Tuesday, January 21, 2014

Katie’s teeth cleaning

The Cleaning

Last Saturday morning Katie and I walked over to the vendors across from the Big Tent.  We had an appointment at 10:30 to have Katie's teeth cleaned.  They do it without anesthesia, which I liked, and only charge $110, big dogs and small, which I also liked - and they take credit cards and cash.  If you are interested in having your dog's teeth cleaned, call for an appointment.  They are busy, but are still taking appointments.
 
We checked in early to see where they were and then came back at our appointment time.  I took Katie out of her stroller, leash still on, and handed her over to Gil.  She went right into his arms with no problem.  Everything seemed fine, so I walked away for the half hour it takes to clean the teeth.  Katie's teeth weren't bad, so it actually took a little less time.
 
When I got the call that she was done, I walked back to pay and retrieve her.  When I got there, Gil was waiting for me, with the fingers and back of his hand covered with Band-Aids with blood seeping through the centers of the Band-Aids.  He told me Katie had crate fear.  I've never had Katie at a groomers or vet where I left her, so I know she hasn't been in a wire crate since I've had her, but I don't know what happened before I rescued her.
 
There are two men who do the cleaning, one cleans while the other answers the phone and greets customers and takes the next dog back to wait for it's turn.  Gil said she was fine until he tried to place her into the crate while the other man was finishing with his current cleaning patient.  I guess Katie freaked out and tried to get away.  She slipped her collar and was going to get out, so Gil grabbed her by the scruff of the neck, and she turned around and bit him.  

I was really surprised, she hasn't shown that kind of behavior at all and has never bitten anyone, so she must have been really scared.  Poor thing, and poor Gil!  Luckily his Tetanus shot is up to date, as are all Katie's shots.
 
He got hold of her and the other man put her collar back on and made it tighter so she couldn't slip out of it again. They didn't try to cage her again. Gil said she did really well with the cleaning part, no problems at all - she just laid there, wrapped in a blanket and let him clean her teeth. (They wrap them in a blanket like a new born baby so they can't wiggle and use an ultrasonic scaler and hand scalers to remove any plaque.)
 
Here they are - clean, pearlyl-white sparklers:
 


(It looks like there's a “lump” over her fang, but it's just the light – she doesn’t have anything wrong with her gums.)  She was fine when I picked her up, she had a cookie when we got home, and later ate a rawhide chew toy.  Her gums and teeth weren't bothering her at all.  What an easy way to have a pet's teeth cleaned (assuming they aren't afraid of crates).  And Gil said her teeth are very healthy, no problems at all.
 
Here's Gil - he was so great and kind and gentle with Katie.  Of course I apologized profusely, but I had no idea there would be a problem. We used to have a plastic crate, but it was different and I was always there with her.  Now I know to never leave her anywhere they will be putting her in a crate.  No boarding for her, I guess.  Unless I get a sedative from her Vet, which might not be a bad idea to have on hand.
 


Here’s their sign – Doggie Dental is located across the street from the Big Tent in Row “P” Space 29-30.
 


I would highly recommend Doggie Dental – they sure did a nice job with Katie, and even after her “episode,” Gil was as gentle as could be with her and even said they would be happy to clean her teeth again next year.  But we have agreed I’ll put a harness on her and they won’t put her in a crate. I’ll stay with her until they start the cleaning.
 
Hazel and I walked over there yesterday to make an appointment for Fleur, and I talked to Gil again. He only had one Band-aid on and his hand looked good.  He said it was fine.  :) 
 
NOTE:  For any nay-sayers and also for full-disclosure - I've read the articles about non-anesthesia dental cleaning and why it could be bad for our pets.  I've done the research.  Katie's teeth are good, didn't have a lot of plaque, she doesn't have bad breath and her vet said she could easily wait a year.  She has no gingivitis, and was a good candidate for this type of dental cleaning.  I'm not recommending this for all pets, just saying it was great for Katie.  If your pet has very bad teeth with plaque under the gums, I don't know if this procedure will remove the plaque or be appropriate, and you should ask your vet and/or question the technician.  A regular veterinarian visit with cleaning done under anesthesia might be better for your pet.
 
The Big Tent

When we walked through the Big Tent, it was crowded and got worse as we walked along.  I had Katie in the stroller, which is a great idea except when there’s a real crowd.  Then it was hard to keep from running the front wheel up the heels of the people in front of us when they stopped suddenly.  We hightailed it out the first exit I saw and walked home.  But it was fun to see all the excitement and we’re  going to head back there when the crowds abate a bit.
 
This photo is NOTHING like the crowds a little later – we were literally stopped in the center aisle and couldn’t move forward.  See those two women smiling at us?  That’s the kind of smile Katie gets when she’s in the stroller.  I get kick out of the attention she gets, and she seems okay with it, too.  :)
 


Below are a few photos of the rigs parked around my area.  In some places they are literally side by side or nose to tail, and there are RVs in almost all the available spaces closest to the wash near the Big Tent.  There is a regulation, "A minimum of 15 feet of space must be maintained between dwelling units."  It's so that emergency vehicles can get through, and I can see why that's a good idea.  I saw a couple of rigs almost touching, and if one caught on fire, there would be two rigs lost, and maybe more.  Luckily no one is that close to The Palms.
 


