Molly Grows Up

Molly Grows Up:

Her First Year in Pictures

Border collie puppy cropped

Baby Molly (then called Willow). Pic: Mary Anne Bunn

This week Molly turned one. Her first year went swimmingly until October when she swallowed a rock which lodged in her intestinal tract. The technical name is foreign body obstruction or, as the vets call it, FBO.

If you have a dog, the symptoms to look out for include: vomiting, lethargy, and growling when being picked up. Molly wouldn’t eat her breakfast (unheard of) and just wasn't herself so we rushed her to the vet. Thank goodness we did. The vet could actually feel the stone, while an X-ray confirmed its shape and location. Molly was operated on that morning and came home four days later, a very wan little girl (although she had managed to chew through her IV tube and nibble at her heat pad before being caught in the act!)

Anyway, those worrying days are behind us now and Molly is her bouncy self again. The only problem is she’s still collecting pebbles and stones and arranging them in her bed. I have no idea why! If I confiscate them, she finds more, along with the odd feather, gumnut or flower (only pink flowers though).

Molly celebrated her first birthday at our cottage in the country with Angel, her best friend, surrogate sister and ever-patient mentor.

Here's Molly's first year in pictures.

Willow MAB cropped