Day 9

Still waiting for those tranquilizers. I am debating a trip to the nearby amazing organic store for some melatonin, which I've used in the past as a reasonably effective chill pill for dogs. My only hesitation is that he's on so many other things right now. But to be fair, I both of his painkillers are "10 days then as needed." So I might start a slow taper tomorrow. I certainly don't want him to be in pain, but he seems to be a little bit too comfortable for how fragile his knee is right now. Hey, maybe if I don't give him the melatonin, I'll just take it.

In an effort to induce sanity, I put Clover in his bag and headed for a couple of pet stores today. Now, I feel that I should note that I'm generally not a proponent of the dog bag. Aside from the fact pets are not fashion accessories, even tiny dogs have legs and should use them. And like to use them. Also, taking your dog everywhere sets them up for some major separation anxiety when you cannot. However, there are some times having a slightly incognito and portable bag comes in handy. Perhaps the best example is visiting my brother in Boston. On a nice spring or fall day, Clover can walk around outside, and hop in the bag if we wander into a store or coffee shop. Most places that don't sell food don't mind a small dog who can't do any damage to their products. Also, many restaurants around town are happy to have a well-behaved dog at their patio seating, which makes for a nice lunch.

Anyway, today Clover got to ride around in Petco and Pet Supplies Plus. I admit, I felt the need to tell everyone he had knee surgery, and that the bag wasn't just for kicks. He likes being in the bag (I imagine it's like being carried) so he'll just sit or lie down and look around. I bought him a bone he's not that interested in eating (surprise, surprise) and a shampoo on sale. He got to sniff everything I picked up, got pet by several people, and generally got some much needed mental stimulation.

I have an appointment for his stitches to come out Tuesday evening, but I really think they could probably have come out yesterday with no ill effects. This photo's pretty bad because, well, so is my camera at this stage of its life. I should have taken a picture of day 1 for comparison, but as you can see, it looks like a pink scar with stitches through it more than a wound that needs to be stitched together. And he's got a tiny layer of fuzzy growing back, although as I learned, the hair will be six months in the making. It really does look like a chicken leg, doesn't it?