You’re Gonna Love This 

There is a road between me and my neighbors, Fay and Butch, and yesterday a truck pulling a trailer parked in the road right between us.  I saw Fay and Butch talking to the wife, who was out of the truck guiding her husband.  They went back to their site and the wife walked over and talked to the husband.  I assumed she told him this was a road, and she then went back to guiding him, but he wasn’t moving ahead, just getting situated.   It looked like he was actually going to park on the road.  I thought maybe Fay and Butch didn’t mention that they were in the middle of a ROAD (for friggin’s sake it should have been obvious!) so I went outside to let them know.  No point in them setting up their camp and then noticing they were holding up traffic; they would have to break camp and find another spot and start all over again.  That's another regulation:  "Campers may not block roads or trails commonly in public use with their parked vehicles, stones, wooden barricades, or by any other means."
 
When I walked up to his window, the husband rolled it down and I said, “You know, this is a road, you aren’t planning to camp here are you?”  He says Yes, he IS going to park here, kind of belligerently.  I said, well, you can’t, it’s a road, you’ll be blocking traffic.  (Meanwhile, two ATVs are at the end of the road by his wife, waiting for him to move so they can get through.  HELLOOOOO - can you spell R-O-A-D?)  I said, “If you move about five feet nearer to my motor home, you’ll be off the road and it’s flat there.”  You won’t believe what he says back to me.  “ I don’t like parking next to roads.  I’m parking on the road.  I do it all the time and I’ve never been told to move.”  So, he doesn’t like the dust of people driving on a road next to his campsite – his solution is to park in the middle of the road so no one else can use it.  I'm thinking, Oh, well then, that's okay.  As long as YOU'RE happy.
 
Meanwhile, the ATV drivers, shaking their heads, take a detour and drive through the area between me and my neighbor on the other side.  That is NOT a road, but I can see it becoming one if this jerk stays in the middle of the real road.
 
I told him the Rangers would be out to get him off the road.  Then he gives me the stink eye – and says, as he’s rolling up his window – “Well, I don’t want to camp next you YOU anyway!!!” and he drives off.
 
That was a pretty exciting meet-up.  Almost all of the people I meet are super nice and friendly, and this guy was a bit of a diversion - got my dander up - made my day.  GET YOUR BUTT OFF MY ROAD, BABY - WE ARE WOMAN, AND WE ARE STRONG!  I have to admit I was feeling quite feisty after our exchange.  LOL 
 



WELCOME to our new Follower, Dave!   Dave says in his profile that he has always loved to travel and has been to 47 states.  He hates to fly, so until they open that causeway to Hawaii, it will not go above 49. I guess he has one more to go, and I think it's North Dakota.  :)  Dave is married to Marcia and they have two dogs, Bubba and Skruffy, who are just darling.  Check out his blog, Going My Way.  Thanks for following along with us, Dave - Welcome Aboard!
 
And WELCOME also to our newest Follower, Catherine Roberts!  In her info shown, there isn't a blog, but here's what she says in part, "To those who might be interested I'm a Mum to a huge brood of boys, I adore my furry friends,Tilly, Fluffa and MIZ Bunny, I'm an artist, a knitter, a weaver, and photographer. I love motorbikes and wish I was 20 years younger to try adventure racing."  Catherine sounds very creative and very interesting, considering the fiber arts and the wish to be an adventure racer!  Thanks for following along with me and Katie - Welcome Aboard, Catherine! :)

From me and Katie, have a great Tuesday, everyone!  :)

22 comments:

  1. That wasn't an RVer, that was a jerk who just happened to have an RV. Lucky you didn't have to turn Katie loose on him.

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  2. OH my what an adventurous day you had!

    Between the Big Tent, the Katie Cleaning, the dipwad in the road..... you lead an exciting life!


    ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
    Karen and Steve
    (Blog) RVing: The USA Is Our Big Backyard
    http://kareninthewoods-kareninthewoods.blogspot.com
    ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

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  3. Hey, thanks for the shout out...been following you for a long time now. And I agree with John, should have turned Katie onto that jerk parking in the road. You know, with that many people in an area the size of Q, a few just have to be jerks...sorry they happened upon you all. As for teeth cleaning, Bubba just had his cleaned, they were bad...had to put him under. Skruffy will be next year. Hope we all can have a "dog meeting" sometime. --Dave (GoingRvWay.com)

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  4. Good for you, woman! You sure don't want someone like that parked beside you, anyway.
    Sorry we missed you yesterday. Thought you were coming over at happy hour. We'll meet up one of these days!

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  5. I went to the Big Tent yesterday - what a mistake !!! Oh the crowds. And despite the fact that I absolutely didn't need a thing - I still spent $110 !!

