Trina's page of Blogginess: Wallace's First Vet Visit and Outing!

Today was a very exciting day for Wallace! (Heck, it's been an exciting week/month for Wallace.)

This morning, he had his first introduction to Noe, he met his new Uncle Blane, then we went for a car ride for his first vet visit since being adopted, and we went to the pet store for the first time!

When you adopt an animal from the SF SPCA, they offer a free "Wellness Exam" with most Veterinarians within the first two weeks of adoption. We decided to go to the SPCA's Veterinarian Hospital - it's a beautiful new facility, they have a good reputation, Wallace's records are already there, and it's fairly convenient for us.

It was the fist day that Wallace has left our house since we brought him home three days ago. We weren't sure how he was going to be in the car (he was a little nervous and panting when we drove him home Monday), or at the Vet surrounded by people and other animals.

It turns out, Wallace is a Super Star! (I should mention here that this is the first time we've had a dog, and we've only ever brought cats, birds and rats to the vet before. Noe and our old kitties (but especially Noe) all hated the Vet).

Wallace loved it! He happily walked in from the parking area, was super friendly to everyone who came to meet him, stayed with us very well, sat with us as we waited for our appointment, and even met a few dogs. We were amazed.

His check up went very well. We got a prescription antibacterial shampoo to bathe him with twice for the first two weeks (he has some skin irritations). We'll probably bathe him tomorrow, so that'll be a whole other post.

He did so well with the people and the animals at the Vet that we decided to bring him to our local Pet Store (Pet Food Express). We had been in there are couple of days ago to get him supplies, but I still needed to get an engraved name tag for him. Again, he was a champ! He walked in happily, was great with everyone who came up to him, and again, met another couple of dogs.

On top of it all, he seemed to enjoy the car ride. This makes us happy, as we are hoping to take him on several outings eventually.

By the time we got home, he was exhausted. He walked right to his bed and fell asleep. Poor little guy. We're wearing him out.

BTW: I realize that this is probably all pretty typical dog stuff, but Dick and I are both really amazed. We're so accustomed to having a pet who has a really difficult time at the vet (Noe) and we've never been able to drive a pet in a car without them being in a carrier or cage, and we've certainly never brought a pet into a store before! It's a whole new world!