The Colossal Fail That Is Today

It was a day of colossal stupidity, and it's not even Monday.

My vet stopped by the house last evening to show me her puppy that she got from our last litter. That wee thing is really growing! She's officially hit the awkward all-leg teen phase, and is as active as a bag full of cats. What a dear she is! Despite sporting a urinary tract infection, she was all pounce and play. But it was the UTI that spurred some of the colossal failure that was today.

Margo, one of our dogs, left a small spot of blood on the floor of her crate the other day. Three days ago, to be exact. That generally means she's cycling, but after 3 days she should definitely be far messier than that one tiny spot. And coupled with the fact that she asks to go outside roughly every 40 minutes all day long, I thought perhaps she wasn't cycling at all but also suffered from a UTI. I told my vet I'd bring her to the clinic the next day to be tested. She must be miserable if she's walking around with an infection going on. Poor thing.

We were at the clinic first thing this morning, and a urine sample resulted in further indecision. She could possibly have a UTI, or she could possibly be starting her cycle. But I needed to know for sure, because if she was suffering from an infection, she'd be, well, suffering. Dogs tolerate pain so well, sometimes it's hard to tell if they're not feeling 100%, especially if their malady only drops them to about 90%. But I couldn't let her go untreated, because that 90 would soon be 60, and that's a poor percentage to live. What to do? The vet suggested they keep her and take a sample directly from her bladder to be tested. That would give far better results.

I left Margo at the vet and went to run errands. For the record, Margo thought it was the best field trip she'd ever taken in her life. She was sure that every person and dog in the clinic was there just to see her, and was so eager to greet them all. The vet was laughing at the dog that was ridiculously happy to be there. Margo believes in living life to the fullest. 

She wasn't ready to be picked up after errands, so I came home and said I'd get her this evening.

My allergies have been flaring lately. Or is it a cold? It's so hard to tell since they have the same symptoms. My eyes react to them the same way, which is pretty much drying out while also watering. Dry Eye Syndrome sucks. I always keep a bottle of eye drops on the counter since they're so very needed, and rummaged around in the basket looking for the bottle. Eureka! I put a drop in each eye and was shocked that, for once, there was instant relief. Normally drops run off my dry eyes and down my cheeks, and I have to apply and re-apply and then just squirt half a bottle in each eye to actually hydrate my eyeballs sufficiently. It also looks like I've been crying, and people look at me in that embarrassed, compassionate way. It's awkward for everyone. These drops, however,were like magic. The pain stopped, my eyes were moist, and life was grand.

I commented to Sam that I'm not sure where I got those eye drops, but they actually worked for once. Probably the prescription sample the eye doctor gave me that I couldn't afford to refill. I'd have to get the name and invest, because help is a good thing.

As I passed a mirror, i noticed that my pupils were terribly dilated. Curious. I walked toward a window, and looked in another mirror. Still dilated. That's when I realized what drops I'd used. They were Josh's prescribed drops from when he tried to poke an eye out

Oh. Crap.

Sam was helpfully quick to point out that you don't share prescription drugs. In my defense, they didn't have Josh's name on the bottle. That would have been the box the bottle came in, and it was tossed long ago. And we can all just stop with the also-helpful "the bottle should have been put away" comments, because it's painfully obvious at this point. The dilated pupils are easy enough to live with. If I go outside, I wear dark sunglasses. End of story. It's the other side effect of blurred vision that's not so easy to deal with. I pretty much can't see anything within arm's reach. I'll also admit to being very afraid that this might last through the weekend, and we're leaving for vacation on Friday. 

Also, dilated pupils at the beach are going to be so very fun, said nobody ever. 

The vet texted to say that Margo does not have a UTI, but is in fact cycling. This is good news, but makes me feel like the village dog-breeding idiot. I've been raising dogs for 14 years and don't even know when a dog is cycling. Maybe it's time to quit this business? Good grief. I had to ask the vet to bring Margo home since I now can't see well enough to drive. 

Colossal failure. That's what this day has turned into. I have a vet bill on Margo's behalf to tell me that it's time to plan puppies from her, but I can't read it because I self medicated. Who put me in charge of life?


1 comment:

Flea said...

Nobody put you in charge of life. You're just having a bad day. Google the dilation for those drops and find out how long that should last. Too bad they weren't yours, seeing that they actually work. Maybe talk to the doc about that. It might take you down a new path for a treatment?

Got your text, but I was cruising through Iowa. Just sat down for the first time today, when not driving or being with people.

And yay for Margo being well and ready to make puppies!