It is a little known fact that the dog of this house underwent an unsettling change on Thursday last.
Macaulay the wiry haired terrier had a paw which was asking him questions. Even a great monumental plastic cone couldn’t keep him from trying to answer them.
It was not a happy paw, and so early on Thursday morning he was driven to the vets to be put under the knife.
Anyone who saw the title ‘Mac The Knife’ on Friday’s post need be in no doubt what was troubling me. I don’t like operations myself, I’ve had one go belly-up complete with mad ambulance dashes; and I don’t like operations for my dog either.
But needs must. A poorly paw is a poorly paw.
The whole Nil By Mouth concept gave the dog grevious cause for concern. Maddie and Felix assumed responsibility for policing the business. Reminders went up around the house, penned by its minors: MACAULAY CURFEW: 6PM – 6:30AM.
Woe betide anyone who offered that ever-receptive pair of jaws a tidbit during these dark hours.
The dog became imperative in his body language. He sat in silent tummy-rumbling outrage for hours on end, and finally, disgusted, retired to sleep with his back to us.
Thursday dawned early and very strange. Phil began the day by walking Macaulay in the forest, and then took him for his eight o’ clock assignation with the dog doctor. When Phil grabbed the lead to take him away the dog was delighted: another walk? He signalled. Capital!
I had to turn away as they walked off down the drive, and apply myself rigorously to the day, in which many things happened, but there was a lonely vacuum in my home. There was no one to go running with; no one to reassure, grumble at, banter with, feed, exist alongside. My companion was on a table, having his paw dealt with, and I will be honest and say I was a little bereft.
We got a call about two in the afternoon. The dog had woken up. He was groggy: but not so groggy that he could not eat a large bowl of doggie chow.
We collected him at six that evening, and since then Macaulay has been a convalescent dog. Mainly because the anaesthetic has played havoc with his digestive system and the wind which normally graces his human family with such largesse was trapped inside, giving him gyp.
He was unhappy with things all day yesterday, rubbing his nose and squirming on the carpet, whining and uncomprehending of the source of his discomfort. We stroked him and pampered him and talked to him, and nothing could take the pain away.
After a frankly disquiet night, the dog woke with that old light in his eye.
He went running with Phil, and it was Phil who relented first, returning because the cold of the early morning was -5c, and was freezing his cheeks. The swarthy terrier seemed far more comfortable, covered as he was in tough brown hair perfect for the conditions.
The dog emerged at lunchtime to help clear up a helping of lasagna which was too much for its first owner.
He ran ragged through the forest with the family this afternoon, putting the snow bang to rights.
And at tea time, while we munched and played Narnia Risk, he took advantage of a diversion in which White Witch was trying to rob Peter of some substantial tracts of land. He went into Stealth Mode, and robbed Felix of a substantial chocolate slice.
I walked back into the sitting room, having taken a sponge out of the oven, and the whole room was in uproar. “It’s terrible, Mum!” Felix shouted.
“What;s happened? ” I asked. “Has the White Witch won?”
“No,” rejoined Phil, “But the Brown Witch has though…”
Welcome back, old rogue.
The convalescent had not quite finished with the sympathy vote, however. Felix is relieved to have his hairy playmate back. He was finishing his tea, brandishing a replacement chocolate slice as he elaborated his tactics for vanquishing the white witch.
All at once we became aware that the cardinal sin was being committed: Felix had thrown his arm around his furry friend- not a mealtime occupation – and his chocolate-slice-gesticulation had carried the slice within inches of Macaulay’s nose.
We now know that our synapses work faster than Macaulay’s. Phil, Maddie and I shouted “No!” and Felix whipped the cake away with fractions of a second to spare.
Macaulay was cruelly deprived of a second slice of cake. We now have concrete evidence that our dog is no longer convalescent.
He has returned to his healthy, wiry, thieving self once more.
Kate Shrewsday 
I am just setting off for a lunch invite in Surrey, but my day has started in a brilliant way with this lovely tale about your naughty little dog. Welcome back Macaulay.
Thanks Rosemary. Time to stash all the food well out of reach once more. A return to normality.
Its brilliant 😀 so glad Mac is back in town!
Me too, Linda. It’s been awful quiet the last few days.
i’m so glad to hear he is himself again. i hate animals to be in distress, they can’t always tell us what is wrong
I know, and we can’t always figure out how to help them…I feel just the same, Sidey
ah well, now he’s had a chance to steal treats he’s probably feeling very happy
Ecstatic, Sidey 😀
I hope the poor paw is better as well? Was it a grass seed?
No, they can’t get to the bottom of what caused it. However there’s nothing truly nasty, so that’s a relief.
Wonderful! So glad normality has been restored 🙂
Thanks Fiona, so are we!
Isn’t it amazing to watch them bounce back. So glad all is well, they have such a special place in our hearts and souls….
They do. It has been quiet: it is no longer quiet 😀
(Hope you made the most of it 😆 )
So glad Mac is back, appetite and all. Give him a pat for me, will you?
[towriteistowrite.wordpress.com–commenting as a Sister in Crime, it appears]
😀 Hi Kathy, nice to see you. I will indeed give him a pat on your behalf!
