Another Whippet Tale

The Whippet is displeased.

He had a little trip to the Vet today. Nothing serious. But he is still giving me the silent treatment. It should be the other way around!

Let me explain. He needed to have his teeth cleaned. The Vet mentioned it last time we were there. He said he may need some teeth removed which could be costly, up to $1500.00. Holy goodnight! I asked if it could wait till after Christmas. No problem he says. That was last Christmas. It is now October. Oops!

So I finally made the appointment for today. His breath was getting so bad the kids were suggesting he was eating his own excrement. It was time. And I didn’t think the Vet would look at me kindly if I asked if it could wait until after another Christmas.

So we dropped him off. The girl who took him said it would only cost up to $400 for a standard clean and scale and they’ll call during the procedure to let me know if they have to take teeth out (and therefore add a further $1000 onto the procedure). I’m still stuck on the $400 just to clean his teeth! How can a dog cost more than a human? I’ll do it myself I think. Or did I say that out loud? The girl starts explaining that they have to knock him out even just to clean his teeth and the anesthetic is costly. I ask if that is really necessary. She now thinks I’m a bad dog mother and worried about the cost so she just smiles. The cost is one thing, but I’m also worried about his mental capacity to cope with such a thing. He’s a Whippet. He’s sensitive. But he’s so placid you could poke him in the eyeballs and he wouldn’t flinch. Anyway, I agree he has to have it done. His health may be at stake if the teeth be rotting into his poor body.

I dare to ask if she would mind trimming his nails. She agrees and suggests he gets a shampoo too. What are all these crusty patches on his coat, she asks. Oh that’s just the drips of icing from the cupcakes we made yesterday, I say. She looks confused. Either she doesn’t have kids or she doesn’t have a Whippet.

In the end, I am relieved to hear he didn’t have to get any teeth taken out whatsoever. He needed the odd tooth brushing done at home and some more chew toys. Another problem. The Whippet doesn’t like dog chew toys, just the expensive wooden toys belonging to the kids. And I’m not buying him any of those. I think he'll just wait till we are back on the farm and he can chew on bones.

But it still cost $398. It has been an expensive day. Suddenly, the $20 haircuts I was whinging about the other day don’t seem so bad, do they?