Alex, I'll take "Who's got Parvo this Week for $200"

sorry for the partial title that got emailed out a few minutes ago.

This little puppy is parvo puppy of the week. He came in on Tuesday. But is better now, and will probably go home tomorrow. Click on the photos and they will open up.




His littermate came in on Monday night- almost DOA. almost.
This little guy was back on Tuesday. This photo was taken on Wednesday and he was still a little depressed at the time. (He's barking his head off in the kennel at the moment, so he's much improved).



His sister came in yesterday. She's not looking so good, not sure if she's going to make it or not.

Get those puppies vaccinated. It's cheap to prevent, expensive to treat, and even sometimes that isn't enough.

Fleas- It's a wonder more dogs don't go all postal

on their owners. I mean it drives me batty to have one mosquito buzzing around the bedroom at night. Can you imagine thousands? and not being able to get away? Sleep deprived?
That has to be why dogs go to heaven.



This is just a few of the fleas that fell off a dog when I sprayed him with flea spray. This is just one tiny little corner of the table. Poor thing had chewed on his leg so much that it was infected and swollen.

We've seen this a few times this summer. People quit putting flea medication on the dog during the winter, and WHAM! this is what happens.

(Psst- Fleas don't go to Boca Raton for the Winter. I'm just sayin'.)

Meet Laya- Parvo puppy #2

This is Laya. Storm's sister.
On Monday evening, she started being a little depressed. Her owners started her on Tamiflu left over from Storm. Tuesday was okay. Wednesday was vomiting, nauseated, and a little dehydrated . So she camped out here at Club Pet for the evening with fluids, antibiotics, anti-emetic medication. Thursday she was feeling better, started eating a little, and actually did go home last evening. I haven't heard from her this morning, so I assume she is doing okay today as well.

You can't predict who will survive parvo and who won't. We've seen dogs look deathly ill for days, and they do finally get over it. Others develop this "I give up" look in their eye and they don't make it. Jethro had parvo as a puppy, which is sort of how I acquired him.

I also had another puppy, with a history of no vaccines, come in yesterday, who was positive on his parvo test.

Parvo- It's fatal. Get those puppies vaccinated.

jasper
Originally uploaded by lunapeace

I found this photo of a dog named Jasper on flickr. He survived parvo according to the comments.

Storm, the border collie mix puppy that I had been treating since Friday, didn't fare so well. I wish I had snapped his photo yesterday- he was playful wagging his tail. I was half expecting him to be well enough to go home today, as he looked so good yesterday.

His sister was vaccinated on Friday, and so far, hasn't gotten sick yet.

This morning, not so good. He started vomiting more during the night, and was depressed. Fluids. Medications given. His temperature was still normal. Tonight, more depressed, temp shot up to 106. More meds. Something to try and bring down the fever.

All I could do was pet the little guy. I wonder if it was comforting to him that he didn't die alone.

Storm- time of death- 11:05 pm.

I can only hope that people read this and remember to get puppies vaccinated. It doesn't matter if you think they've been vaccinated, or so and so said they had their vaccines. Get them another one. And as soon as possible. Don't wait a week and say, "I'll get to it next week. . . "

Storm would probably have never gotten sick if he had a $20 puppy vaccination 1-1/2 to 2 weeks ago. Now, I hope his sister doesn't get sick.

More on TarBaby, still looking for a home

A few people have asked about TarBaby. She's a solid black cat. And solid black animals don't photograph all that well for thumbnail images online. They don't appear as soft and cuddly as other colored pets.

So I shot a little video of her. When she was brought in for euthanasia, I wasn't sure if the family was trying to find her a home or not. Now, after talking with them, they are trying to find her a home. So are other clients. This has all happened quite suddenly as her owner's mental health has deteriorating sort of rapidly. The doctors think due to some mini strokes she might be having.

Here's TarBaby.

Euthanasia solution and My Job Sucks

It's one of those days, one of those weeks. . . . "my job totally sucks" things.

I am stuck with the dilema again for trying to find a home for a patient or euthanizing them. As sad as it is to euthanize older patients who are suffering with physical disabilities, old age related problems, medical issues, terminal illnesses, it is even sadder to euthanize a patient who isn't sick, but just inconvenient.

TarBaby was a stray 10 years ago- 1998. She was adopted by an elderly client who is now in her mid 90's. And she, the client, was doing well until just a few weeks ago. Now TarBaby's owner, can't live on her own anymore, and will have to either go a nursing home or an assisted care facility. She boarded Tar Baby about 3 weeks ago while she moved to a new rental house that was closer to relatives. But even that isn't working out.

So, the client called on Saturday morning,(we are normally closed on the weekend, and it's a holiday weekend too) a little frantic, and first, she wanted her boarded, then wanted me to take her, and then wanted her euthanized. So I took her not knowing exactly what to do with her. And I still have her.

It's an ethical question too- do I always do what the client requests? Or does sometimes the patient's needs comes before the client?

How many hospital cats are too many? Leon has been here for 14 years, Maybelline for 10, and I am still trying to find a home for Sunshine too. I wish there was some type of foster program around here, that takes older pets in these situations. This vet can't take all of them in.

Sometimes having access to euthanasia solution can be a blessing. Other times, it is a curse.

Surtex stuff and No Sleep

Well, Surtex starts tomorrow, and runs through Tuesday.
I actually forgot today was Saturday when speaking with my Mother by phone earlier, to let her know the plane didn't fall out of the sky. I asked, "did you leave work early?", thinking it was Friday. HaHa. That's what happens when you get up at 3:15 AM to leave for the airport.

Maybe, I'll be more coherent tomorrow once I catch up on my sleep. :)

Here's a plate design that is loosely based and cropped out of a Magnolia painting.

Decor8 blog and Domino Magazine

Holly Becker, the owner of Decor8, the design blog featuring interiors, design, decorating, and various other topics, writes articles for several magazines. Today, she featured Male Artists of Etsy in a slide show over at Dominomag.com, the online companion to Domino magazine. My cat print, Can We Play Now, Please? made the list.














Here the link to get to Decor8.
You can see the image on the front page of the blog.

Here's the link to the article at Domino.

Almost as cool as a Rolling Stone Cover-

the April 15th issue of JAVMA, the Journal of the American Vet Medical Association, featuring my artwork.

Calla Lilies Glass Cutting Board

This arrived today. 8x11 inches tempered glass with image sublimated on reverse.