How do you deal with frustration?

Well, I tend to do it badly in some circumstances, but there are a few where I really shine, if I do say so myself. For example, when one of my students needs something explained in a dozen different ways before he or she understands, I stick with it until I see the lightbulb going on, no matter how long it takes. This ability is particularly valuable when it comes to dealing with Tony's problems. I mentioned in my last post that he was having blood sugar crashes. After talking with both his vet and another doctor in the practice, we decided to take him off the Royal Canin Urinary SO and put him back on Lamaderm. I had taken him in because he seemed to have injured his right hind leg, but they checked him out on all fronts, which I always appreciate. It makes me wonder why I can't find a doctor for myself who is willing to take the time to cover all the bases (of course, I haven't really been looking, since I'm without health insurance -- for the last 4 years!-- so there's no point, but still . . .).

The results of their examination? Tony has a mild ear infection, which means a daily ear washing; his skin condition has spread from his stomach to other areas; his weight is down to 10.5 pounds; and he's developed osteoarthritis in his knee. At the moment, the tendon on his kneecap is "subluxated," meaning that it's come out of the shallow groove it's supposed to sit in. Dr. Campbell tried for several minutes to pop it back into place, but it wouldn't cooperate. Tony, however, didn't even whimper when she was stretching his leg out and moving it around -- this after he started shrieking at home, which was why I rushed him to the vet in the first place.
So, he's now on Rimadyl twice daily (and probably permanently), along with a daily dose of Torbutrol, since his trachea collapse is bothering him a lot more, and an antibiotic. Do I need to stress the importance of getting health insurance for your pets? I wish somebody had told me about it when Tony first arrived.

Because of the quantities of pills involved, I asked Dr. Campbell to give me prescriptions for both drugs, but now I'm kind of sorry I did that rather than just have them dispense -- I thought I could save money on the Rimadyl by getting the generic Novox instead (it's about half the price), but it's been a real hassle, and I still don't have the prescriptions filled after a week! Hence the title of this post. First, the pharmacy (at Drs. Foster & Smith) has to have an actual prescription or one faxed from the vet, which I understand and actually agree with as a policy, but mailing the rx's delayed the order a few days, and then yesterday, Fed Ex failed to deliver, leaving a sticker on the front door instructing me to pick up the package before close of business or they would have to wait until Tuesday (Labor Day weekend, remember?) to try again. Unfortunately, I didn't go out the front door until 7PM. The sticker said that the attempt was made at 9:57AM. This is what ticks me off. I taught an 8AM class and was home by 9:45; my mother, sister, and brother-in-law were all home and awake, too, as were all three dogs. The doorbell never rang -- when it does, it triggers a mammoth barkfest -- and we couldn't have missed that, even if we didn't hear our extremely loud doorbell!

I would love to boycott FedEx, but that's pretty much out of the question -- I do most of my shopping online. However, I am going to file a complaint with them. There's no excuse for what they did, and Tony will be out of his meds before the shipment gets here. I'm guessing that the dogs frightened the driver (they bark over noises outside, and the neighbor was mowing, so we probably thought that was what they were barking at). The two Great Pyrenees sound like all the hounds of hell when they get going; if just their minor warning barks scared him, it's too bad he didn't ring the bell. He probably would have lost control of his bladder over the ruckus that raises, a thought that I find very satisfying right now.

I hate to think that Tony might have to suffer even for a minute because of FedEx. I think that I'm going to start favoring businesses that use UPS. It's not a boycott, but it's the best I can do, and my frustration really needs some kind of outlet.