Blanket Blunder

When we rescued Miracle (the kitten), we never intended on keeping her.  We thought that we would just nurse her back to health and send her to a loving forever home.  After just one week, it was clear that that home was ours.

 

Since our bundle of joy was unexpected, we do not yet have the funding to get her de-clawed.  In an effort to keep the couch scratch free, I placed one of my favorite, old blankets across it.  I suppose I should define what I mean by “old.”  The light blue backing is ripped and the stuffing is falling out.  I believe this thing has been around for as long as I have (28 years).

 

Never did I imagine that this blanket would almost be the death of one of our fur babies.

 

My husband and I allow Theo and Adriel to roam free upstairs  because they are the oldest dogs (10 and 6, respectively) and the best behaved.  We know that they are not going to chew on any power cords or leave little “presents” for us to discover later.

 

Upon arriving home from work, I let Theo and Adriel outside.  Then, I do my work out and let the other babies out of their crates.  This particular day, I received a phone call after letting the other fur kids outside.  I heard Adriel snarling and assumed that she had gotten into a scuffle with Miracle.  For some reason, Miracle thinks she can eat dog food.

 

I hung up the phone and began to look for Adriel to make sure that she was okay.  I couldn’t find her.  I tried to remain calm as I went from room to room, opening the door and calling her name.  Then, my mind began to play tricks on me.  Could she have scooted past me when I went out the front door to get the mail?  Was she half way down the street by now?

 

That’s when I noticed Miracle slowly stalking toward the couch.  I crouched on the floor and looked underneath.  Nothing.  That’s when I noticed movement on the side of the couch.

 

There was Adriel, stuck.  The culprit?  The ratty old blanket that I just couldn’t bring myself to part with.  More of the gauzy backing had separated from the top piece and had wrapped itself around Adriel’s neck…twice.

 

My heart was pounding rapidly.  I needed to free Adriel safely and quickly.  First, I removed her collar, thinking that is how she got stuck.  But, when the collar was gone, she was still stuck.  Her breathing appeared to be normal and she was not flailing.

 

I spoke soothingly to her as I raced to my husband’s desk to retrieve a pair of scissors.  Carefully, I cut the binding strands and freed my baby.  I cuddled her for a solid ten minutes.  I was very aware of the fact that I could have lost her.

 

From now on, I am going to be VERY cautious about the types of items that I leave out around my fur babies.  I never would have believed that a blanket could quickly become a death trap.

 

I encourage you to take a good look around your house as well.  If you see any items that could be potential hazards to your pets, remove them immediately.  No blanket could ever mean more to me than my dogs.  It has since gone to “blanket heaven” courtesy of the Waste Management workers.