"Houston, We've Got A Problem"

We've had to deal with a bit of separation anxiety here at home this weekend. I've been busy figuring out how I'm going to keep Lara and Barney separated since discovering that she's in heat Friday night.

Neither dog had been fixed upon advice from their respective vets: Lara needed to lose weight first and Barney had to recover from anemia brought on by the maggot infestation. Both were scheduled for surgery Dec. 23 to be performed by Dr. Gary Haver at Dr. Milton Gee's office in Encinitas.

I met Dr. Haver last month while interviewing him on SNAP's Neuter Scooter for an article in The Coast News. We were surprised to discover that we both knew Barney: I was fostering him, and Dr. Haver had taken care of him when he was surrendered at the county shelter.

I remember Lisa Hamilton returning to her office at the Mission Animal Hospital Aug. 7 after assessing Barney at the shelter and reporting: ". . .they have done a super job at the shelter of getting him well on the way to recovery. Bless who ever spent hours shaving and pulling maggots from his wounds!"

That was Dr. Haver. He seemed very pleased to hear that Barney was doing well and vividly remembered that day.

Because of his history with Barney, it seemed only natural that Dr. Haver, who works at Dr. Gee's office on Wednesdays, would neuter him and, of course, Lara. After Friday night's revelation, I was eager to move surgery up from Dec. 23 to avoid any chance that Lara would become impregnated.

Although Dr. Haver's surgery schedule was full this Wednesday he graciously offered to squeeze Lara in. The only challenge now is keeping the two pups separated till then. Let's see, it's 6:10 p.m. on Sunday. 62 hours and counting. . .