Its always somethin.

Sunday morning at 7 am, I had to take Arnie to the Puppy-ER.

Hes been in the Puppy-ICU for the past 3 days.

I havent slept/ate in the past 3 days.

But I finally brought him home today... hes doin okay. I got him to eat a cherry Pop-Tart. He will be alright. I hope.

*sigh*

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I'm glad he's feeling better

By Duke York (not verified) on 09 Sep 2008 #permalink

He was poisoned (not virus, not bacteria, not a parasite). I just dont know from what. I think the rawhides I bought him on Saturday were contaminated with something... But I have no idea. The vets are baffled.

*shrug* Im cooking all of his food from now on. For the cost of this vet bill, I could feed him steaks every night... Read the labels of the stuff you buy for your pups, guys... Make sure you trust its country of origin...

I just picked up my pup this afternoon from a 2-day ER stay, so I know how you feel. They don't know what happened either.

Dogs love teh rawhidz, but sometimes they swallow pieces that are too large, and I suspect it irritates the digestive tract. And whoever figured out the pig ears/cow tracheas/sheep legs/cow noses market for dogs is probably a millionaire by now.

My Labrador retriever eats crap that disagrees with her all the time, so the vet gave (errr, sold) me these packets of canine dietary supplements called FortiFlora. I think it's like Activia for dogs. Anyway, seems to help with the minor doggy digestive upsets.

So sorry to hear! I love your blog and your consistent dedication to standing up for pups worldwide.

I won't let a rawhide chew thing pass my dog's lips without first boiling it, as not doing so makes her look (and excrete liquids) like she's not going live much longer...

I'm glad to hear that Arnie is feeling better, and hope that he continues to improve!

Last year I learned there is no such thing as a "free" dog.
I found my dog in my woods in a stupor. Of course it was on a Sunday morning and my vet was closed so I had take him to a doggie ER. They pumped him full of warm IVs and put him on a heating pad. It took three hours just to get a temperature reading because their thermometer only went down to 90F. Once he started warming up he ralphed up some parts of a dead animal he apparently found. His temperature leveled off at normal. He was a little slow the next few days, but in less than a week he was back to his normal self. Dogs are very resilient.

By flounder` (not verified) on 09 Sep 2008 #permalink

Damn. Well, glad to hear he's improving. My dog had a rough time caused by a metal fragment she had swallowed from (we think) a plush toy. I've been a lot more cautious with toys and treats since.

Take care of yourself too...Arnie deserves a healthy nurse!

Good to hear he's getting better. Very peculiar idea with the rawhides. I always got my dogs pig snouts.

I have a dog, and my whole family loves her. But if she requires lots of medical expenses, she will be put down.

I heard a story on NPR once of a woman who was raiding her 401K to pay her $5000.00/year expenses for her dog.

Made me sick to know that someday, when I retire, the government will take my retirement money to pay that woman's living expenses, since she squandered it on a replaceable pet.

Funny how libturds put animals above humans.

And it's funny how some humans treat other humans as animals (or worse!). Usually from narrow-minded assholes who have delusions of adequacy.

And to think, perhaps that lady's dog has loved her and treated her well more than a supposed human has ever.

You really are some piece of sh^H^H work aren't you Will?

hope he gets better soon ERV

Made me sick to know that someday, when I retire, the government will take my retirement money to pay that woman's living expenses, since she squandered it on a replaceable pet.

And um, how much you contributed to social security yet, son?

Nothing? Oh, OK. Then shut your fucking pie hole, twerp. It pains me that the $60k I pay annually in taxes is wasted on providing an education to assbuckets like yourself. I fully support publicly funded secondary education, universal health care, and a humane financial safety net.

However when I see ignorant twerps like you who just discovered Atlas Farted and have found the path to the perfect society, it makes me want to projectile vomit and demand that my money be spent on something more useful - like a census of the US hamster population.

And ERV, best wishes to Arnie. Pop tarts are actually medicinal.

Nick

You deserve to have your retirement money taken, William. Until we can set up a working dickhead tax, it's the surest way we can guarantee you spend your twilight years in the misery you so richly deserve.

By Der Bruno Stroszek (not verified) on 09 Sep 2008 #permalink

Sorry to hear about Arnie's misfortune and your expenses, and happy to hear he's doing better. Good luck.

:(

Hope he's feeling better soon!

My dog gets plain rice for a couple of days when she's been sick. She loves it, and it seems to help her to recover.

Rawhides are sketchy.

Good luck with your puppy, Erv.

