6 September 2013 (Friday) - Poorly Pup

Fudge didn’t get any better overnight. I decided to let him be, and I tried to sleep. At 5am I couldn’t leave him any more so I went to see him. I couldn’t find him. Eventually I found him – he’d made a nest under a table and was looking very sorry for himself.

Leaving him with ‘er indoors ^TM took my car to the garage to be with them when they opened at 8am. In March when I had the service done they advised I should have the brakes checked in September. So today they checked the brakes; or to be precise they checked what was left of them.

They had a gap in their schedule and suggested they did the fix-it there and then. They even offered me a lift home. So I left the car with them and came home.

My dog looked ill when I came home, so I took him to the vets to be with them when they opened at 9am. Perhaps I’m just getting old - the vet looked so young. But to his credit he was wonderful with Furry Face ^TM and gave him a once over. The vet found what I had found; that Fudge’s tummy was rock hard. It was possible that he has pancreatitis, but more likely that he’s eaten something that he shouldn’t have. The vet then explained the next steps in great detail, but I can’t remember all that he said. The bottom line was that Fudge was to spend the day in dog hospital where he would have blood tests, ultrasounds and X rays together with antibiotics and intravenous fluids.

I don’t think anyone saw me blubbing as I walked out of the vets. This is *exactly* why I never wanted a dog.

I then effectively wasted much of the rest of the day. With no dog by my side I didn’t want to go for a walk; and I had to wait for the garage to call to let me know when my car would be ready. They had told me it would be two hours; it was three. But to their credit they sent someone to give me a lift so I could collect the car. Over two hundred and fifty pounds later I was driving away.

I needed some campden tablets, and as I was in the area I popped round to the home brew shop. Whilst passing I had a look for that geocache I failed to find on Wednesday. Today I found it in less than a minute. Some days I can see the things; other days I can’t.

With heavy rain having set in I went back to the computer. On-line dinosaur lectures, Candy Crush Saga, and Facebook for the afternoon.

I saw something on Facebook which really boiled my piss. Kent Police posted something on their official page about catching dangerous drivers. In the comments on this posting various people gave them examples of other places where dangerous driving is rife. I myself cited the traffic along the A28 every morning at about 7am. Kent police responded with a wonderful line: “Police staff manage this page so we cannot take reports of crime or record specific local issue”.

So police openly admit they cannot do the job they are paid to do….

My phone rang - it was the vets. I could collect "Furry Face ^TM" at 6.15pm. The vet said loads more, but I couldn't take it in.

I was better when I actually went to the vet's. Fudge has had various blood tests that have ruled out problems with kidneys, liver, pancreas or any other organ system. The X-rays and ultrasounds showed nothing bunging him up. The vet was honest - he could find nothing amiss, He suspected that somehow the silly pup has poisoned himself. He often eats grass when he's out - it's possible he's taken in some insecticide or weed killer or something.

The pup's tummy is now nowhere near as hard as it was earlier, and his ears aren't as low down as they were. He's home for the night, laying on the sofa looking as pissed as a rat. I'm told this is the after-effects of teh pain killers and anaesthetics. He has a shaved tummy where the ultrasounds was done. He has some special tea for later, and an appointment back with the vet at 9am tomorrow...

So far this has cost six hundred quid.. In years gone by I would have blithely told others in the same position that I would have had the animal put down. Now I’m just thinking that it would be nice if the insurance covers the cost, but if it does, that would just be an added bonus to getting my dog back.