Today was a very different day for Alfred, our immense Anatolian Shepherd dog. We had thought maybe we’d get by this year without having to anesthetize him to groom him. He’d done a lot better than last year, thanks to Carlton gnawing off many of his burs.
But then we noticed one of his huge double dewclaws had formed a circle and grown into his leg. It made him limp. That had to be dealt with!
So, our friendly mobile vet, Dr. Amy, who has probably funded her cool trailer off our pets, drove over to deal with our big, sweet boy.
The nice thing is that he got sedated in the foyer, on his rug. He didn’t even know what happened. Just he suddenly had to NAP NOW.
They fixed his nail and trimmed all the others, which we certainly can’t do when he is awake. Then he had a nice snooze for an hour or so.
Dr. Amy recommended we remove the dew claws. I’m going to have to research it. I’m not sure I’d want a finger removed! On the other hand, it might prevent future pain. Hmm.
Back to Alfred’s nap.
Suddenly, he realized he was being tugged on and there were weird feelings on his back legs and tail. What? He looked up balefully to see me and Kathleen seizing the opportunity to complete his de-burring and work on removing matts of hair.
Yow. The tail area had a matt as big as a Pomeranian. It took ten minutes to cut it off. The hind leg on the side he sleeps on had one three inches thick. I’m so glad we got a chance to work on him before he completely woke up!
Right after we finished, Alfred heaved himself up and went outside to enjoy a well deserved bully stick chew toy.
Merry Christmas, big man. You may look funny, but you’ll sure feel better tomorrow! And most important, you’ll smell better.
The Hermits' Rest 