Charles Avocado VanGogh, the three-legged corgi

Charles came home with me on Thursday late afternoon. I had so many questions to ask them. Admittedly, I felt kind of silly asking some of the questions. But you know what they say, “The only stupid question is the question that goes unasked”.

The doctors confirmed for me that the leg was sent to pathology for biopsy and culture. They are hoping that the biopsy will be able to tell them whether or not it was indeed vasculitis, so we have yet to receive any answers as far as that is concerned.

With all of the medications that Charles came home with and the different timings, I spent a few minutes making a schedule so we could make sure that he gets all of the meds that he needs when he needs them.

I noticed when Charles got home that his face was pretty swollen, so I frantically called ISU vet med right away. They told me simply to monitor his breathing and make sure he could still swallow food/water. So me, the anxious doggo mom that I am, watched him meticulously. He was panting a little bit, so I texted my friend who is currently a 3rd year in the vet med program to figure out the difference between panting and wheezing. I decided he was just normal panting due to being warm from the bandage. I loosened his e-collar so it would fit over his swollen head easier and became suspicious that maybe it was too tight. Sure enough, the next morning his face was no longer swollen.

Charles’ swollen face. 🙁 He looked like he had eaten a bumblebee.

I slept with a dim light on all evening with him at the foot of my mattress on the floor (which has always been my bed arrangement with him so he can easily get up and down from my bed). With my head a the foot of my bed, I couldn’t tell you how many times I awoke through the night to make sure he was still there and still breathing. I wasn’t joking about being an anxious doggo mama. In the morning, I got out of bed and knelt beside him. Charles was still zonked. I started to softly speak to him and he awoke startled and crying and ran over to me. We had to spend some time snuggling on the floor so he felt better before I continued to get ready for the morning.

Another issues we have been having since Charles came home is that he doesn’t seem to be in complete control of his anus. He overall is holding most of the poop in (he has had some nice, big poops outside); however, there are little drops of poop that continually come out of his butt and fall on the floor that I have to pick up. Thankfully his poops have hardened up a bit since he first came home and things are not as messy, but it is still frustrating. Obviously I’m not frustrated at him. He goes in for a bandage change on Monday, so if it is still happening by that point I will talk to the doctor about it.

Chillin’ on the floor waiting for his grandma to arrive this morning!

My mom came to visit Charles and I for the weekend. We are so loved by our family. I also received get-well-cards in the mail from my grandparents and my dad. They were really precious and I nearly cried. We are so lucky to have such a loving and supportive family.

I think Charles is really getting the hang of being a tripawd very quickly. He even has been so motivated as to try and play with his soccer ball or think about jumping up on the couch. He even has his new Ruffwear harness with the handles so I can help him as needed. We are ready to take on the world, three paws at a time!