Coyote Days, Tanasbourne Veterinary Emergency

Why is it that coyote sightings always seem to foreshadow trouble here at the ranch? Early yesterday morning, one of the furry predators darted out in front of my daughter, Rosie's, Honda. She barely had time to react.

Thankfully, my daughter is okay. Unfortunately, her car sustained heavy damage -- the front bumper is shattered and the radiator is cracked. We're not sure how the coyote faired, but looking at the damage, it wasn't good.

The whole drama played out not far from home and Rosie was understandably shaken. So, she turned her car around and came back to tell us what had transpired.

At the time, we didn't know her car's radiator was cracked, didn't think twice about letting the dogs free range for their morning constitutional. As usual, the dogs and I headed to the barn to do chores and Rosie headed to work.

Sprite, my ten pound Miniature Pinscher/Rat Terrier pup, started throwing up mid-afternoon -- a terrible series vomit which lasted about an hour or so and left Sprite disoriented and spent. By dinnertime, my tiny pooch seemed a little better, but something was clearly not right.

Rosie's friend, Greg Johnson, came by to survey the damage to the Honda and was quick to point out the broken radiator.  Hearing this my husband put two and two together and voiced concern about Sprite possbily ingesting the toxic coolant that had leaked from Rosie's car.

Radiator fluid kills a lot of animals who accidentally lap up the sweet smelling liquid, so I rushed Sprite to Tanasbourne Veterinary Emergency clinic. There, Sprite was tested for ethylene glycol poisoning. Thankfully, the result was negative and Dr. Shawn Thomas administered an anti-emetic and some fluids to help hydrate my little dog. He also advised a slow return to bland foods.

Sprite was lucky. Because we were slow to discover the damaged and leaking radiator, Sprite surely would have died had had she ingested the coolant. Time is of the essence with such poisons, a lesson I've learned.

This is my third encounter with Tanasbourne Veterinary Emergency and each trip, I've been very impressed with the mega-talented doctors and staff. It's a huge blessing to have an animal urgent care clinic nearby.