Not Our Best Week

The left over weather impacted the beginning of the week with limited new adventures. On Wednesday, I felt like a bad puppy imprinter (he only has another week or so for the major impression period) so we went to a new shopping center that is much larger and always bustling. This is usually Knuckles’ favorite type of activity and this time he met young and old. I’m always grateful when a parent lets a young child pet Knuckles. We had a nice time with a 2 year old. All was well until the return trip to the car. Of all places I did not expect him to poop on the middle of the sidewalk at a center. Hugely embarrassing made all the worse by the runny consistency. I made a quick swipe with the grocery bag and hustled out of there. Yes, Knuckles had diarrhea in a public place. Welcome to the family!

Unfortunately, it didn’t stop there. Knuckles had very bad poo issues for a couple of days – some INDOORS. Gross. The illness topped off on Saturday morning when he began running around the room vomiting clear mucus (around 12 times). That is exactly what Beef did as a symptom of stomach torsion, a health issue common in GSD. I freaked. Called the vet and it takes us maybe 3 minutes to get there. There was no bloat yet so they ended up taking an x-ray rather than take the wait and see approach (they wanted to save me $ but $30 for peace of mind was well worth it). Turns out there were no obstructions - just a nasty virus. We can’t go to the dog park as planned because he’s contagious. They gave Knuckles an anti-nausea shot, fluids under his skin, tummy pills and orders to keep him calm. The only way to do that is the crate so he was forced into extra crate time.

All this has affected Knuckles’ weight so only 4.1 additional pounds this week, yet he continues to grow, just not in bulk. He’s a car sleeper, usually sacked out by the time I hit the main road (and before that on school days). He now fills the entire length of the backseat, not counting his tail. Knuckles moved into a Big Boy crate (made possible through the mechanical skills of Youngest – many thanks).

While Knuckles’ worship of Silly is widely acknowledged, this is not always to his advantage. The vet says it looks like his ear cartilage is damaged so he may not be able have alert ears – she drags him around by them. At his doggy playschool, the trainer says that Knuckles is a different dog when Silly is not there preoccupying his every thought. He participates with the other dogs, is developing friendships and pays attention during his personal training sessions now that she no longer attends. I can see the same change during weekends. Knuckles does not have potty errors, brings me his leash to go out, listens well and follow directions when we are alone. All bets are off when Silly is in the house so we’re going to have to find a way to handle the issue. Since they have to spend a few days apart while his tummy recovers, maybe it will be a good thing.

No new photo because my camera is acting up again. Grrr.