Rescue Journal

sherlock is here...

Carol · Feb 14, 2011

it is a non displaced compression fracture of the last vertebrae of the lumbar spine. the vet was very nice...and i am assuming totally overwhelmed because of the noisy chaos her arrival bestirred. i call it the visitor frenzy..everyone goes totally insane until the visitor departs and then they go back to sleep again. but while they were awake they decided to show her exactly how many incontinents are here...bastards. there was not a single pee or poop in the house and as soon as the vet came in everyone had to go right away.
apparently barking like a maniac stimulates the bowel and the bladder....constipation and urinary retention is not a problem around here.

anyway...the clean ups are done..the vet is gone..and everyone is back in their beds.
a quick note on this dogs previous owner...she could not take on his care because she was elderly and was unable to carry and lift him. apparently she was heartbroken at his loss but was happy to sign him over to give him a chance at a good life with someone else. shit happens in life and she did the best she could for him. but what is really important to me is knowing that this pup has in his short lifetime been loved.

and sherlock is lovely...i see a tiny bit of some collie type in him somewhere too....a sweet and gentle boy who does need a muzzle while moving but just because of pain. he has already had his dinner and a picky eater he is not. he has his bed in the laundry area and a nice big pile of toys. he has a very big tongue which he puts to good use and he is a very good cuddler too.

i am going to have a quick, hot bath..the mp building is already put to bed. and then i will lay with him for a little while and maybe read him some of that book...inside a dog...and see if he agrees with what it says.

welcome sherlock...hope floats that you will heal well and soon.

Comments

lynne

i do not recall saying he would be better off dead. and if i have offended anyone with my comments i apologize. maybe i spoke too harshly with my comments without knowing anything about the owner. i could be all wrong she most likely did love him and who am i to say that she should not have had him. it is just too bad that she could not care for him and thank god caraol as usual comes to the rescue. but welcome sherlock you landed in a very good place. can not wait to meet you next weekend.

info

just a reminder for everyone to speak kindly here. lynne et al. would not/do not think that the dog would be better of dead.
To Everyone: Carol has since addressed this issue in another post. Unless your comments speak of good wishes for Sherlock or praise for the vet clinic who chose to find another option for him, please refrain from commenting further.

audrey s.

Very well said Wille. I don't think I would have said it so politely. I find it rather disgusting to read comments like Lynnes. I guess she feels the puppy would be better off dead in a cull than raised by an elderly person. I am absolutely floored!

Carol

it is the same as in portland will...too many animals, not enough homes....good post, thank you.
sherlock is exactly the kind of dog being culled on the reserves. he is not dead...he is bit broken but he should heal ok.

Wille

I don't exactly know what it's like in your area. But here in Portland there are lots of stray animals (in, and not in shelters). They need someone (anyone) to give them love and care - because for many of them, their time is up. Maybe an elderly person and a puppy isn't the best of situations (as it turned out here), but that person gave the dog care and love. The dogger probably wouldn't have his life without her effort. Unfortunately, there are too many animals to give every one of them a perfectly planned life no matter how much we wish it were so. I'm sure Sherlock thanks her for everything she did for him in the time she was able to. As I get older, I plan to continue to do whatever I can, as much as I can, to help ease the suffering of the stray animals - for as long as I can. I hope I'm not judged as harshly for doing so as that elderly lady has been here. . .

Carol Ann

welcome Sherlock, you will be loved a lot again. I too agree with Lynne and I only got a puppy 2 1/2 years ago cause I know Dionne will take care of her if anything happens to me. Carol is definitely right too--Precious has given me many headaches. lol

Carol

it is not that i forgive or even agree...it is just that i work with senior people too. and let me tell you something about growing old...your wants, your needs do not change all of that much. age does not magically give us all of the answers to everything. we will still make mistakes, we will still think that the way we did things before is the way we should do them now. and we will still try to ignore the possible unknown ending of our own life's journey.

no one wants to spend their last years of life staring blankly at our end of life wall.

silly and funny and innocent puppies and young dogs give some people a renewed zest in life...for me personally? they give me a headache.

and if i don't know why an elder adopted a puppy...was it for the elders needs or the puppy's needs?...i don't have all of the answers and in's and out's to sherlocks true life story.

all i know is he was hit by a car and his elderly owner could not lift and carry him around while he heals....and that the vet said, his owner really loved him.

i am glad he was loved...for him... and for me..it makes my job in caring for him easier because he will be an innocent well loved puppy...i don't have to undo a whole bunch of emotional pain...i just have to let his body heal and find him a good home.

Marisa

I agree with Lynne.

Shady

Theoretically, any pet can outlive it's owner. Before I adopted my cats (in my early 20s) I put a plan into place for what happens "if". They came from a rescue and there's no way they'll ever be without a home again. To me, it's part of responsible pet ownership.

Carol, you amaze me. Despite what you see, you still can forgive what others would view as 'bad' pet ownership.

Best of luck to Sherlock

Carol

interesting question! i think it is because....we don't always feel elderly. theoretically this dog could outlive me! anyway i see it all the time...seniors getting young dogs and puppies. and in this particular case...we don't know how or why she got the dog..the vet said he is the typical for that area reservation special... with all of the recent dog culling on reserves in the paper lately...maybe she did him the best favor of his life by taking him in.

as to his immediate care plan....he is to rest. he can be carried outside by two people using a blanket to pee and poop and then he comes back in and is put back to bed. food and water bowls are to be within easy reach of his bed so he doesn't try to get up to eat or drink.

Jenn

so what is the care plan for the weekend?

lynne

i am sorry but if you are elderly why would you get a freaking puppy. the mind boggles me sometimes.