Sunday, December 19, 2010

Brrrrrr!

As I sit here by my fire watching the NCHA futurities, thinking how hard it is going to be to get up in the morning at 6 AM to make it to the gym, I am thankful for my warm home.  I have all my critters in the den with me.  Normally they sleep outside, even on a cold night, but knowing it is going to get down to 18 degrees tonight, we decided to let them come in to enjoy the fire with us.  I get asked all the time if animals should be brought inside during the cold weather, and that really is a question which can only be answered after taking into consideration many variables. The truth is, before we domesticated dogs, they lived their life and thrived outside in much more extreme winters than here in South Georgia. Now having said that, I do have to say the wild dog and the typical domesticated dog are two very different dogs. First off, dogs in the wild did not live to be ten or twelve years old, their hair coat was adapted to extreme temperatures, and they certainly did not weigh four pounds. So when I am asked the question of whether or not a dog or a cat should be brought inside the home, these are things I talk to owners about before making that call. Assuming animals have some type of hole or covering to escape the winds such as a dog house, a crate or a barrel and this area is bedded down with a bedding such as wood chips, straw or hay and the animal is a healthy, young to middle aged dog in good body condition, they will be able to sustain the winter temperatures.  Many people like to put a heat lamp on the dog houses, which do increase the temperature substantially, but it can not be ignored the dangers in that. One major fact is that all dogs like to chew on inanimate objects and an electrical cord draped around their dog house makes it very enticing to do a little chewing and chewing on an electrical cord that has electricity flowing can result in electrocution. 

So, I say if in doubt as to whether or not your pets can handle the winter, just bring them inside.  If they are not house broken, close them up in a bathroom or laundry room and allow them to spend the night in the warmth.  Before turning them out in the mornings, feed them a good meal and make sure their water is not frozen.  They will be so grateful.

Sunday, December 12, 2010

Does someone feed the animals?

Really? Is this is question worthy of an answer? If I had a dollar for every time I heard someone ask me or one of my employees this question, I could probably add on a new state of the art surgery wing to Leesburg Animal Hospital. 

When someone asks if we feed the animals on the weekends, what I really want to say is "Did you fall on your head today?" "Did you for get to put on your brain when you put on yours shoes this morning?" Or, I consider trying and reasoning with them and explain that it would not make good sense to board and animal at a place that didn't feed the animals...they would be better off just fending for themselves on the streets or locked up in the back yard.  The truth is it somewhat angers me to have to answer this question, but I just smile and politely say "Oh yes, someone comes in twice a day." So, if anyone needs clarity on this question let me try and make sense of it...yes, we do come in twice a day on weekends and holidays to feed, water, walk, and clean the cages. 

Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Russell Report #2

We are so happy to say....Russell went home today!!! Hopefully he has learned his lesson...probably not. Boys will be boys.

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Spirit of Christmas Parade and Festival

We all had such a good time today at the Spirit of Christmas Parade throwing out candy and telling everyone "Fleas Navidad." It is great to be a part of a wonderful, small town in South Georgia.  We love Leesburg, Ga and are so happy to be this year's second place winner of the Christmas Parade.  Our theme was a big hit, however some needed a little help in understanding, but that's OK. 

The doggie fun zone went well.  Fifty eight dogs entered in the obstacle course.  Most had a great time chasing that "rabbit." While others were a little less enticed by it.  It was fun watching how all the dogs responded differently to the rabbit and the athletic abilities of all of them.  Animals never cease to amaze me. At a charge of ten dollars a piece, we raised a good bit of money for our Fifth Friday Foundation Animal Shelter.

The Pet Trick contest was won by one of our very own friends, Spotty. He did a whole routine of different tricks to wow the crowd and win a first place ribbon.

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Russell Report

Russell is hanging in there.  He seems to be about the same today.  After an x-ray of his chest, we have found that he is retaining some fluid on his lungs, so we have put him on a diuretic.  His appetite is not voracious, but he still nibbles,secretly.  He ate some cheese with a little bit of vigor.  His wounds continue to drain and he has a terrible odor, but it is getting better.  Our hopes are still high for him, but he is not out of the woods just yet. All we ask for is a little improvement each day.

Russell the Jack Russell who got in a Tussle!!

So I may not have had any emergencies for Thanksgiving Day, but Sunday was certainly a busy day for me. It seems I was back and forth to and from the clinic all day. One particular case I saw Sunday evening is worth mentioning. His name is Russell. Russell is a Jack Russell Terrier who was a stray and took up residence at his current home about a year ago. It seems he went outside on Thanksgiving night and did not return until Saturday night. When he returned home he had several puncture wounds on his back and was obviously beaten. On Sunday his spirits began to drop; he was not moving around much and did not want to eat and he had an obvious odor about him. His owners called the emergency number and I met them at the clinic. When he came in I found a dog obviously in pain with several open wounds in the skin on his dorsal back. He was shivering; had a subnormal body temperature and was in a serious amount of pain. He had an odor of infection about him and was obviously on the verge of becoming septicemic.  By judging the character of his wounds it looked as though he had been attacked by another animal.

I placed a catheter and started him on IV antibiotics, fluids and pain medicine and placed him on a heating pad in an attempt to get is body temperature up. Monday morning he was feeling about the same. His temperature was up one degree, so we sedated Russell, opened up his wounds and placed some drains. We flushed his wounds and trimmed out a considerable amount of necrotic flesh.  It was a rough day the rest of Monday for Russell. He laid on his side all day; he did not eat or drink. He would not even stand; as soon as we would help him sit up right he would immediately collapse and fall over on his side. He just laid in his pen all day long with this pitiful look on his face. Things were not looking so good for Russell.

This morning his temperature was up; he would stand for a little bit and drank a small amount of water. Later in the morning his family came to visit him. After seeing them his spirits seemed to brighten. His family brought him some of his favorite food...moist and meaty patties. We put part of a patty in his food bowl and he did not seem to be interested so we left it there. Later in the day I walked by his pen and noticed that half of it was gone, so I put a little more in there. He did not eat it immediately, but when I walked by his pen and checked him a little later, I noticed he had eaten some more. He did this two more times. I would put some of the moist and meaty packet in his food bowl; he would not eat it immediately, but when I walked by a little bit later I would notice it was gone. He was a sneaky little sneak that Russell! This evening we have seen the first glimmer of hope in his condition. Hopefully his improvement will continue. We are all rooting for him up here at he clinic. He is a special little guy with a special family who needs him at home and needs him home soon.