Slightly-Altered World Order

 It feels strange to “merely” prep 7 breakfast buckets vs the usual 8 as I adjust to dear Bo’s absence. A long hard Monday as I worked all day, then rushed home to line up arrangements for Bo’s serene departure. Luckily everything went smoothly there, it was poor Karen’s old man Cass who hung on longer than expected. Difficult euthanasias can be nightmarish. 

I banished Catie to the barn, even though she declared “she was prepared to watch”. Equine euthanasia is always difficult as the horse struggles in various degrees to stay upright, before succumbing to the barbiturate & collapsing to the ground. There’s just no easy way to go about this procedure - I do my best to forewarn clients, strongly advising them NOT to stay if there is any doubt. I’ve got enough to deal with, keeping myself & my assistants out of harm’s way (I generally make a grim joke about avoiding being crushed ourselves - it IS a risk, after all!) Poor Cass was more dramatic than most (Karen joked it was his Arabian heritage), flipping himself over & collapsing next to the backhoe blade. Then respiration persisted for several minutes, until I finally had to pinch his nostrils & allow the elevated CO2 levels to shut down that breathing reflex. (Karen asked for “more juice”, but I had used the whole bottle between him & Bo)

But Calvin the gravedigger did a beautiful job, by the time he got the boys respectfully arranged in their double grave & buried, it was almost 9 PM. I had loaned Karen my truck & small horse trailer to bring Cass over (she sold her stock trailer & only has her big trailer with living quarters; it’s a few feet bigger than mine!), but Calvin gave her a ride back to her place since he was “headed thataway”. I need to write him a thank-you note; for us old-timers I think they’re still meaningful! Got poor Catie fed (I had made spaghetti, quick n’ easy enough to boil water & heat up some meatballs!) and she crashed quickly thereafter. Karen & I were clowning around a bit while Calvin was covering the grave - she got some good photos of Aphrodite & me. I’m thrilled that she’s sprouting healthy new (very sharp!) teeth.

Today is another full workday for me, since Dr M is down at MD Anderson with her husband as he undergoes follow-up scans to develop his new treatment plan. He seems fine - active & mobile & still serving as “driver” (they brought their aged German Shepherd in Monday for euthanasia, I only bought her 2 months of extra time with my splenectomy), but once again, the future remains murky. Hopefully I’ll have Dr M’s help at least throughout the summer. She has committed to covering for me next month when I go to NM.