So this week has been a little crazy and I never got to post about our adventures from last weekend. Being a week behind isn't so bad...it could be worse. Last weekend Todd and I went our separate ways. He had planned a hunting trip for the opening weekend of duck season in Iowa. I gave up my tickets to the Illinois at Indiana football game (the Illini won, of course!) to attend the wedding of a high school friend and visit my longtime friend and college roommate of 3 years, Heidi. Here's how the weekend went for Todd...
Todd and Lucy arrived in Iowa on Friday night to go hunting with Todd's longtime friend Scott Judd. They were supposed to attend a cookout and stay overnight at Judd's cabin on the Mississippi. However, after scouting out some potential hunting spots, they discovered all the good ones were already taken. So, they decided to take some boats out on the Mississippi and find another spot to hunt. Of course, they went out after dark (I warned Todd to be careful about mixing men, dogs, boats, water, and guns. I worry a lot, so you can only imagine what was going through my head. Anyway, they ended up finding a spot, pulling their boats on to some land, and sleeping on the ground. Apparently, Lucy got up every 15 mins and wandered off only to come back smelling more and more like poop. Todd, who was too cold to sleep, said the smell worsened throughout the night. In the morning, he went to investigate what she was doing and found a fish that had been rolled in so much it had turned to mush. That's our little Lucy - always rolling in something!
They had a great time hunting Saturday morning and got 12 ducks. Lucy had the opportunity to retrieve several birds and even had a picture-perfect retrieve on one. One bird she went to get wasn't fully dead. She pawed at it and nosed it for several minuted until it died (probably from the stress of getting shot and attacked by a dog) and then made her retrieve. So, all in all, it was a good morning. You can cee Lucy in this picture looking on as they pack up their boat to head home. Todd went back to his parent's house to sleep for the day since he hadn't slept since Thursday night.
But, that's when the real drama started. He and Lucy showered off and got something to eat. However, he noticed Lucy was not walking very well and when he tried to touch her in the hind legs and tail area, she tried to bite him. For all of you that know Lucy, she can lick people for hours, but has never ever tried to bite anyone. So, this was a little weird for her. He left her alone for a bit, but she started yelping and biting her hind area. He tried to take her outside to go to the bathroom, but she wouldn't go and wouldn't lift her tail. So, he and his dad loaded her into the car and drove to the emergency vet in the Quad Cities. Turns out that Lucy had "cold water tail" which is a common affliction in sporting dogs who swim and hunt often. When they swim, dogs use their tail like an otter tail to navigate in the water. There are many tendons and muscles in that area of the dogs body and she apparently had a sprained tail. Unfortunately, Lucy's sprain was very severe. Some dogs just can't lift their tails for a day or two, while others have a worse sprain to the point they cannot walk or lift their tail at all. So, Lucy was given a shot of anti-inflammatory, sent home with pain killers, and put on bed rest for a few days. Thankfully, she seemed completely healed by Tuesday, although we kept her calm all week to make sure it will fully heal. Anyone that knows Lucy should not be surprised that this happened - she always gets weird afflictions. You can read more about cold water tail here.
Todd and Lucy arrived in Iowa on Friday night to go hunting with Todd's longtime friend Scott Judd. They were supposed to attend a cookout and stay overnight at Judd's cabin on the Mississippi. However, after scouting out some potential hunting spots, they discovered all the good ones were already taken. So, they decided to take some boats out on the Mississippi and find another spot to hunt. Of course, they went out after dark (I warned Todd to be careful about mixing men, dogs, boats, water, and guns. I worry a lot, so you can only imagine what was going through my head. Anyway, they ended up finding a spot, pulling their boats on to some land, and sleeping on the ground. Apparently, Lucy got up every 15 mins and wandered off only to come back smelling more and more like poop. Todd, who was too cold to sleep, said the smell worsened throughout the night. In the morning, he went to investigate what she was doing and found a fish that had been rolled in so much it had turned to mush. That's our little Lucy - always rolling in something!
They had a great time hunting Saturday morning and got 12 ducks. Lucy had the opportunity to retrieve several birds and even had a picture-perfect retrieve on one. One bird she went to get wasn't fully dead. She pawed at it and nosed it for several minuted until it died (probably from the stress of getting shot and attacked by a dog) and then made her retrieve. So, all in all, it was a good morning. You can cee Lucy in this picture looking on as they pack up their boat to head home. Todd went back to his parent's house to sleep for the day since he hadn't slept since Thursday night.But, that's when the real drama started. He and Lucy showered off and got something to eat. However, he noticed Lucy was not walking very well and when he tried to touch her in the hind legs and tail area, she tried to bite him. For all of you that know Lucy, she can lick people for hours, but has never ever tried to bite anyone. So, this was a little weird for her. He left her alone for a bit, but she started yelping and biting her hind area. He tried to take her outside to go to the bathroom, but she wouldn't go and wouldn't lift her tail. So, he and his dad loaded her into the car and drove to the emergency vet in the Quad Cities. Turns out that Lucy had "cold water tail" which is a common affliction in sporting dogs who swim and hunt often. When they swim, dogs use their tail like an otter tail to navigate in the water. There are many tendons and muscles in that area of the dogs body and she apparently had a sprained tail. Unfortunately, Lucy's sprain was very severe. Some dogs just can't lift their tails for a day or two, while others have a worse sprain to the point they cannot walk or lift their tail at all. So, Lucy was given a shot of anti-inflammatory, sent home with pain killers, and put on bed rest for a few days. Thankfully, she seemed completely healed by Tuesday, although we kept her calm all week to make sure it will fully heal. Anyone that knows Lucy should not be surprised that this happened - she always gets weird afflictions. You can read more about cold water tail here.
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