    Another few days and it will all be quiet again.

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  6. Good for you, Barbara, for standing up to the jerk in the road. Glad you were able to get Katie's teeth cleaned without anesthesia but I'm sorry she got so frightened. Seems like a nice guy who took care of her.

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  7. The situation with Katie is a very good reason you should crate train her. Gently. If something happens to you she will be crated at sometime. Either at a vets or shelter until a friend or family member can take charge of her. A crate should be a dogs safe haven. My two Yorkies would go in their crate if they were not happy with a situation or just wanted to be left alone. That was "their" room. No people allowed! LOL All my friends knew when the dogs went into their crate they were not to be bothered. The door was always open unless there was a safety reason they needed to be contained. I was never one to shut a dog away in a room.

    Mine were crate trained from the start. If Katie shows fear of a crate just put her favorite blanket and toy in with the door wired open. Don't want her to go into a crate and have the door shut on her. Don't even try to encourage her to go into the crate at first. Maybe put a special treat in it after a few days but don't even say anything to her. Let it be her decision to go in when she's ready. It doesn't have to be a traumatic experience for her. But it would be in a emergency for some reason.

    I'll bet there are some good video's on YouTube on crate training.

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    Replies
    1. She had a crate, but we seldom used it, and don't have room for one now. She was always fine if I put her in it, usually in groups with small kids, like holidays, etc. Mostly to protect her and give her a little space of her own, but she never went in on her own. It's not something I'm interested in doing at this point. Now that I know she doesn't like the wire crates when I'm not around, I'll avoid those situations. :)

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  8. Poor Katie!!! I am so sorry she had such a reaction to being placed in a crate!!! Bless her heart!!
    You certainly had an interesting encounter with that camper. What a jerk!!! So glad you hung in there and stood up for yourself and the rights of the road!!! Some people....

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  9. The nerve of some people never ceases to amaze me. Did that guy actually believe he would get by with parking in the middle of the road? Wonder what he was smoking.

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  10. Unbelievable! I'm sure that gentleman just spreads joy and light wherever he goes. Glad Katie's dental needs are taken care of for the next year or so. Sounds like you've picked up another deserving batch of followers.

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  11. The guy in the road probably has trouble where ever he goes....takes it with him.
    Sorry for the wife!
    Keep wanting to ask you if your still leaving a light on under your hood for the varmints and is
    it still working? No mice either? If you had trouble you know many others do too.
    Just curious. Enjoy your blog greatly!

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    Replies
    1. No, no lights in the engine right now. You can read about it here:
      http://dewelldesigns.blogspot.com/2013/11/weve-been-driven-out.html#
      After that very disappointing episode, I moved to another site, and later I posted about getting solar lights and draping them around the engine. No problems with those, no more rodents.

      Where I am right now I'm not worried about visiting critters, so I'm using the solar light string along the side of my campsite, and it's really nice - all lit up all night long. Andy did a lot of work to get the first string soldered and looking so neat. But I don't have that equipment or skill, so the solar lights were easier for me the second time around. I'll put them back in the engine if I see any more evidence or hear any more noises in the area.

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    2. Yes the solar lights sound like a great idea. Glad it's working out.
      Good info for others with pest problems. Thanks!

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  12. I'm glad Katie's teeth look so good after being cleaned. I think I Ned a stroller for my toe dogs! :)

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  13. Katie has many fans, she is the greatest. I like your model RV, there are many available all over. I would be interested in knowing how well it is holding up. Have you posted anything about that?

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    Replies
    1. I've posted about The Palms but not about how she's holding up. I guess that's because she's holding up very well. I've been impressed with how this motor home is made and how easy she is to live in for me and Katie. She seems to be good quality through and through, no complaints from me that I can think of. She's a 2006 that I bought (hardly used at all) in May 2011 and we've lived in her since. No problems, except for intermittent generator issues, burning oil, but it's cheaper to add oil from time to time than to have it torn apart to find out what's wrong.

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    2. Thanks, that's just the type of answer I was looking for.

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  14. Having a crate on hand for Katie to become accustomed to in her own way is probably an excellent idea. Some friends were taking their small pup for her first airplane ride, and that's what they did to get the pup accustomed to the crate. It worked out much better than they had hoped.

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    Replies
    1. If I ever have a puppy again, or a young dog, I think I might get another crate. I think they are a good idea. Katie has her "spaces" she goes to when she wants to rest, sleep or just get away from it all. Usually that's her car seat, which is away from the main cabin, has a soft blanket over the seat, and it's high enough for her to lay comfortable and still see what's going on outside if she's awake. When I bought the car seat, the crate we had was left at my daughters. :)

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  15. Poor Katie.

    Be careful with the crazy people. Too many lead to someone being killed. A week or so right behind our Rv park a man was shot and killed by a retired cop because he was texting in the theater during previews.

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    Visit: Vallejo Teeth cleaning Dental Filling

    ReplyDelete

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