Bordatella Vaccination: Check.

So, last Saturday I was helping out with the Animal Compassion Network (ACN) Shot Clinic, which they have at most of their adoption events.  I had moved from my usual position doing paperwork to getting to be the "holder:"  the one who holds the animals while their shots are being administered.  There are both positives and negatives to this job, of course.  The biggest negative is that you have to restrain an animal while it gets an Owie.  Sometimes they cry.  Not good.

But one of the surprising positives (besides getting to hold the animals, of course, and reassuring them before and after the shots) is getting a little extra inoculation yourself, whether you're due or not.  

Bordatella (or Kennel Cough, as it's more commonly called), is administered through the nasal mucosa.  The doctor has a needle-less syringe and she shoots it in there while I'm holding the dog.  The dogs don't typically enjoy this, so they will shake their heads in protest, flinging Bordatella vaccine everywhere.  The first few times, I ended up with Bordatella residue on my arms, legs, clothing, etc.  No big deal.  Because it smells like meat, the puppies thought I just tasted really good.  

About two or three hours in, though, one of the dogs, who was particularly resistant to the idea of being safe from Kennel Cough, flung his head about quite vigorously.  So vigorously, in fact, that I ended up with a pretty healthy dose of the stuff myself--directly in my nostril.  After the initial shock wore off, I realized this is actually a good thing.  Now, I don't have to worry about catching Kennel Cough from (or giving it to) another dog.  Sean can board me at the local kennel or vet with no regrets, should he decide to take a vacation without me.  And, of course, I'm all set on my shots for at least a year, so that's one more thing I can check off the to-do list.  I'd call that a big win-win for everybody.

(Photograph appears compliments of the awesome talent of bigbrowndogphotography.com.  Thanks Emily!)