Gibby Passed His Vet Check

Oy, such a day! I was awakened early (for me) by a call from my dentist - he had a cancellation so he could work on my broken tooth this morning. Luckily, Thursday is the day the caretaker comes, so I could run out and know someone else would be there to help my mother. Two and a half hours in the dental chair is a veeeery looooong time. I did walk out with a nice looking temporary tooth so I can smile in public again, but I didn't get down to the farm to see how Gibby was until after noon, almost one o'clock. When I got there, Gibby was frantic. He had wound his cable several times around the central axel on an old garden wagon - he couldn't move without the wagon clunking over on him. He had shredded his dog bed and vomited a mound of non-digested dry dog food. He was very glad to see me, but wouldn't stop pulling on his cable so I could get him untangled - I may have said this before, Gibby is VERY STRONG. Finally, I was able to switch the cables around and fasten him to one that wasn't tangled around the wagon - I had to find a variety of tools to pry the wagon axle apart to get the cable lose, and while I was doing that, Gibby disappeared! It took me several anxious minutes to discover he had ducked under the paddock fence, run around the corner of the house, and gotten himself tangled around several trees. Got him untangled and then attacked the wagon with renewed vigor, figuring Gibby pulled the cable into the fitting with his mighty strength, so I would have to pull it out with equal or more strength. I thought about trying to hook it to the car bumper, then got mad at it and yanked it out.

Once the cables were set up again, in a way that should keep Gibby out of the horse paddock and away from the porch he smashed yesterday, I realized it was time to leave for our vet appointment.

I fitted the new "Halti" on his head and tried to walk him to the car - but it was much more like he dragged me to the car - then he grabbed the halti off of his nose and started chewing it. UGH.
The halti was a waste of $20. Got to the vet's with it still intact, and got him inside the clinic where he wasn't overly friendly to the wonderful dog who greets most visitors. First job was to get him on the scale and quiet enough to be weighed - which was really easier than it seemed like it would be because he does listen to the "sit" command. He's about 14 pounds underweight at 66 pounds - and that's after he was being well fed at the dog pound for more than two weeks. I wonder if his previous owners were feeding him at all.

Lisa Lemke is our vet. I love the way she treats animals. We sat down in the waiting room and that's where she examined Gibby - no threatening examing room or table, just a friend petting him and soothing him with soft words and a stethascope checking his heart. Gibby liked Dr.Lemke instantly, he really is a very friendly dog. He was panting so hard that it was hard to hear his heart, so I took out a dog biscuit, intending to give it to him, but when I held it in front of his nose he didn't take it. Somebody taught him not to take a treat until he was told he could have it. Funny what he knows.

Well, everything about him, except weight, passed muster. We got the heartworm pills and headed back to the farm. I stopped at a farm store to see what I could get that would make the dog kennel usable and ended up with a chain that would be very inconvenient but could be woven back and forth between the gate and the fence - maybe that will keep him in.

I had to rush back to check on Mother, and then brought her and the other dogs back for our daily visit to the farm. When I opened the gate, Gibby jumped through the scrub trees and landed on the wood pile next to the driveway - what a picture - smiling dog with power wag.

I barely got the cats and chickens fed and the horses checked because Gibby and the other dogs were having a bark fest that was driving Mother mad - three dogs and an angry mother all stuck in a car is not good. I let George out and he ran over to Gibby. They met, there was no growling, Gibby was very friendly, but George started getting stiff and stalky, so I called him back. Then Patches and Blue jumped out of the car on their leashes and I tried to get them over to their usual tie out spot. Patches kept trying to get to Gibby - we had quite a struggle. Finally, the only way I could stop the barking was to drive the car down the driveway, out of sight of Gibby.

With all the excitement, Gibby threw up again - and I had to leave him.