When Your Week Hands You Lemons...

It seemed like such a simple thing.  The dog hopped across a 12 inch span of lava rock separating the grass and the driveway.  She does this at least 4 times a day.  She yipped when she landed and drew up her right hind leg.  She was that way for the rest of the weekend.  So Monday morning, we were off to the vet (we had just been there on Wednesday to deal with her separation anxiety).

I knew we were in trouble from the vet's expression.  Lucky tore the ligament at her knee, and needed surgery ASAP.  For those who aren't in the know, Lucky is 14. Surgery is scheduled for Thursday.

So we have the challenge of keeping the dog calm for 3 days.  Then we have 2-4 months of recovery time.  Remember the separation anxiety I mentioned in the first paragraph?  When you have a dog that is in extreme pain, anxiety is much worse.

Lucky is a border collie.  She doesn't herd as much as she supervises.  She is my velcro dog.  If I am gone for too many hours in a row, she is beside herself.  We have medication to help (but not eliminate) this problem.  When I come home, she won't leave my side.



Obviously, we don't want her following me around the house right now.  If she blows out the other knee, we may not be able to save the dog.  She does need a leg to stand on.  So we have her on painkillers and as much anti-anxiety medication as we can safely give her.  As long as I sit, she will lay down right beside me.

So I've set up command central in the living room.  I have the house phone and my cell phone right beside me.  I have my lesson plans and the computer.  We've designed Cindy's graduation invitations.  I can watch TV.  Poor Cindy has gotten stuck with doing the cooking and cleaning, because I can't do those things from here (that's my story and I'm sticking to it). I can fold laundry, darn it!  Thank goodness, I had already bought the groceries.  Don's car is in the shop, so I didn't have wheels anyway.  The tax refund will cover the surgery...money is over-rated...

If you think about it, please pray that the surgery goes well, with nothing unexpected.  We'd also like an easy recovery for the old girl.
Feeling blessed, how about you?