Drake's Accident

[DoggiesAreTheBest]

On Saturday, Drake and I had plans to drive to Columbus to meet Andrew for the weekend. Andrew was doing a traithalon and was not yet finished so, Drake and I decided a trip to the park before our departure would be great.

I was driving Andrew's truck and decided to put Draker in the bed of the truck because I knew how much he liked it. The park was only a mile away. I attached an old leash to a hook in the bed and put Drake on the leash. I pulled out of the driveway and was going approx. 20 mph when the GSD next door started chasing the truck :mad: I watched Drake in the rearview mirror and I saw him jump out of the truck to "get" that dog. I quickly stopped and jumped out of the truck. Draker was lying on the pavement breathing hard and covered in blood.

I was hysterical. I didn't know what had happened but figured that Drake slipped out of his collar after he jumped out. He had some cuts and abraisions that indicated that he hit the pavement wile I was still moving and I had seen his big body bounce off the street.

I threw my gym towel on the seat and picked up all 90 lbs of my Draker and rushed to the vet. A friend once made fun of me for having my vet's number programmed into my cell phone address book, but it came in handy that day! I told them I was on my way and they were out with a stretcher and a muzzle.

I put the muzzle on Drake and helped lift him onto the stretch. His mouth was all bloody and I was too. The vet gave Drake anesthesia and he was knocked out in seconds. After examining him, they found several wounds that needed to be stapled and some abraisons. They also x-rayed his entire body and found a hairline fracture in one of his ribs.

I had called Andrew on my way there, but he still hadn't called back. I didn't say that Drake was hurt but I was crying hysterically. I asked if I could go into the OR with Drake and the vet finally agreed. He figured I would throw a hissy fit if he said no. After about 50 staples and dozens of internal sutures, they warpped him up and said that he could go home.

He was given a shot to reverse the anesthesia while I paid the bill, and then we left. I had to help him into the truck and he slept on the way home The vet said he would be drowsy all day.

Once we got home, I helped him into the house and then cleaned up the blood from his fur with a spray bottle of water, a towel, and an old baby toothbrush. He was all clean and very asleep.

I am so lucky that he slipped out of the collar. He could have hung himself. I blame myself for this. I only put him there because he loves being in the back of the truck. I am a horrible mother. It will never happen again. I cried for several hours after that and Draker had his head on my lap all the way down to Columbus. He was happy to see his daddy and was even happier when Andrew got him a hamburger :D

His exercise has to be limited for a week. He is doing very well, thank God! He is limping a bit but is expected to have a 100% recovery.

[slleipnir]

So glad that Drake is doing ok! I was in tears reading that :[ You shouldn't blame yourself, and your not a bad mom ;] If you had know something would have happened you would have never did it, you just wanted your little drake to be happy :D Keeps us updated on him :]

[anna_66]

Originally posted by slleipnir
So glad that Drake is doing ok! I was in tears reading that :[ You shouldn't blame yourself, and your not a bad mom ;] If you had know something would have happened you would have never did it, you just wanted your little drake to be happy :D Keeps us updated on him :]

She's so right! I just hope he is feeling better. Give him a {{{hug}}} and smoooooch for me! Don't beat yourself up, I know what it's like to feel guilty, believe me.

[purrley]

Oh My Souraya - my heart just dropped a mile reading about your Draker. What a terrible thing to have happen. I'm so glad you got him to the vet and he'll be OK. You are NOT a terrible mother. This was an accident. Just be grateful Drake will be OK and now you need to be OK. Take care, don't blame yourself, and Drake will be fine. God Bless you Souraya.

[Deb Motter]

I'm so sorry Drake got hurt, but glad that he will recover. Don't keep blaming yourself; we all want to do things that our doggies love and we all make mistakes. The important thing is that you got him to the vet quickly and he is going to be OK.

