I’ve been meaning to chronicle our move and time to Texas, and it just hasn’t happened yet. We’ve been busy unpacking and organizing our house, and pictures of the finished product are to come at a later date (when we finally get our second shipment of household goods…and the lack of those items is another story itself…).
But to the scary event in Texas. Mark was outside mowing the lawn, and I was inside half watching TV. The dogs had been begging to go outside, but I wouldn’t let them out because Mark was out there. Dogs and lawnmower equals bad combination.
While watching TV, I heard a commotion in the kitchen. At first I thought the dogs were play fighting, but it didn’t sound like their normal fighting. I turned around to yell at them to cut it out, and Scout was attempting to walk toward me with Darcy escorting her at her side. I thought Scout was having a seizure…her front legs were bent, and she couldn’t move them normally, and her back legs were stiff, as well but in a straighter position. She kept trying to make her way to me. I pat her head quickly and opened the door for Mark to come up because I thought it was a seizure.
By the time Mark got up the deck stairs, Scout was leaning against the couch and drool was all over her mouth. Mark got Scout outside, and I kenneled Darcy. Mark later said that Scout’s face just said, please dad, help me. I was hysterical, and Mark was trying to calm me down because of the baby. I had grabbed my laptop and was trying to figure out where the nearest open vet was. Every number I called was closed, offering an emergency number, but I don’t know the area well enough yet so I had no idea where any of the emergency hospitals where when they gave the addresses.
Mark was able to get pry Scout’s mouth open and she started to breathe. Within minutes, she started acting like herself again. We got her water…Mark cupped it and let her drink it because she didn’t seem as if she could bend her head toward the bowl. A few minutes passed, and she was wagging her tail. She got up off Mark’s lap and wanted to go out in the yard to play ball. Of course, Mark ushered her back inside and I continued trying to find an emergency hospital.
We found one just a few miles away, and by the time we got there, she was acting completely like herself. She checked out perfect. The vets don’t think that it was a seizure, because apparently in seizures dogs get hazy and have no idea what is going on, and Scout was aware of who Mark and I were the entire time. So maybe she got bit by something, maybe she and Darcy were playing and she got hit weird, maybe she was trying to eat something off the floor that she shouldn’t have been and it got stuck in her throat and she freaked out. We have no idea, but it was easily one of the scariest dog parent moments I have ever had. If I am that scared when something happens to her, I can’t imagine how I’ll be when this baby is born.
Good news: she’s completely acting like herself. Mark and I checked on her every time we woke up last night. No problems. So, we are stuck waiting to see if something else happens to her, and if another episode happens, we’ll get bloodwork done. (The vets didn’t think she needed it last night after a very thorough evaluation.) In the meantime, we just keep an eye on her.
Other good news: we found some awesome vets (and they give a military discount and are prior military themselves). We paid only $37 and were assured that our Scoutster is probably going to be OK.
