Hello everyone,
I'm here with another story and another lesson learned, hoping that it can help some pet-owners. You all know by now that I love animals, and I have few of them. One of which is Maltese dog, named Minnie. She is about one year and few months old now.

I think that animals are great teachers in general, sometimes those lessons are fun and light, sometimes harder but equally important. Minnie, along with all my pets taught me so much, but most of all how to be happy with the little things. Dogs are like that, not to concerned. All they need is a bit of food, water and safe place to sleep. If you add some attention, toys and walks to their life, they are the happiest little creatures. Simple, right?!

I mean, look at that "smile" and tell me you don't see just how care free she is. Not a care in the world, just green grass, blue sky and running opportunity. That should be enough for us as well, but often it's not. Chasing the butterflies instead of money, sounds great to me.

But, this post is about one harder lesson I learned, and one that almost cost Minnie's life.

Trip to the vet:

Like many countries, our has a law that says that every dog has to be vaccinated against rabies once a year. This year we had an appointment with the veterinarian, for the yearly check-up and vaccination. But, since we recently moved we also changed the vet and this was our first official visit.

Complication:

Something that should have been a routine, ended up being a fight for her life. After the check-up Minnie got her shot, and we soon left the office. She was a bit angry that we went in the first place, but still very bouncy and loud, like her usual self. But, after few minutes of walking she just stopped. Literally stopped in the middle of a side-walk. I thought that she was just tired, and had some mild reaction to the vaccine, so I decided to carry her the rest of the way. But, she became heavier and unresponsive in a matter of minutes.

Resolution:

I still hopped that it was just a reaction on her little body, and I was sure that it will pass on it's own in no time (wrong kind of optimism). I had no idea that allergic reaction can manifest that way in dogs. But my hubby didn't want to risk it (thank God for his reaction), and we got in a car and rushed to the vet. They knew what was happening the minute they saw us, and gave her the proper care and medication right away. They saved her!

Lesson:

So, dogs can be allergic to vaccine! That's one information that I didn't know, and that is very important. The other thing I learned is how exactly that allergic reaction looks like. I had no idea! Even if the vet have told me to watch for allergic reaction I would look for signs like heavy breath, swollen eyelids, tongue or mouth, maybe vomiting. But I would never consider lethargy as a sign of allergic reaction.

The important thing is that our little ball of fur made it out just fine, and happy as ever. After few days, she forgot all about it. She just walks away from the building where the veterinarian is :D We are aware of her allergies now, and we will be more careful in the future.

I hope you found this story valuable and useful, I am sure information and reading can save us a lot of trouble.
In the mean time, let's be care free and enjoy spring time, chase some butterflies and rainbows (even though dogs can't see rainbows)!

With love,
Tamara