Fixing Dex (continued)
The fight excited the other dogs who barked like cheering spectators. Martin of course wanted to be in on the act and went for Twiggy, grabbing him by the ear. I cursed myself for not checking the chain lengths. A good belt with the back of my hand across Martin’s shoulder distracted him enough to leave go. We shortened the chains by tying knots in them and moved some of the dogs around. The wind was strong, blowing a thick ground drift, the course snow crystals making a noise like grain rushing out of a silo. The dogs soon settled for the night, nose firmly tucked under tail.
Settled in the tent, we prepared room indoors for Dex who would need a stitch in his wound. I filled a syringe with 2ml of acetylpromazine which would make Dex drowsy. I put the loaded syringe in the lunch break (vacuum) flask to help prevent the fluid from freezing at the base of the needle when I climbed into the cold air outside.
I tied Dex on a short lead to the back of the sledge and injected the drug into his back leg. During the half hour it takes for the drug to takes its effect, we cleared space near the tunnel entrance to the tent. Dex was quite wobbly on his legs when I dragged him in to our snug and warm world indoors. I dripped a little local anaesthetic on the wound then waited a while. Rudy sat astride the recumbent Dex and pushed the dog’s head firmly onto the groundsheet. Waving a needle and thread so close to his eyes it-was important he stayed very still. The stitch work was far from smart but it pulled all the bits together and with a sprinkling of antibiotic powder on top his face looked less of a patchwork.
Dex slept soundly in the tent, The doping drug we gave him takes a few hours to work off and during that period a dog lacks the ability to maintain its correct body heat. We had supper, melted ice in the billy ready for the morning brew. then slept.
The morning call was sudden and not as usual by the nasty Little Ben alarm clock perched on the pots box between us, but by a very wide awake and playful Dex, whose large square frame stood over me. Repeatedly he brought a front paw down on the middle of my chest. I sat up and cuddled his large wolf head. He then leapt over to see Rudy, sending primus, matches, meths, candle, and Little Ben flying. He then went round and round the seven foot square tent, stampeding over everything, including us, at every lap. I took him back to the night span. The wind was still strong.
Nick Cox, Carpenter, Rothera 1980