Trust Your Instincts! A Dog's Tail...

[Lindsey, Lee, Whopper and Simba]

Hi all,

It has been a while since I've posted but thought I'd share our situation so that others may gain some insight...back in September, Simba was hit by a car.  Fortunately it was a slow moving vehicle where we live and Simba ran back up 59 stairs to my husband.  There were no visible signs of damage aside from that he would not sit and after a couple visits to an animal hospital, our regular vet, and a surgical consult, we were told that in time all would heal and that it was only his tail that really seemed to still be giving him issues.

A couple weeks pass and Simba is completely back to being the same lovable, yet sometimes crazy, doodle.  We were all so relieved that he had made a full recovery.

Now it's early November and I noticed some matting half way down his tail.  He would occasionally be trying to lick or chew it but nothing too extreme.  We have a dog walker 5 days a week, my parents came to visit, and we are always paying attention to the doods and none of us really thought much of it.  Simba was full of life, constantly wanting to play, and showing no signs of illness. 

For those who don't know, I am 5 months pregnant, we just went under contract for a townhome, and I am working two jobs so things are undoubtedly crazy.  On Sunday for some reason, I told my husband I thought we should just go ahead and get his tail checked out.  We were both going to be extremely busy during the week and my husband volunteered to take him back to the animal hospital at 8:30 PM.  After thinking about, I couldn't let him go alone so we all piled into the car (Whopper included for moral support) and headed back to the animal hospital. 

The vet told us that it was clearly infected and they would need to sedate him and shave it to know the extent.  He would likely need to be on an antibiotic and hopefully that would clear up the infection.  About 25 minutes later we received a phone call from the vet saying that when they shaved it, they discovered that the lower half of his tail was receiving no blood flow and we now were in danger of septic shock due to the infection.  An emergency amputation of his lower tail was necessary and performed that same night.

I share this story because I think it's important that we all trust our instincts. No matter how busy we get, we can all sense when something just doesn't seem right.  While Simba lost the bottom half of his tail, had another few days passed the whole situation could have been much worse.  Over the next week and 1/2 he will recover and we are confident he will return to his usual happy antics. 

(And we have pet insurance so fortunately we could get him all the care he needs and focus on his healing and being comfortable rather than on the costs)

[Nina, Phil, Harlow & Lacey]

Lindsey thank heavens you and DH are worryworts and took Simba to the vet. Sending positive thoughts and virtual hugs & kisses!

[Susan and Sasha]

Oh Lindsey...

I'm so sorry about what happened to Simba...

I'm also a believer in going with your instincts...and checking things out.

You did the right thing...and Simba will be fine because of it.

Sending hugs and prayers for a quick recovery...

[Jane, Rooney & Stuart]

Sending our prayers for a speedy recovery and thanks for sharing.  So glad that you caught this in time.

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

aww poor Simba, with half a tail. Glad hes ok though.

[Clifford, Cloud, Jake..and Kim]

I'll admit I was a little afraid to read to the of the blog, in fear of the worst.  I am so happy the ending was a happy one.  Clifford and Cloud send big tail wags and tell Simba not to worry about a littler tail - sometimes big tails just get us in trouble anyway!

[Smita, Ollie and Juno]

I am sorry about Simba. So glad though that you caught it in time to get what was needed done.

[F, Calla & Luca]

I am sorry to hear about Simba but happy you caught his problem in time.

[Leslie and Halas]

I'm glad you caught it in time. I hope he has a quick recovery.

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Thank you for this informative post. What great points you make and I am so glad you followed your instincts and took Simba to the vet. Also, glad you have insurance and Simba is going to be fine.

[Rose Ann and Amante]

I always say follow your gut. I refer to it as my Mommy Angel tapping on my shoulder!!!