I have a border collie just over a year old. She is a very lousy eater and will go 3 days without touching her food. UNLESS - we share some of our food with her. Like cut up pieces of meat (chicken, turkey or beef only), cheese, stew gravy, chicken grease (I know, I know)....anything to make her feel human. But I won't give her any tomato product, pork product (at the advice of my vet) and, of course, all the usual suspects such as grapes, raisins, cabbage family, nuts (except for peanut butter).

We tried the rawhide, ears and all that but, for some reason, perhaps the cost, stopped doing that. Now we buy her large knotted ropes that it takes her 1-2 months to untie.....

She will eat other dog sh*t unless I watch her carefully.

She also browses on very specific plants (not grass, weeds) which I haven't identified yet and possibly never will since they are just weeds, some of which sprout up from below my bird feeders.

Early on in her life she had a massive diarrhea attack (on our bed, of course) that went on for a few days but nothing since then.

I wonder if wolves also behave this way?

William Wallace,

Funny how the conservatives put this country so far in the hole with their modern day Spanish-American war that our grandkids will be paying out the nose, but you blame liberals for the fact that we have to pay taxes. You should volunteer to be a test subject in an HIV denier's lab. Maybe when taxpayer funded science cures you you'll change your mind about liberal values.

Sorry about Arnie and keep doing your work Abbie! We in taxpayer land appreciate that folks like you get funding.

Well, at least half of us do (minus the Bush-Cheney margin).

Sorry to hear about the pup ERV. Here's to a swift recovery for the Arnie doggy! Hopefully you can get some bland rice and ground turkey into him soon. It seems to work when our pups aren't feeling well.

We had a terrible weekend with our terrier mix Maddy recently. She ate a string of fiber that came off our cotton bath mats that got stuck in her intestines. The vet was about and hour away from operating on her when the xray showed that it was finally passing.

In regards to rawhides, the only chew toys we give our dogs are Nylabones and rubber Kongs. Both last a long time and don't break off large pieces that they can swallow.

William W.- I hope in the future if you need any expensive medical procedure, your family gives you only as much consideration that you would give their dog that they love.

By JoeyJoJoJr (not verified) on 10 Sep 2008 #permalink

Here's wishing a speedy recovery to your canine pal!

I have a dog, and my whole family loves her. But if she requires lots of medical expenses, she will be put down.

He's an idiot. Comes from breeding. His parents were idiots too. Back in my day, rude, disrespectful children like him were thoroughly beaten and shunned by the whole town.

Ah, the good old days, when you could say "You're a rude little snot, and you shan't be welcome in my home, place of business, or presence anymore. Now run along and play, preferably in traffic" to a rude little dipshit like wallace and not get in trouble.

I hope he get well soon ERV

Sorry to hear about Arnie. Last year my GSD, Casey, had to be taken to the puppy-ER by my wife, half a state away. After an MRI, some expensive meds, and a couple nights in a hotel for my better half (while I was half a country away at a meeting) the bill came out to $2K and the diagnosis was: We have no idea.

A year later, it's still a mystery, but Casey is doing well. It's possible Arnie picked up a virus, or it might be something he ate. If you give him human food, avoid grapes/raisins (they're poisonous to dogs), and check your other foods to see what dogs might not be able to tolerate. As for rawhides ... I've switched to Kongs. If you buy the heavy duty Kongs, they can withstand most abuse. The heavyduty, large Kongs can be bought at PetSmart for about $15. You can also stuff lots of nice things in there, like cheese spread, and other treats ... which will keep Arnie interested while you're slaving away in the lab.

Our pit hasn't ever had problems with rawhides. But she does eat almost any decaying thing she finds on the beach. Most of the time she can handle it but occasionally it makes her sick.

Oh no! I'm glad Arnie's feeling better, but damn, that's a terrible thing to have to go through, for both of you. Good health to you both.

By minimalist (not verified) on 10 Sep 2008 #permalink

I've sorry to hear that. However, dogs are tough - pit bulls especially - so I'm sure Arnie will make a full recovery.

William Wallace - you really are a hateful little dickhead aren't you?

By The Chimp's Ra… (not verified) on 10 Sep 2008 #permalink

I hope Arnie gets and stays well. I'm not a dog person by any stretch of the imagination, but I generally wish no harm on good ones.

And I'll say this much -- while the majority of WW's statement was incoherent douchebaggery, I can sort of agree with his first sentence. When you have a pet demanding chronic care in the thousands of dollars a year, you're not doing the animal any favors. Acute care -- I can see and have done that. But spending tons to keep alive an animal that is certainly not healthy and likely not having the best quality of life is a selfish act.

I, of course, don't link any of this to retirement, social security, or politcal stances. That's asinine, to put it nicely.

