surgery

Going through surgery is tough. I should know. And boy was I cranky. Still am.

First I was left alone with people I didn’t know. They put me in a cage like a common dog. Then they carried me to another room, put me on a metal table and stuck a needle in me. Can you blame me for trying to bite these people?!

When I woke up I was a bit groggy and sore and had a huge yellow bandage on my back leg. Plus a weird plastic cone around my neck. Daddy finally picked me up and had them remove the cone. Thank goodness for that. It was embarrasing and uncomfortable.

I ate a little and slept in my own comfy bed. I don’t feel much like doing anything today but sleep and nap. And maybe eat a little food and drink a little water. Going to the bathroom is a major effort since it’s not easy for me to get up and walk. Luckily my bathroom is located in the house on clean, white pads. I think I’ll take a nap now.

eHow has an informative article on how to care for you dog after surgery.

vetinfo4dogs.com also has a fine article on Caring for Your Dog After Surgery: A Checklist.

A note from daddy Charlie:

Lucy is resting comfortably in her bed and has come through her surgery fine. She ate a little bit of her dog food last night and this morning and got up twice to use her piddle pads. She took her medicines but was quite grumpy about the liquid one that had to be squirted in her mouth. It took both her daddies to get this one done.

I’m still in recovery. Now I get to worry about why she’s not getting up from her bed and if that’s okay. I guess having a hernia repaired, a tooth pulled and a knee repaired takes a lot out of a little girl. Not to forget the vaccinations, nail trim, anal squeeze and overall stress from being left alone with strangers.

I’m resting in my blankie on my daddy’s lap but boy do I have a few questions for him.

Lucy: Hey, daddy. Why didn’t I get my usual breakfast this morning? I know I’m a bit picky when you feed me, but I’m hungry.

Daddy: I can tell. You didn’t eat much for dinner last night. I tried to warn you but you didn’t care. I added a few treats, some of Ellen’s Halo Chicken seasoning and even a few carrot slivers. But you did not want much.

Lucy: I wasn’t in the mood. I’m a little Chihuahua girl and I am prone to moodiness. Then you taunted me with that bowl of Chocolate Cheerios this morning, which you know I can’t eat anyway. Who ever heard of Chocolate Cheerios?

Daddy: It’s new. But I can’t feed you anything this morning because you’re going for surgery today. In fact, we have to leave in about 20 minutes. I’m nervous but I don’t want you to be. It’s supposed to be relatively quick.

Lucy: What’s surgery and why do I need it? I’ve been a good little girl, mostly.

Daddy: It’s because you have a few issues that need to be taken care of. You’ve been holding on to that one canine baby tooth. It’s right in front, next to your adult canine tooth. It’s curved and very sharp and needs to be pulled so that your teeth are not too crowded.

Lucy: Sounds gross. And painful. I choose to keep the tooth.

Daddy: Sorry. No can do. You also have a hernia in your tummy where part of your intestine is escaping. That has to be closed up. It’s also supposed to be simple and quick.

Lucy: Yikes. Who did that to me?

Daddy: It could have been your biological mother. Or else you inherited it. And speaking of inherited, you have kneecap problems in both back legs. One is always popping out and needs to be fixed. The other leg can wait for a while.

Lucy: So I’m having a three part surgery? I’d rather not. I want breakfast and a nap instead, thank you.

Daddy: Unfortunately I can’t let you do that. This pains me more than it will you. Plus you need your vaccinations and your nails cut. Think of it as a spa vacation.

Lucy: I’m so going to make you pay for this when I get home tonight. Don’t count on sleeping much.

Daddy: I don’t. Now take a 15 minute nap before we have to leave.

And so I take a nap under my blankie, not really understanding the adventure that lies ahead.

P.S.

Don’t forget to vote for my blog if you haven’t done so already.  Just visit TrainPetDog.com and cast your vote for AllMyChihuahuas. My unique Voting code is: WvG6E

Thanks.

Everyone knows dogs have emotions. An interesting article from Purina tells all about it. I bet you can tell when your little Chihuahua is happy, upset, sad, angry, hungry and has to go potty.

But do we worry? We would if we knew what that meant. The thing is that that people who care for us sometimes worry and we are very intuitive little creatures so we pick up on that emotion. For instance, I can tell that my daddy is upset about something. It’s the way he looks at me and the tone of some of the things he says.

I know that I am having surgery in a few days. I know this because I’ve heard my daddies discuss it. What I don’t know is what a surgery is. I also don’t know what a Tuesday is or what a few days from now is.

I just know that my daddies are not too happy when they discuss this topic so therefore I sense that something is going to happen that is not too fun. It has something to do with a knee, a cap, a hernia and a baby tooth. I’m not sure what these things are but I bet I am better off not knowing.

When this stuff happens I’ll let you know all about it.

It could mean a lot of things. A Chihuahua’s legs are tiny and delicate as well as cute. So never ignore a limping Chi and take your beloved companion to the dreaded vet as soon as possible.

One possibility is a common hereditary problem in small dogs. It’s called “Luxation of the Patella” and means the dislocation of the kneecap. When the attached ligaments of your dog’s leg get stretched over time the patella can easily pop in and out of place. This has happened to me. If I bend my back leg a certain way or my daddy picks me up and holds me, my kneecap sometimes pops out of it’s proper place.

Stretching my leg carefully and massaging it puts my little kneecap back in place. Unfortunately this can’t go on indefinitely since it could worsen over time and cause other leg problems as I get older. So surgery is required. And can you believe both back legs have this issue?! Talk about bad genes. I blame my biological parents.

In general it’s also best to keep your Chihuahua lean and healthy by feeding a good balanced diet and not overfeeding. It’s never good for tiny legs to hold up lots of fat. And now I am about to go on my daily two mile hike with daddy.

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