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I am having all sorts of problems when I sign into Google, necessary so I can post here. Should I take that as a sign?

Easter Sunday was a beatch here. We decided to tackle the grooming of Raven, our black Newfy dog. Her fur was terribly matted and the mats were like felted yarn in their density. We used the new ClipMaster clippers (see below) and made her into a fuzzy Lab, sort of. On the front she is pretty much as she should be; That part wasn't so matted and could be groomed, but the stuff from her shoulders back was a real mess. I was afraid that we would find sores underneath, but her skin is clear and healthy. Her tail -- well, you have to see it. Will post photo below the one of the clippers.

Unfortunately, in the process of cutting away one very large mat (closely matted to the skin) we cut her with the scissors. This was in an area where the loose skin on her belly meets the skin on her thigh, always a tricky area. It needed stitches. But she was tranked for the session with acepromazine, and thus could not walk on her own, much less get up in the back seat of the truck. So we had to carry her after waiting several hours for her to semi-awaken. Oh, and she weighs 140 pounds, We then carried her into the truck and on into the emergency vet clinic. Now she is OK on the cut and the mats are gone, and the dense undercoat should be able to drop off without the long guard hair coat tangling it up. Meanwhile, Maggie (the other, larger Newf) piled onto her buddy Raven and damaged her bum hip again, so it is solitary confinement for them both until she can walk on it again. They are both barking/howling in the barn, they do not like being apart, even though it is only through the thickness of a stall door.

With the hip dysplasia so much worse now, when we return to our regular vet to have the stitches removed, we will have to see what options are available now that the glucosamine chondroitin MSG mixture is losing its effectiveness. I suspect that we are looking at a fairly short lifetime for her, as much as it pains me to say so. I will never get another Newf.

Update: The joint injured is NOT her crummy hip, but the ligament on the front of her knee on her hind leg. The only fix is surgical; the cost is enormous. We meet with the surgeon on Wednesday to see where we stand. Is it sensible to spend 4 figures on this one joint when there are three more ready to fail as well? I'm grieving already.

bumper sticker of the day: "Black holes: Where God divided by zero"

photo error--will try later