Peteyfoozer’s Journey (because journaling’s not enough)

peteyfoozer

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Dear gawd, I have had the most traumatic morning …pain has of course, been flaring lately, but even worse is the extreme fatigue that continues with it sometimes. I haven’t been able to get up for days so I dragged myself out to the kitchen for an Adderal. I don’t like to take them because I already am having high BP but decided there has been no quality to life lately so it’s worth the risk.
So after an hour or so, I was able to make it to the backroom where I have been trying for weeks to make something for a beautiful little redheaded girl who is sadly going to be leaving the ranch soon. I have really struggled with the making of it as well as comprehension, so I figured this is my best shot.
As I was at the sewing machine, my “heart” walked in and insisted I hug him and pet him and acknowledge his presence. After he was satisfied, he wandered the craft room while I worked.
I sensed something was wrong.
I asked Boone to come out from between the work table and wall. He backed across the room then turned…on his foot was a sticky trap…

In case you don’t know the actual definition of phobia, here you go:

“an intense, persistent, IRRATIONAL fear of a specific object, activity, situation, or person that manifests in physical symptoms such as sweating, trembling, rapid heartbeat, or shortness of breath, and that motivates avoidance behavior.”

In my case the “avoidance behavior” looks like deep throated screaming, tears, terror, gagging, and knowing we may both die a horrible death if the …insect… on the trap touches one or both of us. Remember key word-IRRATIONAL

Mind you, this happened once with Fen, but Fen’s dainty little foot only covers a wee bit of the trap, which also had the same…insect or two (yes. The phobia is so severe I cannot say it’s name or even look at a picture of one…)
So with Fen, I was able to safely find fingerholds on the trap and remove it without touching one.
Not so with Boone’s enormous paws. There was no safe handhold. But I love him and had to free him. As I was attempting it, I could hear myself screaming, and Boo was trying to pull his foot away (well, more than just trying, he is after all, both bigger and stronger than I am) each time he got it away and slammed it to the ground, welding it ever tighter to his paw.
As we did our macabre dance across the room and through the house, both of us now screaming and staggering, I was grasping tools for my own protection as we went by them, a jewelry plier here, kitchen scissors there…I’m sure it hurt Boo, as it was probably taking skin off his paws but I probably terrorized him worse than the pain, though definitely not as terrorized as I am by the evil incarnate that was attached to the trap.
Finally, with both of us tangled in the bedroom doorway, it came loose and still crying hysterically and now hoarse as well, my BP likely in the red zone, Boo trembled in the doorway while I got the trap down deep in the trash can. I spent much time apologizing to him, hugging, kissing, still crying, while he forgave me, covering my face in gigantic tongued doggy kisses.

I took a shower as the smell of fear was too strong for me to cope with. It’s been an hour now and I’m finally feeling a bit better.
Remember the other day I told you Boone is in a fear period? They last a couple of weeks and incidents can imprint phobias of his own on his little psyche.
S&@$!!tch!
How bad have I just screwed up my dog ? 🫤😳

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peteyfoozer

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If that ever happens again, try vegetable oil. It's messy, and you have to work it around and try to get it between the skin and the glue - but it will work. I once got a (non-venomous) snake off a trap that way, lol. That was no fun at all, lol!
Thank you. I don’t think I will ever allow one in the house again after this morning! 😂
 

peteyfoozer

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Wasn’t sure I could help feed this morning but determined to try.
The 10 growouts that should have been processed already are totally psycho. One is channeling Jeffrey Dahmer, all the rest have ears torn and bloody, and wounds everywhere.
Randy promised to rake out the coop tonight so I decided to harvest Jeffrey. I snagged him up, the only one without a mark on him, and quickly dispatched him.
I was a bit worn from multiple trips to the house for buckets, knives, chain for Boone etc., I didn’t want to wreck my shoes with blood and didn’t have the energy to change, therefore I was processing barefoot, in a tank top, 47 degrees out as Randy took my shirt, thinking it was helpful…so I only did 3 of the 10, freeing up a pen for the last litter which is nearly time to harvest but never even got weaned.
I was getting a rhythm going when I heard Mister’s door open on the other side of the rockwall. One of the triplets (27 yo cowboy) was bringing nursecow into Mister’s pen to graft on a leppie.
It was not easily managed as she was uncooperative about going into the headgate, Mister was running around us in circles, etc. It was over an hour before it was all said and done with plenty of debacles. like some young sh*t for brains bringing the leppie, leaving 3 gates open so my horse left the country…what kind of flipping cowboy doesn’t know how to shut a damned gate on a ranch??
Then one of the psycho rabbits escaped, costing Boone and I another 40 minutes to capture among all the feed cans and nesting boxes…I offed him ASAP even though I had everything ready to cart back to the house.
So 4 are brining, I’m under a down blankie waiting for pain killers to kick in, since I did myself no favors for my first real day out of bed…

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Nice livers!

Waiting for rigor mortise, soon to be as stiff as I am…
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Snow tomorrow so I likely can’t do the other 6 until end of next week as we have yet another Dr appt Tues.
phffft!
C’mon Boo. It’s nap time
 
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