As a doggie grandparent, do you worry more about the pet than if they were your own?
Taking care of my son’s dog for a few months, is a big responsibility. Indy doesn’t know us and she has made some big adjustments. She is learning so many new things, or maybe just different ways to do things she already knows. Previously, I had told a stories about her fleeing out the back of the car and getting under the fence, but we have tried to be consistent with training and she’s showing an improvement with listening & manners. She’s seems to be staying on the property, and sits patiently at the door before going outside! Exiting the car is improved but still a work in progress (aren’t we all).
We’ve been taking her on daily walks and one day a week she visits doggie daycare for some playtime! She’s new to the daycare center and at the time I am writing this she has only been there 3 times in total. The first visit was an assessment day, this day was supposed to be a time where the staff get to know Indy and hopefully introduce her to a few other dogs they think might be a good fit. Due to circumstances, that I don’t recall, Indy didn’t get introduced to any dogs that first day, so the introductions would need to happen during the next visit.
Visit 2, She was introduced with another dog, also named Indie (but spelled different), and from the report they played well and looked like they could be a good pair. Things were looking up for Indy, she had a friend indeed!
Visit #3, we had a routine drop off and as usual Indy was excited to be at the daycare. Approximately 3 hours after dropping Indy off, I received a phone call from an unknown number. I usually don’t answer calls from numbers that I don’t know, but something told me that I needed to take it. The kind person on the other end of the phone, introduced herself and reminded me where she was calling from. She started by saying, “Indy is ok”…wait, what? That’s a sure fire way to instill panic!
The story goes that the two Indy’s were “playing” and got a little excited and our Indy received a scratch “near her eye”. Apparently it bled, was assessed by the owner, and an antibiotic cream was applied. Given the details that I received and the urgency behind the voice, I figured this was pretty serious. When I asked if Indy needed to see a Vet, I was reassured that the bleeding had stopped and it looked ok. I was told that the 2 dogs were separated and were now “resting quietly”.
Oh goodness, the thoughts that I had…which Indy got vicious? were they fighting or playing? how bad was this scratch? how much blood? are they downplaying it? will Indy be allowed back? So many questions…
When I arrived to pick up the doggo and inspected her “scratch” I literally couldn’t see any mark nor evidence of the “incident”. I am certainly happy that there wasn’t anything to worry about but I had to laugh and how much emphasis was placed on the scratch, the urgency behind the call, and the seriousness of how it was all handled. I guess being an emergency room nurse, not much phases me, and perhaps if this had been another doggie grandparent perhaps this situation would have gone entirely differently, which is why I expect the facility treaded so carefully! I am happy it was nothing but it sure reminded me how differently situations can be perceived!
Do you have a story about something that was taken more seriously that you expected? I’d love to read your comments!
Scratch Inspector (Trudi)
(some images obtained from google/internet, no copyright infringement intended)
The Nomad Nightingale 