Good news, Kate. Glad that Macaulay is well again, and his paws and mouth unhindered.
Thank you, Banno. He has a spring in his step once again!
So very glad for Macaulay and all the family that he is back to his normal self. Nothing worse than to see a family member in pain and soooo much better to see that pain go away. Happy Sunday to Mac.
Thanks Lou 🙂 Everyone’s much relieved that he’s well again.
Yep, he’s back! Glad that he’s back on his paws and his mouth is in full working order again! 🙂
So are we, IE! Thanks!
Yay, Macaulay!! Happy for all of you that he’s none the worse for wear. 🙂
Do beware the chocolate though–probably not enough in a slice of cake to do damage, but it can be deadly: http://animals.howstuffworks.com/pets/question348.htm
Alas, Karen, we have grappled with this whole chocolate thing for years. Macaulay is such a consummate thief that it is not the first time he has sampled chocolate. The first few times we panicked and ran him straight to the vets, but these days, since it seems to leave him still standing and unaffected, we sigh and vow to store such foodstuffs ever higher…
Glad that the pause for the pup’s poorly paws is over. 😀
Thanks Nancy 🙂
Well done, Macaulay! Brave soldier on the mend. And as for the chocolate, while I’m aware of the dangers reported by vets and dog lovers the world around, we had an Irish Setter when I was growing up whose taste for cacao derivatives was… impressive. She would go to great and felonious lengths to acquire it. And she lived to be a grande dame of a dog.
That is hugely reassuring, Cameron 😀 Some dogs just seem to have cast iron stomachs…
This calls for a typically South African response, even if I have to explain it. Viz: ‘Ag SHAME!’
The ‘Ag’ is pronounced like, and has much the same effect as, the Scots ‘Och’. The ‘shame’ is used to express a combination of ‘poor thing’ in a sympathetic way, and ‘how cute’.
I have heard of ‘shame’ before – and a South African friend living here used to baffle me by using it all the time! Thank you for explaining it so beautifully, and for the sentiments in Macaulay’s favour. I shall go and bestow an ‘ach, shame’ on him right now!
It must, indeed, be bewildering to those who have never encountered it in SA idiom!
Thanks for the explanation 🙂
Terriers are all like that, Kate. Buster was…..
But I fancy Mac has the edge!
Love Dad
I think you might be right there, Dad 🙂
Ah, glad to know Macaulay’s back to his old rascally self… 😉
Status quo once more, Ruth. It is good to miss someeone for a little while to appreciate what one has…
Kate, you raging softie. I love you for that! Good on ya, Macaulay! Keep those humans on alert!
He will, Amy, rest assured, he will 😀
Mac’s reactions are absolutely tip-top, then Kate! No worries there. 🙂
Re the chocolate, when my springer Rolls was diagnosed with epilepsy and had to have up to four tablets twice a day, the vet recommended giving them to him embedded in slices of Mars bar, which worked a treat! He suffered no ill effects from the Mars bar and it made the whole thing a fleeting pleasure for him and for me!
😀 I’ve never heard of a vet prescribing chocolate before. What larks! Mac used to adore tables and eat them first, before his food. Screw loose somewhere. However that has recently changes after Phil started wrapping each piece of medication in a slice of salami…
It worked well! I’d used cheese previously but it took a lot of cheese to hide four tablets and a good Cheddar is prone to cracking. Ah, what red-blooded dog isn’t partial to treats from the deli?! 🙂
Dear Kate,
I so enjoyed this posting as I came to know Macaulay better. What a fine dog he is. A true companion. I’m happy for Felix that his buddy is thriving again.
Peace.
Hi Dee 🙂 Felix is very happy. And between you and I, so am I.
Very entertaining read Kate and I am happy that the doggy is feeling better. My dog had to be put under anaesthetic recently and I can sympathise with you, especially in regard to the nil by mouth (even water) – I was worried all day and such relief when it was all over – Sheba has since forgiven me for the traumatic experience 😉
It’s amazing how much they do forgive and forget, isn’t it Gabrielle? Your dogs are total poster pin-ups: Phil and I spent quite a lot of time gazing at them when you posted pictures 🙂
So glad dear Macaulay is up to his old tricks! Just like a child, after a period of illness we are even pleased with their naughty behaviors for a while…we look for signs that all is well! You got your sign! No more emergencies or surgeries for anyone in the Shrewsday household! Debra
Nope, back to normal just in time for our half term holiday, Debra 🙂 Thanks.
Mac rules the roost once more, hooray! Glad that he recovered so quickly, Kate~
Thanks Angela: we’re all very relieved 🙂
So glad he’s back to normal 🙂
Thanks Tilly 🙂 We expect him to be signed off by the vets today…
glad it all went smoothly 🙂
Many thanks, Tandy!
What a wonderful story. Mac seems like a great dog and I’m glad he’s feeling better.
Hello, Julie! Lovely to hear from you! He is such a huge personality- we’re relieved to have him back.
That’s good news, Kate 😀
It is, BB 🙂
A dog of his disposition could never stay down long. Glad he is recovered.