Desexing

[Nushie]

So Jager is booked in to be desexed tomorrow. I have taken Friday off work so that he will have 3 days with us so that we can keep an eye on him and make life a little easier for him. I figure that we can leave the door open for him so he doesnt try jumping out the dog door, but come Monday when we go back to work how is he going to come and go? I am not sure that he will fit through the dog door with a giant cone on his head, apart from the fact that he actually has to jump through it, i dont want him to pull his stitches or anything.

What do others do during the recovery stage?

[jazawayaya]

Luda was just desexed last Wednesday and honestly the whole process was just great.... I was nervous as well but just remeber this is a very routine op so unlikely anything is going to go wrong...

I think he will be ok without the cone.... None of my family dogs or either of mine wore it and they were fine... Otherwise can you maybe leave him inside for a few days with a pee mat?

Good luck anyway!

[koalathebear]

Good luck. I'm sure Jager will be fine. As with many things, it's easier for males than females ...

We removed Elbie's access to stairs and tried to stop him running around too much. We also stopped him every time he was licking his stitches excessively. We didn't need to crate him or make him wear the Elizabeth Cone Collar fortunately. You could also section of the yard to limit his ability to run around - Elbie was confined to courtyrd and deck and couldn't really run too much.

All the best! I'm sure Max#1, Clastic and Marley'z Mum will be able to share their tales as all three of their doggies just got the snip last Friday.

Edited October 20, 2010 by koalathebear

[Nushie]

How long does it take to 'bounce back'? Vet told me when i booked him in that he should be kept quiet for 10 days, which means no long walks. Do others stick by this or do you go off how your dog is feeling? If he is a bit bouncy would a casual 10 minute stroll around the block be too much? Jager is used to being walked twice a day plus about 30 minutes of fetch up and down the hallway. I dont think he will be able to stay still for 10 days.

Not exactly worried about the operation, its something that all vets do day in and day out. Its just the worry of how he will cope with little to no exercise, how am I going to cope leaving him at home all day while i go to work?

Poor snuffles. Say goodbye to those little balls you have just become attached to.

Edited October 20, 2010 by Nushie

[jamesanddean]

Much easier operation for a male - sorry girls you draw the short straw when it comes to this one!

[Bundyburger]

How long does it take to 'bounce back'? Vet told me when i booked him in that he should be kept quiet for 10 days, which means no long walks. Do others stick by this or do you go off how your dog is feeling? If he is a bit bouncy would a casual 10 minute stroll around the block be too much? Jager is used to being walked twice a day plus about 30 minutes of fetch up and down the hallway. I dont think he will be able to stay still for 10 days.

Not exactly worried about the operation, its something that all vets do day in and day out. Its just the worry of how he will cope with little to no exercise, how am I going to cope leaving him at home all day while i go to work?

Poor snuffles. Say goodbye to those little balls you have just become attached to.

It took my fellow about 5-6 days to be back to normal. He was unlucky and reacted badly to the anaesthetic though, so he would've bounced back quicker if not for that. When he was back to normal and trying to scale his pen from boredom, he got walked around the block. He's normally calm on walks so I wasn't worried about that at all. I would however check with your vet first, as mine had specifically said NO WALKS as his op was a bit more in depth, but because he was going to do more damage to himself without them eg breaking out of his pen and overdoing it, they said he could go. We didn't play games with him until the stitches came out, but he was smart enough to be sensible about it. He tried lifting his leg once, and decided it hurt too much.

[matilda1]

Most dogs are actually a little quieter for the first few days anyway, so that helps.

I DO suggest using an E-collar especially if unsupervised.

I would also avoid walks for at least 7-8 days as the skin doesn't mesh prior to that and you risk pulling the stitches (not out, but by tension)

I know it sounds horrible, but lock him in the laundry when you go to work with an E-collar on.

Keep the wound dry and clean and try not to let him jump on anything. Watch for any oozing or redness.

I'm going through it myself right now with Skye and she spends most of her time locked in a crate or asleep at our feet. If she gets excited, it's back in the crate.

You have to be cruel to be kind.

If he DOES manage to pull his stitches it's no huge deal, but you must have it seen to by a vet asap and it means starting all over again.

think of every day as a step close to it being over. you only have to do it once.

If you are really concerned about not being able to keep him quiet ask your vet for some ACP to take home. You can slightly sedate him and he can just snooze away his healing time.

By day 5-6 you can relax a little more if everything is going well.

he'll be fine

Edited October 20, 2010 by BellaDonna

[Max#1]

How's Jager going?

I hope it all went smoothly! And I understand how you feel I felt exactly the same!

Like KTB said, Max had his pockets pinched last Friday. He was a bit more sleepy than usual that day, and the next day was a little quiet - but it didn't take long til he was back to his rambunctious self!

Bear in mind what I'm about to say is purely my own experience and any advice given should not be considered expert! Please!

What I've been doing during the day is leaving him inside, but in a small room where he can't do too much damage to himself (or the house!) - and where he has a good view of the garden. He's toilet trained so that hasn't been a problem. We've been giving him lots of different things to chew on, especially at the start - whatever you can get your hands on that he might be interested to chew! It works twofold that it keeps them quiet and distracts them from licking. Think kongs, real bones, fake bones, anything and everything! And I smear the 'inside' of different things with vegemite to make them more interesting or hard work!

