Good Morning!

Ha roo, pups and cool cats!  It's me - Zim - back, as promised!  Here's the bottom line on yesterday -- I had my BIG Senior Care vet visit.  In the Senior Care Program, we go in twice a year (unless something else comes up, then it's more often).  Both visits are very thorough, but the BIG one is incredible.  They do all kinds of stuff.  My appointment started at 0900 and we left around 1500 - so that should give you an idea of how involved it is!

A couple years ago, Stormy blogged a complete run-down of what really happens at the Senior Care appointments - the yearly and the 6-month one.  Please go ahead and read that for all the technical stuff.  Here's what happened of note at my yearly ~

When I checked in at the front desk, there wasn't much going on.  We got there a little early, and the vets and senior students were still on rounds.  Mom let me pick where we'd sit and wait - and I naturally chose a position where I could see everything that was going on!

"Yeah, this is perfect, Mom!"

I just love watching everyone come and go.  Sometimes people stop and tell me how handsome I am or scratch my ears.  That's really cool.  I also love that it's wide-open out there - no crowding, no invasion of personal space!

The Lhasa Apso I mentioned yesterday was already there, but no one else had checked in yet.  I thought I'd offer my services as the official Greeter to the hospital!

"Good morning, and welcome to the Kansas State University Veterinary Health Center!"

Yeowzers, is that ever a muzzle full!  I greeted one happy little Beagle (silently, by the way, and gave him lots of space) then settled in to wait for the next client.

Before anyone else checked in, my Senior Student came out and got us.  She was really nice - very confident and professional, yet friendly.  She helped me feel calm and relaxed!

Since Mom knew we'd be there quite a while, she brought a canteen full of water for me.  It was nice and cool in the exam room, but I did get a bit thirsty.  In between tests, it was nice to take a beverage break.

"The blood draw was easy; but all this holding still stuff is horribly challenging!"

I thought I'd like a potty break, too, and usually they let me take one.  Yesterday, though, they needed something called a "sterile sample" and I heard things like "Sorry, Zim, free-catch won't do it" and "How about another drink of water?".  I should have remembered ... click here for the ol' water ploy ... I should have remembered!  (And I should have held out for treats in the water!)

So ... my Vet and Vet Tech flipped me verrrrrry gently onto my back and the Senior Student tried to do a cystocentesis.  (Some of you might not want to read this part -- but that's where they get a long, thin needle and stick it through your belly into your bladder to get a urine sample.)  If you read the link in the paragraph above, you'll know that I have a small bladder.  My student was really great and I didn't feel a thing (she was so gentle!) - but they couldn't find my bladder.  I thought I had won that round, when someone (MOM!) said she was pretty sure I would also cooperate for Option 2 -- catheterization.  (That's where they insert a tube through your ... let's move on!)

For privacy purposes, we don't have photos of that.  Apparently, both my student and I did very well and they got what they needed.  It really wasn't a big deal -- except for having to flip onto my side, which I did NOT want to do!  Oh, sure, I often CHOOSE to lay on my side, but have someone TELL me to, and it's totally different.  Seriously.  It's all about control!  I can't help it - it's in the Siberian Husky rule book.  But the Vet and Vet Tech were once again very gentle with me ... so it's all good.

In totally unrelated news, here's a photo of my Vet Tech's pant leg:

Revenge of the Siberian Husky

Ha roo roo roo.  Hey.  Shed happens, right?  (Sorry, Beth.  No hard feelings?)

Another part of the Senior Care visit is taking blood pressure (BP).  Usually, they shave your wrist a little and put a cuff on a front leg - and monitor it there.  (Click here to see how that goes for Dave.)  Now, some of us have a really hard time relaxing when someone's touching our feety-feet ... and so our vets have a solution for that, too.

Tail!

Yep.  They take the BP on my tail.  Because clippers and I have a bad history, they did the cuffing and clipping way before they needed to take my BP -- so that I could get back into my Zen of Zim Zone.  Once everything was pretty well wrapped up, they said Mom and I could just relax in the room for a bit then they'd come back in and see about taking my BP.  Here I am, finding my happy place:

"Zzzzzen of Zzzzzimmmm..."

As you can see, I was in the Zone!

Everything went pretty well!  I didn't need any kind of sedatives at all for the x-rays, cysto, catheterizing, or anything else.  So far, it looks like all the reports are mighty good for a 12.5 year old!  I'm a little on the thin side again, but given how hot it's been, that's not a big surprise.  A long, exhausting, but really good exam day - and then home!

Chilling at home!

So that's why I was so late posting yesterday.  And of course, I had some things to tend to after I got home.  You know -- a quick nap, a really late lunch, an incredibly short walk (I think it was 106℉/41.1℃ ... I've stopped looking), then some fun with Dad and Dave!  I'll share some pix of that in a day or two!

Special thanks to everyone at the K-State Vet School for the great check up!

Play bows,
Zim