Really Tough Day - Part 2

If you missed part one, check out the first part of the story. We ended that story with me in a diarrhea-filled exam room, a sick puppy, and a wild-haired baby in his jammies.

I cried several times, thanked everyone, and tried to get myself together while I waited for Lucy to be examined. I spent the next hour or so locked in a small exam room full of diarrhea. Thankfully this is not my first poop rodeo. Wesley was a champ and didn't even seem to notice the smell. I filled out paperwork, nursed Wesley, spoke with a technician, and eventually a doctor - yeah, I nursed in an exam room full of diarrhea... Everyone was so nice and made me feel sane - not like the crazy person I felt like. At some some point I made the decision that no matter what, I wasn't leaving town. Wesley and I were supposed to leave the following morning to go to Louisiana to meet up with Jarrod and visit some friends. I was sad, but knew that just wasn't going to happen.

The doctor came in and examined Lucy. The doctor was very thorough, asking lots of questions - was she around any new dogs? Did she have new food? Did she know the person watching her? Did she get into any chemicals?  She was a rockstar and around 7:45pm she was taken back to have tests run. By 8:30pm the doctor came in to update me. The important tests came back and were negative but Lucy was severely dehydrated. The doctor predicted that they could rehydrate her and her bloodwork would go back to normal. He wanted to keep her in the doggy ICU for 2 days while she received plasma, antibiotics, and fluids. He gave me the estimate of work. We're taking serious cash to keep our first baby in the doggy ICU. The doctor explained everything to me with patience and compassion.

I signed away my life, carried my little man to the car, and left Lucy in the capable hands of Dr. Smith and the team at I-20 Animal Medical Center. I cried the whole way home. I updated Jarrod and he was fantastic - telling me I did the right thing and was so sad he wasn't there with us. It was a tough night. We didn't have food in the house and I ended up having a slice of toast with butter and a glass of wine for dinner...at 10pm. It was sad to be home alone without Jarrod and Lucy. I wished that my sister or husband could have been with me to help with Wesley so someone could really focus on Lucy. I felt very torn.

That night I checked on Lucy and spoke with Dr. Smith again. He patiently told me Lucy was okay and explained what they were doing with her. He didn't talk down to me but did explain things with great detail. I was still very worried about her. Dr. Smith ran a few more tests including heart worm and an x-ray - nothing we got back explained why she was so sick. But thankfully, the day was over. The next day would be brighter and also bring me one day closer to Jarrod coming home!

The next morning I spoke with a technician who said Lucy was doing much better. She was eating, drinking and keeping things down. She was getting fluids and her test results were normal again. The doctor would call me later. I finally began to calm down. While we still didn't know what was wrong, we knew what it wasn't and she was getting better. Dr. Smith called early that afternoon and apologized for not calling sooner. He told me Lucy was doing great and that he thought she could come home that evening. He told me I could come around 6pm - she'd be done with her round of fluids by then. I was thrilled.

At 6pm I arrived to get Lucy. The ladies who were so gracious yesterday were thrilled to see Wesley and I. They asked how Lucy was and said that they were just wondering how I was doing. They'd asked about Lucy but hadn't heard if she was doing well. They were so kind. The doctor spoke with me again with patience and compassion, completely explaining Lucy's care and the purpose for each of the medications he was sending home. He took his time with us and told Wesley and I about his one year old daughter. He politely corrected the technician that referred to Wesley as "she". (To her credit, he was in the bjorn facing in - all she could see was the back of his crazy-headed hair!) I couldn't believe how attentive and compassionate everyone was.

After explaining Lucy's 4 prescriptions, getting some cans of wet food, and helping me to the car, we were off! I had all the kids at home in time for dinner - perfection!

I navigated giving Lucy her new medicines, watched her very closely, and let her sleep in bed with me that night. I still wasn't completely peace-filled because Jarrod wasn't home, but I was feeling much better. Through the whole process, I kept thinking that things weren't fun, but could have been so much worse. The people were so nice, Wesley was so good, Jarrod was with someone who had great experience at this specific animal care system, etc. Thankfully, I didn't have anything pressing that I needed to do this weekend and was able to devote all my attention on Lucy and Wesley...and laundry!

I'll write more tomorrow about the financial implications of this difficult day. Naturally veterinary services are quite pricy, but living on a budget means that wasn't added stress.

Do you have any pets? Are they family like our animals? Do you talk for them like we do?...wait...nevermind...