Mending Mowgli

Sunday afternoon, I came home from work to find my newest pup, Mowgli, limping. With no real answers as to why or what had happened, we ended up at the emergency vet for four hours.

What we had hoped was a muscle pull or a dislocated hip ended up being a broken bone. More specifically, a break at the growth plate of his left femur that left us with two options: surgery or amputation.

48 hours, 4 surgical pins, 2 surgical consultations, 1 panic attack and an astronomical vet bill later, my little dude came home with a row of staples and a half naked body four days ago. We’ve spent most of the two days on the sofa, so he can sleep stretched out without the cone of shame.

When we’re not within arms reach, he’ll need to be crate-confined with the cone on for the next six weeks. For the most part, he completely ignores the staples and the wound, but to be on the safe side, my mom and I crafted some pretty snazzy puppy pants out of thrifted infant bottoms. The camo ones are especially adorable.

After the first two days, Mowgli went back to his normal, headstrong puppy self and decided he can run, jump, and give me a heart attack every three seconds. So I caved yesterday and called the vet for sedation meds for him, which will get him through the next two weeks and the most crucial healing time. And for a dog who usually cries constantly and rams his cone-head into the crate if he’s penned up for an length of time . . . the meds have been a godsend.

Never a dull moment, right?

If you need more puppy pants cuteness, or to keep up with us during Mowgli’s healing process, I’ve got more photos of my VIP (Very Injured Puppy) on Instagram under the hashtag #MowgliTheShiba.