Mr. Thompson brought his 2-year-old Pomeranian Frankie in for an annual exam. I couldn’t help but stare at Frankie’s new hairdo.
Normally impeccably groomed and fluffed to perfection, he had the
oddest looking haircut. I think Mr. Thompson noticed my bewilderment.
“Doc, I know what you’re thinking. What happened to Frankie’s fur?
It’s actually a funny story,” joked Mr. Thompson. Good, because I love
funny stories.
“Recently we’ve been having some issues with rats. They’ve been
chewing our baseboards and biting some of the electrical cords. I was
worried about setting out traps with poison in them because I heard dogs
can sometimes accidentally ingest the bait.”
I nodded in agreement. The chemicals used in rat bait [rat poison] can definitely
cause a serious illness in pets. The most common poison used will cause
clotting problems leading to blood loss and eventually death. Owners
often notice bloody urine, bloody stool or hemorrhaging under the skin. A
visit to the veterinarian can usually counteract the poisoning with
supportive care and vitamin K. If caught in time pets can survive.
Mr. Thompson continued. “I decided to use the sticky traps since
there were no harmful chemicals involved. I made sure to place them in
areas that Frankie couldn’t get to and I used various household objects
to create a blockade around the traps. Well, to our surprise Frankie
somehow got to the sticky traps. When we arrived home one night, we
found him immobilized on the floor with 5 traps stuck to various parts
of his body. We laughed hysterically at first until we realized Frankie
couldn’t move at all. We proceeded with the arduous task of removing all
the traps and trimming his fur free of the sticky substance.”
“What went wrong?” I asked. “How did Frankie get to the secured traps?”
Mr. Thompson smiled then chuckled a bit. “We made a huge mistake Doc.
We used Frankie’s favorite dog treats as bait for the sticky traps. I
guess he couldn’t avoid the bacon flavored snacks and barreled through
the barriers. Who would’ve known?”
Friday, August 17, 2012
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Change of Heart
As I grew up, I was taught to fear Pit Bulls.
My mother was involved in Boxer rescue when I was about 6 years old and I used to tag along with her to the local shelters to pull dogs off death row. I remember the first Pit Bull puppy I ever fell in love with, he was a gorgeous caramel color with bright green eyes and a white belly. My mom was quick to tell me that he was a demon. She told me not to pet one ever again. Every time we went to the shelter I would walk through the kennels and I always had a soft spot for the pitties, maybe because they were forbidden.
I was told over and over again not to touch them and I remember my mom asking me if I was crazy quite a few times. As I got older I started finding strays and I would bring them home. Of course they were Pit Bulls, covered in scars and mangled from God knows what. I hid them in the barn and every time she found one I got the whole lecture on how they were evil killers. She used to say," You know they are dangerous because they have more strength than any other animal."
I was 22 years old, engaged and living on my own. I was in town visiting my mother when I found Pandora. I remember it like it was yesterday. She was sitting in the rain on the side of the road by an open field, surrounded by a not so nice neighborhood. It was foggy outside and I could see my breath in front of my face. Pandora was shivering and was sitting as still as she could, looking through me like she could see my soul. I slowed the car down and pulled to the side of the road. I looked at her and right away I said, “OH no, it is a Pit Bull!” My little sister was in the passenger seat and she said, "So what!?" I explained what my mother had told me and yes, the words came out of my mouth,” they are dangerous...”
My sister said, “She looks hurt, WE CAN NOT leave her.” I looked at the dog, rolled the window down, called to her and sure enough she came straight to the driver’s door and coward while wagging her tail. I gave in, picked her up, and put her in the car. I noticed she had just had puppies, so we attempted to find them. We were not successful. Pandora was covered in cigarette burns, her hair was singed like someone tried to burn her. and she had fighting wounds all over her body, not to mention she was skin and bones.
I cleaned her up and my mom was in shock at how sweet she was after the life she had lived. My mom had asked me what I planned on doing with her and I said well I am going to take her down to the shelter. I almost fell on the floor when she said, “NO, you can't do that!” She told me she would not have a chance in the condition she was in and they would just kill her. My mom had a change of heart.
