First step in the pet hand off: get rid of parasites

She doesn't know this, but I've dubbed my friend Karen the Queen of Pet Preparation. The last few times she’s left town and we’ve taken care of her dog, Shelby, she has bestowed upon us loving care packages.

Not for us. For Shelby.

Consider the one for over Christmas: dog treats/cookies, toys that you put dog treats/cookies into, blankets, dog brush, hard dog bowl, soft dog bowl for travel, dog food, pig ears (those were holiday presents), and another soft chew toy.

Wow! And that was just for four days.

So I’m trying to live up to the QPP’s example and am scheduling in time among the all the trip errands and packing to make sure Sammy (shown here, eating snow) is stocked with enough food to feed a pack of his fellow hunting dogs. Not that there are packs of hunting dogs in Asheville, because soon he will (literally) shed his country coat, replacing it with an oh-so-fine city dog attitude. I just hope it doesn’t include rolling in cat turds. Or patchouli.

But even before the dog treats and food and brushes and pig ears comes the first step in preparing your animal to be taken care of by unsuspecting friends and family.

For Sammy, it's getting rid of Giardia.

That’s right, just days before we leave town for more than a week, he comes down with Giardia. I could elaborate here on all the signs and symptoms he's been sharing with us, but in case you’re eating lunch and reading this, I won’t.

“I can’t guarantee Giardia is what’s causing his diarrhea,” Sammy’s vet said yesterday as he trembled in the corner of the examination room. “But 50 percent of the time, in dogs, it is.”

Take me to Vegas, because I like those odds. So we’re shoving medicine down his throat like there’s no tomorrow. And by yesterday afternoon, everything was back to normal.

I think. And I hope. So don’t worry, Stacy; don’t worry, Russ! Sammy is a prince of a dog! So good! And diarrhea free! (I write, fingers crossed.)