Like Stepping On A Lego - RTOTD #825

Day 825

Bailey is super pathetic right now. He's wearing a cone again. And he's also gotta wear a sock 24/7.

It started the day after ArtemisFallen & I took all 3 dogs to the park. They all wore themselves out from running or wandering. They had a blast.

The next day though, I got a text while I was at work, telling me that Bailey was limping. I was concerned but not worried. He hadn't been running that much at home since he hates the dog run & has recently had the tendency to go on adventures if I leave him outside off the run rope. So I assumed he had strained something at the park. I would check it out when I got home.

I got home and lo and behold, he was certainly limping but it didn't seem to be anything major. He was laying down when I walked in the door but got up as soon as he saw me. His first few steps, he was obviously favoring one leg but after about 4 or 5 steps, he seemed to be getting along just fine and the limp faded. My assumptions seemed to be confirmed when he didn't wince or whine about it and the limp went away quickly.

Over the next few days, the limp got progressively less pronounced until it was only when he was lying around for very long periods that it would show up during his first or 2nd step before fading again. I wasn't worried. He was getting better. It was just a reminder that until I get my yard fenced in and he can run around as much as he'd like, I need to get him to the park more often.

But then something changed.

About 5 days after the limp had shown up, it had minimized but not entirely gone away. And on the 6th day, it almost seemed to be just a slight bit worse again. He hadn't been running much because I was letting him heal before taking him back out the park, but he had certainly been up and about a good bit. But on the 7th day, it seemed to be even worse still. Now I was getting concerned again. This isn't the normal healing process. Something must be wrong. He looked like he was stepping on a lego with his right paw with every step he took. This was no good.

I checked the pads of his feet and didn't see anything wrong. I checked every inch of his legs, all the way up to the shoulders and still couldn't find a single spot that seemed to cause him the slightest amount of discomfort. He didn't wince or whine or cry once as I inspected him but I knew something was wrong.

By this point though, the roomies were both out of town and Bailey had gone to visit Grandma & Grandpa for a few days. 2 dogs are easier to deal with than 3 by myself and they liked his company. Plus, he's used to being around people during the day while I'm at work, so fuck it. They can play with him for a few days. We all need a vacation from our kids. Even if we're babysitting for others at the same time.

A few more days passed and finally my brother called me to tell me that they had found a lump on his one paw. Not even really on the paw but on the side of a paw pad, almost on the webbing of his feet. And it was a fairly nice sized lump too. About the size of a large green pea. They checked online and found that soaking the foot in cold water can often help it and prevent the dog from at least licking or trying to bite at it. It worked for the night. But by the next morning (Friday), the lump was bigger and more prounounced. I called the Vet. It's nice having a vet that's the mother of a close frind (Whiskey) and has known you for years socially. She could see him that afternoon.

I was at work and unable to go with him, but I got the phone calls keeping me updated. He had a large infection and it was not something that would go away on it's own with or without antibiotics. they needed to lance it off.

I won't get into the gory details, but they drained a lot of gunk out of it and it took them a few hours to get the bleeding to stop. Being that it was on the webbing of his feet, they didn't want to stitch the area and wanted it to naturally scab. He stayed at the vet for a few more hours while they waited, mostly groggy from anesthesia and painkillers and antibiotics. I knew I couldnt' bring him back home until he was better. He was going to be staying with Grandma & Grandpa until he was better. Mostly because I don't trust the other 2 to leave his damn foot alone.

As they were about the leave the Vet, his limp had already almost completely vanished. But he looked crazy pathetic.

I was given strict orders. No running. Don't let it get wet. Change the sock regularly. 4 pills of antibiotics per day. He can't be off-leash when he goes outside. And the cone has to stay on until it's healed so he doesn't go at the scab.

He's playing it up too. He's not allowed on the beds or couches at Grandma & Grandpa's house but he knows he can get away with it now because he's injured. He can sleep on a bed. He can get on the couch. He can get pretty much all the people food that he wants and all he has to do is wear some stupid sock and that cone? Done and fucking DONE.

 

He goes back to the Vet tomorrow for a follow-up to make sure he's healing right. I'll be there with him this time. I'm not missing 2 vet appointments.