Well, Crap....

Why am I awake and freakin' blogging at 5 a.m.? I am not an early riser by nature or by choice. No, the neurotic Girl Dog has taken to night waking, and it's not to answer the call of nature. She isn't happy unless someone is awake with her. If we ignore her she jumps into and the bed and lays on top of us. If we put her outside she claws at the door incessantly (we have French doors) and at this point she is almost through the frame.

I called the holistic vet yesterday, and they can see her next Wednesday. I talked to the woman who owns the kennel because she knows the Girl Dog better than any other care provider, and she suggested Benadryl to help us get through the week. We tried it, but it only delayed the inevitable waking.

She also offered to board Girl Dog for the next week until we can see the vet, and as much as I hate to spend the holidays without my dog I'm going to have to take her in. It's expensive, as will be the vet consultation. We are near the very end of the rope at this point. At least the kennel is a familiar place, and the runs are heated so she won't be cold. She knows that she has never been abandoned there, that we always come back.

Girl Dog has had neurological issues from the beginning. At some point this is becoming unfair to all of us, especially her. All of her fears and phobias are increasing as she gets older. We don't want to tranquilize her if it means she still feels the fear but can't act on it. We've already tried Elavil and Clomicalm. The holistic vet can rule out any obvious physical problems and then perhaps help guide us through using herbs, acupuncture, etc. But it is so hard. I read Marley and Me; at what point are we being unfair? How much can we afford?

Of course, this morning's episode coincided with a bought of primary insomnia, so I hadn't been asleep quite 4 hours when she went haywire. Papa tried moving to the boys' bed since T-Guy was already in the big bed, but that just made the Girl Dog pace between rooms, first jumping up on my bed and laying on Thomas, and then click-clacking down the hall to claw at the boys' bedroom door.

As always, the answer seems to be to get up with her, to be awake with her until her brain calms down and she can sleep again. Which she is finally doing, so I think I'll risk going back to bed myself....