I am not a happy dachshund today. Let’s be clear about that right away.
As a cute, cuddly five week old puppy that is extremely well versed in the world and has an amazing vocabulary for one of my small stature, today I am displeased. A new word has entered my sphere of knowledge, a word that I do not care to hear again.
Veterinarian.
Just whispering it gives me the shivers!
So far I’ve enjoyed every part of my puppy life and have done my best to be a good little dog. Okay, yes. Maybe I’ve had a few slip ups. Maybe I’ve chewed on a few things that I’m not supposed to—a certain Mr. Fluffy Wuffy comes to mind—but hey! No dog is perfect, least of all puppies. There was no reason for the awfulness that I endured today at the hands of the dreaded V word: veterinarian.
Then again, I should have known something was up. Olivia and her mother both looked so serious this morning as they stood looking down at us pups. Even when I rolled over on my back and swatted at my brother Otis (an action that has always caused grins), neither of them cracked a smile. That should have been a clue.
“Mommy, will the vet be nice to the puppies?” Olivia’s little voice sounded shaky, as if something were caught in her throat.
“Of course, darling. The veterinarian doesn’t want to hurt the puppies. He’s just checking to make sure they are healthy, and all puppies have to get shots,” Olivia’s mother explained. “It’s kind of like having a new baby. You have to take care of puppies in the same way and make sure they visit the doctor.”
“I don’t like shots,” Olivia said.
Shots? Hmmm…I wasn’t sure what that meant. I could have sworn I’d heard the word before, but I couldn’t quite recall what for. However, there wasn’t much time to think about it. In the next few minutes, Olivia’s mother scooped up me and my siblings, placed us in a little crate, and then locked the door. Through the crate’s silver bars, I could see my mother’s anxious face.
“Momma,” Violet, my sister, whimpered.
“Don’t worry. You’ll be back soon!” Momma called and wagged her tail encouragingly. “Be brave little pups!”
As we were carried out of the house, I pressed my nose to the crate door, eager to get a whiff of all the smells on the other side. Tinker, Violet, and Otis shoved at me, wanting to see and smell all the new sights, too. Our new view was short lived as another door opened, and the crate entered a big box with four wheels.
“Olivia, be sure to put on your seat belt,” Olivia’s mom ordered as she turned a little key. The big box roared to life, and I could feel its vibration tickling my feet. It dawned on me what we were riding in.
“This is a car,” I said. The others turned to look at me. “It’s how the humans get around.”
“Why can’t they just use their legs?” Tinker asked.
“Because some places are too far away just to walk to. Sometimes you need a car to get you from Point A to Point B,” I explained.
“What’s a Point A?” she asked.
I’ve decided that Tinker is not going to be a brain surgeon when she grows up.
“Point A is where we start out at and Point B is where we end up,” I said.
“So Momma was at Point A?”
“Yes.”
“Then where is Point B?”
“Some place called the veterinarian.”
“I want to go back to Point A,” Tinker whimpered, and because she started, Violet did it, too. Pretty soon they were both making silly sounds.
“Don’t you start!” I said to Otis who tilted his head to the side, watching the girls. His big brown eyes began to water. “I mean it, Otis. Don’t start or I’ll bite you on the tail.”
It was too late. Otis threw back his head, opened his mouth and let out the most amazing howl. You would have thought a Siamese cat was mercilessly torturing him.
“Oh brother,” I said, lying down and covering my ears with my paws. “Why was I born into such madness?”
They kept up the racket all the way to Point B. Yet, if I’d known what terror awaited me at Point B, I might have dropped my pride at the crate door and joined in to their song of sorrow.
*****
“This won’t hurt a bit.”
Already in my short life, I have come to the conclusion that when someone says that particular phrase, they are probably lying.
The big man standing over me held a long object with a needle looking thingy at its tip. He gave me a pat on the head, and then proceeded to stab me with it. Not hurt a bit? Ha!
I let out a howl of agony which expressed my extreme displeasure at his actions. It only caused him to laugh.
“There, there, boy. It’s okay,” he said, patting me on the head again. “You’re a good dog.”
If I was so good, what was he doing sticking me with that thing?
“Mommy, is Oliver going to be alright?” Olivia asked.
“He’ll be fine, right doctor?” Olivia’s mom gave her a little hug and looked at the man holding the stick.
“Sure, he will. This is just part of being a good pet owner, Olivia. You have to make sure your puppies are all up to date on their shots. These four pups are right at the five week mark, which means they’re old enough to get their first round.” The doctor took out another one of the sharp pointy things that I now knew was called a shot.
Uh, doc? What are you doing with that second thing? If I could have spoken the words, I would have. Unfortunately, I could only eek out a slight whimper. Olivia covered her eyes.
When it was over, all I wanted to do was go back into my crate and hide. Both my bottom and my feelings were hurt. I don’t care if getting shots was for my own good. It hurt! Plus, I really missed my momma.
“So have you decided what to do with all of these little guys?” The doctor was talking to Olivia’s mother while trying to hold Tinker still. “You aren’t keeping them all, are you?”
Whoa. Wait a second. What did he mean by that? Of course, Olivia was keeping us all. We were a family, right?
“Olivia and I have decided to keep one of the puppies, but we’re going to find good homes for the others,” Olivia’s mom said.
My aches and pains were forgotten for a moment.
“Yes, mommy says I can choose one puppy to keep,” Olivia chimed in. “But the rest have to go. Too much poop to clean up!”
The doctor chuckled. “Well, that’s probably for the best. Puppies have lots of energy and need plenty of attention. It’s a good idea to find homes where they can get that.”
He leaned towards Olivia and winked. “And you’re right. Less puppies does mean less poop. Time to start thinking about potty training.”
If staying with Olivia meant pooping less, than I would do whatever it took. Momma was where Olivia was, and the thought of being separated forever from Momma scared me. I must have been whining without even realizing it because as soon as Tinker got put back in the crate, she said, “What’s the matter with you? You already got your shots. It’s Otis’s turn now.”
“Did you hear what that doctor was saying?”
“No.”
Should I tell her? I couldn’t make up my mind. The thought of being apart from my family was just too much to bear.
“What did he say?” Tinker prodded. “Are we getting more shots or something?”
“No.” I lay down. “No. It was nothing. Never mind.”
In the end, I decided to keep quiet about what I’d heard. No sense in worrying the others. Besides, I had to figure out which one of us Olivia was keeping. The thought that it might not be me had my tummy in knots, and the first thing I did when we got home was curl up in the corner of our box. I sighed and put my head down on my paws.
“Oliver, is something bothering you?” Momma asked. “I know your rump is a little sore from the shots, but it’ll be better tomorrow.”
“Momma, I heard Olivia’s mom say they weren’t going to keep us all. Some of us will have to go to other homes,” I said.
Momma’s face grew sad. “Yes, that’s true. There comes a time when all puppies leave home and create families of their own.”
“But we might never see each other again.”
“Maybe not. But no matter what happens, you’ll always know that your mother loved you.”
Somehow that didn’t make me feel better. I just kept wondering who would Olivia choose? And how long did we have until we were separated?
*****
(…to be continued)
Related posts:
- Puppy Tails – Oliver Meets the Relatives
- Puppy Tails – Oliver Explores
- Puppy Tails – Oliver Thinks Outside the Box
- Puppy Tails – Oliver Finds a Place to Sleep
- Puppy Tails – Oliver Chews
