Life with Nemo is a learning situation. He is basically a very healthy little guy but, having said that, he has become well acquainted with his favorite veterinarian throughout his long life. Yesterday was another visit to the clinic.
When I got back from a short out of town trip Saturday, I noticed Nemo’s right ear was not lying down close to his head like his left ear. Looking closer, I saw why–it was swollen and feverish. What had happened? An ear infection? An insect bite? A wasp sting? So, it was back to the veterinarian yesterday. As it turned out, it was none of those things. It was due to an injury to a blood vein.
Nemo gets excited about adventures and when he sees me with his leash, he knows an adventure is near. Anything–a trip to the mailbox, a walk down the street, anything at all is a cause for excitement and when he gets excited, he shakes his head. His ears, which are fairly long and tend to flop, bounce off chair or table or wall, whatever he’s close to. One of those bounces, evidently, broke a vein in his ear. The vein filled up with blood and fluid and hence looked very poochy.
His patient doctor drained the spot and sent him home with three kinds of meds. He could have had surgery to seal off the area but at his age, anesthesia does have some risks. So now, he’s wearing a pretty blue soft collar which is a lot better than the hard plastic cone he has worn in the past. Nemo, being Nemo, will continue to be excited given any excuse. Come to think of it, his enthusiasm for small things is something we humans should feel too. Only thing is, we usually express our excitement in less dangerous ways than head shaking.
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