This past week has been a little strange. My daughter’s Corgi, Sadie, had surgery for bladder stones on March 2nd. I have been caring for her since my daughter lives on the 3rd floor of an apartment.
Sadie’s discharge instructions from the vet were to keep her in a kennel, unless under direct supervision, for 2 weeks. She was sent home with an Elizabethan collar on because she had a growth removed off of her lower eyelid, as well.
When I picked her up from the vet after work on Friday, she looked pretty miserable. She had no control over her bladder and I could tell that she was uncomfortable. The Elizabethan collar they had on her was huge; there was no way she could eat or drink with it on, and getting comfortable was impossible.
I tried leaving her collar off at times, but all she wanted to do was rub her eye. I finally resolved to cut the collar down enough that she could drink water out of her bowl, and get around the house a little better. The large collar had been effectively working as blinders so she kept running into things.
I took her outside on a leash at least once an hour. In between walks it seemed like I was continually cleaning up puddles on the floor. Even if I had a kennel to put her in, I just could not have confined her in one. Besides making her sad, she would have been continually lying in her own urine.
Saturday’s weather was chilly and misty. Even if I would have been able to leave Sadie long enough for me to work outside, the weather was too miserable to consider it. If you know anything about Corgis, you know that their legs are only about 6 inches long. Despite the fact that the vet shaved her entire belly, she still managed to come in from her walks with her entire underside wet.
The vet had said to keep her sutures dry at all times. You can see where I’m headed. So, following every trip outside, I had to make Sadie roll over so I could dry off her belly, and then put a colloidal silver gel on her incision.
Sadie’s belly looked bruised and sore, and I could tell that she really did not like me touching it. I felt really bad for her, but it had to be done. I was praying for better weather on Sunday.
Sunday’s weather was sunnier but it was quite windy, and it took a long time for the grass to dry. I had been hoping to spend some time outside with Sadie but I felt that it was too windy for her eye, and still too wet for her belly.
To help with her pain I began giving her half of a turmeric capsule, twice a day. By evening, it became apparent that she still needed someone to look after her throughout the day so I decided to take Monday off of work.
I started letting her walk outside without a leash; it seemed to shorten the amount of time that she needed to take care of all her business. By the afternoon, her spirits were lifting and I knew that the turmeric was helping her feel better. Her appetite even returned.
Although Sadie was more lively, I was still finding puddles around the house despite the fact that I was walking her at least every two hours. It’s a good thing that most of my house is covered in tile. She could not get into the rooms with carpet, but I think she has hit every rug in the house.
I made the difficult decision to take off of work on Tuesday, as well. Over the course of 4 days off of work, I accomplished very little besides looking after Sadie. When I went back to work on Wednesday, I discovered that I was in a kind of a funk. I found it very hard to get motivated to do anything.
Throughout the rest of my work week, I gradually started picking up speed and was able to get some things done. It was like I had shifted into neutral and was just spinning my wheels while I was at home. Having to catch up on things at work finally got me into gear.
I am looking forward to a more productive weekend, although Saturday is predicted to be rainy. I will need to keep my motivation up inside the house.
May your weekend be all you hope it to be!
Romans 12:7 If your gift is serving others, serve them well. If you are a teacher, teach well.
