Dora, The Most High Maintenance Dog In the World

The past week has been one of the most difficult weeks I’ve ever gone through. Despite the fact we’re living in a time of pandemic and social upheaval, this week was especially difficult because of something much more close to my heart.

My dog, Dora, was sick. Really sick.

For the past few months, I’d been noticing she had become more and more lethargic. Our walks went from being a healthy trot to a slow and miserable drag along the sidewalk. I had to constantly encourage Dora to keep walking and to keep up, and it was getting worrisome. Things really changed though a week and a half ago though, when I noticed Dora was starting to show physical signs of pain. She was drooling, which was really abnormal for her, and her breathing seemed uncomfortable. her eyes were watering constantly and her nose was running, and she just seemed… miserable. She would also be shivering constantly, despite the fact she was still in her winter coat and the weather had gone over 30º at least twice already.

After going to the groomers and getting a summer cut a week ago, and seeing she was still as miserable when she wasn’t overheated, I knew we needed to go to the vet. That night, I googled her symptoms, and as should be expected when one googles their symptoms, it was devastating. I was convinced Dora had distemper (despite the fact I knew she had to be vaccinated against distemper to enter the country when we returned from South Korea.) I cried for about two hours, and couldn’t be convinced otherwise. Then I called the vet, and got an appointment for Dora that evening.

When we got to the vet, I tried to explain everything I had been noticing over the previous weeks. Since we’re still dealing with COVID-19, I couldn’t go into the vet’s office, and we talked over the phone. I was told that on top of all my concerns, Dora had a fever, which was very upsetting to find out. My vet was very nice and explained that distemper wasn’t common, and there was a very low chance she had it. However, she was worried it could be Lyme Disease. I had a feeling it couldn’t be, because I hadn’t found a tick on her in over a year. She had been tested for Lyme between then and now, but I was in distress and agreed to another test.

Thankfully, the Lyme Disease test was negative.

Problem was though, since it wasn’t so clear cut, we had to figure out WHAT was causing the fever and all the pain. Next on the list of things to do was a series of blood tests. I agreed to it without even asking how much it was, which was probably a good thing. The tests were expensive. I probably would have never spent that much on my own health, but for my dog, it wasn’t even a question of if.

Dora went home with a round of antibiotics, fever and pain relief, and a few vials of blood less than she arrived.

The next day, I took Dora for a walk to try perk her up. We went to a waterside path she likes in Prescott as a special treat. On the way home, my vet called me with the results. She was fine, for the most part. All her organs were fine, but she had almost double the amount of white blood cells she normally should have, and she was a little dehydrated. So we were even more confused because she was starting to seem alright, but still had her fever. We decided to keep up the meds and just observe her.

A day or two passed, and I thought she was getting better. But then yesterday, Dora went right back to her sad, lethargic self. I also was getting even more paranoid and kept finding lumps and bumps all over that were obviously going to be cancer and I was going to lose my baby dog. So, I called the vet and told them the fever relief meds weren’t working even though we did the full five days. Our next plan of action? An x-ray.

Don’t even try to add up how much this all cost at this point. I try not to think about it, because money is already tight through this pandemic. However, it wasn’t even a question of if. Dora needed to get better. End of story.

Today Dora went in for her x-ray, and I pointed out all her lumps and bumps I’d noticed. I told the vet about every moment where Dora could have been hurt in the last few months, in case any of it was the cause of her pain. The vet said she would check her over, and then brought Dora into the vet.

And then we waited in the car.

A bit later, the vet called me while we were waiting outside. I held my breath, anticipating the worst.

“Well, good news. Dora doesn’t have any broken bones, no lumps or masses, but…”

BUT? BUT? OH GOD.

“But she’s very, very constipated.”

I about lost it. I had spent all that time and money and Dora just needed a laxative?!?

Of course it was a relief, we could fix constipation, but… COME ON. That was the most expensive poop in the world!

Now, before you ask why I didn’t notice – Dora has always had tummy problems. She’ll go from nothing to having the runs in a day or two. It’s never affected her this much, but I guess as she gets older, we need to take care of these things. She has a new food now, and I’ve been instructed to give her a laxative for the next few meals to see if we can help get her moving regularly now.

Of course, we still need to monitor the fever, because she still has a fever. So I don’t know if this is the end or just a pause. But, for the time being, I’m going to sleep well tonight, knowing Dora isn’t leaving me soon.