I guess I should show you a picture of how the Doc sewed Abby up in the first place before we go on to the next stage which is removing the drain tube. It's not as bad as it was but it's still pretty ugly so be ready.
Dr. Zimmer let us bring Abby home for a few days after he did the surgery. She hated the e-collar but we had to keep it on her so she wouldn't ruin the doctors good work by chewing the tube and pulling it out. Not only would it make a horrible mess but it would also really hurt her and make her even more vulnerable to infection.
We had prescription antibiotics to give her twice a day, which went down really well once I figured out that if I wrap the pill in a thin slice of turkey or ham our "food infested" (yes, I know that's Harry's saying remember) puppy dog would gulp it right down. We still had a couple doggy pain pills but she didn't need them until the next surgery so we gave those back to the doc when we took her back to have the tube removed.
Dr. Zimmer took the tube out on a Wednesday, we were able to bring her home Thursday, but by Friday noon the stitches were pulling apart so badly we were worried about keeping it clean, so we took her back to Pokagon Veterinary Hospital. I didn't get the chance to ask the Dr. but I figure the tube was probably helping to hold things together because he literally took a big hole and pulled the sides together, there was no meat left in the center so the tube, although sewn in separatly, was reinforcement and was helping to hold it all together. This is what it looked like after she'd be home for a little while.
It was worse by the time we got her back to the vet but this is the only picture I have at the moment. (The staff at the vet has more pictures but the cd I gave them to burn was defective so I still don't have those pictures, I'll have them before this is all said and done and the ones I'm showing here are mild in comparison - fair warning.)
Although Abby couldn't reach the wound, with or without the e-collar, she managed to rub it on things because of the itch. Now keep in mind this is a dog that is allergic to fleas. So itching is something she hates. Poor baby's butt was itching so much that she'd try to rub it on anything she could, the edge of the couch, the edge of the bed, the hallway wall. I wasn't so concerned about cleaning up after her (although, that's not fun with this kind of a mess) but I was really concerned she'd rip it all open again.
Dr. Zimmer had said if we became concerned we should let them know right away, so back she went that Friday to stay for another week.
The people at Pokagon Veterinary Clinic are great! We took Abby back while I was home for lunch so I could sit in the back seat with her and keep her from rubbing on the back seat. You know how most dogs really put up a fuss when it's time to go to the vet? Well, Abby walked right in that front door like she was at her second home, in my opinion that speaks volumes about the entire staff! Thank you everyone for being so caring and kind to my Abby dog.
There's more, but that's enough for the moment, please come back and as always, pass it on.
Dr. Zimmer let us bring Abby home for a few days after he did the surgery. She hated the e-collar but we had to keep it on her so she wouldn't ruin the doctors good work by chewing the tube and pulling it out. Not only would it make a horrible mess but it would also really hurt her and make her even more vulnerable to infection.
We had prescription antibiotics to give her twice a day, which went down really well once I figured out that if I wrap the pill in a thin slice of turkey or ham our "food infested" (yes, I know that's Harry's saying remember) puppy dog would gulp it right down. We still had a couple doggy pain pills but she didn't need them until the next surgery so we gave those back to the doc when we took her back to have the tube removed.
Dr. Zimmer took the tube out on a Wednesday, we were able to bring her home Thursday, but by Friday noon the stitches were pulling apart so badly we were worried about keeping it clean, so we took her back to Pokagon Veterinary Hospital. I didn't get the chance to ask the Dr. but I figure the tube was probably helping to hold things together because he literally took a big hole and pulled the sides together, there was no meat left in the center so the tube, although sewn in separatly, was reinforcement and was helping to hold it all together. This is what it looked like after she'd be home for a little while.
It was worse by the time we got her back to the vet but this is the only picture I have at the moment. (The staff at the vet has more pictures but the cd I gave them to burn was defective so I still don't have those pictures, I'll have them before this is all said and done and the ones I'm showing here are mild in comparison - fair warning.)
Although Abby couldn't reach the wound, with or without the e-collar, she managed to rub it on things because of the itch. Now keep in mind this is a dog that is allergic to fleas. So itching is something she hates. Poor baby's butt was itching so much that she'd try to rub it on anything she could, the edge of the couch, the edge of the bed, the hallway wall. I wasn't so concerned about cleaning up after her (although, that's not fun with this kind of a mess) but I was really concerned she'd rip it all open again.
Dr. Zimmer had said if we became concerned we should let them know right away, so back she went that Friday to stay for another week.
The people at Pokagon Veterinary Clinic are great! We took Abby back while I was home for lunch so I could sit in the back seat with her and keep her from rubbing on the back seat. You know how most dogs really put up a fuss when it's time to go to the vet? Well, Abby walked right in that front door like she was at her second home, in my opinion that speaks volumes about the entire staff! Thank you everyone for being so caring and kind to my Abby dog.
There's more, but that's enough for the moment, please come back and as always, pass it on.
1 comment:
Ouch!!!! That hurts just looking at it! Poor baby Abby! I sure hope the stiches pulling apart won't cause a setback and that, the itchy stage goes by fast, so poor Abby can relax!
Lauren
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