We are now 10 days past amputation and Bella seemed to be for the most part normal with the recovery process.   Then last night she starting panting much worse.. and had one loud yelp.  The panting last all night …she never slept so obviously she is in pain. She is still eating and drinking.. moving very slow to get there…but still walking.. My stomach is in knots I just don't know what to do for her or what the problem is….

I agree with Shanna and Trouble, get to a vet – if nothing else for your own peace of mind. Does your vet have an emergeny number? Most do and these are the kinds of issues they have them for, Cioopers vet and I got to be on a first name basis after my many calls through the recovery – and Cooper now visits just for the sake of saying hello. The vet wont mind and if they do you need a different vet. I hope that doesnt sound offensive to anyone – its just my 2 cents worth.

Hi All,

Thanks, yes my vet is open 24/7.  I should have given you guys more informaton but I was just upset when i wrote the email and now things have calm down.  She was taking off on Thursday the Tramadol as per the vets order of one week.  Friday she seemed ok off of it… but as I stated last night was terrible..At 5am this morning we put her back on and now at 11am she is sleeping comfortably.  I am not sure if she was not ready to come off it or not.. but right now is a far cry from just a couple hours ago.  I will watch her the rest of the day and see how it goes.. She is due for staples out on Wednesday.. I might try to cut down on the tramadol right now and see how it goes.  Thanks for answering.. so quickly..just one of thoese nights I just felt so bad and the minute she stopped panting I thought she had died.. very stressful but I am glad all seem quiet at the moment..

Hi mybella, the admin yelled at me the other night for not making any forum posts yet so I figured Id start my first with you because I can relate to the on edge feeling and anxiety that comes along with this recovery. My georgia has done so well so far, 10 days postop 2day and the worst horror story I have is a 300 am bloodcurdling yelp that last for about 30 secs but seemed more like a half hour. That was her first night home and it was followed by up and down, up and down vigilance all night, maybe one hour's sleep all night. But since then, the nights have been quiet. Yes there are times of panting, restlessness, and waking in panic that she might be chewing on her staples, but I found that if I relax, she relaxes, its a general pack mentality. However, dont feel like your alone in being scared by every subtle discomfort, my wife chronically worries about our little girl. She too thinks the worst when Georgia shows a little trouble. She worried herself sick about how Georgia would react to this whole situation and weve been nothing but rewarded to the point that I actually feel guilty that shes doing so well. There is truth that they start to get more comfortable w/out the painmeds. After her fentanyl patch was off, her eyes were brighter and her sleep was sounder. I asked the doc about the Tram, and he said we could just discontinue. That was four days ago, but Ive read everyone weens them off, so Im give them to her till theyre gone, she has a couple left, one a day. Im hoping that when theyre gone, her playfulness returns. Its unusual for a Great Pyrenees to love chasing and playing ball, but shes always loved it, but doesnt even perk her ears at the sight of one right now. Anyway, thats my first post. Keep ur head up, take it easy, and take care!!

Well, although her panting has gotten a little better then overnight.. that she can sleep some this afternoon…but when she is sleeping her breathing is going a million miles an hour .. I will call the Vet in the morning and see if they have any suggestions.  I knew there were going to be bumps in this journey.. I just hate them….

I did call the vet.  They said that some dogs need to be slowly taken off tramadoly and it could be an effect of her just stopping it..They said if she gets worse to call back otherwise…..call back in the morning and talk to the surgeon who did the amputation.  Another long night…

we had to wean Kess off of the tramadol.  First half tablets and then 1/4 tablets.