That being said, it hasn't taken long for him to get restless - and as far as keeping him quiet has gone I've been a bit of a failure. I even took him for a short walk on the first day after the operation. I found some moderate activity prevents or helps to reduce really crazy activity. For example, Max has never been one to do zoomies, though now he does. I would rather that he goes for a gentle stroll than zoom around the house hurtling himself over furniture, sliding around the slippery kitchen floor and flying through the backyard like a spring lamb on steroids. He's ball-obsessed. We lasted a few days but then he was begging for it and so I played some gentle ball ie I throw it to his face so he's not scrambling for it. The other thing I've been trying to do is lots of training. Every meal has become a 20-30 min training session.

All that being said, we're getting pretty frustrated - him with not getting a good run or being allowed to play with other dogs, and me with trying to keep him somewhat contained!

Five days to go!

[Nushie]

Okay so the terror is home. Vet said that he would be drowsy and tired for the next 10-12 hours. Jager lasted about 2. He curled up for a cuddle for the first 15mins then started to get a bit antsy so we gave him a stuffed kong, after he finished that (all of 45 mins) i gave him a chew which lasted about an hour. Then the problems started. He has been going crazy! Running around the lounge, he even jumped through the dog door even though the sliding door was open and he had been coming and going for water. He is going to feel that tomorrow.

So we have been doing some training with his new crate (it is wire instead of material) which calmed him down some, and then he watched me sweep the balcony and now he has crashed out at my feet. Still if he is going nuts already how am i going to keep calm for the next 2 weeks?!?

Oh well i have the next 3 days off work so i think we will be doing lots of training and coming up with some inventive things to stuff and freeze his kongs.

Poor little puppy.

[Max#1]

Good luck!

[aussielover]

Most dogs are actually a little quieter for the first few days anyway, so that helps.

I DO suggest using an E-collar especially if unsupervised.

I would also avoid walks for at least 7-8 days as the skin doesn't mesh prior to that and you risk pulling the stitches (not out, but by tension)

I know it sounds horrible, but lock him in the laundry when you go to work with an E-collar on.

Keep the wound dry and clean and try not to let him jump on anything. Watch for any oozing or redness.

I'm going through it myself right now with Skye and she spends most of her time locked in a crate or asleep at our feet. If she gets excited, it's back in the crate.

You have to be cruel to be kind.

If he DOES manage to pull his stitches it's no huge deal, but you must have it seen to by a vet asap and it means starting all over again.

think of every day as a step close to it being over. you only have to do it once.

If you are really concerned about not being able to keep him quiet ask your vet for some ACP to take home. You can slightly sedate him and he can just snooze away his healing time.

By day 5-6 you can relax a little more if everything is going well.

he'll be fine

Agree with this advice!

Although in my experience most dogs bounce back after 2 days and are back to their normal selves which makes it harrd to keep them quiet.

We only had one day of Mindy feeling miserable, and she didn't receive any additional pain relief either (at home that is).

Animals always amaze me at how quickly they recover form what would be MAJOR surgery for us. You don't see many people wanting to run around and jumo and play or go for a run 2 days after abdominal surgery!!!!!

[Christina]

Desexing of a male is one of the simplest operations if all goes well. They are only knocked out for a very short time, its real quick. All my pups are done & you wouldn't know it by mid afternoon. They are completely back to normal.

Its a bit worse for older dogs & big dogs but I have never had to keep a dog quiet for 10 days or put a collar on, they have never touched the stitches & its only 1 or 2 on a small breed. Even my older dogs are back to normal in 2 days.

The only thing I have ever done is stopped them from jumping & not let them go on any dirt. He will be fine.

[matilda1]

how's the patient going today?

[Nushie]

He is doing really well. You would never know that he had it done by the way he has been tearing around the house. He had been really good and not licked them up until last night, i woke up and could hear him so gave him a 'No' and he went to sleep. So all is well.

Keeping him calm is the hardest part. He has been going a little stir crazy i think, and today wont do him any favours being home by himself all day, so i like he will be a little over the top when i get home. Might just take him for a little stroll around the block cause yesterday he was doing zoomies back and forth up and down the hall. Surely a walk cant do any more damage than that.

[matilda1]

A controlled walk is definately better than zoomies.

my Skye is starting to do zoomies too.

She's a Kelpie who now has been kept quiet all together for over 3 weeks and she's gone NUTS.

I am taking the stitches out tomorrow, so she will be very relieved I am sure (as will I)

[Bundyburger]

Keeping him calm is the hardest part. He has been going a little stir crazy i think, and today wont do him any favours being home by himself all day, so i like he will be a little over the top when i get home. Might just take him for a little stroll around the block cause yesterday he was doing zoomies back and forth up and down the hall. Surely a walk cant do any more damage than that.

That's basically what my vets said. They'd rather he get a nice controlled walk and collapse in a heap and sleep than do damage trying to climb out of his pen (which he was doing!) and zooming around the house. It was amazing the difference

[Nushie]

Jager seems a little more settled, went for a 15min walk around the block and he stayed pretty calm for the rest of the evening. He still had a few moments but in general he seemed happier even though that walk wouldnt have tired him out much.

[Collstar]

sorry to change the topic a bit here.... but when is the best time/age to desex a puppy?

[Nushie]

Dont know if it is a general rule but my breeder recommended 6 months and when i spoke to the vet about it he said thats the age he usually tells people also.

[Collstar]

thanks

also hope Jager is recovering well!