Brutus Survived His Doctor's Visit! Yay!!

Today was Brutus's first check-up at the vet since we were told that they wouldn't be able to see him unless he was sedated. I have been an absolute wreck. I mean downright pop an anxiety pill wreck. It was literally breaking my heart to think of him not only being muzzled, but being stabbed with a needle during a full on fight to knock him out.

In the doctor's defense, when we first adopted Brutus and took him to the vet, our little lovey did try to kill the vet, twice. It wasn't pretty, so their thought of needing to sedate him was justified. I just didn't like it, and I'm sure that if Brutus knew what was coming, he wouldn't like it either.

As luck would have it, we pulled in to the parking lot, and there was Brutus's teacher Libby. She came buzzing over to the car and said a big "hello" to both of us, and it was so good to see her. I'm really looking forward to getting back in to classes this fall when we move back to the city. I went to PetSmart, which is attached to the pet hospital, a little early so we would have some time for Brutus to walk around and get acclimated. Amazingly, he got up on the scale, and even sat and stayed. I pointed this out to the receptionist, and she made note of his weight. A very healthy (overweight by 4.7 lbs.) 74.7 lbs. We'll take it. He's been getting lots of treats since every day has been a training day. After they took his weight, we walked around the store some more since they didn't have a room ready yet.

Finally, the time had come, and suddenly, Brutus knew it. He took off for the front door, and the entire length of his leather leash went burning across the palm of my hand and my little finger. OK, I will admit that there were a couple four letter words muttered under my breath as I was talking baby talk to coax him back into the clinic, but I managed to get him in the clinic, and in to the room. I knew things were bad when the paper work that they normally insist you sign before you even enter a room was sitting on the counter in the exam room. That meant the staff was already worried, which is never good. My anxiety went up a level.

As soon as we got in the room and the door shut, Brutus decided that if he stared at the door hard enough, it just might open. He stared at that door for a good fifteen minutes. I even tried liver treats, and he wasn't moving. Was I a bad mom to keep taking pictures?

The door didn't magically open from him staring at it, so after fifteen minutes, he turned around and gave me this look. Yeah, that didn't melt my heart at all. Ugh! Kind of says "HELP" doesn't it.

About this time, the door opened. The most amazing vet tech that I have ever had the pleasure of having for my animals came through that door. I swear that there were harps playing. She came in and pretty much ignored Brutus, and talked to me. We both sat on the floor, and as she was talking to me about Brutus (and not typing on the computer) she started to gently pet him, and pretty soon she was rubbing his head, and his ears and then his tummy. I was amazed. Brutus was going for it. I handed her the bag of liver treats that I had brought with, and Brutus was eating them out of her hand. I was in love with this girl. Denise at Banfield in Eden Prairie if anyone wants to request her. She was AMAZING!! She didn't try to take his temperature knowing that it would ruin the good vibe, but instead tried to make this a good experience for Brutus. She spent a good half an hour with him, and then went to get the veterinarian. She said that she would ask the doctor to remove her coat, and she took the liver treats with her so the doctor could come in prepared with the good stuff.

Brutus and I had to wait another twenty minutes before the doctor got in there, but sure enough, she came in without her coat off, and treats in hand. She played it pretty cool too, and used a really positive voice with Brutus. Things were going pretty well. Then came exam time. This was the point where they had said they would have to sedate him, but she suggested that we just try muzzling him, so they handed me the muzzle which I put on Brutus without a fuss, and on we went. The first thing she did was look in Brutus's ears, and he went at her like a bear going after a donut. Thankfully, she didn't have an instrument in her hand, she was just eyeballing it, and his ears looked great from that vantage point. He didn't fuss at all through the rest of the exam, even when she gave him his shots. He just has some kind of issue with his ears. I was so excited when that visit was over that I wanted to dance on the ceiling. Brutus wasn't quite as excited, as you can see in the picture below. I think he was saying "get me the hell out of here, please".

As soon as the bill was paid, I took Brutus and buzzed over to Libby's office and threw my arms around her and said "NO SEDATION". She was just about as excited as I was, as she has a very special place in her heart for rescued animals too. She was SOOO proud of Brutus, and so am I. What a huge relief. After hugging Libby and doing a little happy dance, I took Brutus shopping for a new Frisbee and a stuffed animal to destroy. This boy definitely deserved it. Job well done. :)