My stomach sank to my toes. A low, unrecognizable sound came from my throat.  “Oh no, this can’t be,” I said with utter dread.  I dropped to my knees and scooped up the crumbles of vitamins left on the bedroom carpet.  Then I glanced at Frankie, licking her lips, oblivious to what she had just done.

I had a straw bag packed with all our “essentials” for the trip we were heading out on the following morning.  Frankie would be traveling with us.  Earlier that morning I was working out in MySpace.calm and Frankie was soaking up the sun streaming in through the patio door.  I was working for about 45 minutes when I went into the house and discovered Frankie had gotten into John’s supply of packed vitamins.  To the best of what I could gather, she ate ten fish oil pills, ten garlic pills, 3 glucosamine pills and chewed up a few of the multi-vitamins.  I tried to not panic as I ran to the phone.  Luckily I know the vets number by heart.  As I say that, I realize I must call the vet an awful lot to know the number by heart.  Oh dear. 

Heidi, the receptionist answered.  I said, “Heidi, its Barb Techel.”  She said, “Hey Barb, how are you?”  Holding my composure I said, “Well, not so good.  Frankie just ate quite a few vitamins and I don’t know what to do.”  She immediately transferred me to Dr. Quilling.  He instructed me to give Frankie one ounce of hydrogen peroxide, of which I had on hand.  I ran for the bottle, grabbed Frankie and placed her on the kitchen counter.  Then I panicked.  I wondered, “How much is one ounce?”  I can’t think!  I called my mom.  “Mom, I’m trying not to panic, but Frankie ate the vitamins I had packed and I’m trying to make her throw up.  How much is one ounce.”  After some thinking with panic at the edge of our hearts, she said “2 tablespoons.”  I hung up and poured the amount into a glass.  Now, how do I get it down her throat?  I pried open Frankie’s mouth and poured it down.  I don’t think much went down and she sputtered and sneezed.

The waiting game began.  She just sat there.  Nothing happened.  “How long should this take” I wondered?  Ten minutes went by.  Nothing.  So I called the vet again.  Dr. Quilling came back on.  “Give her another dose.  If she does not throw up in ten minutes, bring her in.”  Oh great, I thought.  How will I get another shot of peroxide down her?  Her jaw clamped shut and when I tried to get it open, she would clamp back down on my fingers.  By this time we were on the kitchen floor.  I got down what I could, and then waited the longest 5 minutes of my life.  I couldn’t stand the wait, so I ran and got a bed sheet and placed it on the front seat of the car. I then ran back in and grabbed all the bottles of vitamins and supplements, plus what was left from the bag and threw them in my purse.  I then grabbed Frankie and away we flew to the vet. 

When we arrived they whisked Frankie to the treatment center in the back, as I called out to her, “Frankie, please throw up!”  They placed salt at the back of her throat.  Another ten minutes passed.  Still she did not throw up.  Finally they gave her morphine and said it should do the trick. Dr. Quilling waited with me in the exam room. Just then, Kim, the technician knocked on the door, smiled and said, “Frankie threw up.”  A big sigh escaped me.  Dr. Quilling brought me back to the treatment room.  Yup, sure enough, you could tell she ate vitamins.  As an extra pre-caution Frankie stayed for the day, hooked up to an IV to make sure she was thoroughly “cleaned out.”  Dr. Quilling looked at the ingredients at on all the bottles and didn’t think anything should be a real threat.  His concern would have been if she had gotten into an iron supplement.  The good news is she ate John’s multi-vitamin, which does not normally have iron it in.  If she had gotten into mine we would have had to be concerned with iron. 

After finishing packing, dropping Kylie off at the kennel and eating dinner, I made my way back to the clinic at 7:30p to bring my little peanut back home.  I snapped this photo of her in the car just before I took her in the house.  She had a darling little blue bandage on her leg where the IV was.  I was so thankful she was going to be okay.  I took a deep breath, hugged her tight and thanked God all would be well.  As we headed out the next day, and the days that followed with our vacation, Frankie was as well as could be.  I will post photos about our trip in the next day or so and tell you about our adventures.  The highlight was visiting Home for Life Animal Sanctuary!

