February 2, 2023 …The First 24 Hours: We Made It! (Phew!)
I have to admit, even with having a great friend on the surgery team to prepare me and guide me through the surgery procedure, I was still SO nervous about… well… EVERYTHING! However, the first 24 hours have gone much better than I expected! Whiskey slept well the first night until about 4am this morning when she needed to go out to potty. She has been calm, tolerating confinement, eating well, willingly taking her medications, having normal bowl movements and urinating regularly.
Pimp My Crib Fish Fortress
Once Whiskey was in her recovery pen, I noticed that she was having trouble repositioning herself on the bed I had placed inside the area. It seemed that the bed was a bit too small for her to safely maneuver herself. I also observed her shivering. After I had taken her out to potty again at 7:30am and gave her breakfast, I knew changes had to be made.
Whiskey enjoyed “breakfast in bed” before the “renovations” began.
Immediately following breakfast, The Pimp My Crib Fortress Crew did an on-the-spot makeover (it’s me… Hi.. I’m the crew, it’s me…) I changed out the dog bed for a bigger one, and added a heavy blanket “wall” to block cold drafts from our ancient cabin’s exterior wall. I also added a “bed comforter” … a Pointer themed blanket that is on the human bed Whiskey normally sleeps on and also included one of the bed pillows because she loves to sleep with her head on the pillow. I felt these items would have a familiar smell and comfort her.
Lastly, I performed some surgeries of my own and “de-squeaked” a few larger stuffy survivors from Christmas to help block out cold drafts as well as to provide padding against the wire walls of the pen. (Squeakers removed so that the stuffies didn’t squeak while Whiskey leaned on them or played with them … in an attempt to avoid a whole-house riot when the others hear the squeak and realize THEY don’t have a toy!
Whiskey in Good Spirits
Whiskey has been alert, wagging her tail and even felt well enough to nom on some of the stuffies!
Whiskey seemed to approve of her upgrades and was much more settled after the “renovations.”
Invest in Rest
Lights out! Sleep gives the body time to repair itself so we kept Whiskey’s area as quiet as we could.
Visiting Hours
Some of the pack visited Whiskey throughout the day. All of the dogs except for Jägermeister have been respectful of visiting hours. Jagermeister has decided he’s just going to bark at Whiskey so he has been banned from visiting for the time being … I think he is a bit put-off that he doesn’t have nice digs like Whiskey! Haha!
Incision Check
A quick check-in with our friend Amanda…We sent her a photo of Whiskey’s incision and she told us that it looks normal for 24 hours post surgery.
🎶All The Pretty Girls Walk like This, This, This, This, This🎶
Whiskey is supposed to take a 5 minute or less leash walk around the yard a few times a day to keep her right leg moving. A lift-sling is used just as a precaution for support – but only if needed so that Whiskey can naturally rehab her leg and learn to walk on it. The video below is Whiskey on her most recent walk before I wrote this post. There is no support being given to her -and she is doing wonderfully!
Medications…Get it Write
In order to keep track and make sure I don’t miss any medication doses, rehab walks in the yard, or cold pack sessions, I made a very simple chart to keep myself organized. I’m sure it would look much prettier if it were completed on the computer, but I tend to make less mistakes when creating these by hand.
Keep Your Cool (Packs)
The hospital sent us home with a cold pack which I have been using, but our friend, Amanda, gave us this great tip as well. Take a wash cloth or dish towel, run it under water, then ring it out. Place the cloth in a zip lock bag and put it in the refrigerator. The temperature won’t be too cold for the dog, and it remains flexible instead of a hard/stiff frozen pack so that you can wrap it around the leg. Whiskey has been so good and has let me apply the cold pack throughout the day with no issues.
I am so relieved and thrilled with the first 24 hours and I will remain hopeful that Whiskey will continue to have a smooth recovery. Brian and I thank everyone for their continued support, positive thoughts, and prayers!
