That was a DAY!

Yesterday was a whirlwind of a day--what with the dog trailing and the vet driving and editing and proofing and tax retrieving and grocery shopping and car washing and "L Word" re-viewing and basketball watching and so on. Whew! The dog part of the day was definitely the most exhausting, by far.

Shwea did finally deliver a sample for the vet, bless her heart. She also delivered an Oscar-worthy performance outside of the vet's office. As soon as she jumped out of the car, she made a beeline for the woods. Then, when I grabbed her leash and started towards the building, she began her jump-into-crotch maneuver.

When she's really scared/desperate, Shwea leaps up and bumps her head against my privates as though she can somehow work her way into my body and away from harm. It's the most bizarre thing she does, and it makes getting across a parking lot a challenge--Linus's sudden need to mark every piece of shrubbery on the lot didn't help, either. (Why do vets even bother with shrubbery? They know that it's only going to become a target....don't they?)

Then, when we got into the building, Shwea began to shake. A full-body, stem-to-stern tremor. She's been doing this since we had her spade at six months. Even thought there's no way in hell we can put her through that twice, she's convinced no good comes from vet's offices, and acts accordingly. Linus, he just leaps up on the waiting room bench and looks out the window. It looks to me as though he's visualizing himself outside, marking more shrubs.

When it came time for shots, Linus was his usual "This isn't happening to me" self (well versed in denial, that one). Shwea, on the other hand, pulled out all the stops, bucking like a bronco to the point where they had to call in the office lady to help hold her on the exam table.

Oh, it was just awful--but I know it was absolutely necessary. Still, I felt I owed the gang a little more than the usual "LITE" biscuit for this one, so we stopped at McDonald's on the way home. I bought a plain cheeseburger, which I tore into bite-sized pieces and fed to them, thanking them for being good (well, at least not vicious) dogs.

Thereby (I pray) effectively sweeping any residual vet trauma from their minds. I'm lovin' it, indeed.