Haven't been here in a while so in brief... Daisy is great, kids are great and spring is on the way. Oh, and my F key is broken so if I drop any F's please forgive me.
With Spring comes free rabies clinics. Lopey, my massive 140 lb American Bulldog does not often go to the vet for the following reasons:
1. he has a shoulder deformity (not painful) that the vets offer to fix... for several thousand dollars
2. he has entropia (a genetic eyelid deformity, again nonpainful) that they offer to fix -in two separate surgeries- for a minimum of $1,600 per eye. They usually follow up this suggestion with the fact that it is cosmetic surgery and may need to be re-done in the future
3. he is HUGE, dopey and friendly and usually knock people down just wagging his tail
4. he is in good health
Lopey was due for his 3 year rabies vac this Spring. I researched the available clinics and found one in Monmouth Beach. Noice! I brought Daisy first and when I got up to the registration, the girl looked at her papers and said, Oh, no, she's has her 3 year vac. So I went home and got Lopey.
Lopey doesn't get out often, but I must say he was very well behaved and friendly. Not that I let him play with any of the other dogs or cats, mind you. Nonetheless, we were one of the last dog-owner pairs in the firehouse. The vet and tech had a great time laughing about him as he IS pretty funny/scary looking. The main comment was that his head looked like a basketball. The vet was a bit nervous about me holding him while he gave him the shot but I said, Go for it. This dog can't feel a thing. All in all I felt pretty good about the whole process and was proud that my fairly untrained bulldog behaved so well.
Disappointment #1: when I got home I looked at Daisy's papers. Her vaccination was not up to date. The girl at the counter looked at the Reminder section of the papers. Now I have to take her to another clinic in a couple of weeks.
Disappoinment #2: yesterday, I received a WARNING from the Long Branch Health Czar that I need to license my "WHT AMER BULLDOG" before the 29th or I will get a $90 fine. The license itself is $10 for a neutered animal and $15 for an intact pet.
I don't really recall the last time I licensed a dog frankly and I don't really see the need for it. Being a former Rottweiler owner, I tended to NOT license my dogs as some homeowners' insurance companies will DROP you without notice for having a dog on their HOT LISTS. Just so you know there are a variety of non-threatening dogs on these lists (eg. St Bernard, thank you Cujo; a whole smattering of terrier-types, thank you irresponsible pit bull owners; Rottweilers, of course, because they are death-on-wheels killing machines; some lists even include labs as well) but strangely missing from these lists are the dogs that I was most often called in for training. A short list, Yorkies, min pins, Cockers and OLD ENGLISH SHEEPDOG. I could go on and on. The worst bites with damage I ever took were from a lab and cairn terrier, not counting formal protection training where I was wearing a padded sleeve.
Frankly, I'm pretty pissed that Long Branch is threatening me with a fine. Are they really so hard up for the $15? Now, I get it that they want an active real list of dogs in residence, however I don't really see the need for it. My dogs are contained, cared for and under control. This is the ONLY formality I have balked as a dog owner (OK, Lopey's not neutered but that's because I was warned about putting him under as his has a strange "tick" in his heartbeat and I was warned by two vets that it could be risky). The WARNING they sent could have been a bit less antagonistic. I would have even welcomed a personal visit from animal control!
This may effect my vote on election day. Just kidding. But I guess now I have to add one more errand on Monday and go get my "dangerous dog" a friggin $15 tag to hang off his collar.
Sunday, April 25, 2010
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