How I helped my dog recover from surgery

Anytime our dogs need to have surgery that usually requires at least a week of down time and major disruption to their routine. Not to mention the pain and confusion many dogs experience post surgery. My hope is to share the strategies that worked for us, so that you can make your dog's recovery just a little easier. My dog Spicy was recently spayed, while spay surgeries are routine procedures it does not negate the impact of the surgery and the recovery time. 

In anticipation of Spicy's recovery I did a few things to give us an advantage before she underwent her surgery. The first thing I did was practice with the cone I knew she was going to have to wear. Many dogs need to wear a cone to prevent any licking of the incision sight. Without surprise many dogs do not like to wear the cone. So I took the time to get Spicy used to wearing the cone. We took it slow and did super short bursts of wearing it with lots of treats to make it a positive experience. I practiced with a hard plastic cone, a soft cone as well as an inflatable cone. I slowly increased the duration of time she needed to wear it. While Spicy did not like wearing them at first, our preparation paid off when she needed to wear it for real. I also set Spicy's crate back up to reacquaint her with spending time in confinement. Spicy was crate trained as a puppy and thankfully loves her crate so this didn't take much effort. If your dog is uncomfortable with confinement this is something I would practice heavily before surgery. Part of her recovery required no running, jumping or playing so in my absence she is crated to help her calm and non active. I also made sure to adjust my schedule so that I could be home with her during the first days of recovery. My final preparation was filling toys for her and freezing them so she has something to keep her busy during recovery. 

When I picked Spicy up from her surgery, she was very vocal. A lot of whining and general uncertainty. My veterinarian assured me that this is a normal side effect of the sedation. Her first night home after her surgery she was generally unsettled. I was very glad that I had arranged to stay home all evening so I could help her settle down and rest. Spicy was prescribed two medications to help during her recovery and I was sure to have some deli meat in the fridge to make it easy to give her the meds. I followed a one piece of deli meat, then med wrapped in meat, then piece of meat delivery that worked really well for us. After we survived the first night it was time to shift our routine to set her up for success. 

Spicy has a backyard that she can use the bathroom in but she now had to be on a leash to prevent any running or jumping. Spicy is already really comfortable going to the bathroom on leash so that really helped us during her recovery. Spicy is used to daily walks so that was a hard adjustment for her. I also have another dog who could still get daily walks, so we all had to adjust. 

Spicy's surgery recovery schedule went like this:

Morning: Breakfast, leashed potty break, break from cone, medication, rest.

Afternoon: When I left for work Spicy went into her crate with a stuffed kong.

Evening: I spent a lot of time with Spicy in our yard on leash so she could get some sort of normal, give her a break from wearing her cone all while keeping it quiet. She then got dinner, her meds and lots of snuggle time. I also added in a bully stick a few evenings when she clearly needed a little more to occupy her. She slept on a dog bed through the night with her cone on. 

While it can be challenging to keep a dog quiet post surgery, I found that our routine helped us make the best of her recovery and we are both very relieved that she can get back to her normal schedule. 

- Rachel Laurie Harris, CPDT,KA