Hi everyone!  We are worried about Mack today. 

He had been doing so well.  We got over the poop issues on Day 5 with three successful poops!  So I thought we were doing good – eating, drinking, peeing and pooping…check, check and check!  His surgery site looks great, too!  But now I don't know if he is just feeling more pain or maybe if he overdid it yesterday or what but the last time he ate was yesterday morning and the last potty time was
around noon yesterday.  He has drank some water and is taking his meds in cheese (but even that doesn't excite him).

I don't know if this
set back is normal??  Should I try different food to motivate him?  When do I start to worry? well, nevermind on that last question – I'm obviously already worrying.  I put in a call to the vet and had to leave a
message so…thoughts?

Well, speaking as an "anxious mom", I can tell you first-hand that Tate declined as well after the first week and his appetite was up and down.  We never hesitated to add something he likes to his kibble to get him to eat.  We just cleared two weeks today and he's better but still variable.  Yesterday morning he was up and at 'em, this morning he slept in.  He scarfs his kibble then the next time he has a couple bites and walks away. 

Hopefully by now you've heard back from the vet and have some answers.  I'm with Karen – call.  Because if you assume it's the normal ups and downs and then it's not, well, it could mean trouble he doesn't need right now.  I don't care if they roll their eyes ("It's Tate's mom…again!")  I just handed you thousands of dollars of my hard-earned money and darn it, you are going to get it right.

Please keep us updated, we all care about you and Mack.

Thank you all so much for the encouragement.  Vet said it is too early to panic and that the not eating will come and go…we decided to mix in some canned food to his regular kibble.  This is a real treat for him and after a few minutes of laying there sniffing the air, he did get up and eat it ALL!  Hooray! 

I also think I may have been taking it too easy on his meds.  I know the vet said he could have Tramadol 3x a day, but I had only been giving it to him twice a day because he seemed to be doing fine.  However, my husband made me think twice about this by pointing out that Mack has been over-doing it – playing with Rozee, tried to jump up onto the couch, etc. – and that maybe he is feeling more pain because of that.  This actually makes sense when I realized that Mack did go potty but only after I relented and carried him outside.  Then when he was sniffing and staring at his food bowl as if he really wanted it but took FOREVER to decide to stand up, I thought…hmm…maybe he is in more pain than I realized.  Bad Mama! 

I gave him an extra dose at noon today and he has hopped himself out to the potty (when I let him out of his confined area) and he ate dinner with no hesitation a little bit ago.  So I guess he was just really feeling sore and getting up was just not something he felt up to doing.  I am going to be more vigilant about keeping him confined – we had relaxed since he seemed better.  I think he overdid it and just couldn't TELL me that he was in pain…wouldn't that be nice??  I really think someone needs to invent a dog to human communication device.  It would have helped!! Mack could have said, "I really need to go pee, Mama but I hurt too much to get up so I'm holding it here…help!"

I'm a tough love person by nature (my kids call me Mama Hulk ) and have refused to do any carrying…I stomp my foot and point to the door just like I would normally.  I didn't want him to think Mama was treating him differently but boy! when I finally carried him out today did he ever have to go!  Poor baby!  I still feel bad that he was holding it for so long while I fretted over what was wrong with him.  Duh!  He had to pee!  Who can eat when you need to pee so badly??  Sheesh, Mama!

We'll figure it out.  The extra pain med has seemed to help even things out but now I know to watch for more subtle signs from him.  Mack works hard to get his humans trained properly…we are just slow learners.  In the meantime, thank you all so much for the support. I cannot imagine having to go through this alone!

DOn't be hard on yourself. He's fine now and we all live and learn. Man o man if they could only talk to us, how great would that be?!!!

I made my Maddie get up and try and keep things as normal as possible. However, I also probably erred on the side of a little more meds is better than too little. But a I know a lot of dogs have issues with tramadol and Maddiie really didn't.

I'm glad Mack's feeling better and eating now. Remember it's one day at a time.

Thanks for the update on Mack. As I am learning, the people here really are concerned with the welfare of our babies and us :)

Take care and keep up the good work.

Maddie Mae and Mom

Way to go Mack! Glad to hear you're eating again (you just had to convince Mama Hulk that you "needed" canned food). Here's to continuing forward with your recovery and giving your Mum's nerves a break

Angel Tai

Take heart, It's been over a month and I still dont know if Im doing things right!

We just do our best and love them! Hope Mack is continuing to improve!!!