[Dailydrool] How to have fun at the vet's office: take 2 dogs at the same time!!

[Carmen Kraus]

Today was Tesla's (my dane/lab mix) annual check up/ shots/ hw test and 
it was time for Curie's (basset all the way) rattlesnake booster. We go 
to the vet, actually let's start before that....
I let everyone in so that they are corralled while I'm gone and let 
Tesla and Curie into the living room to be suited up for the trip (A 
whole whopping 2 miles) I get Curie's halter on really fast, no 
problems, then I have to struggle to get Tesla's halti on since she's 
too excited to let me get it buckled. Wastes 10 minutes. Herd both to my 
little pickup truck that seats 2. Tesla jumps right in and sits in her 
spot. Curie has to be lifted in and is whining at the top of her lungs 
because I'm not moving fast enough. Get her in, get the truck started 
and both dogs are glued to the air vents the whole 2 miles to the vet.
Get there and unload. One of the local cat people is outside and 
immediately starts fawning all over Curie, she's one of the few out here 
that know what a basset hound is as opposed to people calling the 
beagles or blood hounds, and Curie starts with the turbo whining.
We get inside and there are 3 cats waiting on the benches to either be 
seen or for their test results. Curie is in heaven and is ramping up the 
turbo whining while licking the cats through their crates (cat lady 
doesn't mind neither do her cats). Meanwhile, Tesla has started a panic 
attack and is writhing about trying to find a place to hide and 
constantly attempting to shove herself between my legs or generally 
flopping about.
Cat lady starts 'basset impressions' with Curie while we wait, Curie is 
almost at maximum whine. I'm getting rude looks from the other lady in 
the waiting room because Tesla is just having a fit trying to hide and 
refuses to calm down. Vet tech comes in to the rescue and ushers us into 
the auxiliary exam room (there's an emergency pregnancy issue in their 
main exam room). There is little room in this place and it's a through 
way for the 2 techs and the 2 vets, also has all the blood sampling 
equipment, microscopes etc. Tesla still hasn't started calming down and 
is generally flopping about. Curie has now hit maximum whine. We get 
weighed, which takes both me and the tech to get both of them positioned 
and get the readings. Then Curie gets her lone little shot and pees the 
tiny exam counter.
Tesla gets the vet's full attention since this is her annual exam, she 
behaves for him wonderfully and even lets him draw blood without the 
slightest flop or squirm. By this time Curie has faded to the whine 
grunt combo. After all the shots, exam and tests we discuss Tesla's 
anxiety and her recent lack of appetite and decide to stay with the 
status quo on her treatment but she's underweight by at least 5 pounds. 
Vet wants to get her back up to 85-90 lbs before her next rattlesnake 
booster (September), she weighed in at 82 lbs today.
By the time we attempt to slip out of the office Tesla has calmed down 
to mostly manageable and Curie has reached the whimper/piddle stage and 
every client in the office thinks I have horribly behaved dogs.  Good 
thing the only time I take these 2 in together is at Tesla's annual exam!!

Carmen