Made me sick to know that someday, when I retire, the government will take my retirement money to pay that woman's living expenses, since she squandered it on a replaceable pet.

Funny how libturds put animals above humans.

Makes me sick knowing that religious turds have such a diminished capacity for compassion despite all their supposed faith.

I am, for lack of a better word, disgusted at William Wallace's lack of understanding of what a 401(k) actually is. Also, the completely closed minded nature of this individual strikes me as pompous and verbose. Perhaps Mr. Wallace does not understand the concept of, well, reality. Judging from much of the pseudointellectual vomit present upon the blog linked to, I must conclude a complete lack of integrity, honesty, and/or intelligence is present.

Funny how libturds put animals above humans.

Im an HIV and cancer researcher. What do you do, WW?

Update: Arnies doin good today-- His appetite is coming back, and so is his personality :)

Also, the completely closed minded nature of this individual strikes me as pompous and verbose. Perhaps Mr. Wallace does not understand the concept of, well, reality. Judging from much of the pseudointellectual vomit present upon the blog linked to, I must conclude a complete lack of integrity, honesty, and/or intelligence is present.

bingo

Glad he's doing better, ERV. Best wishes to you both.

Glad your dog is better!

Wallace, don't keep pets. Just a thought.

Update: Arnies doin good today-- His appetite is coming back, and so is his personality :)

Sounds good!

PS: I don't mean to sound wise after the event, but are there any good pet insurance providers in the US? Perhaps Mr Responsible Conservative could look into those as well...

I'm glad to hear the puppy is doing better. He always looks so happy in the pictures you put up of him, and it makes me sad to think of him in pain.

Is there a correlation between the quality of the blog to the quality of the author's relationship with his or her dog? It sure seems so to me.

Glad to hear your puppy is all better.

Pardon me, I really was inconsiderate. I am glad your dog is better, and even if this was very expensive, fully support your right to spend whatever money was necessary to help heal your dog. If my dog had an accident, I would certainly spend more than some people think is reasonable if the vet. told me it would help, though perhaps not quite as much as others would spend on their own pets.

Im an HIV and cancer researcher. What do you do, WW?

I assume in good faith that you're searching for a cure for cancer and also ways to either cure, treat, or otherwise attenuate the spread of HIV. I do wish you much success if this is the case. That you're doing good work helps balance out the stereotypical biologist secretly wishing for a mutant strain of Ebola to wipe out 90% of humanity, end the cause of global warming, and make the world better for the other species that live here.

I don't do anything as laudable as curing cancer, and while I am not ashamed of my profession, there is no need to get into a pissing contest about who saves more lives. The fruit of my work saves actual lives, but the fruit of your work has the potential to save even more.

Mr. Wallace, that was a good thing you just did there.

'Course, I was referring to #50, and not the unfortunate part in the middle of the otherwise also commendable #51...

That you're doing good work helps balance out the stereotypical biologist secretly wishing for a mutant strain of Ebola to wipe out 90% of humanity, end the cause of global warming, and make the world better for the other species that live here.

So, Abbies work helps "balance out" a fictional strawman biologist you just made up. Nice back-handed compliment there.

Mr. Wallace, you stated:
"That you're doing good work helps balance out the stereotypical biologist secretly wishing for a mutant strain of Ebola to wipe out 90% of humanity, end the cause of global warming, and make the world better for the other species that live here."
Let me break it down for you.
1) It is because of a combination of religious sects and unethical behavior of some corporations that we cannot have a stable source of clean energy while not needing to destroy the planet we rely upon for living quarters and food.
2) I know of no biologists which HOPES for numerous deaths. Nearly every other biologist I've had a discussion with would like large disease outbreaks NOT to happen, which is generally why studying biology is so important.
3) Saving lives, I do not think is very important, honestly, what IS important is preventing the conditions by which lives need saving.

I find it pathetic that people can take a perfectly heart-wrenching situation like a sick dog and turn it into an excuse to score political and "moral" points. For shame. And am I the only one who noticed that William Wallace didn't actually say what his profession was? Nor did he cite any sources of biologists who want to see 90% of humanity wiped out? Apology or no apology, you're a prick who needs to be called onto the carpet.

Best wishes, Abbie. Scratch Arnie's ears for me, and GET SOME SLEEP. we don't need you falling asleep face-first into a petri dish.

Paul, the comment in question was a reference to a silly controversy WW's ilk tried to stir up a few years ago. Some scientist made some remark that was either foolishly intended to be, or grossly misinterpreted as, an observation that it wouldn't be ALL bad if an especially nasty plague or two cut the population way down, because of consequences X, Y and Z. I don't remember much about it and really don't care...it's of no consequence save to those needing to dehumanize their opponents.

