaged her little body several times a day. We may never know what happened to our little girl, but we finally seem to be over it.

Near the end of June we called the Eugene, Oregon area for campground reservations so we could have the electronics updated in Endie (the coach). It's something we've had as a tentative plan since February. Our appointment with the electronics people was scheduled for Tuesday, July 1st. Well, that just wasn't happening as every campground was full for the long Independence Day holiday. Fortunately Village Camper Inn could keep us until after the holiday. 

Relieved, we stayed on another week.  Seems we might never leave.  

1 comment:

  1. I sure do wish our pups could tell us what is wrong with them. We do a lot of guessing. Our girls have dental cleaning scheduled for August and I'm really worried about it. They are older but I think both of them are really healthy.

    ReplyDelete