WIP Wednesday 45: Mangy Cur

So Monday ambushed me this morning: the dog wet his bed, Jewel the cat was sick, and Destructo Boy spilled his juice over the floor. As if this wasn't enough, my MIL came for a visit, walked through the door, took one look at the dog and said ''Oh, look- fox-mange''.

I Googled it and discovered that fox-mange is sarcoptic mange. Sarcoptic mange is scabies. I freaked when I read that bit, because scabies is also a human affliction - I know because I had it as a young child, picked up from school. As a result, to this day I have an OCD fetish about not ever. ever. ever sharing towels.

Giving up my idea that he had a food allergy (he's been on a gluten-free diet for 3 weeks now) I called the vet for an appointment tootsweet. £180 ($295USD) later, blood has been taken for tests, steroid tablets prescribed for the itching, a drug called Stronghold on the offchance that it's mange, antibiotics for any secondary bacterial infection of the skin, and a medicated shampoo for the yeast skin infection on his skin ... shampoo for the 36kg/80lb. dog who is afraid of water.

The vet didn't do a skin scrape for mange because he thinks it's an environmental allergy; perhaps the blood test will tell us exactly what to, but he thinks it's more likely it will come back as a generic allergy, for which Sebastian will need a £500/$820USD course of initial treatment which is not a cure, but will control the symptoms; then he will have to take this drug for the rest of his life. He is insured, but even so .... I kind of wish it had been mange: at least you know what you're dealing with, and it's straightforward to treat.

So rather than throw the dog's mangy carcass off the nearest bridge with my gin-sodden one, let's distract ourselves with a little more baby knitting - the last item for my neighbor's Bump. It will be a cabled sweater ...

I'm sure the good people over at Tami's Amis will be far more cheerful than me today ....