or just drug 'em . A sleepy dog is a good dog...

No, I don't routinely drug my dogs. In fact I go real light on the pain killers and anxiety tamers.

Living with Andretti however has necessitated having something similar to a Main Street Pharmacy in the house.

This dude has been in some stage of repair since I got him, no fault of anyone other than his reckless self.
List of Medical De-complishments:
(I just made that word up, it's fancy talk for Accident Waiting to Happen)

• Giardia (he came with that, yippee)

• Clogged tear duct (shortly after arrival)

• Kennel Cough (4 months, courtesy of his first visit to a dog show)

• Viral Papillomas on all 4 feet (6 months, courtesy DoggyDayCare)....surgically removed....all 4 feet

• Monthly rips and tears (6months-present) I'm not counting scuffs, I'm talking deep full thickness holes-in-his-hide. He has run through barb wire, ripped a stifle on a piece of rebar, sliced the webbing on his feet, impaled himself on a metal spike attached to a trashcan and had his ass grabbed by another greyhound 'friend' while running. Let's not even TALK about his running mishaps. Nowdays, I lay him down on the kitchen floor and sew him up. No fancy vet visits for us. 
• Drett-Bump. This is what we call the transient swelling of that little knobby joint area on the inside of the front leg/foot. When I say we, I mean my ever expanding group of local AKC greyhound junkies/friends. I'm thinking of trademarking the condition; even some of the greyhound showing/running old timers have come to recognize and use the term Drett-Bump in their own dogs after seeing it and noting that they never knew what to call it or what causes it. We've decided it's not a real injury as it doesn't cause lameness, but it is a definite swelling that is activated and aggravated by hard running. 
• Gastropexy incision that refused to heal. I neutered Andretti at 3 years (I regret that a whole lot, I will not neuter or spay any of my future greyhounds, unless medically necessary) When I has him neutered, I did a preemptive strike and had his stomach tacked at the same time. This is Andretti we're talking about, at 3 years old I'd seen enough of his medical constitution to know that NOT tacking his stomach would be a glove slapped in the face of fate. Unfortunately the incision traveled too far up his chest, and refused to heal where it crossed his sternum (breast bone). The skin was too thin, it was a pressure point when he laid down, blah blah blah. It took almost 3 months to heal. He wore a t-shirt for the duration:

•  Broken Toe: courtesy of Art the Husband's procrastination filling in 12inch deep irrigation trenches. My friend H came over with her dogs for a hike, and as we went out the back gate to hike down into the park Andretti stood next to us with one foot hoisted up, but ready to go. H says "Lis, I think he broke his toe". I say "Nahhhh....he probably just stubbed it" H says, very concerned, "No Lis, I really think he broke his toe". Trip down to the clinic, xray, H's suspicion confirmed. Broken toe. Hello cast. 3 months, countless ulcerations, tape burns, swamp-foot and general stir-craziness it finally healed up. 

• Ringworm; everywhere. Sweet. 

•  Multiple foxtails snurffled up the old schnozz. Again, no fancy trips to the vet for us: "hold still", a pair of alligator forceps and a nose cone, "hold still, dammit" and ta-dah!!

• Broken hip, yes, broken. He 'Crotch Jockeyed" a tree at full running speed racing down one of the hills behind the barn. It took all of 5 seconds for him to disappear around the side of the house and end up whimpering in the driveway unable to move. We're still not sure what happened, but we know it involved this tree, this dog, high speed, an aerial maneuver and a non-olympic style landing. Dr. Brown said that in all the years he's been in practice as an orthopedic specialist he's never seen a dog break it's illiac crest. Dr. Art the Husband was sure this would require major surgery to remove "stuff", we opted to take a more conservative wait and see stance. Another 4 months to heal. Sigh. Way to be, Andretti. 

 

  

  

Broken Broken Broken. Ahhhhhh Andretti. 

 I love you Brown Dog, I love you so hard. Now, could you please stay in one piece just for a little while? Please let my friends stop taking bets on whats going to happen next? Thank you Brown Dog.