I am currently a guide dog trainer fosterer since Oct '24. It's going very well. Out the blue last Dec our guide had a full blown seizure in the middle of the night. He vomited, and brought up bits of a bone he had been given at the centre, thrashed about- all 4 limbs, foamed at the mouth and pooed on the carpet. The Guide dog centre did blood tests and such like ,and all have come back with no problem.
Y'day morning he had another seizure and it followed the same pattern, including vomiting and bringing up what looked like identical parts of a bone to the first seizure's vomit. On both occasions I took the bone he had vomited up to the centre.
My concern is ,whilst there is no proof that the bone he was given at the centre is the reason for the seizure, because it is a commonality with both seizures, I want our guide dog to NOT NOT NOT be given that bone ,or such similar bones ,again. During conversations had y'day with the trainer, I was assured ,as they too had similar thoughts, that our guide dog wont be given such a bone again now.
Ii am concerned that b/c many people are involved in his care ,in time, 2 wks ,3 wks from now, they will have forgotten ,sort of, by then to some extent anyway (it wont be forgotten by me) and maybe he will be given , unintentionally of course, that bone again. So many different ppl look after a guide dog. There's the dog tech team that consists of many different young ppl, the trainer who sometimes can swap too.
Although he isn't my dog ,I do feel like his mum , albeit , temporary mum and I care about him very very much so.
I now want to speak to the welfare officer in charge on Monday to reiterate my thoughts/feelings on this matter. Having spoken to the trainer y'day , who in fact gave him the bone, I wonder whether he will feel I have stepped on his toes or if I am in fact going behind his back.I am not doing either, I just want to do my part to the best of my ability to 'perhaps' help our guide dog not have another seizure.
If he has another seizure and vomits up that bone again , I will feel awful that I didnt speak up enough to ALL the people necessary.
Pls give your thoughts?