Though we’ve never met or talked (I’ve emailed him and never gotten a reply) Scott Kurtz and I have a little more in common than we’re “married dudes that draw comics”. Our trials and tribulations with our pets seem to link us, not in a creepy stalkerish way, but in a way that only pet owners understand. I think if I ever met him the first question to him would not have anything to do with comics at all, it would be “How’s Kirby doing”. I too have had to watch my wife say goodbye to her beloved pet of 12 years and have had a few run in’s with the vet with our dog and tonight was no different.

You see tonight, well this morning, was very scary. At about 20 to twelve i came in from taking our house guest out side to pee when my wife came into the front hall holding one sock in her hand yelling in terror about the other sock (which she had just pulled out of Brody’s mouth) Brody is our 2 year old Portuguese Water Dog. Before going outside I had pulled the socks I had worn that day out of the pair of sneakers I was slipping on just to go outside in on a table in our living room, Stupidly forgetting that socks are one of Brody’s favorite things to chew/eat. I don’t know I said there were two there when I left, and after a little squabble about what could have happened, we deduced only one scenario. BRODY ATE THE SOCK. Now sheer panic set in. My wife now furious at me for leaving the socks there (we’ve had many a “discussion” about my sometimes lack of care for leaving things around) was frantically looking on line for answers on what to do next I did not know what to do next. The only logical thing was to call the Animal ER and see what they suggest. They suggested I bring him in. So at 12:00am midnight I left my home in the rain, Brody in tow and we went to Ocean State Veterinary Specialists in East Greenwich RI.

I think I was breaking the sound barrier trying to get there, not so smart on wet roads but this really was a matter of life and death. Yes the sock could have killed him, without seeing a Dr. A couple scenarios could have happened 1) He could have thrown it up in the middle of the night and choked to death while we slept or 2) obstructed his bowel to where the poison waste could rupture his intestine (due to the blockage) and he could die. Now for those of you who don’t know me, next to my wife this dog is the most important thing in my world. I often come up with scenarios “just in case” on how I would exact revenge on anyone who did harm to this animal… I won’t share them here… but lets just say you don’t want to hurt my dog, you wouldn’t like what happens to you. But I digress, anyway so what was I to do when it was my own stupidity which lead to my dogs dismal situation?

When we arrived at the Vets they were waiting. Brody was whisked away from me by some kind looking women and after about an hour of waiting the vet emerged. I really thought she was going to tell me that surgery was needed to get the sock out (secretly I was wishing she’d come and say, we did X-RAYS and found nothing) but that was not the case. She told me that they were able to induce vomiting and Brody upchucked the sock and his dinner. What a relief!!! No surgery, no scoping (both would need anesthesia which isn’t always so good for puppies). The people there were terrific, Brody came out all happy to see me a little worse for wear but safe and sound. I felt like a moron even though they tried to assure me I wasn’t. We hopped in the car and now we’re home. Brody is fast a sleep in his crate while I type this. I wrote this post for a few reasons. 1 because this site is where I store most of my life (sometimes when I write it) and 2) so My wife could have it in writing that I WILL CHANGE MY LAZY WAYS AND PUT STUFF AWAY.

It’s sad that tragedy sometimes is the only catalyst for change, and while this wasn’t a total tragedy it could have been. THANK YOU to the staff at OSVS you saved my baby boy and maybe even me and to my 2.4 fans thanks for reading.

-P

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