[Pam]

Oh Souraya I am so glad that Drake is going to be OK! It was a good thing that your vet was in the office at the time. Don't for one minute think you are a bad mom!! Things happen! You tried to do something nice for Drake and your heart was in the right place. Give your baby a hug from all of his Pet Talk friends and tell him lots of Get Well wishes are heading his way! :)

[Logan]

Souraya, you are the BEST mom. All of us try to do everything possible to make our babies happy, and unfortunately, sometimes we find out later that we need to not be quite so giving! But he's ok now, and you only meant to give him some enjoyment.

I'm so glad he's going to be ok, and that you are too. I guess it is true that when we have an adrenaline rush, we can do miraculous things! And knowing how small you are, picking up Drake was a miracle for you!! I'm so glad you had your cell phone handy and were able to get him to the vet.

You hang in there, and give your boy a big hug and kiss from us.

Logan :)

[DoggiesAreTheBest]

Logan, it must have been the adrenaline rush. I can not even push him aside when he is on the bed. He is only 20 lbs lighter than I am. I don't know how I picked him up. :confused:

[Gio]

Souraya,

please don't even think that you are a terrible mother. You are not, it's obvious to anyone that you have Drake's interest at heart. Sometimes we all do things that we might regret later on, this is just one of the horrible things that happen. The main thing is that Drake is on the road to recovery. You will see, Drake will be back to his mischevious self in no time so please, please don't blame yourself. Take care, a hug to both of you.

[jackiesdaisy1935]

Oh Souraya, please don't blame yourself, everyone on here knows how much you love Drake and was just trying to give him a little fun. It was one of those things that would never happen in a million years, but that particular day it did. My gosh look how wonderful you reacted, how in the world did you ever pick him up. I guess we can do anything when our furbaby is in trouble. I am so glad he is doing well and just give him lots of kisses and hugs from me, Daisy and Perry.
Jackie

[aly]

Souraya,

Please don't blame yourself. I don't think any one of us would ever think that anything like that could happen in just a short mile. Poor Drake. I'm glad he's going to be alright and that he still got to see his daddy. Maybe you could put a wire crate and tie it down in the bed of the truck so Drake can still enjoy the view on short drives?

I'm sure you're being the best nurse for Drake while he's on the road to recovery :)

[Logan]

Thinking about Drake's accident reminded me of how our Lab, Chuck, used to ride in the back of my husband's pick up truck. He rigged up a system that would in no way allow Chuck to make it to the side of the truck, but still get his fill of the wind in his face. I think there were two cables, each attached at the hooks closest to the cab of the truck. They joined midway (middle of the truck bed). Then there was a clip there with maybe 6-10" of cable that hooked to Chuck's collar. Basically all Chuck could do was "sit"...not even lie down, but he still got his "thrill", and we knew he was safe. We also made sure he had some padding back there to sit on, so he wouldn't shift around and hurt himself.

I don't know if I have even come close to properly describing this....it has been a long time. I'll ask my ex about it. I'm sure he does it with his current lab, Ben, as well. On a completely unrelated subject, Helen informed me last night that Ben is a "Daddy", and she thinks her own dad will get one of the puppies this time around, another male, Chocolate Lab. She is so excited. Can you imagine how exciting it would be to be Helen?? Two dogs and a cat at one home, and two dogs, two cats, two birds and a hamster at the other one?? What a lucky girl!! That is my idea of HEAVEN!!! :D

[jennifert]

Souraya, I am so sorry to hear about Drake's accident! And I thought I had a rough weekend!! Holy Mackerel!! I hope he is doing well today. What a terrible scare!
You are a wonderful mother and you do such a nice job raising Drake! We try so hard to make them happy sometimes and, like Logan said, we find out later our generosity is detrimental to them... Who knew...? It's so hard to take care of these big boys especially since they can't talk to us and tell us what they're feeling.
Please hug Drake for me! His "brother" Duncan sends his love...

[Dixieland Dancer]

Souraya, I can only imagine the horror you felt seeing your baby laying their covered with blood. You are not a bad mother though. It was an accident. You only tried to give your baby some happiness. If you had know what was going to happen, I am sure you would of done it differently.

