The night before I went back to work after six weeks of recovery, Lucy woke us up pacing and panting. No matter how much we pled with her she would not settle down. I finally got up and took her out at 2:00 AM. We came back in and she settled down a little bit, but she was still acting funny.
The next morning I felt okay, no headache, if a little tired. I went to work intending to work a full day. I did okay until about 2:30 when I finally succumbed to a headache that had brewing all day. I came home and Lucy was acting even weirder. She was panting, pacing, and walking in circles; she seemed a little off balance. I finally called the vet and they were able to get her i right away. The doctor gave her a clean bill of health, she’s in great shape! I didn’t opt for any blood tests, I figured if she didn’t settle down within a couple of days, I’d bring her back.
I’m glad I took her to the vet, better safe than sorry, but since she was in fine shape, the only alternative was that she was having doggy panic attacks. She’d gotten used to me being around all the time and somehow she knew that I was going back to work the next day. I knew we had a neurotic dog; I didn’t realize it was quite that bad. She’s doing much better today; she knows that I will be coming back. It helps that Maura is going to be around more now that school’s out too. It makes me wonder if Luna is tormenting her when we’re not here!
I came home early again today with a stabby headache. I know everyone told me that I should take it slow, start back with a week of half days, but I was really hoping I’d just be fixed and that’s it. The new drugs are helping, but I’m also trying to be a lot more active than I’ve been in almost two months. It seems that I’m going to have to ease back into reality.
You didn’t tell her you were going back to work. You need to have a talk with her and reassure her. My cat doesn’t punish me before I leave, but when I come home you’d think I’d been gone a week. She talks, and yells at me. I let her drink from the bathroom faucet, make sure she has cat treats in her bowl, but mostly I have to take a few minutes to sit with her and pay attention to only her – not a book, my Kindle or TV– her. It only lasts a few minutes. Took me awhile to figure out what she wanted.
Hey, hope you feel better and better every day. This weather plays havoc with my head. I don’t know if it bothers you or not, but something to consider (I’m sure you have. I love telling folks things they already know).