the puppy files: cupcake’s $1500 box of raisins
I’m writing this tale in hopes of preventing others of making the same mistake, though I will likely seem pretty damn foolish as I do so.
You see, I know that raisins are bad, very bad, for dogs. And I know the safest place for puppies when you can’t watch them is in a crate. Yet, I somehow seemed to carelessly forget both of these things and our insanely loveable, six month old labradoodle Cupcake managed to devour a snack box full of raisins Saturday afternoon. Thank heavens he’s fine now, but let me tell you of our scare.
We went upstate to spend the night in our little cottage. We only have one crate for Cupcake and though it collapses, we stopped bringing it on overnight trips with us a month ago. Cupcake sleeps solidly through the night at the foot of our bed, and we never leave him alone long enough to get into trouble during the day. That was until Saturday, when the three of us headed out to a restaurant leaving our dear little pooch alone for a couple of hours. Coming home with our bellies full, we open the door to find Cupcake, happy and excited to see us as always, standing over a shredded box of empty raisins on the rug. I had left them in a bag on a chair, and now that too was on the floor.
My heart instantly leaped into my throat. Raisins are on the list of things that are toxic to dogs (along with grapes, chocolate, onions, garlic, macadamia nuts). How toxic? I didn’t know and instantly started Googling “My dog ate raisins” to find out. The results terrified me. Eating raisins causes sudden kidney failure in some dogs. But the specifics were unclear: How many raisins? How quickly? Some dogs? This Snopes page offered some useful, albeit scary, background.
Apparently, animal doctors made the link to kidney failure in dogs with grapes and raisins in late ’80s. They found that after eating a few ounces of them, some dogs would stop eating, have diarrhea, and grow lethargic. After a few days, they would not be able to pass urine, causing intense abdominal pain — and sometimes resulting in death.
Everything I saw advised to call a vet immediately, so I dialed the number of the nearest 24 animal hospital (about 40 miles away). They told me to give him a teaspoon on hydrogen peroxide to induce vomiting. After a quick run to CVS, we managed to do this — and it worked! Up came a rather impressive pile of all the things Cupcake had eaten recently including a whole lot of raisins. I thought that would be it, but the vet told us we needed to come in none-the-less.
We got to the clinic and immediately felt out of place. Obviously the other pet owners were there with really sick animals (who were howling and whimpering sadly from behind closed doors), while our dog was scampering around, as cute and energetic as ever. How could anything be wrong with him?
The doctor called the Animal Poison Control Center, to get the prognosis. She came into the exam room grim faced and told us this is very serious, and Cupcake would have to spend two nights at the hospital, and be treated with intravenious fluids and charcoal to flush the toxins out of his system. After this — and a $1500 bill — she promised he would be 100% well.
Reluctantly, we left our dear dog at the clinic and headed home to a much emptier house. I called every twelve hours to check on him, and got nothing but positive news. He came home today with a funny cone around his neck, a shaved leg, brimming with wags and kisses. It’s possible that he would have been fine if we hadn’t taken him to the hospital, but who could take a chance like that? We’re so happy to have him back.
And for the record, we now live in a raisin free house.
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april fools gags we wish were real
Okay, we get that every holiday is an excuse to push new themed products and market your goods in a festive way. But the cruel thing about April Fools is that we actually saw some “gag” products that got us excited. First up, this “solid” gold pillow from Land of Nod. It looks like it’s made of metallic corduroy, perhaps with a touch of disco sparkle, and it completely appeals to our 70′s rec room decorating roots. Unfortunately, it doesn’t exist (not even for $24,198).
The other email that got us jazzed was this one below from Warby Parker, makers of urban cool eye-wear that get shipped right to your home.
They one upped the ante but not just sending out a joke email, but making a whole site intended to fool us: Warby Barker, glassed for dogs. In additional to normal specs (choose from colors like Spiced Muton and Gravy Burst), there’s even a doggy monocle. You can click on a frame to “see them in action” on a dog. When you try to put them in a cart, you get the message below.
Wow. Color us impressed with the work that went into that! In the end, they encourage you to donate to the Humane Society. Good thing, cause we were about to go find an optometrist for our dogs.
possibily genuis? minimalist japanese dog gate
It didn’t take us long to realize that our puppy Cupcake could get over just about any dog gate we set up in the house. He looks at those top rails and doesn’t see a deterrent, but a challenge. He manages to scramble up and over them in minutes. I am not entirely sure that Bow, a dog crate system from the Japanese retailer Replus would contain him, but it sure is a lot prettier than the unsightly offerings at nearby pet stores. Also, I’m thinking that the absence of an upper rail would make it harder for him to climb over. Unfortunately, I didn’t find a place in the states that sells it. Perhaps there’s an industrious distributor out there that would like to bring to American dog owners like me? Click here to see more pictures and tell me if you think it’d work on your pooches.
feeling groovy pets: peipod beds
We love our pets here at Shelterrific. What we aren’t so fond of is boring pet furniture. The good people at pEi Pod have come to our rescue and created a stunningly modern, cool pet bed. Who needs a floppy, brown cushion when you can have a neon, egg-like pod that looks like something straight out of Twiggy’s (or Zoolander’s) apartment? pEi Pods are customizable- choose your egg color and bed cushion-, highly durable, safe, and crafted from recyclable material. Smaller dogs, cats, and even bunnies will love pEi Pods because they’ll have a warm, cozy little cave to snooze in. You’ll love pEi Pods because of the style points you’ll instantly earn by having it in your living room. –Katie D.
showin’ off: our new pbteen bean bag (a.k.a. groovy dog bed)
I’ve been thinking about getting a Furlicious bean bag from PB Teen for ages… and finally bit the bullet the other week. I was worried that it would make our living room seem too dormy or juvenile. But then I realized that with a four-year old and a puppy in the house, it was nearly impossible to have “mature” decor anyhow! Actually, it was Isadora who tipped the scale towards buying the bean bag. There’s a bookstore in our neighborhood that has one tucked in the kids’ corner, and whenever we go there we get so cozy reading that it’s hard to leave. Sure, she would have preferred a purple polka dotted variation, but I thought this faux flokati monster would match our brown leather couch, orange Saarinen chair and shag rug better. Since I seem to spend more time sitting on the floor than furniture these days, it is already getting a ton of use. Isadora “loves it” and the puppy… well, see for yourself. I dare say it’s the best $180 I’ve spent in a long time. — Angela M.
