Our Poor Dog Fell Down

Some of you may remember me talking about our dog, an Airedale terrier named Emma. She's 7.5 years old and spoiled rotten. She's totally my kind of dog -- lazy, clumsy, diva-ish, doesn't like to go outside if it's raining, can be very sweet but also very grumpy, loves to eat, loves to sleep and have her back scratched (I could seriously be describing myself ). Anyway, this afternoon she had an accident and injured herself and now we are all worried sick about her. I had let her outside to take care of her business. As she was running up the porch steps to come back in, she suddenly yelped loudly and dropped down onto her back legs/butt. I'm assuming she fell coming up the steps. She didn't cry or whimper after that but she simply could not get up. She was visibly shaking, breathing very rapidly, and could not stand, bear weight, or walk. She was actually stuck there on the steps, unable to move.

My husband was at work during this crisis so I had to rely on my boys to help me (I pretty much immediately turned into a panicking-crying fool). They somehow managed to drag her right inside the doorway to the living room - did I mention she weighs 75 lbs? The few times she tried to stand, she just fell right back down. I called the vet and the boys managed to get her into the car so that we could take her in to be checked out.

At this point, we still do not know anything. The vet doesn't think she broke any bones, but seems to be leaning toward a possible torn ligament in one or both knees. That would be bad, as in requiring expensive surgery. She is staying overnight at the vet's office and they will be sedating her first thing in the morning for a thorough exam. She was so tense and her legs so tensed up that the doctor couldn't even properly examine her tonight. They gave her some pain medicine and will let me know what's going on in the morning. I'm so upset over this. The thought of our dog being in pain and without us at the vet's office is just so heartbreaking. She's probably wondering where we are and why she's not here sleeping in one of her cozy little spots around the house. There's also the worry of how much this is going to cost. Of course, she's a member of our family so we will do what we have to do. But, financially, it's just such a bad time for us. Ugh! The stress of it all!

I will keep you posted about her condition and would appreciate your thoughts and well wishes for her.

Here's an older photo of Emma. This old chair was her absolute favorite place to lounge and sleep. We finally had to throw it out because it got ripped up and stinky. She would actually arrange the pillow to her liking.

Here's another photo of Emma being sneaky. She's not allowed on our beds or furniture and she knows that. But, I came home one day and caught her snoozing on my bed. She had literally climbed over my laundry piles and situated herself upon the pillows. Clever girl!