I'm exhausted from cleaning up Choya's two bouts of unexpected diarrhea over the past two days. It wasn't continuous, thank gawwd. Just two bouts of mega shits that required mega clean-up. She showed no indication of distress or being unwell. She hasn't eaten anything unusual. She has issues with anxiety and excitement-pooping. I thought it was that, until the second bout in the night. A fully toilet-trained dog pooping on the bedroom carpet, twice. Well. This would be a first. I didn't even bother reacting. She didn't do it on purpose. She is genuinely unwell.
The first bout of diarrhea happened when we were not at home on Monday. I thought she anxiety-pooped from the whole morning of rain and thunder. The second bout happened at 4.30am on Tuesday when I missed all her cues because I was in deep sleep. Haizzzzz. I simply picked up the dog, wiped her butt and plonked her in the toilet so she wouldn't get in our way of cleaning. When I cleared a path to walk, the man took her out to finish up. At least for now, that she isn't a dog who steps in her poop or eats it. I'm even more relieved that the iRobot is far away and can't be turned on. Imagine that rolling across liquid poop. OMG.
Yes yes I know. Dogs = no carpets, and/or don't set them up up for failure. This dog is fully house-trained but accidents happen. I'll deal. Unfortunately the carpets came before the dog, and they're not removable. The man loves his carpets and he's especially fond of this $2000 carpet in the bedroom. WTF. I don't give a uhhh shit about carpets. They're just allergen-trapping eeky things. This soiled carpet is. Eyond my skills. Turned it over to the professionals. I'm incredibly pleased that the cleaning solutions firm (ChemDry) had an immediate slot for me and turned up promptly later in the afternoon. I know that the stains can't be lifted from a light-colored carpet. That's fine by me. I wanted it disinfected. While the cleaning crew got busy at home, I sent the man out to Decathlon to buy cheap yoga mats. They'll lay across the room in the nights and when we're not home. That should minimize uhh 'spread zone'.
After watching Choya for the whole of yesterday, the man and I made a call to send her to school today, as usual. We informed the the school of her diarrhea, and are on standby to pick her up if the school thinks she needs to go to the vet. Yes, she has diarrhea, but it isn't continuous. It’s unlikely to be infectious or contagious. The two bouts were spread over 14 hours, and she's been doing okay after the Tuesday 4.30am shitsplosion. The liquid is the same chocolate color as her normal poop — no slime jelly, no blood, no worms, no strange bits, no undigested grass. She exhibits no other symptoms. There isn't vomiting, no panting, no difficulty in breathing, no cough, no hacking, no mucus dripping from the nose, and the tongue is the usual pink, She is eating and drinking per normal. She's alert, perhaps a little lethargic; napping more, but willing to do her usual walks.
Nope, I'm not the kind to rush to the vet clinic at first instance. (Thanks to SkillsFuture credits paying for all those Canine First Responder Courses and random paid/complimentary veterinary talks I keep signing up for.) It helps when I have the vet's number too and he's cool with texts/calls from me. But that's only because he knows I'm not a crazy pawrent who'd text him for every little drop of blood.
Played food detective to try to isolate what might have caused it. She doesn't eat things off the floor. She nibbles on grass that might have pesticides. She hasn't eaten new foods. Either there was a bad batch of something she ingested on Sunday that resulted in literally food poisoning, or it's IBS (not IBD) from too much cheese. And we conclude it's highly possible she has been eating too much cheese. This would be on us. We failed her tummy. Bad pawrents.
I had to cancel my appointments for yesterday and today. I didn't know what's happening and I needed to watch the dog, take her out to poop, check her poop, and make a judgment call if and when to take her to the vet. Luckily there were only two appointments- with one very understanding work associate yesterday, and a lunch today with one girlfriend who told me to take all the time I need and to text her when I'm ready. I was a bit emo after their replies came in, especially after reading the girlfriend's. Her love filled my heart and made me feel less tired when I'm sleep-deprived. I'm thankful that the girlfriend gave me all the space I need to sort out the dog. Not everyone understands the care and attention we give to our furries and fluffies.
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