Spaying advice please.

Theia goes for her op on Friday. We've read into the do's and don'ts of post op care, but there's nothing like this forum for experience.
So, all you lucky people who have already past this horrible month, all the tips and tricks you picked up will be taken on board.
Thanks, Pete.

There's the obvious keeping her clean and not too active while she has stitches in and not to overfeed her perhaps. Don't let her touch them if possible. It won't be too long and they'll be having her back to pop them out. Gentle walks on the lead. I haven't had to deal with this really since Holly was done all those years ago. (15).

Cheers Ian, they are all part of then plan. One thing I'm a little worried about is picking her up as I'll be alone. Can you remember if Holly could walk out the vets? Floyd once had surgery and had to be carried out. We left them with his bed and brought him out in that.
Pete

Mia struggled i had to get a taxi and slowly walk upstairs i couldnt carry mia as she was too heavy i cried the rest of the night as i thought id made the wrong decision . She got in my front door collapsed on the floor and didnt move all day i put a pillow under her head and watched her the whole night. By early next morning she had some water aand that night i put her usual food out and chicken and rice she didnt want the chicken and ate a bit of dog food i was never so glad i cried with relief! befoe her op i had to sign a form saying if anything happened they can't be liable. That was a shock all in all in the end i was glad she got the op as she wouldnt be pestered with dogs anymore. Sorry for the essay. Was glad mia got peace and quiet in the end.

Thanks Crystal. We've still got Floyds plastic bed so I'll put her bed in that and carry her out in that.
As far as signing a consent form, that's just standard practice every time they get a GA.
Pete

Also for the first night, at least, we'll take her cage away and just leave her bed in it's place.

Aww bless mia was 3 i got her done a week after i got her as previous owner didnt inform me she still went into season i hadnt had my own dog previous and went into it blind . by this time i had fallen head over heels with mia and wanted to help her best £27 i ever spent.

I can't offer any advice with this op as my first girl was never spayed & Flo was done before she chose us. With her leg op it was a case of stopping her climbing and jumping etc which I would have thought would apply to Theia anyways. I think the GA is probably the worst bit. Flo didn't take it too well at all afterwards but they are all different just like people.

If Theia needs any extra TLC let me know and I'll be there straight away

^^^

There's been a few applications for TLC giving position Ian, but I'm sure we could put you towards the top of the list.
This will be her second GA, stitches, and she seemed fine so fingers crossed.

All paws crossed pete

I think she waked out under her own steam, a bit groggy, but the sooner they start to empty themselves the sooner the effects will wear off. Sometimes they keep them in over night if they're taking longer but it partly depends on the dog and partly on the vet. I would say to be a little easy on her meals so that she's not too full during this time. They'll probably say not to feed her much beforehand as under anaesthetic it can interfere somewhat and is released if already processed. The sooner she starts to drink though the better as this will help to flush out any remnants of the anaesthetic. She'll be fine. I had Holly done at a vets in Kirkcaldy called St Clairs and to be honest I drove back and forth like a shark around a kebab while she was in there so I know how you must feel.

this is going to sound horrible but the only thing i can really remember is wetting myself laughing when the nurse walked tessa out to us with the massive lampshade round her head (tessa not the nurse)

just keep her warm and as comfy as possible,lots of tlc and some quiet time if she needs it,she will prob sleep the rest of the night if any thing like sash,although sash was 5 when she had hers done,small portions of boiled chicken and brown rice if she is interested in eating,they will give her pain meds before she leaves,i gave sash arnica for about a week after i swear it helped her heal quicker.

I didnt need anything with mia she never touched her stitches bless her . Avoiding high beds,stairs if possible i also kept to gentle exercise till the week off her stitches. Kept mia off grass as i realised like us her stitches will have been itchy i was scared incase she rolled in grass to relieve the itching.

This post was well timed I just dropped Harriet off at the vet to get her op.

So far the hardest part was getting her into the cage at the vets she is not crate trained and didn't like the idea.

I will post up her recovery if that helps.

Cheers

Thanks for all of the tips guys, we will bear them all in mind!
And that would be great Stu, then we have an idea of what to expect. We hope all goes well with Harriets op, big hugs x

Mental games and obedience training to keep her calm while she can't go out

She'll be in our thoughts on behalf of the Staffy clan.

Loads of awesome advice they tend to bounce back pretty quickly, we spayed hundreds of dogs in kennels with very very few complications, most were up and raring to go for walks after 24 hours or so, keeping them chilled was the hardest part, they're so resilient! Bug had a special chicken breast dinner and lots of snuggles on the floor on the night, then big meaty bones/kongs to keep her occupied and gentle lead walks.

Harries home and sleep is all thats on the agenda dinner was passed up and she staggered out for a pee then back to bed again.

Cheers

That's great news Stu.
Pete

Lynn&Pete wrote:There's been a few applications for TLC giving position Ian, but I'm sure we could put you towards the top of the list.

I can take a few days off work if needs be

Ah great news Stu, hopefully she'll feel less grogy tomorrow

Good idea about the kongs Rachel. I'll freeze Saturdays meals then that way it'll keep her busy for an hour and it'll get water in her too.

-Ian- wrote:

Lynn&Pete wrote:There's been a few applications for TLC giving position Ian, but I'm sure we could put you towards the top of the list.

