Piper and the Toad

I love my dog. She's about 1 year old and we've had her for about 7 months. I've never really been much of a "dog person", but I've grown surprisingly attached to her. It's probably because she is such an awesome dog.

Anyway ... Monday night, after a long day of playing and doing chores, we were all exhausted. The four year old fell asleep on a pillow on the floor (where I left her for about 2 hours in blissful silence) and the dog lay comfortably at my feet while the hubbie and I watched a romantic movie on the tube. It was so peaceful and restful, the perfect way to end a long weekend and prepare for the new week ahead. So, the movie ended, I put the four year old in bed, the hubbie took the dog out for her evening walk, and I was brushing my teeth when ... I hear a loud yell from the driveway .... "Get out here and look at this!"

So, I rush out to the driveway (in my nightgown, no less) to see my husband holding the dog on a leash and the dog foaming profusely at the mouth. The hubbie told me that the dog grabbed a frog with her mouth and that's when the foaming started. Luckily, he quickly pulled the frog out of her mouth, so she didn't swallow it, but the foaming continued anyway. I immediately went over and grabbed the garden hose, turned it on and shoved it in her mouth. I then told my husband to keep the hose in her mouth and I ran (super speed) downstairs to the computer and Googled "dog frog poisoning."

The first site that came up from my search had a preview line that said something like "your dog has been poisoned by a toad and will die soon." I almost had a heartattack -- really. I immediately looked up an emergency vet clinic and called them. The super-nice lady that answered the phone at the vet's office told me to keep the hose in her mouth for 5 minutes and to give her Benadryl (1mg for every lb of dog -- for her that's 50mg). She also assured me that the dog would be fine (I was immediately in love with that woman -- hallelujah my dog would live!).

I ran back upstairs and out to the driveway (again in my nightgown). We guessed that the hose had been running for five minutes and turned it off (the dog looked relieved). I then put two 25mg tabs of Benadryl into a hot dog and fed it to the dog (the dog looked happy -- she wolfed it down).

Then, we both sat on the sofa to observe the dog (it's now 11:30 PM). The kid woke up (of course) and came to sit with us and watch the dog. We all sat there and watched the dog for about an hour and then all went to bed. The dog was fine -- thank God! And, in the morning, she was still fine -- thank God!

Anyway ... I guess the lesson is -- keep your dogs away from frogs. If you can't, then be sure and have a hose and some Benadryl ready.

That's the story of my relaxing, Memorial Day evening. Hence, a new workweek begins ...