My dog is allergic to flea saliva.
It doesn't mean she's GOT fleas. The vet confirms she is one hundred percent flea free. Just that if a flea lands on her for even just a moment and bites her she has a reaction.
But that's not the end of it.
When I found the flea on Choo Choo, I assumed it meant that the Revolution prevention wasn't working for some reason, and out of desperation I went and purchased an over the counter flea and tick killer that I could apply topically to her back.
Turns out, Choo Choo is also allergic to that.
The combination of the flea saliva AND the stupid five dollar treatment resulted in Choo Choo's rash. And because she scratched so desperately she wound up with some open sores and a weakened immune system which led to, you guessed it, and infection.
MY BILL:
Full Exam (including tests)- $55.10
Special Shampoo for rash- $20.07
Twenty 100 MG tab pills - $21.99
Special Shampoo for rash- $20.07
Twenty 100 MG tab pills - $21.99
The grand total on that part ALONE was $97.16.
But that wasn't all.
Because my dog has to be shampooed with this stuff twice a week for the next month, topically applied Revolution will not be effective in guarding against ticks, fleas, and heart worms. Which meant that her prescription was no longer any good and I had to change it.
Added to my bill:
6 Trifexis K9 Chewable Tablets- $107.04
Whopping total for completely fucking up my dog's skin?
$204.20
AND she has to go back in seven to ten days so they can make sure it's clearing up.
Lesson learned. I will never do that again.
On the bright side, the tech who returned Choo Choo to me said she was a very friendly dog, and once again I was informed how very unusual a chihuahua my little Choo Choo is. Apparently she made friends with every single person who she ran into today and awarded all of her personal attendants with kisses.
But there was no doubt about it. She was most excited to see me. Choo Choo started whining and wagging her tail as soon as she saw me and tried to jump out of the Tech's arms. She's now sleeping contentedly on Padawan's pillow. I've given her a bath, one pill, and her heart worm chewable.
And she doesn't know it yet, but she'll be getting fixed on June 16th. (Hopefully.)
I like putting flea saliva on my steaks.
ReplyDeleteFixed? Is she broken?
ReplyDeleteBryan, is that an Ohio thing, or an Arizona thing?
ReplyDeleteDoug, no. Her baby maker still works and it needs to be broken so it's fixed.
Well, at least the problem was fixable, right?
ReplyDeleteI am sorry that it cost so much. That sucks. Let us know how she progresses with the treatment and everything.
And good luck with getting her spayed. That's always an adventure. :)
Yes, it's fixable. My fault, but fixable.
ReplyDeleteSpaying her IS always an adventure. This will be the third attempt! Let's hope that this time they'll actually be able to do it!
I hear Flea Saliva is some kind of afrodisiac. Did I spell that right? Guess so. Go me.
ReplyDelete3 attempts? Wow. Buddy came completely balls free and as far as I know, gave them up graciously. But it's easier for boy dogs than it is for girl dogs, I think anyway. Point is- good luck!
ReplyDeleteWhat? What's kept them from doing it in the past? Health problems?
ReplyDeleteScott, aphrodisiac, but you were close. And not in any culture I want to take part in. Yuck!
ReplyDeleteJenna, males are definitely easier and cheaper to fix. The surgery is not invasive and there's no bad time to do it because boys don't have heat cycles to swell things up and make everything bleed more. Unfortunately, Choo Choo didn't come fixed because she was six weeks old when I brought her home with me.
Candice, well first time she had a fever, which meant a probably infection. So I had to take her home an hour after I dropped her off. The second time she didn't have a fever and they actually got to run the blood tests. They found that her white blood cell count was at 26,000, more than twice the normal amount. Also some kind of immune thing that indicated a long term sickness we hadn't even noticed. That visit, unfortunately, wasn't so cheap as the first and I paid a whopping two hundred dollars for the blood tests and urine tests and medicine. She had a UTI, apparently. So here's hoping that fixing number three costs me the three hundred dollars it should and I never have to worry about it again. :)
Good grief! I'll cross my fingers and hope that the third time will really be a charm for Choo Choo! Good luck! :)
ReplyDelete"Afrodisiac" I think I have another made-up word to suggest to Doug. The definition could be someone who has a fetish for thick...ummm, underbrush.
ReplyDeleteDoug should probably be paying me at this point. I'll split the money with Scott on this one, since he inadvertently came up with the word.
Well despite the expense I'm glad to hear Choo Choo is better. When we took DJ in to get fixed, aside from the no puppies goal, we hoped it might help calm her down a little bit. Alas, no. She's still the same hyperactive little fruit loop she's always been.
ReplyDeleteWait a minute...why didn't I get a red line indicating the error then??? Now I have to Google afrodisiac...Aha...Afrodisiac is the fourth studio album by American singer Brandy, released by Atlantic Records on June 28, 2004 on most international territories and on June ...
ReplyDeleteConception and production - Music - Release and reception - Promotion that would explain it then.
You know...I'm pretty sure there were already comments here...where did my other comments go?
ReplyDeleteBlogger was down and ate all your comments! I've been stranded on Blogger Isle all week. Poor little Choo Choo...I'm glad you got everything straightened out even if it WAS a bitch to take care of.
ReplyDeleteYes, Google made Blogger eat my comments.
ReplyDeleteBecause Google is jealous.
She's doing so much better. She's stopped scratching at least.
Scott, just remember that Aphrodisiac comes from "Aphrodite" not "Afro Man".
ReplyDeleteI like your writing. Will you marry me?
ReplyDeleteMy first ever comment marriage proposal!
ReplyDeleteAlso my first marriage proposal ever...
Alas, my heart belongs to another, but thanks for asking.
I do what I can.
ReplyDelete