Bad ear, good outcome

It's been a weird week for me ever since my grooming. Everyone noticed I was behaving funny - head tilting to one side when sitting and shaking my head less vigorously than usual. Godpa was much more sensitive to my problem as he noticed I squealed a few times when scratching my head and raised my paw each time he reached for my left ear. Godpa did not think I was whacked by the groomer but still he believes I must be in pain and hiding it. He read about how animals hide their injuries very well for the sake of survival.

The dreaded thing had to happen, we went to the vet on Saturday. It was a terrible experience compared to previous visits because it was crowded with dogs. That was the first time I planted my butt at the corridor and refused to go in. Poor godpa had to carry me in like a spoilt girl. All the dogs and humans were friendly but I was shivering and growling sometimes. Godpa's arm received some scratches from my front paws as I tried to push away, lucky for him he had thick skin.

Thankfully it was soon my turn and I was found to have a left ear infection, possibly due to liquids left in the ear during grooming. It could have been shampoo or ear cleaning solution. Godpa and uncle Leon helped to hold me down as the vet flushed my ears with a variety of medicated solutions. Godpa was relieved to see all the pus and brown stuff float out of my ear, and I was relieved the whole visit was over and done with in less than half an hour.

Here comes the good part. In order to feed me my medicine godpa has been combining it with treats for me. So it'll be daily treats at least for a week.

Z Z Zen

I think godpa's really into Zen stuff, he even got me new treats called Peace from Zen Puppy. It's semi-moist and rather tasty, quite a good choice. As for godpa, he gets treats more often I think. Recently a new mall opened (yes, another one), and he tried some Thai food at the food court there. The mall looks rather nice and spacious and is supposed to be eco-friendly. To be real eco-friendly they should let me in so I can accompany godpa.

Food wise I'll give Thai food a miss, not too keen on the chilli and spice. Another Zen thing godpa gave me is my very own terry cotton mat so I can laze around comfortably on the cold hard floor. Furthermore I get to use it as a blanket during bed time and it doubles up as a mat for car rides and sitting on the sofa to accompany godpa during TV time.

The tramp, the lady

No more high tech celebrity makeover, this is the real thing. Today the whole family brought me out for grooming. They had a great time shopping while I spent two hours stuck at the groomer's. Godpa will be giving me treats to compensate for the "abuse". I was trembling when godpa came to fetch me so he thinks I'm still very much fearful, or could it just be the cold air conditioning?

I look more rugged having long fur and more refined in the short coat. Anyone who doesn't know me would've thought there were two different dogs of different breeds. Of course dogs would have no problem as we recognize by scent.

The grooming experience wasn't that bad actually as godpa saw me quietly let my nails be clipped just before he left. I probably would be fearful if godpa didn't pick a good groomer, especially after he told me of the poor boy who died after the groomer rained blows on his head. Junior was a three year old Maltese, quite close to my age.