to vaccinate or not to vaccinate, that is the question

saturday: our intention was to be good parents. we got an email from the vet informing us of upcoming vaccination due dates for both dogs. what luck! we just got paid, we had time off, there was a vaccine clinic providing low(er) cost service-it was as if the stars had aligned and lit the path up the hill to the vet's office.

oh no. well, oskar was fine. we have come to expect some logie-ness post shots so that did not cause any alarm. i took note multiple times during the night, as i rolled over bugsy, that he would let out this excruciating yelp. again, i chalked it up to sensitive limbs due to shots.

saturday night/sunday morning: my real concern started when i noticed the swelling in bugsy's leg where the shots were given. huh. little weird i guess. then he started limping and favoring his swollen hip/leg. then he stopped moving around all together. now i was very concerned. this is when i began to look up 'side effects of bortedella shot' and really began to worry.

here is what i learned:
~ similar to the polarizing human vaccination debate, there is a community of pet owners who solemnly believe that vaccinations only harm your little one. it is considered to be a money making scam among veterinarians as your animal doesn't need vaccines, they are simply recommended. a vet insisting on one is only looking for cash and in the long run they make your animal sicker than they would have been had you never vaccinated them at all. well, regardless of your (or my) stance on this issue, i began to look for warning signs from bugsy that he may die soon. he had the following:
loss of appetite, no movement (which meant no bathroom), not interested in drinking water and occasional panting despite the fact he hasn't been moving.
of course, these are all 'bad signs' and i should 'call my vet immediately'.

sunday: so i call my emergency vet (who, side note, when i win the lottery one day i will give these people so much money as they have managed to calm me down for free many, many times). they give me the usual, "if it's not better by tomorrow take him to your vet, but he should be fine"

sunday night/monday morning: i can't sleep. i restlessly go in and out of bizarre dreams while trying to avoid rolling over bugsy. finally, i pull out the lap top and start researching 'side effects of rabies vaccination'. i find this charming discussion board where this woman gives the play by play of her sick boston terrier post rabies vaccine. he has trouble breathing, won't eat or pee, seems to be pained in his hind quarters. hey! just like bugsy! she recounts the vet visit where she is told it is actually some infection in the bladder and the dog is so sick and in so much pain at this point that she has to decide if it is better to just put him down. in the end she does. all carried out via the this discussion board. its three o'clock in the morning and i'm ready to cry and barf at the thought of putting my dog to sleep.

monday: there is a seemingly miraculous turn around. (thank you Jesus-Allah-Buddha). he is eating, roaming around the house, even doing a bit o' butt wiggle. as my fear subsides, so does my general anger toward the vet technicians who needlessly jammed my poor dog full of needles.

so, conclusion: (animal) vaccinations, many believe they are not entirely necessary...so do your research before you order a vac-cocktail. regardless of stance on this issue, it is important to keep in mind the size of your dog and maybe spread out the vaccines over a couple of weeks OR ask the shooter to at least change up the point of entry.

the background

the idea for this blog has been in the back of mind for years now and has even attempted to take shape a few times. lying awake many a restless night perusing the internet for answers to my dogs' ailments has left something to be desired. that is not to say that there aren't some equally hysterical doggy parents out there, frantically posting to discussion boards in search of some alternative to the vet....but....there is very little with a concern, an issue, a momentary freak out with follow up. it's all well and good to know that other dogs are inexplicably dry heaving at 3:00 am but what i am really looking for is what happened next?!

so, some background:

bugsy. boston terrier. 5 years old now. may as well be a roomba vacuum the way he skims the floors for scraps. however, unlike a roomba, he sheds and is not built to digest some of the charming bits he finds. he is also a chewer, a destroyer really, and has not yet figured out that plastic is hard (and painful) to pass. a sampling of things bugsy has tried to (with some success) eat: light bulb, rubber dinosaur toy, broken shot glass, wood scraps, eye glasses, wine corks, and rubber bands.

oskar. boxer. 3 years old. the muscle of the operation. he is big enough to pull food off the counter, open the cupboard where the trash is kept, and climb on the dining room table. unfortunately for oskar whatever he finds is quickly taken and destroyed by bugsy so he is often considered an accomplice. he, like his big brother, never learns. at only six months old, oskar got into a great deal of trash (i'll spare you the gory details) and ended up on the vet's surgery table to remove the foreign objects and a chunk of his intestine.

i have yet to see it all, but i intend to share what i have and hope to hear your stories along the way.