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| Utilizing the stand that came with her dishes; it definitely makes eating and drinking easier for her. |
At first Poppy regularly threw a little fit about the splint and/or her hurting foot, but by evening she was acting pretty perky and using that leg some. We never had to resort to the "cone of shame" since she hasn't fixated on the splint, and she slept through the night as well as usual. Today she has spent an unusual amount of time sleeping, which is a good thing since sleeping time is healing time.
Today is her nine-week birthday. While the hurt leg is a downer, her ears rose to the occasion! Just yesterday they were still tipped; today they are upstanding like a proper Decker's. 😍
She got other gifts for her birthday, too. Friend Kate came over with a new "flat animal" toy and chew bone (along with an x-pen for recovery), and Brian brought home an outgrown pink 'nest' from his boss for her. Poppy approves of all of them.
Although the pals have interacted a little bit since the accident, Chuckie seems disappointed that Poppy isn't feeling very playful. And when I carried Poppy through the pasture to turn the ewes out on this beautiful day, she got increasingly distressed as we neared the barn, whining and eventually hiding her head behind my neck. After turning out the sheep I turned and walked up towards the henhouse, and she calmed down as we headed away from the scene of her pain and fear. I'm not sure if she'll ever be comfortable in the barn again, poor baby!
That's it for now from . . .
14 comments:
OH NO!! Poor baby! Probably a good thing for her to have some respect for horses that are so much bigger than her. Too bad that lesson couldn't have been learned any other way. Puppies are very resilient however. She will begin to feel herself and probably will totally forget about her cast. Will she have to have it changed out? With her growth so dramatic she will probably outgrow it before 8 weeks are up.
I'm sure you feel terrible about Poppy's injury, but unless she learned a healthy respect for the horses now, something worse could have happened later on. She'll probably get over her fear of the barn, but will now keep a wide berth between herself and those great big animals! She looks as though she's taking the whole experience well.
Well Dang! Stuff happens though - and I agree with Mama Pea that this might eventually be a 'good' lesson in life. But Dang!
My Annie is just now getting over her fear of tractors, and is wanting to 'herd' them. Dang! I wish she could be forever afraid of 'em. I do have a 'shock' training collar, and may have to use it. So far, just the 'bell' or the 'buzzer' on the collar have been enough to get her attention. I hope I never need to actually zap Annie. But ... I don't want a squished dog, either.
Poppy will heal fast - and you'll be bonded better for the experience. Hang in there!
Poor sweet Poppy! And poor momma! I'm sure she'll heal quickly, as babies do. Don't blame yourself so much! It sounds like she's adapting very well.
It's so sweet to picture her hiding her little face against you as neared the barn. She's such a darling!
I'm almost sorry to see that her ears have straightened up, though. I love the tipped ears. But she's beautiful!
Elaine, Mama Pea, and Tim; my husband and son both think the lesson learned was a valuable one. And it certainly could have been much worse; as the vet said, these are the best bones to break if something was to get broken! But I do feel terrible and hope the injuries don't cause problems like arthritis down the road. We do have to change the splint weekly; I'm already dreading that. And yes, Elaine, I expect that splint to be too small before eight weeks are up!
I don't like shock collars and have never owned one, Tim, but I agree: if it keeps Annie from getting killed, it is a worthy tool! (Like spanking children; better to spank them than bury them!) As for bonding, at first I worried that Poppy would never trust me again, a day and a half post accident, I think you're right about it bonding us more tightly.
Jeanne, Rick said the same thing about her ears straightening; he thought they were cuter tipped! But Deckers' ears are SUPPOSED to stand straight, and I do think it makes her look regal.
Oh no!! Oh Michelle, I'm so sorry to hear this... :( Poor, poor baby girl. I told Biff about what happened last night, and this morning he said that, he just can't stop thinking about poor Poppy. Such a terrible thing to happen in her prime play time. But as always, I'm so glad that it wasn't worse. I can just imagine how heartsick you must have felt. Things happen so fast! Give Miss Poppy some kisses for us!
Poor little waif. I'm glad it was her toes and not her leg! I am sure that she will get over her fear of the barn - she is a spunky little thing. And she has to be the most photogenic puppy I've ever seen - even with a cast!
Oh, I'm so sorry baby got hurt!! She will likely always be leery of the barn and that's to be expected. Good luck on the healing for Poppy.
You're a good Mom. No matter how hard you try to protect/keep safe loved ones (critters included) stuff happens. Poppy will be back to playing with her best bud Chuckie soon.
And you have blooms in your garden!!
Lots of kisses given, Lorie.
She is indeed blessed with a fair countenance, Susan.
I hope we can get her over 'barn terror,' FFG, so she can hunt mice there – with horses locked safely away!
Debbie, Chuck and Poppy are back at now; the splint isn't affecting the wrestling much. We've had blooms since December, but now we're getting some COLOR. :-)
I wanted to follow up on the shock collar issue: I hate them too!!! But, they are effective if used correctly. I can really see how somebody could abuse them and the dog. For me, I've only ever had to actually 'shock' a dog twice. After that, just the beep or the buzzer was enough. My collar has a 3-alert system: One is a bell, the second is a vibrator/buzzer and of course the 3d is the zapper. The zapper is adjustable from just a mild tingle to a severe zap, and it has a double lock-out on the control so there is no chance of an accidental zing. The bell/buzzer is amazing as a training tool. It is almost like having a remote clicker to train with. Having the ability to remotely prompt the dog is the key. They don't know how I am able to send that signal to them, but they know I can. It eliminates the 'off leash' naughties. The man who trained me about using this collar also told me to never ever let the dog know, if I had to zap, that it was me doing the deed. I am the savior, not the devil! So, just wanted to share this hoping somebody might benefit. Where I live, there are occassional cars/trucks that do drive by and when they do, they are flying. I've had two dogs hit and one dog killed on that road. Hence, I'm prepared to do what I have to do keep them safe. It is a farm, and the dogs work with me - they can't be tethered or fenced all the time. It is a situation I have to deal with. Sorry to be long winded, but wanted to chime in my 2 cents worth.
Definitely could have been worse, but still...poor puppy, poor momma.
A very good explanation of a tool well used, Tim. And it sounds like the collar you have has some excellent features to be utilized.
I'm trying to tell myself the same thing, Sara.
Oh, I'm so sorry... I wondered how she had been hurt!
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