I have an emergency!!!

Working at an animal hospital, you get emergency situations from time to time. Sometimes they’re big emergencies (hit by car, fights, severe chocolate toxicity), sometimes not so much (torn nail, ruptured cyst, ear hematoma). Big emergencies are are obviously much more serious then the little emergencies, but that doesn’t make the little emergencies any less stressful to the pet owner. Especially when you have blood gushing from your pets foot or the ear is swollen three times it’s normal size.

A few Saturdays ago, we had one of those not really an emergency type of emergencies. There was only one teeny tiny little complication with this one.

The pet belonged to my grandmother, who is, how shall I put this…not the most patient person in the world (Keep in mind I love my grandmother dearly, but seriously- patience is not her thing. At all).

I was in the middle of a technician appointment, and just as I finished one of the receptionists came into the room to talk to me. She pulled me aside and said my grandparents had just walked in with their papillion, and were really upset because she wasn’t using her leg. I walked up front, talked  to my grandmother and looked at their dog, who indeed was not using her leg, but otherwise was acting perfectly fine. I told them to sit tight a few minutes while I set up my technician appointment with a reception and go find the doctor.

I was in the prep room for not even 5 minutes when I hear a page overhead requesting that a technician put my grandparents into a room. Of course I’m wondering what the heck? I just told them to sit tight!! Of course I should have known better, seeing as it was my grandmother we were talking about. By the time I walked up front they were already in a room, with the doctor I was trying to find. I went in to help the doctor and find out what was going on.

Turns out she has a torn ACL (anterior cruciate ligament), which is to be expected since she’s fat and likes to run up and down the stairs, and jump on and off the bed and the couch. They’re convinced it happened when she was rough housing with my uncle’s dogs, which is entirely possible. But her being grossly overweight certainly did not help. We gave her pain medications, told them to rest her and recommended they meet with an orthopedic surgeon.

I come to find out later, that the reason my grandparents were seen so quickly, was because my grandmother is a stubborn pain in the ass. As soon as I walked away, the doctor walked out of one of the exam rooms. My grandmother saw him, walked over and grabbed his arm, and said, “Doctor, I have an emergency!!”. So, the doctor (who knew she was my grandmother), had her put into a room, and saw her even though he had 2 other appointments waiting.

Luckily, no one minded my grandmother’s antics- they actually thought it was hysterical. And since it was a pretty easy diagnosis, the other clients were not kept waiting too long. But now I know better- never, EVER leave my grandparents alone in the waiting room!!