A False Alarm

Andy Waiting to Go Out

A month after Andy’s paralysis incident, I brought him to my condo. I had plenty of time to think of what I was going to do, where I was going to go and when. Because of GSK’s generous severance package, I was able to take my sweet-ass time to make my next step. In the meanwhile, I would kick it with my Baby Boy and enjoy what time I had with him.


One evening after I returned home from working out, I took Andy for a walk. We barely made into the park when trouble started. He started limping, took a few steps and stopped altogether. He held his front paw up and pitifully looked up at me. All I could think was that his bad back had struck again. I also thought he could have sprained or even broken his leg. Regardless, he couldn’t move on his own power. I picked him up, carried him to my car and put him in the back seat. We were going to make yet another trip to the after hours clinic.

Not only had I just finished working out, but I had carried an 80lb dog over 100 yards. This was a fusion between cardio and lifting, an extension of my workout. I was tired and hungry, really hungry. Fortunately for me, the night was very mild, so I left Andy in car 5 minutes while I grabbed a quick bite to eat. I knew a long wait may be ahead and my blood sugar was dropping. When I came back, Andy was quietly lying in the back and sleeping.

I went to the front desk at the clinic after I pulled into the parking lot. I asked a vet tech for assistance bringing Andy inside. She brought another vet tech with her and a stretcher to carry Andy in. Andy was standing in the back waiting for us. When I opened the door, he jumped out like a horse out of the gates at the Kentucky Derby. He appeared to be OK. The vet techs laughed and we all went inside.

After filling out the paperwork, I saw the vet. She inspected him and said he appeared to be fine. I explained why I was overly cautious. She understood. She said unless Andy limped or his leg started to swell in the next few days, he wouldn’t need a follow-up visit at our regular vet. Everything would be fine. I guess Andy stepped on something and it was a false alarm. I didn’t need any more bad news that year.