Team Kennel Cough Kicks Tail
June 3, 2008
Despite her pensive expression, Trixie is actually happy to know that two of her three new dog family are coughing until they throw up. This confirms that Team Kennel Cough has succeeded, and she will be just fine. If she weren’t a dog who doesn’t speak English, I’d say she is reflecting on the fact that just two days after she came home, the shelter euthanized her entire litter.
Trixie got lucky, as did we—this is a smart, easy to train dog. We’ve had her just over a week and despite her illness, she is sometimes going outside, by herself, to use the facilities. She sits, we’re about halfway there on “lay down” and last night she put herself to bed. Seriously, she walked right into her crate and laid down. The night before, in an unbearably cute moment, she climbed into a laundry basket full of dirty clothes, made a nest, and proposed that she sleep there for the night. We compromised and put some laundry in her crate for her to snuggle with.
Thanks for all the good wishes. Maybe we should set up a paid hotline for other puppy rescuers. We could have Team Kennel Cough, Team We Caught the Parvo Early and Team Worms. Think we’d make any money?
UPDATE: Trixie returned to the vet today, where we were told that Yes, she looks great, Yes, it’s good that the other dogs are sick, but No, we cannot entirely rule out Distemper as of yet. We’re 80-90% sure that we’re okay, but until a few months (yes, MONTHS) go by, there will be a small, malingering doubt loitering about the back of our minds. But we pay that no mind I tell you! Trixie has gained weight, she’s 4 months old, not 2 months old, and she’s good as gold. So sayeth I. Just, you know, cross your little toe or something.
Name my team Team Ring Worm! We went on Saturday and the dog from last week had been adopted. But here were lots of cute dogs and I’m a sucker so we decided to get one. Liam picked on out. It had ticks, Sheldon responds to ticks like I do to leaches so there was no way that dog was going home with us. But there was this lab mix that was just adorable and Sheldon gave him a once over and he had no ticks at all….so we take Skarloey home. He is awesome. I am outside playing with him and notice a mark on his back foot. I roll him over and notice another on his belly. OMG - I have seen this - hell I avae had this - this puppy has ring worm. In hopes that we have not already given it to our children we quarinitne the poor puppy everyone gets showers and everything he has been near and everything we were wearing gets washed. We rush to the store to get an anti-fungle cream because pet ER says that really ring worm isn’t an emergency and even if we came in and coughed up the dough to have it confirmed they don’t have the stiff we need stocked. Yesterday our vet confirmed it and we started on new drops and shampoo. So far the rest of us don’t have it but we have a another dog, a cat and two kids - I’m sure it is just a matter of time…
*r
Man, the joy of shelter dogs. I was so upset to find that they’d destroyed Trixie’s entire litter over kennel cough. Last night, as sgt. gennimcmahon followed two puking dogs through the house with a bottle of lysol cleaner and paper towels, he said, “I think I see why they put the litter down…” I can imagine that hundreds of coughing, puking dogs wouldn’t help anyone, even if it is heartbreaking. This group was a great group of pups.
Skarloey is fortunate to have found you, good luck! Team Ring Worm will assemble forthwith and begin to send the vibes of goodness.
It seems a bit surreal that we’d all be rooting for …Trixie is actually happy to know that two of her three new dog family are coughing until they throw up. This confirms that Team Kennel Cough has succeeded,…. Thankfully, all your dogs should recover from kennel cough shortly.
There just might be some money in Team KC, Team WCtPE and Team Worm; we can do the vinyl window clings for members’ cars =).
I hope your local shelter can move to be a no-kill shelter in the near future. That’s heartbreaking to know all those lovely dogs were put down because of kennel cough =(.
lewlew, I am not overly familiar with how no-kill shelters work, but I know that ours, while having a stated goal of no kill, adds the qualifier of “healthy animals.” Unhealthy animals will not be part of that “no kill” equation, and frankly I can’t see that this would change, since this is not a wealthy County and there’s people who live without adequate sewer and water that have to be addressed long before the animal shelter can pursue a true no kill policy. The shelter now is over crowded and underfunded. The local Humane Society, which suffered a split within its own membership, ceded control of the shelter to the city recently, and hired a new director. It is her intent to go to the no-kill status (with regards to healthy animals) in the next two years, but at this point they are bailing water with a spoon.