"When did he start all the symptoms?" Zhang Zian asked.
"About one or two hours ago!" The middle-aged man replied.
Zhang Zian thought for a minute, counted the time and asked, "What did you feed him this morning?"
"Same as normal. Fried rice with egg and sausages. There were also some vegetables in there."
"How much did you feed him?"
"One bowl."
"How big was the bowl?"
The man showed him in the air. It was a big bowl, about twice as big as a normal sized bowl.
"Did he eat anything else?"
"Nope," the man spoke affirmatively.
"Are you sure?" Zhang Zian asked.
"Yes, I am sure! I feed him that every day. He likes it!" The man became frustrated again. He thought Zhang Zian was going to play tricks on him.
"Egg, sausages and rice... were they all good?"
"Bullsh*t! We all ate it. You think we are stupid or something?" The man started yelling.
"Calm down, Sir. I have to know all the details to help you," Zhang Zian remained peaceful.
He turned his eyes and saw that Tiny Chubby Tiger was trying to say something and stopped. He looked like he was afraid his dad would get mad at him once he told the truth. Zhang Zian bent down and said to Tiny Chubby Tiger nicely, "Tell me, did Ball eat something else? If you want to save him, you have to tell the truth."
The middle-aged man’s eyebrows tightened. He was about to explode, but then he saw that very familiar face. When Tiny Chubby Tiger failed his tests and didn’t want to tell his father, this face came up. The father knew immediately something was wrong. "Did you feed him after breakfast?"
Tiny Chubby Tiger stopped crying and started sobbing as soon as his father yelled at him. "I…I was eating the meat crackers grandma gave me…and Ball wanted some, so I gave him a few."
The man continued questioning, "How many did you give him?"
Tiny Chubby Tiger looked at his dad and murmured, "Just…just a few…"
"A few… How many is ‘a few’? Just tell me already!" The man almost choked with rage, yelling.
As a mother, Liu Wenying could not stand the way the man was talking to his son anymore. She wasn’t going to get herself in trouble, but she simply could not stand this father. She handed Yue Yue to Zhao Qi and stepped up. "Hey! Stay calm! There is no need to scare your kid. What a jerk! Look… your kid is too scared to talk now."
The man was even more angry upon hearing Liu’s words. He glanced at her. "This is my way to teach my kid. Back off!"
"You…you…" Liu foamed at the mouth.
Zhao Qi dragged her from behind. She wanted Liu to stay away from this trouble. This was Zhang Zian’s responsibility. He should take care of it. She got her cell phone ready in case she needed to call the police.
"Calm down, everyone," Zhang Zian interrupted and separated them, "The emergency is to save Ball, not to discuss how to teach children."
He squatted down, put his hand on Tiny Chubby Tiger’s shoulder, "Buddy, you have to tell me what you fed him and how much. If you don’t tell the truth, we may not be able to save Ball, and he might be sick all his life if we miss the best time to save him."
Tiny Chubby Tiger looked at his father, then looked at the Samoya. He bowed his head down quietly.
"I fed him…about…one…" Tiny Chubby Tiger was still hesitating.
"Did you feed him one piece?" the man asked.
"I fed him…about one half…"
The man’s eyes popped out again, "You two finished over three pounds of crackers?!"
Tiny Chubby Tiger stepped back and nodded.
"I wasn’t hungry at breakfast so I didn’t eat much…then I got hungry so I ate the crackers…"
"You didn’t eat breakfast because you wanted to eat those crackers?!" The father knew his son very well. Whenever he got a new snack, he could eat it in one sitting. His wife wouldn’t let the kid keep eating, so Tiny Chubby Tiger found a way to get around that: skip the real meals and eat snacks instead!
The problem was that the Samoya had eaten a full breakfast that morning.
Zhang Zian asked, "Did he drink some water after he ate?"
Tiny Chubby Tiger nodded.
"Anything else?"
"There was…. also, an apple…"
Everyone was silent at this point. That was too much freaking food for a dog!
"Well, I think it is clear now," Zhang Zian said, "He ate too much and got sick."
The middle-aged man thought that could be possible, but he didn’t completely trust Zhang Zian. "Are you sure?"
Zhang Zian pointed at the dog’s belly. "Come feel it. Be gentle. Here, the last rib."
Tiny Chubby Tiger wanted to touch the dog but was pushed away by his father.
The man reached out his hand.
Zhang Zian reminded again, "Be gentle. A dog’s last rib is very small and soft. He is still a puppy. If you aren’t careful, you might break his rib."
The man touched the spot Zhang Zian pointed out.
"If you want to know whether a dog is full, feel that spot after feeding. If you can feel his stomach at the last rib, that means he is full. You should stop feeding. Look how big his stomach has become. The breakfast you gave him was big enough. He then ate crackers and then drank water. The crackers expanded as soon as the water hit the stomach. He is too young for all that food."
The man could tell the dog’s stomach was huge. No wonder he had gotten so sick.
"Stupid kid! Look at what you did! Trouble maker!"
The man got hot under the collar, raised his hand and was about to hit Tiny Chubby Tiger, but then gave in.
Tiny Chubby Tiger hid behind Zhang Zian, looking at his father as if he made a huge mistake.
Zhang Zian said to Tiny Chubby Tiger, "Don’t feed him too much next time. Give him some medicine and he should be fine tomorrow. Don’t feed him anymore today."
"I am so sorry about everything, Mr. Manager. I was so rude. Please accept my apologies!" The man was embarrassed, especially with Zhao Qi and Liu Wenying there.
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