that feeds you!

Wondergirl was watching tv with the WonderMutt yesterday on the couch. She braced herself to get up and accidentally put her hand right on one of his skinny little legs, and he yelped and nipped at her hand, breaking the skin slightly. She did what one does: she apologized to the dog, washed her hand with soap and water, put Neosporin on it, and a bandaid, and went back to watching tv. This morning she ran out of the house, in order to catch the bus, forgetting to grab a fresh bandaid.

This is the conversation I had at 7:45am with the school nurse.

SN: Mrs Cheese, WonderGirl was just in here to get a bandage for a dog bite on her hand. Did you know about this injury?

CH: Well, yes I did. Our poodle nipped at her last night. Was the bite bothering her?

SN: Mrs. Cheese, are you aware that you need to call animal control when there is a dog bite?

CH: Well, since it was our family dog, I didn't think it was necessary. Is her hand okay? It seemed okay this morning.

SN: Do you know this dog and where it came from?

CH: It's the family pet. It came from the couch. How is her hand?

SN: It is recommended that you take the dog to the vet immediately. If you cannot locate the dog, you should give a description of it to animal control.

CH: I'm looking at the dog right now. It's on the bed next to me. I'm guessing her hand is okay, then?

SN: Would you like the number of animal control, or the local Animal Welfare society?

CH: We have the number for Animal Welfare. It's where we got the dog eight months ago, right after we got its shots and right before we took it to the vet.

SN: Animal bites can be very dangerous. Here are the signs to look for (rattles off signs of infection...)

CH: Thank you, you've been very helpful. I'm sure we can follow up from here...

When I went downstairs an hour later, she had e-mail me the name/number of our own vet, and the shelter where the dog came from. Thank goodness for School Nurse, keeping our families safe from 7-pound housepets!