A Sick Puppy

I've been felling kinda sick the last while. My appetite has been down fur awhile, but it took Mom a bit to notice that cuz fur one thing, sometimes I eat lots and sometimes not so much, and Mom has always free fed me. That means she fills my food dish woof dog crumbles and I just eat what I want when I want to and when it's empty, it's refilled fur me again. Mom was thinking I looked like I was loosing weight, but when you see someone every day it's hard to be sure. One day we went to the dog park to walk woof Steel and his Mom Wendy. Wendy commented to Mom how I'd lost weight since she last saw me. Yesterday Dan was over after not being fur about 2 weeks, and he noticed it too cuz I's getting more noticable all the time.

One day, Mom touched me where it hurt and I snarled at her. She was not happy woof me cuz I was nasty to her, and cuz she worries if one of us critters hurts. She still doesn't know where I hurted and I don't remember either but don't hurt like that now. The last 3 days or so, I've been coughing and hacking and snorting. This scared Mom so much that she could hardly wait fur the weekend to be over. This morning she took me to a critter doctor. Dr. Trinity Smith examed me and said I needed x-rays of my chest, and blood tests would be a good idea too. Mom said ok to the x-rays, but just doesn't have the money fur all the tests right now, so went fur the most important one.

When the x-ray lady, Julia, came and said she'd take me to the back and do it, Mom said she was coming too cuz it's better fur me than to go alone woof strange people in a strange place. They were going to have Mom just watch then stand outside while they clicked the pikture. The way it went down, though, was Mom & Julia lifted me onto the table and Mom had to keep hold of my front legs to keep me on the table while Julia held my back legs. The other lady had to take off her funny looking aprin thing and a thing from her neck and put them both on Mom, and even some big gloves cuz Mom's hands were close to the picture. How come they had to protect Mom so much when they didn't protect ME? Is it cuz she's hooman and I'm a dog and dogs ar tuffer than hoomans?

So anyway, they stretched me way out woof me on my side. I was not impressed and tried to get away a few times, but Mom's real strong and held tight. After that pikture, the turned me onto my back. Dogs don't like being held on their backs like that, but they kept me there and took the 2nd pik. Then Mom & I waited out front while they developed those x-ray piktures, and were told they turned out too dark, so had to be done again. That time I knew what was happening and what I was 'sposed to do, so I was real good that time. Everyone was real impressed woof me. After we waited again, we went back into the little room woof the doctor and she showed the x-rays to Mom and showed her that there's something showing in there. Not a cancer toomer, which is a good thing, but they don't know what it is. The Dr. is going to post them on the internet so other smart doctors that know about x-rays can look at 'em and tell her what they think they're looking at.

I've been put on some pills to make me pee more in case there's water in my lungs, and some steroids called Prednisone cuz if there is cancer that will help fight it and I don't know why else she put me on it. Fur 10 days I'll be on these pills.

I was happy to eat doggy treats at the Drs. office, and a bit of canned food Mom bought fur me on the way home, but I'z not interested in my usual dog food. The Dr. wants Mom to cook beef & chicken & rice fur me too, so I think that's real cool. I usually likes popcorn, but Mom accidently spilled some on the floor tonight and I didn't even want none of it.

So, today I costed Mom $250 that she didn't have fur a vet bill.... and she needs another $110 to get me blood tests to see if they show anything. If you have $5 or $20 or something like that, you know, what you don't really need, maybe you can send it to me. I thinks that if just a few peoples sent just a little bit of money that they wouldn't miss, then soon there'd be enough to get me some blood tests. I'd be real thankful... but only if you don't need it to buy food fur yur critter or pay a important bill or something. Maybe instead of an expresso coffee or something like that. I don't like to ask, but I know Mom won't ask and I want to stop feeling sick.

Oh ya, I got weighed today too. I used to weigh 'bout 103 pounds and now I'z only 85 pounds.

Mom made me wear hooman clothes today. She's never done them kinda things before, but put a fleece type vest on me today to keep me warmer while I was in the back of the truck in the canopy fur the ride to the vet. I kinda looked cute in that vest and though it felt real weird, I'm okay woof wearing it again if it makes Mom happy til I'm healthy again. I sure hopes I gets healthy again.

Talk to you soon.

Lots 'o Licks
Reba Jane Rottenweiler.

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