Last night while finishing up dinner I was formulating a blog for today based on the conversations we had at dinner. It was an interesting dinner. But before the sun could rise on today the mood had changed from one of complete humor to one of wondering if my sweet dog Penny would be okay.
As Jon and I sat on the couch late last night we let the two bigger dogs run rampant. As usual Penny nestled down to cuddle. Unfortunately she picked the edge of the sofa. The bigger dogs kept running wild and Jon went to stop their antics when before we even realized what was happening Penny was flying off the sofa, projected by Jon's leg moving to get up and then she was slammed into the coffee table. A solid wood coffee table weighing approximately 45lbs vs Penny weighing barely 6lbs it was NO match.
At first we thought it wasn't anything. She is popping into the coffee table on a daily basis. She loves to jump, but doesn't give forethought to whether there is something in her line of...well...pop. Then as the seconds turned to minutes we realized there was real trouble. After coaxing her to breathe and open her eyes it seemed as though she was going into a fit of seizures.
It was the death of Prince Aden all over again (well, minus the thud on the coffee table). We just couldn't believe we were holding another limp red min pin and feeling more and more helpless with each moment. It hasn't even been 3 months since Aden died in our arms. To lose Penny...it would devastate me. It would break my heart to pieces and my family would feel like it had a hole in it.
There has to be a limit on dead pets for any one family per year. We hadn't even made it 3 months and it seemed like we were staring straight into the eyes of the animal reaper. Again. I was losing grip on reality with every second that she laid there limp.
Each twitch of a seizure brought pictures of Aden and we weren't ready to go there again. We decided to get her to the vet. I called our vet and immediately had to explain that it wasn't Aden, but a new dog. A different min pin. The receptionist seemed confused for a split second but rebounded nicely and calmly advised me to wrap her tightly and get her to them as soon as possible.
She was lucid. She responded to her name but she kept making this low gurgling sound. She couldn't stand (picture Bambi on the ice) and she had lost control of her bowels and bladder.
I cried the whole way there. The nurse met me at the door and they rushed her straight to the back. I trailed behind them, wringing my hands. The vet came in and checked her vitals, they weighed her and whisked her off to xray. I had her back in my arms within 10 minutes. Sitting there and waiting seemed almost as bad as being back at the house.
The vet came and took me to see the xrays. No visible hemmorage. No spinal injury. While he could see that she was having spasms, she was not seizing while she was in his presence. He told me that she would need to stay. He was going to have her put in a padded kennel. Funny, I had always believed I would be the first in our family to be put in a padded cage.
I clung to Penny half wanting to crawl in there with her and half relaxed at the idea that they would be able to take care of her. Since she has no motor function right now outside of being alert they have to monitor her carefully. He thinks that she has a severe concusion and it will be at least 24 hours before we see any marked improvement.
The nurse says that I can call and check on her. I asked if I can come back and check on her as well. I don't think she meant to look aggrivated by that question but she kind of did. I went and sat in the waiting room because Jon was bringing the hefty sum of cash that it was gonna take to keep the "baby" of the family on the road to recovery.
So I am back at home now. Sitting in my bed and wishing that I had my pal here to cuddle with me. My eyes are swollen and hurting from crying. I hate waiting. I just wish that I could hold her. Wish that I could be the one to make her better. It's like a mother with her child only this child has two extra legs, growls when you feed others before her and thinks that licking your make-up off is a great way to pass the time.
There will be no "Penny's Thought of the Day" until she is back on her feet again and by my side to lend her doggy take on the world.
Thanks for all the well wishes.
~JP
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