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Taking my coffee out to the back deck, I was enjoying listening to the birds singing and the quiet of the neighbourhood. Then I hear commotion going on behind me…

Benson Has An Emergency

Benson has a penchant for stealing and playing with (chewing and destroying…) the little plastic starting containers that plants come home in for planting. I just had a delivery of flowers a couple days ago so have been wandering around the yard planting. And Benson steals whatever he can get his paws on, tossing them up into the air and then shredding them with great enthusiasm!

When I turned around, I was startled to see Benson shaking his head, pawing at his muzzle with FOAM flying out of his mouth! Looking around frantically, I noticed that it was not one of the little pots he had grabbed…but somehow he found one of the plastic hanging basket hooks I had taken off…

There were bits of the hard plastic of the hook on the deck…meanwhile Benson is continuing to shake his head and paw at his face…My first thought is that he swallowed a large piece of hard plastic and he is choking…And there is nothing in my first aid kit to help with that…

Sticking my whole hand down Benson’s throat I could not find any trace of plastic in there. I tried the Heimlich maneuver. I was shaking as I grabbed my phone and dialed the vet…It rang, and they did not even say HI before putting me on hold…Meanwhile, I was busy leashing up the dogs thinking we were off to the vet and grateful that I have pet insurance.

Getting impatient, I hung up my phone and called the vet back again after no one picked up when I was on hold the first time. They put me right back on HOLD again before I could even say anything! I was having an EMERGENCY over here! It was really disappointing that they wouldn’t even give me the chance to explain that I was on my way in potentially. I understand they are busy and can put you on hold if you are simply making an appointment but as of that moment for me I needed someone on the line immediately…

Then I realized that Benson had stopped shaking and foaming and wasn’t pawing at his face anymore either…in fact, he was looking at me with his head tilted like “What’s wrong mom? What’s the fuss about? What’s going on I thought we were going for a walk???”…

Okay…so hanging up with the vet and checking him out again, he was totally fine…totally normal…Okay…Off to the dog park I guess and watching his bowel movements for a few days it is…

Walk Time – Stalker Cat

By now the dogs were super excited, since it was WAY too hot yesterday to do much with them. The sidewalk wrestle was on as soon as we got down to street level!!

Almost to Queen Street, and the dogs noticed a HUGE black and white cat coming down an alley towards us. I’m talking Whiskers size huge!

Being really familiar with cats (since we have three plus Hamish), the dogs got really excited and started hopping and barking!

This cat was having none of it…he fluffed himself right up and came towards us in full stalker mode, all hunched up…I’m thinking “This cat is going to rip their faces off…he’s in full attack mode here!” and tried pulling the dogs away.

We got away from the alley and the cat was freaking FOLLOWING us! It was stalking us! And I know cats can be MEAN when they are fired up like that! My dogs are big but gentle and I didn’t want anyone to get hurt…or lose an eye…

Two ladies were walking down the sidewalk towards us and noticed the cat following us. One of them went and tried to scare it away but this cat was not going ANYWHERE! Finally, using their treats as a lure I was able to get away from that cat!

Almost At the Beach

Happily on our way down the home stretch to the beach…and what does Grace do? Finds something in the gutter of course! She had her prize and was doing her best to keep it from me…so I knew she had SOMETHING in there! Reaching into her mouth, I pulled out none other than a rib bone…ugh.

And of course, the dogs HAD to drag me across the street to see the chickens by the beach! The chickens and bunnies are a must visit on that route! They were right up at the fence today and Benson just about turned inside out he was so excited!

Dog Park Time!

Home stretch to the dog park now…wrestling on the board walk was at a minimum today which is nice. After we were at the dog park for a few minutes our buddies started showing up! My girl Kiera came running and JUMPED right up into my arms as it has been a few days since she’s seen me! Then she started resource guarding me…

By the time we were done at the dog park, the dogs were EXHAUSTED after some heavy play and walked very, very slow but dutiful on the way home. There were no shenanigans, they just didn’t have it in them!

And Rest

With the dogs being so tired, they hit the floor HARD when we got back into the house! I took another look in Benny’s mouth, and realized that the hard plastic of the hook cut his gums around two of his teeth and realized that this was likely the reason behind his earlier distress. But I will still be keeping a close eye on him over the next couple of days just in case.

Everything is now quiet. It has started to rain which my garden has been in desperate need of! Grace is curled up in her bed and Benson is lying at the front door watching the rain. I can hear kids out playing in the rain which brings back fond memories. Although the morning had it’s fair share of misadventure, it is turning into a good day indeed.

The post Today’s Tales of Misadventure first appeared on Help! I've Got Pets.

Benson Gets Neutered (Sorry Big Guy)

Benson went to the vet to get neutered on Wednesday. It was amazing how quiet it was in the house without him. Grace took the opportunity to sleep all day. I actually got work done without having to open the door about a million times for my big boy! I would love knowing when exactly that doggy door I ordered is going to be installed…more on that later.

This post may contain affiliate links at no additional cost to you.  By making your purchases through the links on this website HIGP may make a small percentage at no direct cost to you. HIGP only promotes products we use & truly believe in. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. Please refer to my Privacy and Disclosures for further information. HIGP thanks you for your support!

My phone rang about mid-afternoon. It was over. Done. My boy was coming home a little less of a man.

