I am spending the weekend getting everything prepared for my baby when she comes home. I don’t want her to come home and find everything changed. I have gotten several carpet runners to cover routes she may want to take when she gets home – our home is almost all hardwood and tile. They are all laid our. I purchased a baby crib mattress and put her usual bedding on top to get her ready for this to be her “recovery” bed. She has “noticed and sniffed it” and has walked on it a couple of times. I have raised her food and water bowls on pieces of Styrofoam to get her used to a raised food and water bowl. She is a “food hound” so this should not be a problem. The surgeon told me on our last call to give her Benadryl twice a day. She sleeps well a few hours after she gets them. She is a notorious “bad” pill taker. I read a lot of articles and though it has not worked before…she is taking her pills in small pieces of hot dogs. YEAH! It helps that my terrier will eat anything – so I start by tossing the small hot dog pieces to her. Then Freckles is VERY interested. After a couple of “regular” small pieces of hot dog, I slip in the pills and Freckles eats them up! I am trying to get her in the habit because I am sure there are plenty of pills coming soon and I hope this will work then as well. She wants to lick her “sore” a lot. She is such a good girl – I tell her not to lick her sore.. but she still does. I found that if I just lay an old t-shirt over the sore and she not longer licks it and will not try to pull the t-shirt off and lick, though there must be some pain or intense itching there. What a good baby! However, I have ordered one of those stiff collars to use when she gets back – this is definitely the only choice for her. She is very CLEVER! She would definitely get out of the “blow up” type and I can not imagine forcing her into one of those barbaric “Elizabethan cones”. She will hate even this collar…but it’s best for her. Of course, I am giving LOTS of love and kisses. We have talked several times about what was going to happen. In my family..”gone, gone” means everything has been eaten or “gone away”. As I pet and talk to her I gently grab her leg and quietly tell her “gone, gone”. She seems to understand. We have 2 weekend parks we go to EVERY week. It is hard to believe that this will be the last time she will go there…with all of her legs. But, as I said before she is a very strong and healthy girl and we are both determined that when she is ready, we WILL go back to those parks and conquer them again! She loves to chase squirrels. 3 days until our appointment.
It definitely sounds like you are in the right frame of mind for the upcoming challenges and are well prepared. Good luck and keep us posted.
Paula and Nitro
Your commitment and devotion has me all choked up over here! You are doing a stellar job of making everything as “normal” and comfortable as possible for Freckles’ homecoming! You are such a perfect teammate for this precious bundle of cuteness!!
“Being dog” is so great not worrying about a thing, just joyfully going about their day! Being human with inbred worrying tendencies…not so great!
I just love reading about Freckles…and her Terrier pal too! The care a d thought you have put into doing what’s best for Freckles is just so heartwarming.
As far as pills, something I’ll add to your bag of tricks. Tramadol, a pain pill I’m sure the vet will give you, is apparently the most bitter tasting pill ever! Once a dog gets the slightest taste..or smell of it..it’s al.ost impossible to disguise it. One thing I did with my Happy Hannah (also a food hound!), was actually pick the pill up with tweezers so I would have no scent on me. I would insert it deeply into the liverwurst (it has a “stink” she loved!) and cover it up without ever touching it. Sounds like you’ve got the hot dog trick down fairly well though!
OMD! The way you are telling her the leg will be “gone gone”…PRECIOUS!!! And after recovery, she will be soooooo glad that painful leg is gone!
And as far as going to the park, I know it’s hard to believe, but you won’t even notice she just has three legs, or will she! She is going to amaze everyone who sees her!!
Guess she’ll be spending Tuesday night at the vet’s?
Update us when she gets out of surgery, okay! A d then again when she gets home. I know you’ll have your hands full though.
Kt is impletant that she drink and that she pees. But if she doesn’t poop for a couple of days, that’s “normal” considering everything.
Stay connected, okay? Hearing about Freckles and all of her adventures will be fun!
Sending big hugs to all! And don’t forget to keep lots of CHOCOLATE on hand for you!
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle too!
You really know her well, and that’s going to help you out so much during this journey. Good job on getting everything ready just how you know she’ll be able to work with it. Keep us posted!