07 May 2007

Joey, The Ghetto Cone Dog


Joey is our little adorable dog. His biological mother and father are Argentine street dogs, but Joey has always lived with us in our house and gone on regular walks around the neighborhood, played with Pet Co toys like "Dirty Rotten Kitten", and enjoyed a balanced diet of Pedigree meat and vegetables flavored dog food. However, what I have come to learn is that you can take the dog out of the street, but you can't take the street out of the dog. I guess what I'm trying to say is that Joey can be a little machista from time to time, and that ain't gonna fly in this household.

So, this past Saturday Joey was taken to the local vet to get fixed or "castrado" in hopes of dimming his macho behavior. Six stiches later, and lots of "No! Joey, no licking!", we returned back to the vet to check up on the recuperation of Joey and his baby boy nuts. Apparently, Joey ripped out and swallowed two of the stitches, which meant that if he were to snack on any others, we could have a problem.

The vet then wiped Joey with a disinfectant and poured sugar on his balls. I had one of my "Whoa, foreign country" moments and didn't really ask why. I think it's to seal them or create a sap or something, but I don't think it is for good flavor because that seems counterproductive.

Anyway, all of this warranted (drum roll please)......... the cone. It was necessary. You know what I am talking about. That plastic thing they put around our pets' necks to prevent them from scratching, licking or getting to their infected places. Good news- Joey is now protected. Bad news- the vet only had the cone in one size. Chihuahua size to be specific. Joey; however, is a medium sized dog, so the cone is way too small and looks more like a clown collar.

My husband Cristian and I were not about to go on a mad goose chase for the right sized cone and spend even more money on something that will last just a couple of days....instead, we knew that we had all of the materials at home, and that we just had to be a little creative in order to elongate the cone. Hence Joey, " The Ghetto Cone Dog" -- Joey's limited edition cone is made of plastic, blown up laminated photos of Lima, Peru (that I used for a high school Spanish presentation) and remains of a cardboard shopping bag I got from a purse store here in Buenos Aires.

Must go-- Joey is crashing into the walls.

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