Saturday 20 June 2020

Do dogs get headaches?

Yesterday I had a mechanic working on my car in the drive and I offered him a drink.  Came in and made him a coffee and a flavoured Latte (with extra teaspoonful of coffee) for myself.  Leaving mine on the coffee table, I took his drink outside, then got drawn into conversation about the car and what he was doing. 


Eventually, I remembered my cooling coffee and  went back in home to drink it.  But the mug was empty.  For the life of me I couldn't remember drinking it but put it down to my somewhat erratic memory (oh, the joys of getting old!) 
While the mechanic  was working he made a discovery . . .  the tank was full of PETROL instead of the diesel fuel that should have been there!  Oh the shame - and the panic when I realised what I'd done.


Luckily, my son had looked online and found 'Wrong Fuel Ltd' who now had a technician on the way to remove the contaminated petrol and clean the filter before adding some diesel to the tank and getting it running again.
Once again, I offered the feller a drink and made him a coffee - plus another Latte with extra teaspoon of coffee for myself. And once again, I stayed outside for a while, fascinated by what was going on. Eventually, he had the car running perfectly and made sure it was to my satisfaction before leaving, when I returned to my Latte - except once again the mug was empty.  Was I going mad?
But this time there was incriminating evidence which pointed to the culprit - splashes of coffee on the table and on the TV remote and on my book,
"It was YOU, wasn't it?" I stared at the innocent little face of Benji, who decided at that moment to make a dash for his bed in the hall. 

I'd been wondering why I had a headache as I rarely get them, but now realised it was probably caffeine withdrawal. Then it struck me that my little dog, all 10kg of him, now had quite a large amount of caffeine inside him and would possibly be climbing the walls later. I hoped he wouldn't be keeping me awake all night.  He seemed on 'high alert' for a while, but half an hour later he was crashed out on his blanket on the sofa, snoring, yipping and twitching. 
He did disturb my sleep last night but not because he was running around: quite the opposite in fact. Once in his bed he slept heavily,  so heavily that I had to keep checking that he was still breathing.  He barely flickered an eyelid when I stroked him and spoke to him, so I couldn't relax at all. 
This morning he's absolutely fine, while I am shattered. I need a strong coffee!
I wonder if he has a headache now - do dogs get headaches?



9 comments:

  1. Well! A coffee loving dog! That must be unusual.

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  2. Anything remotely eatable or drinkable, Elizabeth. I'm surprised he hasn't eaten his food bowl before now!

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  3. That made me smile, a cheeky coffee loving dog on the loose.

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  4. Benji is a dog after my own heart if he likes coffee!

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  5. You may want to read this: https://vcahospitals.com/know-your-pet/caffeine-toxicity-in-pets

    I hope Benji continues to be okay :)

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    1. Point taken, Jenny. I take heart from the paragraph that quotes, "Instant coffee contains about 60 mg per teaspoon so a 15 pound Sheltie would have to consume 17 teaspoons of dried coffee to get sick."
      Benji has been absolutely fine today, I'm pleased to say.

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    2. Oh, I am so glad to hear that. He must have really enjoyed the first cup if he went back for more!

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  6. I had to laugh at this, I bet you thought you'd lost the plot when you found the second drink had disappeared. Look at that little face though, how could you possibly tell him off :) I hope he's still okay and isn't suffering from any delayed after effects.

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  7. Back to normal today - mostly sleeping, interspersed with the occasional yap from his perch in the front window, as someone walks past 'his' garden. Still keeping a watchful eye on the coffee table (aptly named!) if I make a move to leave him in the room. Ever-hopeful Benji.

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