FRANKENDOGGIE

NEVER EVER EVER take your small dog to the dog park in west Tulsa. Unfortunately, we put a damper on Cami's barkday when a large dog decided my seven pound LEASHED dog was a threat (no, Minnie hadn't done anything to initiate the behavior). In a flash my little girl was mauled. The dog's owner was shocked - her dog had never bitten anything before. Just goes to show you never know about other dogs. Anyway, Casey told me to take Minnie to Animal Emergency Clinic on 41st Street between Memorial and Sheridan because they are open 365 days a week 24/7. What a great place. They are very kind and do a great job. It took a while to stabilize Minnie for surgery - they have to get them hydrated and on pain meds. Of course, I have cried buckets of tears. Poor Steve. He cut short a hunting trip to come home and take care of me. He's really just an old softie when it comes to the dogs (and me!). I've had this dog since she was a puppy and have nursed her through several other medical calamities, but this was by far the scariest. She has some fractured ribs, several puncture wounds to her tiny chest and a punctured lung. She is one really sick puppy! The clinic performed her surgery and a little after midnight they let me know she had made it through the surgery. They had me pick her up the next day and transfer her to my vet. They are keeping her on a morphine drip because of the pain from the wounds and her ribs. They plan on keeping her tonight and maybe tomorrow - we'll see how it goes. They let Steve and I come and visit her yesterday and that made us feel better. Yesterday afternoon the vet told us that she thought Minnie was officially "out of the woods" but faces quite a recovery time. I went to see her this morning and I got to kiss her sweet little face and scratch her ears and talk baby talk to her. I love the staff at Strathe Veterinary in Owasso. They are very kind and are taking excellent care of my poor little girl. Minnie's an oldie so recovery is always harder. Don't look at the following photos if you are squeamish about stitches, etc.

Here's a "before" photo of the dogs before disaster struck. Notice the leashes and how close Minnie was to me. Hey, my legs from the knee down look good in these jeans! You don't want to see the rest!

Here's my pitiful pooch. They keep her covered with a towel because they had to shave off all her beautiful fur that was just groomed on Friday. Grrr! They also fill socks with rice or something and heat them to help keep her warm.That's liquid dog food on the fur by her mouth. They feed her with a syringe. I told them she was going to get used to that and expect me to feed her that way when she comes home. She's quite the princess.

Her eyes are nice and clear,so that's a good sign. She was happy to see me. You can see some of her stitches in this photo.Here she is - Frankendoggie - trying to get up to see me. That's also a good sign. It's very difficult for her to move because of the fractured ribs. It's very painful. You can see one line of stitches on her tummy and there are two rows of stitches on the other side. They begin close to the top of her back. You can see that little black line on her back. She is very thin naturally but she is a little swollen now. I love that her skin is freckly, but she is all buff colored when she's furry.Here she is, sitting pretty for me. I was glad to see her try to do this. The dark patch around her stitches is quite a bit of bruising. It goes all the way down her tummy. Poor Minnie!

She was getting a little tired, so time for her to lay back down and let me cover her up with her towel and sock warmers. Her fuzzy face, legs and tail make her look like a lion. Can you see her little i.v.? She's covering it with her other paw . I am so grateful for good vets and good pain medication.

Time to cover back up and get some rest. See you soon, little Frankendoggie.

Here's my sweet Opie. He's lost without his littermate. When he's not looking sad like this, he's looking for her everywhere in the house. He has a hard time settling down. I think he slept better last night because Preston came over and played with him. Usually Opie just ignores "Big Yellow" but he actually ran with him in the back yard, so I know he was glad for doggie companionship.