I’m a creative, experienced, multi-purpose artist and art director
who can take projects start to finish in a variety of styles.

Good designs sell –
my designs sell out!

Friday, August 12, 2011

"Swell"

Ivory, my Dalmatian, had a hysterical pregnancy. Her tummy swelled and she nested with stuffed animals. I was a complete novice on the subject, so I took her to the vet. That’s where I learned Ivory’s puppies were wishful thinking. Ivory didn’t make the vet visit any easier when she stole a puppy while I was paying the bill, and the office became absolute mayhem with screaming people jumping onto chairs away from the rabid Rottweiler mother. Ivory let me take the puppy back, but I wasn’t going near that huge dog who looked like she wanted to tear me to shreds with her very large white fangs. We eventually worked it out by sacrificing the vet tech as a go-between.

When Ivory’s tummy swelled again about 6 months later, I obviously didn’t take it very seriously. Technically she had had opportunity because I’d gotten a male puppy, but he didn’t seem too skilled at love. I wouldn’t have bothered to take her to the vet at all this time, but I figured I better go just to make sure, and sure enough, the vet said it was another hysterical pregnancy. I let Ivory build her nest of stuffed animals again and tried to reason with her.

As I was getting ready for work one morning, Ivory kept trying to sneak into my bed and walking around in circles. I called the vet. Was she having hysterical labor too? “No. Dogs don’t have hysterical labor.” Oops, oops, oops. If I had realized we were going to have actual puppies, I might’ve read up about how to be a midwife, but now I didn’t know a thing about helping. The only thing I was absolutely sure about was that she wasn’t going to have puppies in my bed, so I found an old blanket for her to lay on while the vet tech tried to penetrate my anxiety with helpful facts. “Something’s coming out of her!” I shrieked as what I was sure was Ivory’s innards started oozing out her back end. “Catch it!” yelled the vet tech. I quickly put my hand under her and briefly saw a puppy head inside a bubble sticking out of Ivory’s butt before a bloody blob of puppy sack fell into my hand. Ewwwwwwwww!!!! I sat on the floor in shock while Ivory ate the bloody sack off the puppy and licked her clean. Oh yuck, yuck, yuck. Somewhere in the back of my mind the vet tech’s voice penetrated through my brain enough for me to realize that this wasn’t over, and I was going to see this again, very soon. Ohhhh yuck!

I called work and explained I wouldn’t be in that day. By the time we got to Puppy #7, I felt like I had mastered midwifery 101. When Ivory started spinning in circles, I gathered the born puppies until the new one was clean, then gave them all back. They were adorable once they were clean and dry and before they started pooping and peeing on my hardwood floors. I love the smell of clean, milk-fed puppies.

Ivory was a good mother and had 3 more litters. She only had a problem once, when the sack broke before the baby was born, and the puppy got stuck in transit. A midnight call to the vet made it clear that there was no choice but to stick my hand inside her and retrieve the doomed baby. Ivory tried to lick it to life, but it was no good. I put the baby in a shoebox for later burial, but Ivory refused to have any more babies. I eventually had to take the shoebox outside and sacrifice a new blanket that didn’t smell like dead puppy before she resumed deliveries. Her last litter was a litter of 1. I figured that dead puppy was destined to be born, even as an only child.

This is pencil on vellum. I love the soft texture of drawing on vellum. It’s gentle like puppies :)


37 comments:

  1. Such a soft and velvety texture on your Dalmation pup, too! What beautiful spots they have! :o)

    ReplyDelete
  2. omg, omg, omg, omg, omg!!!!!!!! this puppy post made my heart 'swell.' I've had 2 (male) Dalmatians in my life, which were my absolute heart! You rendering on vellum is magical and I can just smell the puppy breath from here. Thank you for sharing this memory.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ahhhhhh what a great "Tale (tail)" there Linda. I can really see dear Ivory's puppies coming into the world being licked clean. How wonderful that you were able to see 3 litters brought into this world. I can feel the softness of puppies in your drawing. That made a great start to my weekend, thanks!
    Jane x

    ReplyDelete
  4. “Something’s coming out of her!” I shrieked. “Catch it!” yelled the vet tech. LOL! A priceless story combined with a wonderful illustration. Can Fridays get any better? (I think not-a-rooney.)

    ReplyDelete
  5. a sensitive drawing & amazing tale well told

    ReplyDelete
  6. What a tender drawing! It's not easy being a novice midwife!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Glad you did a portrait of Ivory and not an action shot of your hand and her last delivery. Love the soft look of pencil on vellum. Wonderful illustration and a great story!

