He is So Special...

Brodie. My dear Brodie. If you have ever met this special dog, you know he is “special”. It has been quite a saga around here with that sweet, lovable, mutt! 

Here is the quick back story: So, on Saturday, we went to Hutto for our annual 4^th of July bash. When we got home Sunday morning, we noticed that Brodie was acting a bit lethargic. He was timid and uncomfortable. He was just not too normal…especially for him. We pampered him a bit, and headed out to Arlington for the day.  On Monday, he was still acting strange, but seemed a bit better. Then, he jumped off the bed and winced and refused to move much after that.

I place a panic call to a girlfriend of mine who works at the local vet clinic. She said to bring him in and I was there in no time. After a brief hour wait, I was able to see the vet. He examines Brodie and decides it is one of two things. Brodie either has bladder stones {which will need surgery to fix} or he has a hurt back {no surgery, but pretty painful}.  He decides to give Brodie X-Rays.  Another brief hour wait… the doctor calls ME back to the X-Ray room to see the results. Everything in my heart sinks. {Inner thought: If I am being called back, this has to be bad}. The doctor tells me that he does NOT have bladder stones, that he does indeed have a hurt back. Here is why… the doctor starts the conversation with, “Brodie is…very… special.” {Inner thought: Yes, thank you. This is not new information, but it is still a gut punch when your doctor tells you that your first child dog is “special”.} It turns out that {probably due to inbreeding} Brodie has extra vertebrae. Dogs SHOULD have 7; Brodie has 8. The extra vertebra is causing the others to compress and be uncomfortable. To add to that, he also is bow-legged and (in the doctor’s words) has stilts for legs. He said, “hands down, top 3 most “special” Boston Terrier he has met. They don’t get much more unique than this dog”. 

So, what is the verdict? I was able to take him home after a shot of morphine and a shot of steroids. He was high all afternoon yesterday. He slept in a drug-induced coma yesterday. He was wobbly, and, well… stoned out of his mind. He is WORLDS better this morning. He was able to shake his head. He took his medicine with the help of my little Buddy this morning. He was walking a bit faster. Let’s see how he gets after his pain killers kick in this morning. For now, he is on pain killers and steroids. He is also on anti-inflammatories  indefinitely.

I know this is really only a comical story if you know Brodie. The doctor told us NOTHING new. I went in to the vet knowing he was a special-ed dog. I knew he has strange extremities. I know God loves him a bit extra… but, it was still a bit of a gut-punch to have all of those known thoughts confirmed.

Yep, that is my dog. 

My Brodie Man