Caring for a Three Legged Dog or Cat
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Ditto Karen!!
Lola really is recovering like a rockstar! Yes, this is the kind of recovery that we always hope for, but it's not always such smooth sailing so early on.
Yes, all the hospital meds, anesthesia, Etc are all out of her system now. As Karen said this may be when you need to tweak the Gabapentin a little bit. It may be that you need a little higher goes, or that you need it more frequently or Amanditne could be added in between the doses.
Just monitor if the painting starts, for example, shortly before the next dose is due. And yes, the suit could also be a little warm for her and make her pant. As Karen mentioned, you could try a cone, or you could even try a t-shirt and see if that keeps her away from the incision. One thing you don't need now, is her getting to the incision and starting to open it up etc.
The Trazedone does nothing for pain. It's more for a really anxiety-ridden dog. From what you've described, it doesn sound like Lola needs this. Of course, we are not Vets and not giving Vet advice.
Lola is doing so well. Glad she is eatng now.....usually some yummy food is all it takes.
You are doing so well too!! Until you've been through it and are on the road for your pupper's recovery, everything is so scary and worrisome. Yep, what was scary before is just as you said, "strange"
Hugs
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
Happy Hannah had a glorious additional bonus time of over one yr & two months after amp for osteo! She made me laugh everyday! Joined April's Angels after send off meal of steak, ice cream, M&Ms & deer poop!
Thank you for the advice!!!! So, I did take the suit off this afternoon and the panting stopped, so, I think she was just getting too hot. She has cried a couple of times when she has moved a certain way and I noticed that she trembles a little after going outside to potty.
She does really well walking out, potting and then coming back in but, when she lays down afterwards, her body trembles. Not a lot, it's almost like she's shivering.
The cone is a no go for her. We have tried to use those in the past and she freaks out. She pants and paces. It's not worth the stress on her. I can leave the suit off during the day while I'm with her and then put it on at night or if I see her start to lick.
How will I know if her gabapentin needs to be adjusted? Her current dose is 600mg tabs but they have me giving her only 300mg every 8-12hrs.
I appreciate all of you and your support ❤️
So Lola weighs just under 70 lbs? Again, not Betx and not giv9ng Vet advice. That said, 300 mg every 8 to 12 hrs is a little on the low side for a gal her size. You have a lot of wiggle room with the dose amount. The shivering is most likely a pain signal.
Ask the Vet about upping her dose amount and maybe keep that new amount at the 8 hr level. Yoi can also get it in 100 mg.
Also, I noticed she didn't have an anti-inflammatory like Rimadyl. You might ask about adding that for several days.
Glad the paintings stopped once you took the suit off. Yeah, I can imagine that that makes Lola feel quite warm.
You both are doing so great!
Hugs
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
Happy Hannah had a glorious additional bonus time of over one yr & two months after amp for osteo! She made me laugh everyday! Joined April's Angels after send off meal of steak, ice cream, M&Ms & deer poop!
Yes, she is just under 70lbs. I just tried calling Cornell but they are only open for emergencies right now 🙁 for non emergencies, I will have to call back tomorrow.
So she did not get put on an NSAID or anti inflammatory because during her surgery, they found a bump on her vulva which turned out to be Mast Cell. They said with the Mast Cell an anti inflammatory could cause stomach ulcers
Good morning Tripawds community!!!
I ended up calling the emergency line at Cornell last night to ask about increasing Lola's Gabapentin. They called me back and said she could have 600mg so I was able to give her another dose late last night and that seemed to really help. I think it made both of us feel better. They did send a message to her surgical team as well, which they will get this morning and I am sure I will hear from them sometime today.
I also decided to lay an outdoor carpet down the ramp and she used it last night and this morning 
WHEW!!! I think we are getting this figured out a little bit at a time. This girl blows my mind. She was up and moving about this morning while I was getting my coffee and getting started with my day. Titan is doing really well with her. He has been as gentle as a bulldog can be lol I still lock him behind the gates when I take her out to potty though because he would just push through her and I think he makes her nervous when he goes out with her.
All in all, we are doing great. I have only had one meltdown and that was the first night home. It was a mix of emotions and relief that she is back home with me safe and sound 
Jerry, Virginia, Karen and anyone else I missed, I honestly cannot tell you how much our interactions have meant. The advice, the encouragement, the support, this website is truly a gift and I couldn't have made it through any of this without all of you and this community! Thank you doesn't seem like enough.
I will continue to keep you all updated! I hope you all have a wonderful day!
Loving this update!!!! You are doing such a good job monitoring her, recognizing anything that needs a little tweak from pain signals to ramp "tripawd" fixing.👏 So glad the pain adjustment has already shown results. Seeing this kind of update makes us all so happy👍
Titan is being such a good boy and deserves some extra treats♥️
Hugs
Sally and Alumni Happy Hannah and Merry Myrtle and Frankie too!
Happy Hannah had a glorious additional bonus time of over one yr & two months after amp for osteo! She made me laugh everyday! Joined April's Angels after send off meal of steak, ice cream, M&Ms & deer poop!
WOOHOOO!!! 
I'm so excited to come back today (we were out all day yesterday!) to see your update. This is such great news. Lola is a CHAMP! And so are you. Only one meltdown? You ROCK too!
And believe it or not, your kind words of appreciation means the world to all of us here and along with Lola doing better, that is more than enough!
Keep us posted. I hope this week continues the smooth trajectory.
Ugghh...well it's 9:30pm my time and Lola has done great all day. Right now, not so much, she is trembling bad and panting like crazy. I don't know what to do. I increased her Gabapentin to 600mg. I gave it to her at 6 when she had her dinner and was doing fine up until about an hour ago. I noticed she began trembling again. I ended up giving her 1/4 of another tablet of gaba.
I don't know how to help her right now. I feel useless. Her incision still looks good. There is no redness, no swelling and no drainage. I'm going to call Cornell again in the morning. I spoke to them today and they told me to just keep monitoring her and give her the 600mg's. It just doesn't seem to be working that great. I'm so frustrated right now because I can't talk to anyone and I can't help her 
Breathe.....breathe.......I know, easier said than done.
What was her activity like today?
When did she poop?
So she's taking 600 mg every.....how many hours?
How long dis this "episode" last?
Happy Hannah had a glorious additional bonus time of over one yr & two months after amp for osteo! She made me laugh everyday! Joined April's Angels after send off meal of steak, ice cream, M&Ms & deer poop!
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