Arri was very drugged when I picked him up. They had given him a pain injection and it
must have been strong. He didn’t seem to
notice that I was there. I had 8 week
old Oregon with me. He sat nice and calm
but then had to say hi to his buddy.
Arri didn’t snap or growl – yep, the drugs were strong.
His whole leg, from knee down was wrapped in bandages. Even his foot. Because the irradiated skin takes longer to
heal, the wound needs to be kept covered for 5 – 7 days. They even gave me a saline bag, cut at the
top and threaded with gauze to slip over the foot if the ground is wet. The bandage has to stay dry. I was warned that he would have to pee a lot over
the next 24 hours. They had him on IV
fluids right up to an hour before I arrived.
They did not have any results from the biopsy yet. They will call. He is on pain medication and we are to have
the bandage removed by them or my own vet.
I think I will skip that lovely drive this time and call Dr. Mike.
As we walked out to the car, I decided to toilet Arri one
more time. That was when I realized he
looked like a white water buffalo. He
was SOOOO bloated from the IV. Could it
be that they were trying to distract him from the pain in his leg so they made
him feel like a beached whale? It looks
like we will be stopping at all the rest stops on the way home.
The drive home was stressful. Arri was in distress of some unknown kind
most of the ride home. His breathing was
very labored. He was whining and wheezing
a lot. I hated hearing it but then when
he would relax a little, I would be nervous that he stopped breathing altogether. The wheezing is from intubation. His throat is raw. Thankfully, Oregon understood that now was
not the time to bark his head off while in his kennel in the car.
The rest of the evening was uneventful. As much as it must have pained him, I did
have to smile when he tried to bark when Tim came home from work. He was still so hoarse, his bark was pitiful.
As far as what happens next? Don’t have a clue. The bandage comes off on Monday. He has dissolvable sutures in so pending no infection;
we do not need to go back to the oncologist for a few months unless the biopsy
results show a need to.
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