What a week...

This past week was the shortest, longest week of the year for me so far.  Last weekend we traveled to Washington state to judge a two day BBQ.  We had a great time catching up with friends and got home at dark on Sunday night.  Monday morning Tramp 1 headed out of town for business.  I was home with our dear Chucky and we had such a good time together - until Wednesday evening...

I was out throwing the ball for Chucky just before 5:00 – we were waiting for Tramp 1 to get home from his trip.  Chucky decided to quit and started trying to eat things off the ground – and there is nothing good to eat here!.  So I finally got him to quit and come to the kennel – I could tell something was wrong – thought he had weeds in his mouth.  So gave him a couple of kibbles in his water bowl to get him dunking to clean off.  It didn’t work and he was still mindlessly grazing for anything he could find.  I put him in the shop and gave him another treat and decided to call the vet.  They said to try a piece of bread.  When I got over to the shop to give it to him, he was licking the floor so much that the whole place smelled like wet cement.  I gave him the bread and left him to eat it.  When I went back over, he had thrown up and was still licking.  I called the vet’s office back and she could not reach the doctors, so I had to get him to the emergency clinic - 30 miles away.  I called Tramp 1, who was still miles away and said I would meet him with Chucky.  Chucky’s crate was in my Suzuki, top down and not enough gas to get anywhere without stopping.  So I had to move the Ranger and load the crate into it.  In my haste, I did not set the emergency brake and left the truck in 2^nd gear.  I jumped out to open the back and the truck started to roll.  I ran for the door but it has those damn flip handles with nothing to grab.  There was nothing I could do to stop it short of throwing myself in front of it.  So it rolled into the fence – steel pole and barbed wire….  Yep, gouged up the bumper bad and put a hole in it, too.  Lucky it didn’t pop the tire…  Anyway, I got the crate moved and Chucky loaded and headed to meet Tramp 1.  I hadn’t even made it to the highway yet when, while taking off from a stop sign, Chucky’s crate rolled over with him in it.  I pulled over, stopped, got out and opened the back.  I climbed in an tried to right it but I couldn’t with Chucky in it.  He was all scrunched down and looking scared but I had to keep going.  By then I started to cry – I was driving and crying and coughing and sputtering.  That ten miles to meet Tramp 1 seemed like forever and when I saw him, I really started to cry.  Honestly, it was like Lucille Ball gone bad – no Ethel to help me!!  I hiccuped my way through what happened to the truck and to Chucky.  Paul got the crate righted and poor Chucky had thrown up in the back of the truck – but he did seem a bit better.  But we decided they should still go to the emergency vet anyway.  So I drove the his vehicle home and they went on to the emergency vet.  This was just too much excitement for this old girl!  (I will never play ball with Chucky when Tramp 1 is gone again!  This is the second time I have had to race him in – last time it was his shoulder and Tramp 1 was gone then, too.  But the first time it was his ear – Tramp 1 got that trip.)

Chucky is okay - $500 later, after x-rays, being scoped from tongue to tummy and an IV for re hydrating.  He had to be on special food for a day and contained.  He is doing fine now.  When the crate flipped and he threw up more debris, that must have gotten the problem out!  It was such an awful and exhausting event.  We will have to replace the entire bumper on the truck – that will probably cost $1000.00, we figure.  But I sure don’t want to be looking at that bumper and be reminded of this forever!!!

 

As I sit here writing, Chucky is snoozing away in his big crate in the family room.  I can hardly bear to let him out of my sight!!!