To purchase a copy of Frankie, the Walk 'N Roll Dog and have a portion of the book sales help dachshunds in need please order directly from Joyful Paws.    Frankie and I are trying to sell as many books as we can for the month of September so we can donate a percentage to Dachshund Rescue of North America (DRNA) to help the 138 doxies that were rescued from a horrific puppy mill in West Virginia.  They need immediate and long-term care.

The Washington Post had a story about it and the first paragraph talks about a doxie named Frankie. As you can imagine, it tore my heart out because I have my own little Frankie. I am in contact with someone from DRNA and I'm trying to get word out to help these sweet little dogs in need.

Frankie, the Walk ‘N Roll Dog teaches compassion and overcoming challenges through her story and compassion is what all these dogs need now more than anything…. And our help, whether through donations, adoption or helping with transports.  If you know of anyone looking for a gift for their children or grandchildren, for birthdays or the holidays, Frankie’s book is one of the best life lessons you can teach your little ones. At the same time you will be instilling in them what compassion is all about by having a portion of your book sale donated to the dachshunds that desperately need our help right now.

Again to purchase a copy of Frankie, the WAlk 'N Roll Dog and help a worthy cause order directly from Joyful Paws.  Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!! 

Three years ago I had a dream to train my yellow lab, Kylie to become a therapy dog.  It was my hope to visit nursing homes and hospitals to share joy and smiles.  I wanted to give the gift of a dog’s love to those less fortunate who aren’t able to have that connection on a daily basis.  As many of you know, there was a fork in the road and my dream was put on hold to care for my little Frankie.

It took me awhile to realize God meant for Frankie to become my therapy dog.  He certainly had a grand plan in mind… and I finally paid attention.  After writing Frankie’s book and taking her to school’s I realized the potential of Frankie’s never-ending love.  I knew we could give back to the world even more.  So we embarked on becoming a therapy dog team with Therapy Dogs, Inc.  I am a big believer in the universe and being open when things are put into my path.  Well, last spring I met Julie Hauck, 3^rd grade teacher at Longfellow school when I did a presentation for her class.  We hit it off immediately and our love for animals was evident.  One thing led to another in our quick introduction discussion and I soon discovered she was waiting to receive her certification in becoming a tester/observer for Therapy Dogs, Inc.  Yup, God was sending me His next message.  It was time to realize my dream and it was Frankie who would be my therapy dog partner. 

It was July when Julie finally received word she was officially a tester for TDI.  In the meantime I met with the Volunteer Services Coordinator at a local hospital to fill out my paperwork to volunteer with Frankie.  I also had to have blood work done through the hospital which I did right away.  Then Julie, her dog Preston, Frankie and I, began our training at a nearby nursing home.  In order to become a team Julie must observe Frankie and I in many different aspects on three different visiting occasions.  Julie filled out our paperwork when our visits were complete, which I sent to TDI for approval.  I was so touched when I read what Julie had written:  “Barb was clearly happy to begin the journey of becoming a Therapy Dog Team. Barb and her dog, Frankie, work together beautifully.  Barb has a very kind and graceful way of interacting with the residents.  Frankie is a calm dog who enjoys attention. Barb and Frankie are going to spread a lot of joy as a therapy team. They are naturals!”

So there you have it… I had a dream three years ago… and it has finally come true. Wow.  And as I say wow, I feel a lump forming in my throat and tears mist my eyes.  It was a dream I wanted so badly.  Now it is time to spread joy and smiles which we will do soon.  My hope of sharing stories of our experiences will also be realized as I will share them through my blog…. and last, but most certainly not least… thank you my little Frankie once again for being one special dog.  Mama is so proud of you!!