Ouch!

We are all fine.  Let me begin with that.  Last night, while E was starting lentil soup for supper and I was sitting at the table nearby and neither of us had constant eyes on e, she apparently decided to approach Oscar, the Boston terrier.  He is usually pretty good about that, though he sometimes spins away quickly to avoid her.  Last night though he was eating, and that is positively not the time to mess with him.  We heard her start to cry LOUDLY and turned to see her next to him.  Since I was closer, I grabbed her and checked her arms and hands and saw her left hand was bleeding slightly.  I took her to the sink and began to wash her hand with soap and water while E took Oscar upstairs to his crate in the closet and fastened him in.  E then called the advice nurse, who told her to take e to the ER; since the bite drew blood, that was the required procedure.  So we drove to the Children's hospital where e spent several days in March with RSV and spent three hours at the ER.

Her hand was X-rayed to check for broken bones or bits of teeth; she had neither.  We saw a nurse, a doctor and a physician's assistant, in addition to the X-ray tech and someone who applied Lidocaine.  E and I took turns holding e and soothing her tears during the various exams.  Her hand was cleaned and bandaged, and we left with a prescription for an antibiotic and instructions to watch carefully for signs of infection.  Since the dog is E's, she knows his shots are up to date, as are e's.  Texts, calls, and pictures flew back and forth with K, who is on the east coast for a family event and dearly wanted to be home to comfort his little girl.

Part of the fault is ours.  We have not been consistent with how we feed Oscar and have allowed him to eat while outside his crate.  His life has changed since the baby was born; he does not receive nearly as much attention as he used to, and I'm sure he misses it.  But biting cannot be tolerated.  I've mentioned here before that he has snapped at me and bitten, though he has never drawn blood.  When K's mom and stepdad visit next week, they will take Oscar home with them for an indeterminate stay.  We will miss him, but it appears neither K nor E has the time and energy right now to provide the training he needs.