Katie Had Her Cast Removed!!

[Cinder & Smoke]

Glad Katie "got her leg back" ~
Too Bad she's still not allowed to use it much.

Be "sympathetic" - but don't "overdo it" like I did (with
a LOT of help from my friends)...

Years ago my (RB ) Shepherd/Husky - Shadow - managed to
BREAK the outside toe on her back foot - and was "wrapped" from her
toes up to her knee for over a month.
Doc said it would "hurt" for a while, and she'd "favor it" -
which would hasten the healing...

"FAVOR it"!!??
You'd have thought they cut the whole LEG OFF!

I swear the ONLY time that paw touched the ground was when she
had been outfitted with a protective "baggie" to go outside for a walk
or potty trip... SOMEHOW it didn't "hurt" so much when there
was no one around to exclaim "Oh you POOR Baby!"

She VERY Quickly learned that the more she *hobbled* & *limped* -
the More Attention and Sympathy she got...
"WE" created a *monster*!

Suddenly she couldn't *jump* into the car ~
"Dad, I need a *boost up*, please."

After a week of *practicing the hobble & limp* ~
she decided she just couldn't manage to *hop* up the stairs from
the basement and garage to the first floor ~
"Dad, kuld you *carry* me up??"

I did that ONCE - but she *blew it* a hour later after I "bagged her up"
for an outie - and watched her TROTT AROUND on ALL Fours for an
hour when she thought I wasn't watching...
Called her in and she suddenly couldn't manage the three front steps!

I smelled a rat!
It was dinner time - called her again to come in...
*WHINE* ... *WHIMPER* ...

(Dinner was "served" on the front porch -
with me "peeking" out the window...)
I'd hardly closed the front door before she had her head burried
in the moments before "unreachable bowl"!

Hmmmmm... I bagan to taper off on the "POOR Baby" routine.

But alas;
my "Friends" continued to lavish gobs of *sympathy* on "Poor Shadow" -
and no amount of my telling them that she REALLY wasn't "hurting"
had any effect towards reducing the *sympathetic
support* she enjoyed.

LONG after (MONTHS after) the "wrapper" came off,
and the Doc pronounced her FULLY Healed...
she finally "gave up" on trying to use the *hpbble* & *limp*
routine with ME ~ but
EVERY Time we'd visit the Fire Station or a customer would come into
the Shop ~
Poor ol' Shadow would suffer a sudden "relapse" of
"WOE iz me - my paw'z jest KILLIN me!" and
begin the *hobble* & *limp* routine, basking in the outpouring
of fresh *sympathy*!

The only "flaw" in her routine was her downfall -
she began to forget WHICH paw was the SORE Paw!
Friends would *notice* and began asking me:
"Which paw did she hurt??"
The correct answer was RIGHT - REAR...

"Uhhhh... she just "LIMPED" over to me holding up her LEFT Rear leg!"

It got SOOOO Bad she was often observed to try a few "limps" with
EACH of all FOUR legs being "tried out" to see if ANY of them
would generate a "POOR Baby" response.

Moral of the Story -
Be *sympathetic* with Katie - but don't *overdo it* -
you don't want to create another "Monster"!

Rest In Peace, Dear Shadow -
Dad really *misses* you!!

/s/ Phred