That you're doing good work helps balance out the stereotypical biologist secretly wishing for a mutant strain of Ebola to wipe out 90% of humanity, end the cause of global warming, and make the world better for the other species that live here.

wtff? What biologists do you know? How is this assosciated with a majority viewpoint of biologists? You cannot possibly be serious?!

WW - look at who funds research, and what's studied. Look at what is pursed via NIH funding. A SUBSTANTIAL number of biological/biomedical researchers are toiling away for the improvement of quality and quantity of human life.

Check in with reality, please.

WillWallace, if most biologists secretly wanted to create a mutant strain of Ebola to wipe out 90% of humankind, 90% of humankind would already be dead. There are sooooo many ways evil scientists could kill us. I'm not sure where you got the delusional idea that most scientists are evil, but lucky for us, you're very wrong.

Abbie, do you think Arnie could have eaten anything odd while you were away, or perhaps while y'all were out for a walk? Even something like vitamins and herbal remedies could poison him. Or chocolate, or getting hold of a roach motel that might have been hiding under the fridge, or who knows what. There are so many things a curious dog could gobble down. Whatever it was, I sure hope he didn't sustain any permanent damage from this incident.

Rayven: WillWallace, if most biologists secretly wanted to create a mutant strain of Ebola to wipe out 90% of humankind, 90% of humankind would already be dead.

I doubt it. Wiping out 5.4 billion people with an organism would be nigh impossible. It makes for good science fiction, but I find it implausible in practice.

Not that that excuses William Wallace's asshattery.

That you're doing good work helps balance out the stereotypical biologist secretly wishing for a mutant strain of Ebola to wipe out 90% of humanity, end the cause of global warming, and make the world better for the other species that live here.

Maybe one of the dumbest things written on the internet yesterday.

So WW can't tell the difference between a Tom Clancy book and reality. I'm sure we all could have guessed that was the case, but it's nice to have confirmation.

ERV, it's great to hear that Arnie is on the mend. I hope he's all the way back to his old self soon.

Glad to hear Arnie's feeling better. I second the boo on rawhides sentiment, mostly because our presumed Rottie-Australian Cattle Dog mix would devour a rawhide in about two days. For a 45-lb dog she's a remarkable chewer. We stumbled upon the bones from http://www.freerangedogchews.com/ and have decided to stick with them. They're a lot stronger than boiled bones and break off in tiny harmless bits.

If you get tried of cooking for Arnie, there's a good selection of US made high quality dog foods out there. We go with Chicken Soup for the Dog Lover's Soul brand.

Hey Rev, there are some pretty dumb things written on the internet yesterday, but it must be in the top 1% of dumb comments on scienceblogs yesterday...

Also, for anyone not familiar with Ebola, it's fast...way too fast to cause a pandemic. It infects and kills in a matter 10-12 days. Of that time, and in most strains, only the later half is contagious with the person usually already showing symptoms. It's also not airborne.

@ Jared

Those are some Clancy's Macguffins -- the Ebola strain in one book mutated to become airborne, but burned itself out. The second book using that plot point was not airborne, but engineered to last longer, I believe.

@WW:

I'm not sure working at McDonald's really counts as "saving lives"... I'm sure even if you didn't feed them they woulda found food SOMEWHERE.

Hey Rev, there are some pretty dumb things written on the internet yesterday, but it must be in the top 1% of dumb comments on scienceblogs yesterday...

Ok. I'll give you that, easily.

"Wait, wasn't the ebola thing the plot of a Tom Clancy novel?...Yeyp, I was right. That's the first Rainbow Six book."

Ransom, haven't read the book. Was it good?

But, really, ransom, you should try non-fiction sometime. Might want to start with The Georgia Guidestones, which will at least point out that some wacky people do have dreams of a decimated population.

Then you might want to learn about a modern biologist who reportedly espoused similar aspirations to a standing ovation, although he later recanted when the feds were called in to investigate, noting he has granddaughters.

"there are sooooo many ways evil scientists could kill us."

And yet we have the recent suicide of microbiologist Bruce E. Ivins, who was about to be charged, according to news reports, for the 2001 Anthrax attacks that left five others dead.

The only stupid I see is ERV readers citing Tom Clancy novels.

Anyway, about dogs, from what I understand, some people put their dogs on raw meat diets, and wild dogs scavenge. It is kind of sad the vets cannot identify exactly what went wrong so that you could more knowingly take correct action.

"But, really, ransom, you should try non-fiction sometime. Might want to start with The Georgia Guidestones, which will at least point out that some wacky people do have dreams of a decimated population."

