Self-helping dog

One awesome thing about living where we do is if the little ginger, or the dog, or both (usually both) are driving us bananas, it takes less than 10 monites to throw one on a lead and the other in the buggy (lets assume it's the dog on the lead and the kid in the buggy) and get to the beach for them to burn of as much energy as possible so peace can reign once again.

On Saturday that plan went slightly pear shaped when I took them down but within minutes the dog had done something to himself which left him lame.  Thankfully I'd driven down so I could take them further up the beach than I would've gotten by walking, because it would've been an interesting thing trying to get him home.  There are people who actually recognise Al around town because one day the dog went lame, and he got him home by balancing him on top of the kid's buggy.  Heh.

Months ago (it was when we were first putting our Taita house on the market, so maybe 5 months ago? He's just coming up 10 months old), while Kep was still growing pretty fast and therefore pretty fragile with it, someone stood on his paw (admittedly while he was bouncing around them like a maniac desperate for a pat and to be allowed to lick them to death).  He reacted by wrenching his paw out from underfoot, as you would, but in teh process it wrenched him through leg and shoulder and seems to have left him with a permanent weakness.  We keep him exercised which seems to keep it strong adn the beach is great because the sand is softer for running/jumping/falling on his head, but every now and again he must get his footing wrong and it flares up.  Usually he's back to hobbling within a few hours to a day.

Sunday though, he still wasn't/couldn't put any weight on it and that continued through to yesterday morning.  So I caved and rang the vets.  We had had it all checked out really thoroughly previously - firstly by an orthopaedic vet and secondly with extensive xrays, but there was no damage evident at all.  But of course if you want drugs (anti-inflammatories) to get him over the hump, you need to see the vet.  Curses.  So I made an appointment for this afternoon (Tuesday arvo). 

Then yesterday afternoon, he suddenly got a bee up his butt.  No idea how to describe what dogs do, but you have a dog, you'll likely know what I mean.  If I can ever get a video of it, I'll post it.  Out of nowhere they suddenly tuck their back end right in and run around and around like they're possessed.  It's incredibly funny to watch.  Unless of course said dog has barely been able to move prior to that, and then it's concerning as to how expensive he's going to make the vet bill.

Weirdest thing though - after 10 minutes or so of bahaving like a demented fool, he did a couple of circuits of the house, then on the last one leapt up on the deck on one side of the house (it'd been raining so it was pretty slippery), lost his feet as soon as he hit it, slid up the deck, off the step onto the next level of the deck and then slid the rest of the way until he smacked into the (sold wood) fence, landing on his bad side.  It was one of those moments you wach through spread fingers.  Ug.  But then, he got up, shook himself off, and walked inside perfectly fine. 

I told him I could afford to buy hom more dog bickies now that I don't have to fork out for a whopping vet bill.  He wagged his tail.  Good dog.  He doesn't realise that this means he won't be getting drugs rolled up in luncheon sausage though.  Blissfully ignorant.

(I do feel slightly guilty though that this tends to indicate that it wasn't his usual injury playing up, but possibly something out of joint. Woops. A+ for animal parenting)