The vet who did the procedure gave me the update. Benson did well and would be ready to come home sooner rather than later! She described him as up and about and walking around, eating treats already. The other words she used in that next breath were “high-strung” and “energetic”. Hooboy.

Benson And Sedatives – Not A Good Combination

Being that Benson is a pretty wild big guy, I asked for some sedatives to be sent home with him so that I could try to keep him calm. I know my boy, and it is crazy to see him jump in the air with all fours off the ground.

When I got to the vet, I called in for him to be escorted out of the building (we are not allowed in right now with Covid rules). I stood and waited for him. As I was waiting I saw a couple bundle a little baby Berner out of their car. Well of course I had to go say hi! She was so sweet little/big Elanor.

Picking Up Benson

Just as I was telling them about my rambunctious boy about to come out, the technician opened the door and called his name. She looked exasperated! I went over, and he pulled her right out the door and jumped right up to give me a big kiss right on the cheek! He was so happy to see me! Just having surgery for a neuter and umbilical hernia repair had not slowed him down one bit!

Elanor’s pet parents had a good laugh at that. The technician happily handed him over to me. He was NUTS! Running amok all over the sidewalk, not caring that he was dragging me around behind him like a ragdoll. After a couple minutes of this he FINALLY slowed down somewhat!

We were on our way home! Benson does NOT do well in a car. It can take me up to fifteen minutes just to get him in there and then he is miserable the whole time, panting, whining, pacing. I decided it was better to walk slowly the few blocks back home.

He was terribly confused, kept turning to look behind him and all around himself and had absolutely no idea what was going on. The drugs were definitely still in his system!

Back Home!

Finally we made it back home. Benson got all excited to see Grace and be back home but was completely disoriented and went to lie down. But Grace was all smiles that her family was back home as it really isn’t very often that she gets left at home all on her own.

That first night all was calm. And Benson slept most of the evening and through to the next morning, except when we was confused and had a bit of an “oops” on the kitchen floor…

Grace has recently undergone hernia repair surgery herself after apparently popping her inside stitches after her spay. I had a good idea what to expect with Benson and had plans to keep everyone inside and quiet for a few days.

Big Groggy Clumsy Boy

Sedatives were sent home as I asked for, and even with them Benson was starting to get a little crazy the day after his surgery! He was up and down and trying to jump on Grace and play even in his groggy and disoriented state.

Painting my one wall that goes up the stairs has been on my to do list for a very long time and I thought with the sedatives I would have some time to do it without crazy dogs all over the place. WRONG!

Caution – Wet Paint!

Benson stumbled up the stairs for some apparent reason as the paint was still very wet. And the sedatives led him to walk reaaaallly slowly up all the while rubbing the side of his face and body against the wall for support. His left side is more white than black! I can’t even give him a bath for almost two more weeks!

Once he got to the top of the stairs, which he was not supposed to be going up and down anyways, lying down he just barked at me! I have no idea what goes on in that big head of his.

Lifting slowly off the floor after apparently tiring of barking away at me for no good reason at all, he stumbled back down the stairs. That was it, I was taking him off the sedatives. With back legs giving out and sliding around and with the stairs in both the front and back that he needs to use to go to the bathroom I was scared of falling. And I did NOT want to end up back at the vet, as it is I’ve paid for their kid’s college tuition already the past couple of months…

My Wild Child Reappears

As soon as the sedatives started wearing off I knew it immediately! He was absolutely WILD. Jumping and hopping and wrestling with Grace, and I was terrified again that stitches were going to get popped! Then he started going in and out more times than I cared to count at that point, and was extremely active.

So today I decided that he was well enough to test a short walk through the neighbourhood to try to burn off some energy. And it was the WORST walk I have had ever with these two knuckleheads.

Then forgetting all of his training he was pulling me all over the place. So I resorted back to early puppy training days and would spin randomly and stop walking completely to stop the antics. This resulted in a very long short walk!

Wrestle Time!

Getting back home, I was exhausted from fighting with them. Benson wrestled Grace constantly as well on the walk as it seems to be that as soon as someone pays a little attention to them it is his cue to wrestle. And it’s always on the busy street! Lots of smiles and laughter while I held the leashes, giving up until they decided they were done.

Now Grace acted up! Since she is an attention hound and will stop at nothing to get someone to stop and pet her when she is so inclined. And she will spin her bottom around so fast and sit on your feet you almost don’t have a chance to realize it has even happened. Another favorite trick is slowing down to the point people behind us catch up and she forces them to stop or trip over her!

Finally getting them on the move again we hit the dreaded part where we have to walk past their favorite pet store. They fight to get in there every time we go by and today was no different. Managing finally to lure them away with the promise of a couple treats after several minutes scratching on the door and begging to go in.

We Made It…Finally!

Happiness and relief were the first two things I felt when we got to the front door. We were home! We made it! However, as soon as they got through that door though the wrestling began again. Then Benson was hopping at Whiskers, my giant Ragdoll cat. Since then, he has had a short nap but is currently sitting beside me while I am writing, whining if I am not petting him. It has taken me a very long time to write this post!

I am tired. I tried to nap earlier after our disastrous walk but the big bear demanded I let him in and out repeatedly making it impossible to actually fall asleep. That doggy door can’t come soon enough…I can only imagine what the next few days will end up bringing.

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The post Why It’s Been A Crazy Time With My Dogs first appeared on Help! I've Got Pets.