Back to the vet

Zachary, in the lobby at the vet's office

I think it had been at least a week, maybe almost two, since I had been to the vet.  That can throw the universe off balance if it goes on too long, so today Zachary restored order with another vet run.  He hasn't been eating well, he's been having increasing difficulty getting around it seems, and is reluctant to do the stairs, both going up and coming down.  This morning when Clay got up, Zachary didn't get up with him.  That's a first for him and was a definite sign that we needed to go to the vet. 

He was happy to see Clay there when
we walked in.

The blood work was mostly normal.  He wouldn't give up a urine sample so we need to collect that this weekend.  He's got a low grade fever and was slightly dehydrated.  And his skin infection is back, or never really went away. 

We know from the xrays that he's got severe arthritis and we need to get him on an anti-inflammatory that he can tolerate and that works.  Before we can start that, however, he has to be off the carprofen he's been taking for a few days.  We'll give him tramadol for the pain in the meantime and Cipro for the staph infection on his skin. 


The waiting is NOT the worst part as
far as Zachary is concerned.

I called Clay as we were heading to town and he met us there, which was a nice surprise for Zachary.  Zach trusts me when he's scared or nervous, but he always feels better when Clay's around.

Clay went back to work and Zach and I
waited for the test results.