Bell Needs to Carry Pepper Spray

So much has been going on lately I've barely had time to think.
I've been doing all kinds of general work around the house while at the same time taking care of Nicki; trying to make sure Bell isn't ignored; and almost frantically trying to finish that damn deck!

Today Justin and I took both dogs to "play tennis"...which really means the dogs run crazy within a safe and confined area while we make sure they aren't eating any rocks or sticks. They have a real talent for finding rocks to eat. They ran their legs off for a bit and Nicki was the first one to slow down and catch her breath.

There was someone there with two other dogs. They must have had the same idea (contained play) because Nicki was making friends through the fence. I noticed Bell was keeping her distance a little and letting Nicki take the lead. I'm not surprised that Bell hangs back now. She's the one that keeps having scary incidents with other dogs while we are on our walks. I don't know why it keeps happening to Bell...poor little girl. Just the other night I was walking her and saw two women coming towards us with their dog. I yelled out to ask if their dog was friendly. They said yes, he's friendly. As I got closer to them I explained that I want to socialize my pup if he's ok with young dogs. Again, they agreed he was friendly. He was only a medium size dog but still bigger than Bell. She had no fear of him and they were nose to nose for about a minute or two. Suddenly the other dog attacked Bell with no warning. He just lunged at her, snarling and biting at her face! Luckily Bell jumped back and I yanked her leash away from him in time. She got really shaken up by it but she wasn't hurt.

While I was checking Bell over the two women asked if she was ok. I said yes, I don't think he actually bit her. And then the other woman said he wasn't trying to bite her, he was playing! My head snapped up and I looked at her with total disbelief. I couldn't believe she just said that. I said: He just attacked her! That was NOT playing!! I talked to Bell to sooth her and we moved away. I didn't even look at them again but Bell did. She kept looking behind her like even SHE couldn't believe they thought that was playing.

As the whole incident started to sink in I started getting more and more angry. What the hell is wrong with people that would tell you their dog is friendly..when it's not and then tell you he was playing when he almost took a chunk out of her?? Are they that clueless or are they complete morons?? That was a really serious situation that could have had a really bad ending. I don't think I'm going to try socializing my dogs on the street anymore. They will be starting training this week anyway so they will be meeting other dogs there. Apparently people on the street just can't be trusted to even know their own dog. And from now on I'm going to be carrying my pepper spray too.
Better watch you step there doggy...you bite my dog and you're going to get a face full of pepper! (and I just might spray the owner while I'm at it too. ha ha)

Nicki Update

After a long night on the couch I was happy to discover that Nick looked better this morning. She was standing in her pen, waiting to go out.
After breakfast (she ate well) she made the attempt to play with Bell but I had to break it up after a few minutes. Bell doesn't understand that Nicki sitting still isn't an invitation to tackle her and engage in doggy wrestling. Poor Nick just didn't have the energy to keep up with Bell very long. Eventually Bell settled down a bit (at least she stopped jumping all over Nicki) and Nick sat down and just stared at a wall. That is a dog that doesn't feel well!

I gave Nicki another anti-inflammatory and about 30 mins later she was completely normal acting. I think she starts to feel bad again when the anti-inflammatory wears off. I know that means that I was just covering the symptoms but at this point I didn't have any other choice.

Eventually I got the results from Nicki's blood tests. The vet said (my normal vet; not the guy I saw last night) that her white blood count was up and her red blood count was down. She was also borderline anemic. He feels there's an infection going on there but is unable to nail it down. He also thinks it might be Lyme disease (or possibly some kind of parasite). I'm really hoping he's wrong about the Lyme.

I've already gone through years of treatment with a dog that had Lyme. It can be a reoccurring problem or it can be nipped in the bud. My Allie had several recurrences over the years and I was always able to help her feel better. But I lived in constant fear that she would have another episode as she got older and her health became more unstable.

So it was another trip back to the vet to pick up an antibiotic. This is the same antibiotic I used to give Allie...only now it mysteriously costs more. (I wonder if it would have been cheaper if I'd bought it at CVS?) And now we wait and see how she does. I don't like giving her antibiotics or any drugs for that matter. I've almost got them completely off commercial puppy food and now this will be another set back for the health of her digestive system. (I'm giving them yogurt also but that may not be enough). I also cooked them both some chicken livers and added it to their food tonight. You would have thought I was trying to kill Bell the way she picked at her food. She is not impressed with liver! (and strangely enough green beans kept showing up on the floor too) Nicki on the other hand ate every bit of her food so fast I doubt she even knew what it tasted like. The way they both eat grass; nuts; twigs and leaves you'd think they wouldn't be picky about liver.

They both will be seeing the vet in another week (Oh boy more money to him!) for the second Lyme vaccine. Nicki will be tested again at that time first. And a stool specimen will be needed too. No worries about gathering THAT specimen. Everything is working just fine at that end!
I'm keeping my fingers crossed that she still tests negative.