Bob Trauma

I don't believe Bob has gotten much face time on Daily Dimples but I am sure he really doesn't mind. Mr. Bob Sizzle use to be the center of all of our (my) extra attention but things definitely changed when little R showed up almost two years ago. Here are some pre-Ryan pics:

Hanging out at our tailgate wedding shower and dressed up like a bee for Halloween. 

A night out in Dallas

He was the only boy invited to my bachelorette party - Mk even had a shirt made for him!

Ready to celebrate St. Patty's Day

When Ryan came along Bob didn't seem to mind too much. In fact, some might say he was probably ok with some attention away from him - I think he is totally ok with the fact that he hasn't worn an outfit since Ryan was born!

I still love my little chihuahua so much and he really is quite great around Ryan. I wouldn't call him "child-friendly" per se, but it works. 

I can't believe it but the little runt will turn seven on Wednesday (June 13th)! I was planning a special little day for him with a steak dinner but he had an accident this weekend and can't really do much for now. 

 This weekend we headed to a friends lake house and had to board Bob. (I really hate boarding Bob and try to avoid it at all costs.  He has only been boarded two other times in his six years.) We dropped him off around 9:30 on Saturday and around 12:30pm the kennel called me asking if Bob had any injuries. They said that one of the girls tried to pick him up and he squealed and cried. It's not typical that he does that but he has done it before so I just assumed it was because he was scared and not hurt. They said they would take special care of him and give him one on one attention to help ease his comfort. I didn't get any more calls from them so I assumed everything was ok. 

On Sunday Kevin picked him up at 3pm and Bob seemed uber depressed when he got home. He wasn't running around happy to see me or to be home - he was lethargic and walked really slow. I assumed he was just exhausted (that he probably didn't sleep at all while he was gone) and a little mad at me so I cuddled with him for a little while and then we left him alone and headed to the pool. 

When we got home around 6:30pm Bob was on the ground (which he never is) - I went to pick him up and noticed that his entire under-carriage area was black/purple! I was in shock  - what on earth happened to this little guy??? I felt so horrible. 

I have been carrying him around on a pillow treating him like a little king but I feel so helpless. He doesn't cry or yelp when you touch his belly so I can't tell if its bruised or what. He doesn't seem to have any marks on him so it's hard to tell if anything happened. He did perk up when I was in the kitchen so I heated up a leftover sausage ball for him - and he ate it. I felt so much better that he ate. He also jumped down from the couch and mini walked outside to use the bathroom. When he came back in drank some water...now he is just resting on his pillow. The thing that scared me is that his belly is sagging...like all the skin in two areas is hanging down and it's not normal looking. I have called the vet twice and they said they will be there all night so if he takes a turn for the worse I can always bring him in. I really want to bring him in but Kevin has assured me that he will be fine until the morning.

***

So I started that last night and have updates now. 

Neither one of us really slept last night. Poor Bob looked like he was in so much pain and I was so worried about him. I took him in first thing in the morning and just started crying when the tech asked what was wrong. I had no idea what happened to him all I knew was his belly was black, he was breathing weird and he had just pooped a bunch of blood. She said she was taking him to the back to weigh him and would be back - but didn't come back. The vet actually was the next one in and she said that Bob had extensive bruising and was in a lot of pain. They needed to do x-rays and blood work right away. 

So I waited. 

And after a while she finally came back with the results. Bob had three broken ribs, contusions on his lungs and also fluid around his lungs (which they suspect is blood). I was in shock. She showed me the x-ray and said that she also could not find any "bite" marks on him and that the damage actually looked like it came from some sort of blunt force. She said this is the kind of injury that you would see if a dog got hit by a car. How could this have happened? My poor little dog was in so much pain and I have no idea what happened. I assume it was an accident and I don't know if it was a handler or another dog that did this but I guess it really doesn't matter at this point. 

She brought Bob back in and I just held him. There really isn't much you can do for broken ribs - you need to minimize movement and manage pain, so that's what we have been doing. Bob came home with me and I have been trying to keep him as still as possible. A few times he has tried to move but he is pretty slow and he usually stops so that I can go and get him and take him where he wants to go. He has been pretty good about staying still but he did get excited when Kevin came home and tried to get up to greet him. 

He is on three different medicines - one antibiotic and two pain killers so hopefully he feels a little better. I guess he will be on the mend for the next two weeks so we will have to take it pretty slow. My mom is coming up tomorrow which will be helpful so that she can help out with Bob.

So for now, lots of hugs, kisses and prayers for my little chi. I hate that he is in so much pain and I can't wait for him to run around and play again. I am sure Ryan can't wait to take him on another walk!

I have purposely not mentioned the kennel where I boarded Bob because I don't feel this incident is representative of the care they provide there. I have always heard good things about this place and the owner has been very involved and extremely concerned with Bob.  Another reason is that neither of us know exactly what happened so it's hard to point fingers. At this point I don't care what actually happened I am just happy that Bob is going to be ok. I wouldn't say I would never board here again, but I will say that I will probably never board Bob again. I just don't think he can handle it and I would probably worry too much- so if any friends ever want to Bob-y-sit, I will be very grateful :)