Thanks to everyone for all the well wishes for Ollie. He’s definitely allergic to something but the worst of his symptoms are gone.

It was so beautiful out last weekend that we couldn’t help but try to go for a short walk. Apparently all the Benadryl caught up to Ollie because he decided he didn’t want to walk. So he sat down.

In the middle of the field.

And wouldn’t budge.

After trying every trick in the book to coax Ollie to finish our walk, we finally said “Okay, lets go home.” And wouldn’t you know it, he got up and headed towards the car.

You just can’t force a dachshund to do what he doesn’t want to do!

After waking up and seeing this…

…on Ollie’s head. My husband decided Ollie couldn’t wait till Saturday to see the vet for his itchy scratchies.

Add a rash on his belly and this strange swelling under his chin…

…and an emergency vet visit was in order this afternoon.

The official diagnosis was seasonal allergies, staph infection, and a blocked saliva gland. He was given a steroid shot, medicated shampoo, and double doses of Benadryl for the time being.

Ollie is resting comfortably now, but we’re going to need to go back and discuss some long-term treatment for his allergies (as soon as money isn’t an issue).

Austin Urban Vet is Ollie’s new vet, and they did a great job getting Ollie in for an appointment at a moment’s notice and helping us get him on the road to recovery on our limited budget. If you’re in Austin, Austin Urban Vet will take great care of your pet.

This is not a sponsored post, but Ollie would be happy to be Austin Urban Vet’s spokes person.

Fabulously informative illustration by Lili Chin of Doggie Drawings about how to properly greet a dog!

Despite his innocent face, Ollie is not the friendliest dog. He’s super protective and we keep him on a short leash when we take walks. Everyone thinks that since he’s little they can just bend down and swoop him up, so to be safe rather than sorry, we discourage people from attempting to pet him without him getting to know them first.

How are your pet petting manners? Ever encounter someone that got too friendly with your pet too quickly?

The itchy scratchies have reached epic proportions. Benadryl and Hot Spot ointment are no longer doing the trick, so we made Ollie an appointment to see the vet next weekend.

We also noticed a small area of swollen, saggy skin underneath his chin, which is worrisome.

Hopefully it’s all related to seasonal allergies and a quick shot will do the trick.

You know those families that stop on the side of the road to take their kid’s photos surrounded by Bluebonnets?

Yeah. We do that.

With our dog.