We all do things that later we wish we could do over again. The good thing is that he is okay and will recover! :D

Please give him a big hug and a kiss on those hairy lips for me!

[Fuzzy317]

I am glad Drake and you are okay after your adventure. :) Be sure to give him plenty of hugs and cookies on his recovery. I am sure you need his hugs, too.

[momoffuzzyfaces]

I was holding my breath the whole time I read this. I'm so glad Drake's guardian angels were on the job. (Yes, I believe animals have them too.) You are not a bad mother. Accidents happen to every one of us. I'm so relieved he will be ok. Please give him a hug from me.

[mugsy]

Souraya, you know the old saying...20/20 hindsight?? That's what you're using. Please don't blame yourself...you could never have foreseen what was going to happen. Focus on Drake getting better...it sounds like he's feeling better already if Daddy got him a hamburger!! Keep us up to date. How are the teeth btw?

[Albea]

My heart stopped when I read the first paragraph of your post. It only started again when I saw that Drake was alright and out of danger. What a scary thing to happen!!! But, like everybody else said: don't blame yourself. You only wanted to give him a good time, and you're right, it could have been much worse if he hadn't sliped out of his collar:(
Give him many hugs from us, with best wishes for a quick recovery from his wounds.

[tatsxxx11]

Souraya, WOW, what a scare!! But whatever you do, don't blame yourself!! As has been said, hindsight is always 20/20!! Things such as this do happen to us Mom's sometimes, even when we have the best of intentions. You are a wonderful, wonderful Mom to Drake. We all know that and so does Drake!! The important thing is that the Drakester is OK, and you as well!! I know how frightening it all must have been for you. But thankfully, your beautiful boy is home now, safe and sound. Please give Drake a huge hug for me!

[LoudLou]

Souraya, Why is it everything happens on a weekend or holiday! Glad everybody is OK. Don't blame yourself...WE all KNOW YOUR ONE OF THE BESTEST MOMMIES AROUND!!!:D

[Sudilar]

Souraya, I am so glad that Drake will recover!! We can all take this as a lesson to never let our furbabies ride in the back of an open truck bed (unless something is rigged up like Logan described). The cargo is too precious!! Maybe this incident will save another pups life! Again, I am sooooo glad that Drake will recover. Sending hugs to you both!!

[Cincy'sMom]

How scary!!! I have thought a few times about letting Sadie ride ride in the bed of my truck. After hearing your story I don't think I ever will! I have a cap, but the window doesn't latch right and she could get out!

So glad Drake will be okay! Thoughts and prayers that his recovery will be speedy!

[anna_66]

So, how has Drake been feeling over the past couple of days? Better I hope! We're all thinking about him at our house!

http://pages.prodigy.net/rogerlori1/emoticons/friends.gif (http://)

[DoggiesAreTheBest]

Draker is doing very well! His wounds are healing quickly and he is back to his mischevious self already! He hasn't pulled out any of his staples (thank God). He isn't too happy about his exercise being limited and he gets so sad when I jog in the morning without him. I do take him on a walk after I get back.

We are going to Alabama tomorrow afternoon to spend the weekend with Andrew. We will be going to the beach on Saturday in Destin, FL and I know that Drake is going to have a great time! He absolutely loves the water and will do anything to go swimming!

I need to call the vet and see when I can get the staples taken out. I may just get them taken out at the Vet on post at Ft. Rucker.

[Dixieland Dancer]

GREAT NEWS! I was wondering how the Drake man was doing too and it's great to hear he is healing quickly.

You enjoy your weekend with both the men in your life! :D

[mugsy]

Souraya, I'm so glad that Drake is doing so well....see....you're such a good mom that he's making a miraculous recovery.

[sabies]

What an awful experience! Don't blame yourself, be thankful it didn't turn out worse. Get well soon Drake!!

[shais_mom]

I am so glad that Drake is ok!
You are the best mommy. Accidents happen. Lesson Learned! I agree with the 20/20 hindsight. Keep up the good work with your baby.