Today was my first round of chemo. I was supposed to start it last week but due to injuring myself eight days after amputation, ordering the medication got delayed.
The entire day has me pretty drained. I still am interested in food and demanded a good walk several times today but the humans declined and told me I am just allowed in the yard. Tuesday is my checkup with the surgeon to see if I can get off bed rest. I think I’m perfectly ready to go for a real walk to see my fans in the neighborhood. They haven’t seen me in over a month and I’m sure they’re worried.
To get me ready for chemo, my humans thought a bath would make me feel better. Yesterday was my spa day at the vets. The pampering was wonderful until the staff put me in a kennel to dry off. This was completely unacceptable and so I did something disgusting but effective. I peed and sat in it. So…I got another bath and got to stay out of the kennel for a bit.
Chemo went fine. They had me out and about for most of the morning. While waiting for me to get picked up, they put me in a kennel. I was out of pee so I had to do something REALLY gross. I got another bath. They used Christmas cologne on me and I smell like a fake pine forest. Not exactly what I was going for but at least it got me out of the stupid kennel.
The staff has been informed by my humans that I don’t think I need to be in a kennel anymore. The past month, I have spent on a bed in the office with everyone and really enjoy it. Why are they so quick to lock me up? How can they now treat me like a simple dog? I don’t like kennels when there is something interesting going on and I want to be where the people and the action are. I’m not afraid to be alone, I just don’t think I should be there. Barking and whining don’t do anything but making a mess will ALWAYS get you out of the kennel.
A family member was wondering how my humans know that this is how I express my displeasure. Years of experience. It all started when my beloved groomer Francine got a new french bulldog puppy. She let me hang out with the puppy in the office while she groomed. I love Francine and if she said she’d let me stay forever, it would be a really hard choice to make.
So once the puppy grew up and stopped coming to the office to play, Francine stopped letting me hang out and I had to stay in my kennel or go outside. She would let me stay outside all morning, even walk with me to make sure that I did my business outside, and if she put me in a kennel and went back to work, I would soil the kennel and get another bath. I do like baths though and I love to be held by Francine.
If you leave me overnight, I almost never have an accident. Leave me in a kennel when something is going on, I’m going to let you know about it. Francine doesn’t let me stay the day anymore. She calls the humans right before she puts me in the tub since it is about a 25 minute drive to her place from our house. As soon as I’m clean, I have to go home.
We’ll see how I feel tomorrow and how much the chemo has impacted me. So far, so good though. I’m about to have some dinner and head back to bed.
What a delightful storyteller you are! You have attitude and personality off the charts!!
You certainly have trained your parents very well in how to meet our needs:-) Good thing you love baths!
Really look forward to reading about your journey. Your accounts are joyfully riveting.
Stay strong and continue to delight us with ourexploits:-) 🙂 And congratulations on passing your first chemo test! Go study hard for your next one so you can pasS that one too:-) 🙂
Sending you the best, Sally and happy Hannah
Oh thank you! I try to be pragmatic about life and just roll with it.
Chemo is no joke and no one knows how you’re going to deal with it until after you take it. Seems that everything about this disease is like that. You just don’t know till you get there!