    ReplyDelete
  8. The drawing is so soft and beautifully executed!
    LOVED the midwifery story!
    Ivory sounds gorgeous, a real character!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Lovely drawing and a good story added to it. Top'Linda Hensley'.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Wonderful story! Beautiful drawing! Mind if I ask what kind of pencil?

    ReplyDelete
  11. Funny how the guys think about that action shot of actual delivery! LOL Thanks for the comments everybody! Ivory really was one of those dogs to best all other dogs in my heart, though my little mutt Penny is doing her best to take her place :)

    The pencil is an oddball that I really don't know where I got it from and it isn't marked. It's kind of between an Ebony and a Prismacolor. I suspect it might've been a watercolor pencil, but can't say for sure. Prismacolors work fine on vellum though.

    ReplyDelete
  12. such a beautiful drawing Linda and I love your story. I have had to "deliver" puppies several times due to problems and it is "yuck, yuck, yuck" I also have a dog that continuously has hysterical pregnancies. No real ones with this one, thank goodness. I think she is a little too neurotic to handle it well.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Heisann!
    What a lovely story. My oldest son is planning to get a puppy, and I would like to be a puppygrandmother...
    Your illustration is so soft and gentle, very beautifully drawn ;:OD)
    ♥-lig hisen Bjørg Nina

    ReplyDelete
  14. Sweet drawing - and I would be far worse with the 'yuck, yuck, yucks'!

    ReplyDelete
  15. A fantastic illustration, and story, Linda!! Wow, I applaud you for your bravery when it comes to midwifery...something I have never experienced and hmmm..I dont' think I'm up for that just yet. : )

    ReplyDelete
  16. Precious precious drawing! And another great story, those puppies must've been super cute.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Everybody's just gotta love puppies :) Thanks for the comments!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Wow! I grew up on a farm and experienced lots of kittens being born. Your puppy drawing has such a tender expression.

    ReplyDelete
  19. What a wonderful drawing! So soft.
    And what a story about her pregnancy's.

    ReplyDelete
  20. Oh, what a wonderful post and an exceptional drawing. Her sweet personality and your affection for her arecso evident. Well done.

    ReplyDelete
  21. All the dalmatians, I've ever known have been quite temperamental! :) This little darling looks so innocent! :)

    ReplyDelete
  22. I had dalmatians for a lot of years, so I guess we've gotten to know each other. They can be sweet and gentle. They can also be hell on wheels because they have a lot of energy and can smarter than a dog should be :) Thanks for the comments!

    ReplyDelete
  23. What a gentle drawing - and your story adds all the depth and noise to balance it perfectly. Great post.

    ReplyDelete
  24. Brigitte is having a giveaway on her site http://atelierbrigitte.blogspot.com/2011/08/anniversary-blog-give-away.html. Check it out!

    ReplyDelete
  25. What a hilarious, yet touching story, & a lovely, pettable pic!

    For a minute there I was afraid you'd have to deliver 101 Dalmations... might need a week off of work for that!

    ReplyDelete
  26. I'm definitely not up to 101 puppies! I'm down to one perfectly loveable brown mutt these days, and we're keeping it that way :)

    ReplyDelete
  27. A superb drawing to go along with a wonderful description of your adventures with puppy midwifery! Love it all!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Lovely drawing and story, I take it you haven't decided to moonlight as a vet?

    ReplyDelete
  29. Thanks! And no, I don't think I'll be moonlighting as a vet :)

    ReplyDelete
  30. Lovely illustration and fantastic story (I also really enjoyed your rant about blood sucking vampires!). The pregnancy story brought back happy memories of when my cat had kittens and I was learning my 6 times table. I won't tell you how long ago THAT was!

    ReplyDelete
  31. Thanks Jo. I love it when people can appreciate my occasional rants :)

    ReplyDelete
  32. Hi Linda, well the story is as beautiful as the drawing. You have a way withwordspencil! Ahh, I always think vellum is the back of sheep skin. I must google it. Thanks for the headsup on that one - see I learnt something again today.... :)

    ReplyDelete
  33. http://www.dickblick.com/products/borden-and-riley-denril-multi-media-vellum/ The traditional vellum is from animal skin, but they've got a synthetic vellum these days for drafting. It takes pen and ink really well. Thanks for the compliment :)

    ReplyDelete
  34. "Catch it!" - heheh.
    A lovely dramatic story and such a beautiful soft illustration!

    ReplyDelete
  35. I think it's funnier to read that "catch it" moment than it was to live it :) Thanks for the comment!

    ReplyDelete