I am a big fan of Shakespeare. I took two classes specifically focused on “The Bard” in college and every Ides of March, I reread or listen to Julius Caesar. While Shakespeare is more well-known for his plays, he also wrote many beautiful sonnets. One of my favorites, Sonnet #18, certainly is applicable to this time of year.

The sonnet begins, “Shall I compare thee to a Summer’s Day?”. Now I know Summer does not officially start until June 1st, but if you live in the South, you know that Summertime temperatures can hit as early as late March.

Later in the sonnet, Shakespeare says, “Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May”. Well, Gabe has certainly faced some metaphorical rough winds lately. I made the difficult decision to have him neutered a few weeks ago and while I believe it was the correct one, the last few weeks have not only been rough on Gabe, but the entire Conley household.

One of the main pre-op instructions I got from the vet was, “You have to keep him quiet for at least 10 days. No running. Only sedate walks”.  We both laughed because we knew there is nothing quiet or sedate about Gabe.
I went to the Chessie support group on Facebook to ask for advice. The best responses I got were, “It’s the same as trying to keep a Raptor calm for 10 days”, and “We will  be praying for you.”
We dropped Gabe off at the vets’ at 7:30 in the morning. As a side note, he does not like car rides that much as he runs back and forth in the van trying to chase every car that passes us on the road. But that was just the beginning of our infamous adventures.

Things got even more interesting when we brought Gabe back home. The first night was ok because he still had medicine in his system and he slept most of the night. The other nine days were a different story. We kept Gabe on a long lead line to give him plenty of room to move around and sniff his favorite spots outside, but for a dog that is used to going anywhere he wants on our farm, that wasn’t nearly enough. It also did not help that my cat Peaches laid down at the end of the lead, just out of Gabe’s reach to taunt him. We bought Gabe an air collar to wear, which was more comfortable than one of those plastic cones, but he promptly popped it and used his athleticism to contort his body and reach the surgery site.

Getting the plastic cone on Gabe can best be described as a rodeo. We finally did, however and thought all of our problems were over. Wrong. Pulling off an escape act that would make Houdini proud, Gabe somehow wriggled out of the plastic cone and harness he normally wears and took off down the driveway to chase the Spectrum van that was installing our new internet. The vet said she had never heard of another dog escaping the plastic cone. Leave it to Gabe.

Gabe’s freedom was short-lived. The cone went back on and then he got depressed. He would just lie around all day with his head on his paws and sigh. I would give him plenty of attention and Arin’s Good Girl Dog Treats. While that certainly helped, it could not fill all the hours. That’s why Chessies and other similar breeds need constant stimulation.

Finally the 10 days were over and Gabe was free to resume “Normal” activities. The past weeks  have been crazy. I genuinely think Gabe is doing things to pay us back for having him neutered. He is digging up flower pots, chewing up collectable plushies and other things he has not done since he was a puppy. The colloquial term for being neutered is fixed, but Gabe is NOT FIXED! In many ways, he is more “Gabe” now than he has ever been and I love him for it. He  will calm back down eventually… I hope. If not, I don’t mind the Rough Winds Of May as Shakespeare so eloquently says, as long as Gabe is by my side sharing adventures together.