“You have got to push! ” I whispered to her. She was breathing heavy, with her pink tongue hanging out. Globs of saliva slid off. The babies already delivered lay under her crying for their mother’s attention. They were ugly little things, looking more like rats than puppies. The total of two had a tint of green to their white fur, covered in mucus. To prepare for my dogs labor, I googled every possible thing that could go wrong when a dog was giving birth. Knowing what I know now, I probably would’ve looked more into it. “Domonic. It’s been two hours. I think she should’ve had another puppy by now.
I said with urgency to my step dad. It was normal for dogs to have at least seven puppies, at intervals of 30 to 45 minutes. I can remember when Tawanka was just a puppy herself. Jumping at anything that walked by with her black and white stubby legs, and a long tongue that was meant for kisses. Now, she laid in pain, whimpering as she was in labor. The two puppies born were pure white, looking nothing like their mother. Her eyebrows furrowed in animal confusion. She wanted to nurse the puppies but needed to birth the others first. She laid on old blue comforter, against the far left wall of the living room.
A window situated above her head, was cracked to keep airflow. Spring air smelt of freshly turned dirt and sweet lemon. “We will take her to the vet if she doesn’t have any puppies. For now, we’ll just have to see as time goes on. ” Trolled my eyes. “Ok, but what if she passes out. ” I said, a little more sarcastic than intended. No response. I took care to mae sure my stomps over to the couch were heard. I then proceeded to slam my head into the nearest throw pillow, out of frustration. Sleeping was the best way to escape your problems.
I must’ve passed out because I woke up to chaos. “ADELINA! Get up, get up! My mom shook my soldiers with her delicate hands. In response, I lazily raised my head. She speed walked towards the door, not bothering to see if I actually woke up. “What? What! ” My voice cracked and my mouth had an awful taste. My hair was matted in sweat. Brushing the wisps off of my face and peeling my sticky legs off the leather couch, I looked towards the area where Tawanka once laid. She was nowhere to be seen. Her puppies were dozed off, wrapped in a ragged towel. My brother was shoving his heels into his Nikes.
“Rocco, what is going on? I must’ve fell asleep… ” I mumbled the last part to myself. We have to take Tawanka to the vet. ” Rocco was always smiling, with a wide grin causing his brown eyes to wrinkled in the corners . Seldom did I ever see his eyes filled with tears and his mouth frowned at the corners. This happened to be one of those moments. “Awe man. Who’s going to watch the puppies? ” I glanced to the puppies shaped like a burrito. The only thing visible was their closed eyes and red nose. “Mom and Alysia. You and I have to keep Tawanka calm during the car ride, I guess. ” “What time is it? ” Walking towards the Surburban, I observed Dominic shoving comforters in between the two seats in the back.
Tawanka sat by his feet, panting. “I can’t believe it’s been 4 hours since she has had a baby! What is wrong with her? ” Slowly looking up, he said breathlessly “The remaining babies must be too big for her hips or she is just lazy. But it is not safe for those puppies to be in her. ” “We got to go! ” | said with sterness not to anyone particular. And we were off. Rocco and I pat Tawanka’s wavy hair and scratched her ears. She rested her muzzle on her paws, and kept her eyes closed the entire car ride. “Oh no, oh, no, oh no. She’s going to have her puppies in the car. I just know it.
She would probably have a tough time keeping her footing, ya know? Like, she would probably tip over because this Suburban isn’t the most luxurious car. That would be awful. Could you imagine? I couldn’t. And… ” I rambled when I was clearly stressed and/or having a panic attack. “Nina, can you just calm down? ” Rocco snapped at me. His tone and words was like a slap in the face, somewhat calming me and bringing me back to reality. Arriving at the vet’s office was scary. You never knew what could happen. It’s cute building, looking like a cabin. It’s walls were made of pine, and many widows.
Walking in, it smelt like dog and cinnamon. An apple pie candle was lit near an overly cheery woman greeted us. She had her hair slicked back into a ponytail, a pair of round glasses that framed her square face, and a pointy nose. Her mouth looked like it was permanently creased from smiling too much. “Hello! Hellooo! She greeted both us and the dog, but needed to accentuate the “o” when talking to the animal. Tawanka did not look impressed. The car ride took a lot of energy out of her. Her brown eyes stayed droopy. “What can I do for ya this fine afternoon? ” Great.
My dog’s life depends on this box of rainbows and unicorns. “Our dog hasn’t had the rest of her puppies. It’s been about 9 o’clock this morning since she had her second puppy. She is a Lab, and should definitely be having more puppies. ” Dominic explained. Rocco nodded in agreement. “Well, you came to the right place! My name is Susan, by the way. I will fetch you a doc right away! ” Puke. Say your goodbyes Tawanka. When the vet noticed Tawana’s alarming breathing, he briefly explained that she needs to deliver those puppies and that “she’s a tough gal”, and rushed her off to the back room.
Dominic followed, while Rocco and I stayed back. It felt like forever until Dominic popped his head out from the door where they originally disappeared. “She will be having a c-section. The puppies are too big and will break her hips if she tries to birth them. I called your mom to come pick you up. Its gonna take a while” He said. My stomach felt like someone stabbed my gut me a dirty stick and kept twisting. The thought of surgery freaked me out. My mom and Alysia arrived as promised, and brought the puppies in whom still looked like burritos.
Because the surgery would only last an hour to an hour and a half, we decided to stay and hang out in the lobby. The only form of entertainment was sleeping and reading the animal puns that decorated the wall. Seeing Dominic’s pop out for a second time gave me a queasy feeling. “She’s… recovering… slower than expected. One of the puppies was lodged in her birth canal that he didn’t make it. He was slowly killing her. ” “Is she ok? ” Alysia was the first to ask, even though we were all think it. “She’s recovering slower than normal. She should be fine. ” “How many puppies were born? She replied.
“Ten including the two already born and the dead one. ” “Can we see her? ” “Not yet. Were going to take the puppies back and let them nurse. ” Tawanka wasn’t the same after that surgery, as recovering took time. She didn’t play with the other dogs as she used to. She stayed loving to humans, but not to her puppies. It was hard for her to lay still to nurse when all she wanted to do was hang out with us, probably for attention. It was hard to give it to her after one of the innocent puppies ended up smashed under her back. Accidently? It was hard to tell.
