It bit us.. (part A)

Where to begin?? Sunday 18th June, Annabell was unwell so I took her to the Emergency Dept at the hospital; in the afternoon. At 6pm that evening we were seen and  the medical person there said Annabell was fine,  just required rest, so I took her home and got her into bed. Things started to go downhill  from there and I went from doing a laundry once a week to one every other day. I barely had  any sleep since she could not get in nor out of bed without help and the only help around was me. On the 22nd June we had a serious “accident”  and I managed to get her into the shower and yes, I  did what I had to do!!  Sadly as I went to get a fresh towel, she fell and I called out the emergency Ambulance.  She was taken to the Emergency Dept where, fortunately they had a Doctor on  duty and he admitted Annabell to the hospital. It was the early hours of the morning before I got home.

On Wednesday 23rd. I went up to the hospital to see Annabell and walked into  the aftermath of a flurry of activity. In the early morning Annabell felt very sick and pressed the emergency button.  The nurses came  in  just in time to see Annabell vomit — blood. The Nurse called a ” Code Blue”  (Medical Emergency) and a doctor came in. He ordered a particular scan and it was discovered that not only did Annabell have a Peptic Ulcer – it was bleeding.  Whyalla Hospital does not have the equipment to deal with this, but Adelaide does,  so the Royal Flying Doctor  Service (RFDS) was called out. The doctor at the Royal Adelaide Hospital ordered that Whyalla begin blood transfusions immediately. This was done and in the late afternoon  she was taken on  board the RFDS aircraft and flown to Adelaide.

I had already called the Lodge so my accommodation was booked. I went home, packed what I thought I would need, arranged for John  to feed and look after Benji. On the way home I stopped at the supermarket and bought 14 cans of single “My Dog” feed and left a note for John to use two cans per day. In the morning I took off  for the 300 mile drive to Adelaide.

The Drive down was uneventful and once I had booked in and unpacked the car,  had a quick coffee, I  made my way to the hospital.  I had no idea where to go so I checked the information Desk.  I explained why I was here and who I was looking for. Quick as a flash, she gave me all the information I needed, and the lady came out from her desk and showed me where the lifts were. At the nurse station they took me to Annabell’s room  I had a whole half hour with her before they took her away to be prepped for surgery.