-- By Sarah Kosinski Cope
My mother was involved in Boxer rescue when I was about 6 years old and I used to tag along with her to the local shelters to pull dogs off death row. I remember the first Pit Bull puppy I ever fell in love with, he was a gorgeous caramel color with bright green eyes and a white belly. My mom was quick to tell me that he was a demon. She told me not to pet one ever again. Every time we went to the shelter I would walk through the kennels and I always had a soft spot for the pitties, maybe because they were forbidden.
I was told over and over again not to touch them and I remember my mom asking me if I was crazy quite a few times. As I got older I started finding strays and I would bring them home. Of course they were Pit Bulls, covered in scars and mangled from God knows what. I hid them in the barn and every time she found one I got the whole lecture on how they were evil killers. She used to say," You know they are dangerous because they have more strength than any other animal."
I was 22 years old, engaged and living on my own. I was in town visiting my mother when I found Pandora. I remember it like it was yesterday. She was sitting in the rain on the side of the road by an open field, surrounded by a not so nice neighborhood. It was foggy outside and I could see my breath in front of my face. Pandora was shivering and was sitting as still as she could, looking through me like she could see my soul. I slowed the car down and pulled to the side of the road. I looked at her and right away I said, “OH no, it is a Pit Bull!” My little sister was in the passenger seat and she said, "So what!?" I explained what my mother had told me and yes, the words came out of my mouth,” they are dangerous...”
My sister said, “She looks hurt, WE CAN NOT leave her.” I looked at the dog, rolled the window down, called to her and sure enough she came straight to the driver’s door and coward while wagging her tail. I gave in, picked her up, and put her in the car. I noticed she had just had puppies, so we attempted to find them. We were not successful. Pandora was covered in cigarette burns, her hair was singed like someone tried to burn her. and she had fighting wounds all over her body, not to mention she was skin and bones.
I cleaned her up and my mom was in shock at how sweet she was after the life she had lived. My mom had asked me what I planned on doing with her and I said well I am going to take her down to the shelter. I almost fell on the floor when she said, “NO, you can't do that!” She told me she would not have a chance in the condition she was in and they would just kill her. My mom had a change of heart.
-- By Sarah Kosinski Cope
Friday, August 3, 2012
Fifi clamps Tuffy again
bring Kimo in the front and decide to take him and Jojo out in the early a.m.
retrieve Tuffy, tie Jojo to post and retrieve Fifi
here comes Harriet so walk with her
let Kimo go home and go up the street
Harriet goes home, Duane brings out Coco and walk with them
Jojo sees cat under Roy's car and goes nuts
then soon I see Fifi clamping on Tuffy's neck
try to pull Fifi off, let Jojo go and he goes after cat but stops short
Fifi finally lets go
poop all over Roy's driveway, Roy hoses it off
Duane holds Tuffy for a while,
but then they seem OK (though Tuffy gives Fifi a couple of glances)
walk back then take the three in back
they mostly wait by the door, but then they play some with Tuffy playing referee
after I eat my oatmeal, I hand-feed them some food
Amy walking,
so good time to take them home (to walk with Amy)
later Kimo runs down the steps because Malie is running down the street
it's Ann with Mochi and Malie's baby daughter Ae'o (eye-oh) in carriage
take out Jojo with them,
Jojo pees on Ann's leg, use Yokomoto hose
back home, Jojo reassumes position by front door
doze off / Jojo went home in the mean-time
Another dog day morning.
retrieve Tuffy, tie Jojo to post and retrieve Fifi
here comes Harriet so walk with her
let Kimo go home and go up the street
Harriet goes home, Duane brings out Coco and walk with them
Jojo sees cat under Roy's car and goes nuts
then soon I see Fifi clamping on Tuffy's neck
try to pull Fifi off, let Jojo go and he goes after cat but stops short
Fifi finally lets go
poop all over Roy's driveway, Roy hoses it off
Duane holds Tuffy for a while,
but then they seem OK (though Tuffy gives Fifi a couple of glances)
walk back then take the three in back
they mostly wait by the door, but then they play some with Tuffy playing referee
after I eat my oatmeal, I hand-feed them some food
Amy walking,
so good time to take them home (to walk with Amy)
later Kimo runs down the steps because Malie is running down the street
it's Ann with Mochi and Malie's baby daughter Ae'o (eye-oh) in carriage
take out Jojo with them,
Jojo pees on Ann's leg, use Yokomoto hose
back home, Jojo reassumes position by front door
doze off / Jojo went home in the mean-time
Another dog day morning.
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