Page 17 of Second Act
Powell, the security guard, greeted them at the door. As they passed the kitchen and dining area, Jessica heard the clatter and scrape of dishes and the voices of the children eating their snack, as the staff diplomatically called the hearty dinner they served in the late afternoon. For some of the kids, it was the best meal they’d have all day.
Diego headed down the stairs to the ground floor, where a large room had been converted to a bare-bones but cheerful kennel. A couple of windows offered natural light that made the cream-colored walls glow. Ten crates of assorted sizes were lined up on the long side wall, while two big ones stood slightly apart with plastic tarps underneath them.
As soon as the dogs saw Diego and Jessica, a chorus of barked greetings rose, and a medium-sized black dog trotted over from where he’d been lying on a plaid dog bed. Diego put down Jessica’s vet bag, which he’d insisted on carrying, and bent to give the dog a pet. “Hey, Mario, boy.” Then he put his finger to his lips and said in a commanding voice, “Quiet.”
Only a few more yaps sounded before all twelve dogs fell silent.
“The kids have been working hard on training, I see.” Jessica was impressed.
“They listen to me better than to their owners sometimes,” Diego admitted. He knelt and stroked Mario, the dog whose life he’d saved the year before after the little creature had been hit by a car. Now Mario and Diego were devoted to each other.
She opened her bag and pulled on a pair of sterile gloves before handing Diego a pair. “Okay, let’s take a look at Shaq and Khonsu.”
“They’re in those crates over there,” Diego said, pointing to the two separate ones she’d noticed earlier. “I figured I should try to isolate them as much as I could.”
“Excellent thinking,” Jessica said with a nod. “You’re going to make one terrific vet.”
Diego’s brilliant smile warmed her heart. His early life had been rough, according to the center’s director. His mother was missing in action, and his father was a loan shark who wanted Diego to use his size to intimidate deadbeat customers. The boy refused, so his father had told him to go sleep on the street. Luckily, Diego had found his way to the Carver Center and eventually been adopted by one of the board members, Violet Johnson. The boy had blossomed in his new environment, becoming the unofficial leader of the K-9 Angelz program.
When she swung open the door to the crate labeled “Shaq,” the giant brindle pit bull stood up, much to Jessica’s relief. “C’mon, boy,” she said, inviting him to step out onto the tarp.
Shaq wagged his tail as she checked his gums and his skin elasticity. “His hydration is still good,” she said, wrinkling her nose as the big dog passed very stinky gas. “How’s his appetite?”
“Shaq never quit on a meal in his entire life,” Diego said with a snort.
“Have either of the dogs vomited?”
The boy shook his head. “Just a lot of diarrhea.”
“That’s fun to clean up. Okay, Shaq, back in your crate for now.” Jessica latched the door and pulled on a clean pair of gloves. “Now for the other invalid.”
Khonsu sat up when she opened the crate door, his oversized ears pricked up and forward. “Here, boy, come see me,” Jessica coaxed. The medium-sized black dog rose slowly and stepped out of the crate before sitting down once more. Again, she smelled the unmistakable odor ofgastrointestinal issues. “Hmm, he seems less peppy than Shaq. How long has he been showing symptoms?”
“About twenty-four hours, I think,” Diego said. “I was in church most of yesterday, so I wasn’t around here.”
“He’s okay on the hydration,” she said after checking his skin and gums. “How about his appetite?”
“Not as strong as Shaq’s, but he’s still eating.”
“I’m guessing that it’s giardia, but I’ll need to take some fecal samples to confirm the diagnosis. In the meantime, I’m going to start them on metronidazole.” She rummaged around in her bag for the plastic bottle of pills she’d tossed in when packing the duffel.
“I’ll get you the Pill Pockets,” Diego said, going to a shelf of neatly arranged dog supplies.
Jessica took the bag of treats that camouflaged the meds and stuffed a pill in one. Shaq swallowed it with enthusiasm. “Let’s just cross our fingers he doesn’t throw it up,” Jessica said as she prepped a pill for Khonsu.
She knelt in front of the smaller dog and waved the morsel under his nose. He cooperated by gulping it down.
Jessica stood and put her hands on her hips as she surveyed the twelve crates enclosed in one area, a perfect breeding ground for the easily transmitted parasite. She didn’t want to take the dogs back to her office for fear of spreading it even farther.
“Here’s what we need to do,” she said. “Keep the two dogs separate from the others, just the way you already have. In fact, if we can find a different room to move them to, that would be the best. Everything they touch—their bowls, bedding, toys, leashes—has to be kept separate as well. They can’t go out in the dog playground with the others. Most important, they need to poop someplace completely isolated, and then the mess has to be removed right away.”
If it was giardia, the whole kennel area would have to be cleaned and disinfected. She should shut down the center’s popular dog yard,but until she confirmed the diagnosis, she didn’t want to go to that extreme. It would put a huge burden on the already overworked staff of the Carver Center. Not that they would complain. Everyone who worked there was devoted to helping the kids.
“Right now, I’m going to take Shaq out for a walk to see if I can get a stool sample,” Jessica said. “You can start isolating the two patients’ equipment.”
An hour later, she had her answer. Shaq had giardia. She plunked down at her desk in her quiet office and called Emily Varela’s office to give her the bad news. The director sighed in resignation when Jessica explained the measures that needed to be taken. “Well, I knew when I started the K-9 Angelz program that it wouldn’t be easy. I’ll bring the staff up to speed and see if I can set up an isolation room.”
“I’ll send a vet tech over tomorrow to supervise the cleaning,” Jessica said before disconnecting.