I can take a few days off work if needs be

The reason we're getting it done Friday is we then have 4 days. where one of us at least will be with her at all times.
Lynn might be too unwell to go to work a week come Wednesday!

... And I wouldn't blame Lynn at all.

Harrie slept all night and woke me at about 3:30am I let her out and she sat in the long grass out the back for awhile then came back in I let her up on the bed for a sleep she normally sleeps in the lounge.

Iv taken the cone of shame off but asked Loz to put it on before she goes to work I cant see the point having it on when we are home with her and so far she hasnt looked at the cut but she has been high as a kite as well LOL.

Also she shivers a lot apparently this is normal and as the drugs wear off it stops so you have to keep them warm.

Cheers

Sounds like she's doing just fine Stu. I vaguely remember my Flo was shaky as the effects of the GA wore off too.

Sounding good mate. We're lucky as we can have eyes on for a minimum if 4 days afterwards, so hopefully the lampshade won't be needed! Lynn has her onesie ready too, I'm not so sure about that though!
Pete

Ok the cone is still off we have the son home so he is keeping an eye on her and she does not seem to be interested in the cut at the moment, this may change as it starts to heal and gets a bit itchy.

She ate all her dinner last night and was bit more lively but still slept a lot.

I think she may be a little constipated as tried to pass on the 5:00am walk but with no luck so I will call the vet today and see if that's normal.

Apart from that she bounced back well and loves the fact that she is getting to sleep on our beds instead of hers that will be an issue to tackle in the coming days getting her back to her bed.

Cheers

That's great to hear Stu

Sounds like it's all going to plan, I bet you are relieved so far! We really do appreciate your updates, we can now have an idea of what to expect!

My theory on the constipation is her stomach muscles won't have the strength to push, and will be painful to try. Much like our lower abdomen, if you pull a muscle, or have a c-section, it hurts to get up, lift anything etc. It can be quite painful as the muscles knit back together.
However, I am a nurse, not a vet so this is just a theory!!

Really am glad that all is well, and hope it's not too much of a battle when she is relegated to her own bed!!

Lynn

the vet i got never told me about the shivers mia did tremble a lot he did say mia wouldnt notice the cut till the 2nd week that was the week kept her most occupied. i watched her sleep the whole 2 weeks incase she itched her incision. when she went and got the stitches out my eyes looeked like they had taken a 3 week holiday to spain

Mia05 wrote:the vet i got never told me about the shivers mia did tremble a lot he did say mia wouldn't notice the cut till the 2nd week that was the week  kept her most occupied. i watched her sleep the whole 2 weeks incase she itched her incision. when she went and got the stitches out my eyes looeked like they had taken a 3 week holiday to spain

Yeh to be honest I didn't remember half what the vet said and I'm sure they didn't cover everything I also forgot to ask some questions but we got a sheet with the info on it so that helped a lot, I will scan it and post it up for others.

Good news though I got an email of SWMBO and Harri pooped this morning so all is good.

Lynn I think you may be right with the muscle being a bit sore that was my first thought.

Cheers

Well done H .
Get well soon!
Pete

Here is the info on post op care the vet gave us we have a check booked for tomorrow and the only question I have is about the amount of times she pees she even did 2 in the house yesterday, what I thought was her having trouble passing was her doing a pee ever 5mtrs its a bit hard to see on the 5:00am walk but I am sure that's the case.





Cheers

Did they really tattoo her ear? I have never heard of that before!

They tatto dogs ears in Australia I think seen it on spca lmfaoo

Yeh I asked for a dolphin jumping the moon or a Chinese word but apparently the only choice you get is a O with a strike through it so I went with that, I assume its to identify dog that have been de-sexed easily we get a discount of about 50% on our registration if the dogs de-sexed so I would imagine that it makes the rangers job easier when checking if the dog matches the info he has.

cheers

Will be thinking of you tomorrow Theia
Try not to worry too much, she'll be fine and back to normal fairly quickly xx

Aw, thanks Sheila. You can't help but worry about them!!
How are you?
Lynn

I'm ok thanks for asking Lynn.
Still hard some days but have to try and be strong.
Keep looking out for you and Theia when walking Tyler but don't get along to Roker as often now. We tend to walk the Seaburn to Whitburn route, meaning, we pass 'Stella's Spot' regularly
Theia is looking gorgeous Lynn and I love her new smiley pics
Congratulations on you and Pete's promotion by the way. Well deserved

We only ever make it down the seafront on weekends at the minute, it still being dark of a night, but will keep my eyes open for you!
It's over a year since we lost Floyd, and I still have the odd moment!
Theia is hitting the teenage stage, and has taken to running off to do her own thing!! But that won't be happening again for a couple of weeks!!
It took a while for us to realise that we had gone blue! Still feel honoured!!
Lynn x

all the best for your operation theia tattoing a dogs ears a new thing

Give Theia a get well soon hug for me for tomorrow

Good luck for today

Cheers everyone.
How's Harriet Stu? And technically it's tomorrow, it's still yesterday here.
Pete

Were is Dr Emit brown when you need him LOL

Harries good we took her for a 1/2 hr walk last night as she is champing at the bit to get out.

We have her 5 day check today so I am going to ask about the peeing issue but other than that she is 100%

Cheers

dropped Mia off at 8 30 today to be splayed offerred us a blood test first £50 glad we did as she has a high kidney levels so they are going to put on a saline drip while under GA never been so worried but vets have been great