So you extrapolate "biologists" from "some whacky people". A curious methodology (and by curious, I mean retarded).

I'd also like a citation and some details on that other incident. Most importantly, who did he receive a standing ovation from?

Ebola and Marsburg are rumored to have been spliced into smallpox for use as bioweapons. If most scientists were evil, I'm sure it would be pretty easy to figure out a method to wipe most humans out. Like I said there are many ways to do so, not just viral methods.

http://74.125.95.104/search?q=cache:AqsNw7q5h8MJ:www.columbia.edu/cu/bi…

Things like ebolapox are a real threat and are not crazy paranoia. That said, I still think what Wallace said was vile. Most scientists are not evil and out to destroy the world. Are there a few who are? Probably, and I'd be willing to bet that those who are,(or who may be in the future), will be those rare scientists who are religious whackaloons. Most scientists are rational and feel a responsibility for human life. Lucky for us, for every Mengele there are a hundred thousand ERVs fighting them.

So, according to Wally, the basis for his stereotype about biologists "wishing for the death of 90% of humanity" are:

1.) A weird cult monument made by an unknown person;

2.) Hearsay based solely on the testimony of a well-known quote-mining YEC kook, and thoroughly debunked by the other talk attendees;

and

3.) A terrorist with narrowly-defined, politically motivated targets.

From this, Wally feels safe in extrapolating to the tens of thousands of working biologists worldwide, that they wish for the deaths of 90% of humanity.

Every appalling glimpse into Wally's tiny, defective mind only depresses me even further.

By minimalist (not verified) on 11 Sep 2008 #permalink

And as Rayven implied, let us not forget that Ivins was a good Catholic, and his many letters to the editor of my local paper (the Frederick News-Post) were of a conservative, Catholic and pro-life bent.

Oh, and he wasn't convicted. That's kind of important in our legal tradition, though Wally no doubt thinks he should have been stoned as soon as the witchsmeller sussed him out.

Facts never stood in Wally's way before, though.

(And yes, of course I have my own grave doubts about the FBI's investigation, as does every biologist I've talked to here [I do not work at Fort Detrick]. But it's best not to cause Wally's li'l piece of thinkmeat to overheat with too many facts at once.)

By minimalist (not verified) on 11 Sep 2008 #permalink

Please let me apologize in advance for feeding a troll.

But for anyone not familiar with the situation, let me disabuse you of the notion that Mr. Wallace is at all correct when he says:

you might want to learn about a modern biologist who reportedly espoused similar aspirations to a standing ovation

Yes, learn about it. Google Eric Pianka, FBI, and Texas Academy of Science. You will learn that Bill Dembski reported Dr. Pianka to the FBI based on a secondhand version of Dr. Pianka's talk about threats to global health. If you are familiar with Mr. Dembski, you will not be surprised to hear that Dembski's and Wallace's portrayal of the talk is a lie.

Say hello to my killfile, Mr. Wallace.

PS--

I'm glad to hear that Arnie is recovering, and wish the two of you the best. My brother's dog is recovering from a battle with a venomous snake, it looks like she might have a chance too.

From this, Wally feels safe in extrapolating to the tens of thousands of working biologists worldwide, that they wish for the deaths of 90% of humanity.

What about all those evangelical Christians not-so-secretly wishing for the death and destruction of... I don't know how many % all those "Tribulations" add up to, but a substantial chunk by all reports. Oh and scorpion torture.

True story: Recently I was driving through Indiana for a close friend's 40th birthday party. Not having any CD's to play in the rental car, and believing in the entertainment value of what the Simpsons called "the magic of AM radio", I did some station scanning.

Eventually I ran across a station where I heard the host saying, "...All I'm saying is that it is entirely reasonable for Iran to have nuclear weapons to defend themselves. If Israel has them, why can't Iran?"

And I remember thinking, "Huh, wow, well I don't think I would ever go so far as to trust Iran with nukes, but it's really unusual to hear an opinion that far left in rural Indi--"

Radio: "...after all, it will only hasten the apocalyptic Middle East conflict with Israel that will help to bring about the Second Coming of Our Lord and Savior!"

Me: "...Oh."

The only difference between Josef Stalin and a fundie wishing for the rapture is that at least Stalin was enough of a go-getter to go out and make those tens of millions of murders happen.

By minimalist (not verified) on 12 Sep 2008 #permalink

Can't believe all you otherwise intelligent people let a nutcase take over this thread.

Think of him as whatever kind of evil joker you can imagine and then think of him again as laughing long and loud as you all jumped in to attack him. He achieved his goal which was to gain attention. Don't feed the trolls.