Dog Emergency

Bruno, my family's lovable black Labrador.

Yesterday after lunch, I went out to play with my dog Bruno. I haven't been paying attention to Bruno these past few days and I thought the weekend would be a perfect time to make it up to him. I noticed that his dog food was left untouched. I went back inside to get a fresh egg to mix with his dog food. It's an occasional treat that Bruno really enjoys. To my surprise, he didn't even go near his bowl. I put the bowl near him but he didn't seem interested. I went back to get a spoon hoping to entice Bruno's appetite but to no avail. I opened his mouth to put a spoonful of dog food when I saw a white thing on his pallet. I was so shocked to see a bone trapped horizontally on his pallet. I immediately called our helper who's in charge of feeding the dog. She admitted that she fed Bruno with some bones from the previous night's T-Bone steak. I felt the blood rising to my face. I felt so angry but good thing I was able to suppress the urge to shout at her. I didn't shout but my voice was a little high when I told her NEVER to feed Bruno with bones again. We don't feed table scraps to our dog so I was so surprised when I found a bone trapped on my dog's pallet.

I panicked because my hubby was out on a badminton tournament. I had to call JV (my BIL) to help me bring Bruno to the veterinarian. My BIL didn't hesitate to help me so I immediately called to check if the vet was in. I was thankful that the vet was there. He and his wife (also a vet) were about to leave the clinic but they agreed to wait for us.

My son, Yohan had no idea about what happened to our dog but he knew something was wrong. When he asked me about it, I just said I had to bring Bruno to the vet for a check-up. My BIL and the driver came after several minutes and we loaded Bruno at the back of the truck. I brought Bruno's toy ball and stayed with him at the back to calm him down (he doesn't like going on rides).

After 10 minutes, we arrived at the clinic. The vet checked Bruno's mouth to determine the situation. He said he will not sedate him anymore. The vet got his forceps and dislodged the bone in less than 5 minutes. It was indeed a steak bone. I felt so relieved. There was some blood and the vet had to inject Bruno with an anti-inflammatory shot.

On our way back, I felt as if a heavy weight was lifted from my chest. When we got home, Bruno was very thirsty. He didn't immediately touch his food but after a few minutes he began eating again. He finished everything in his bowl and I knew he was back to his normal self. My helper was very apologetic and I told her that she doesn't have to worry anymore. I'm sure she learned her lesson. I'm just thankful that nothing bad happened to Bruno.