And then I cried at the vet's office.

Gigi did not have her surgery last Friday. When I took her to the vet hospital to drop her off there was a different Resident Vet than the first that evaluated her. When I met with him, he said she had in fact torn the ACL in both of her knees (on top of having a luxating patella) and would need two surgeries. The information this man was giving me was not computing in my head. I was there to drop her off for $1800 procedure and being told she was going to need a $6000 procedure. Being 24 weeks pregnant and never knowing how I will emotionally respond, I was a little surprised that I started crying. And not like little tears, we are talking full blown sobbing in the exam room. You would have thought he just told me that Gigi was dying. This man had no idea how to react and left me alone in the exam room to wait for them to bring me my baby Gigi.

Using the bump as a pillow.

The surgery was canceled for Friday and we were told to reschedule. I was charged another $100 (on top of the $200 we had paid for the first consultation) and I immediately called Kyle. He called our regular vet who encouraged us to seek a second opinion and we are now taking her for a THIRD CONSULTATION in SOUTH CAROLINA! I knew when we got a bulldog there were potentially going to be medical issues we would have to confront, but I really didn't think it would be this early, she is only 16 months old! And this timing is just horrible. I am three and a half months away from giving birth and trying to avoid credit card debt not start to drown in it. I worry if this surgery keeps getting postpone, Gigi's recovery will run into the birth of the baby and I don't want Gigi to feel neglected. I am having a real hard time wrapping my thoughts around all of this, and we won't know more until next week. I am praying that this next consultation goes well and they are able to give us more options.

This is her "I hate you in the morning" face.

Gigi the Bulldog

Our lively crazy vivacious sweet precious Gigi is going to have surgery this Friday. She has a luxating patella, which just means her knee cap doesn't stay in place and causes bone to rub together. OUCH! This apparently is a very common dog problem, not specific to bulldogs.

Gigi four weeks old, love that little face!

We drop her off on Friday and don't get to pick her up until Monday. Besides our trip to Colorado, we have never been apart that long. The recovery takes eight weeks, so we figured it might be better to do it before the human baby gets here so that we can continue giving Gigi 100% of our attention while she recovers.

Gigi and the "baby," maybe they love each other already?!

 

On that note, we are trying to think of ways to prepare her for the baby. I know that you are supposed to bring a blanket from the hospital and let the dog smell it, and then when they meet the first time try and do it outside. But any other advice?? I have also heard of people buying baby dolls and once the nursery is set up, use the baby doll to help train the dog about proper behavior and reward constantly for that proper behavior. I don't know if that is crazy or if I should give it a shot! Gigi is VERY important to us, I mean honestly, she sleeps in our bed, under the covers and tries to share our pillows. I want her and her human brother to get along and that they live together in harmony.

She is such a snuggle bug!

Tail Wagging Tuesday 6

Ok let's talk teething. Gigi lost her two front bottom teeth a week ago. And I noticed last night she lost her front top teeth. She is teething like woah!

Someone suggested I wet a washcloth and then freeze it and let her chew on it frozen. I don't remember who suggested it, but it has been a lifesaver! Gigi loves her frozen washcloth. Last Friday she chewed a solid 20 minutes. 

Any other teething suggestions??

Tail Wagging Tuesday #5

Tail Wagging Tuesday time! Wow that's a mouthful! I wanted to recap travel with your pet in this post. We had our first road trip with Gigi this weekend. Three hours in the car there and then three back. This was good practice for our big trip in December (13 hours from PA back to GA). We invested in a seat belt harness for her, which has been great at keeping her out of the passenger and driver's side and definitely makes it safer and easier to drive. She struggles for the first 20 minutes of the ride, but then eventually gives up and goes to sleep. We brought along some of her favorite toys too in case she got antsy.

As for seat belt harnesses actually keeping pets safe, there are debates about that. The Today Show did a segment and I found it here.

So what do you think, to buckle up Fido or not?

Tail Wagging Tuesday #4

I'm a bad blogger and didn't post for Tail Wagging Tuesday last week. But I'm back now! I am actually on my way to get Gigi her third round of puppy shots. I am curious how much she weighs now, she is getting so BIG. She is starting obedience classes this coming Sunday, thank goodness. I am really excited because they have a play group before and after class. I really want her to start interacting with other dogs. When we travel to visit family over the holidays there are going to be tons of dogs she will have to live under a new roof with. She had a play date with a co-workers dog this past week and she did really well. You could tell she really wanted to play!

Any tips or tricks to socializing your dog with other dogs?

Tail Wagging Tuesday!

So one of my best friends and fellow blogger Brianna (peace love & brianna) and I have been talking about doing a link up. Since we both are dog owners/lovers we thought it would be great to do a dog themed link up. You can talk about anything dog related in this link up, from sharing dog treat recipes to helpful tips on training to just photos/videos of your dog.

Since Gigi is still a puppy I wanted to spend this week talking about biting. I feel like my life right now is consumed by saying "NO!" and "Drop it!" I am going crazy. I have been doing a lot of reading up on how to stop your dog from this nasty habit and everyone always says, redirect their biting to an appropriate toy. We have a vast assortment of Nylabones for Gigi and most recently got her a Kong Tire toy. She loves her tire. We put a treat in it and she goes crazy, and it gives me a break from her trying to bite me.

See she loves it!

We also recently got some Fooey spray. It is a basic bitter spray, all natural. We have used it on the rim of the couch because she likes to jump up and bite it, also on the rug in the kitchen because she chews a corner piece. Let me tell you this stuff has worked well! And both Kyle and I have accidentally got some in our mouths (don't ask), this stuff is foul tasting.



Any more tips on curbing biting? I know she will "grow out of it" and she is teething, but I need a reprieve! Join the link up and come back next Tuesday for another, Tail Wagging Tuesday!!!

It's Friday!

It's Friday and I feel like spinning! Have a great weekend everyone!

Welcome Home Georgia!

This post is late, but I have been busy transitioning to being a dog mom. We picked up GiGi last Sunday. Kyle put together her crate before we left. 

The ride home was great.

We had a mini photo shoot.

GiGi loves Kyle already.

Look at that face!

We have had her for a week and it has been an adjustment, but she is doing so well! We are crate training and she loves her crate. When we are home we put it in the living room and she goes in it when she falls asleep after playing. And then we put it in our room at night. She goes to bed about 10:30pm, wakes up at 3:30am to go outside, then sleeps until 5:45am/6:00am before she wants out again and her breakfast. She doesn't bark in her crate at all, we are trying really hard to make sure she loves her crate and to get her housebroken.

I have become obsessed with taking video and pictures of her. Lord help me when we have children. Look for more adventures of GiGi the bulldog on the blog :)

Go Dawgs!

Ok, soooo this is a little off topic of football but I am just too excited to contain myself! 3 days until this little one comes home!

Georgia will be home this Sunday, and I feel like a proud momma and want everything to be ready for her arrival. I think I am driving Kyle crazy because I won't shut up about her. Don;t worry, the blog and all my other social media outlets will EXPLODE with GiGi pictures/video. You have been warned in advance.