Doctor Visit

We closed Guinness in the den overnight in case there was more vomiting, but we awoke to a clean dog and clean floor!

I called the vet first thing and got Guinny in to see the doctor. As we walked toward the building, Guinness was his exuberant self being so happy to come to the vet’s office. I told him, “Guinny, you need to look a little bit sick, because you are.” We entered the door with him straining on his lead to say hello to all the staff, pet owners, and sick dogs. People sit in awe (or is it fear?) of his exuberance. I quipped, “This is a very sick dog. Can you tell? He is almost nigh unto death.”

Once in the exam room, Dr. Simone entered and he eagerly jumped on her as usual. She told him he could not jump, because she is pregnant. She examined him, had me take him into the next room to weigh him, and she took him in the back to have a blood test taken. He is 66.8 pounds today – down 4 pounds from the end of May. Worrisome. For today, the vet gave us Amoxicillin, an antibiotic; Metronidazole to treat infections caused by susceptible organisms; Sulcrate Suspension to coat the lining of his stomach, and, once he stops vomiting, Drontol to kill any possible worms. They do want me to bring in a sample for testing. Plus she gave him some prescription food – Medi Cal Gastro Forumla – in cans and kibble. I am to begin giving him a few tablespoons of the canned food every two or three hours, gradually building up the quantity and eventually mixing it with the kibble until he is back to normal meals. My head was just swimming with all the instructions for these four medications plus the food! Two are to be taken every twelve hours, and one every eight hours. That one has to be given one to two hours after taking other medications or food. HELP! This is impossible! I felt like crying; I didn’t know how to manage all this!