In Case of Dog

So the other day we all noticed that Tuffy, the smaller wider of the two dogs, was not acting like himself. Normally he is the one jumping everywhere and running around in excited little circles. He’s very good at causing a commotion and also very good at looking like the puppy he no longer is. It’s endearing (especially in light of his brother who is neurotic, self-obsessed and paranoid).

Usually, as I go about my day, I have two small furry shadows. They find bits of sunshine to bask in while I make lunch or clean the kitchen. They lay at my feet while I feed the baby. They keep watch on the steps while I make the bed and the baby sleeps. Tuffy is the one who cares less about Gideon, so he tends to wander off and find a toy or meander outside when the baby steals his attention. Instead of all of that, he’d been sluggish.

The past couple of days, he’d been camped out on the third step all day. He wasn’t eating much. He drank a little water now and then. He rarely went outside. It didn’t really register with me right away that something was wrong, but once we all talked about it, I started noticing just how little he was involved.

The vet thought he should come in, but since he wasn’t emitting any bodily fluids, they thought it would be okay to wait until Friday. Turns out they were wrong, but we had to get to the emitting bodily fluids part before we knew that.

Last night, as I was about to leave for supper, I found him lying on the third step with a puddle of pee next to him. The carpet is so nicely resistant to moisture that the pee was just standing on top of it like a big yellow flag with an arrow pointing toward the vet. If it could have found a way to make a dollar sign, I’m sure it would have. –

Turns out he was in a lot of pain and, being a dachshund, that pain is in his back. Go figure. He has a compacted disc and it’s genetic and in ‘merica that eventually means surgery. In Germany, Pogo had this awesome ultrasound treatment that made this problem go away. It was infinitely cheaper than surgery, non-invasive and powerful good.

Looks like Tuffy might just win that European vacation he’s been dreaming of after all.

Happy that his life no longer requires climbing stairs, but slightly confused about why he is getting scolded for attempting to run, play and jump (all are off limits for three weeks…as if I already did not have something that makes me carry him all the time)

Alligator dog thinks that he is getting the shaft and cannot figure out why he still must fend for himself with all these stairs.