The Great Boomerneuter...

[cairistiona]

The procedure went well! He's on orders to "rest and stay calm" which... ha! He's a 7-month-old puppy without an off switch.

But 24 hours in, he hasn't ripped anything out. *crossing fingers*

The vet only issues a 'cone of shame' if your dog licks the incision. Domino never did, but of course Boomer tried to right away. *eye roll* Instead of paying what was certain to be an exorbitant amount for an uncomfortable plastic one from the vet, I checked Amazon and ordered a soft one that fortunately came the day of his surgery, so I had it on hand.

IT IS SO CUTE I COULD DIE.



RAWR.

(Also, note his expression. The Outrage is Real.)

I hope the thing works. He does seem to be able to contort himself around it, but I don't *think* he's actually reaching his incision. I may pick up some onesies (yes, human baby onsies) for him to wear for a few days, and I can also dab bitter apple spray around the incision site if need be.

I took his fence from around the Christmas tree, where it was doing a bang-up job keeping him from plundering the ornaments, and set it up as a play area in the family room. Boomer is not pleased. He really does NOT like being confined. He also does NOT like the cone, no matter how cute, but I'm distracting him with lots of treats. Fortunately his digestive tract is A-OK now, so he has his bully sticks back. He's eating well, drinking, not really whining except when he wants out of his confinement.

I keep him on his leash when he's not in the fenced area, because otherwise he will jump and bounce and run as if nothing happened. When I got him home, to my horror, the first thing he did was bound up the sofa and then jump back down. I grabbed him and checked the incision, fully expecting blood to be gushing, but all was well. This morning there's only normal redness but not really any swelling at all, even after that and a few more bouts of unauthorized jumping. (Did I mention he doesn't really have an off switch?)

He's to wear his cone and stay on quiet activities for 7-10 days. I suspect that it will be closer to 7 days, unless complications arise. As rambunctious as he is, I can't imagine how owners of truly energetic breeds like Jack Russells or border collies keep their dogs calm during the healing phase!  Even now, beside me on the couch where he's supposed to be quietly chewing his bully stick, he's bouncing around and shaking it to kill it and...

*sigh*

Wish us luck!!

Comments

[just-ann-now.livejournal.com]

*falls over laughing* He looks like a baby Elizabethan prince! If there were any Elizabethan princes who were Havanese puppies, that is. *snort* Good luck with all this!

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

He wants to replace the MGM lion. *g*

This morning he's been either jumping around or asleep, not much in between. I hope he stays mostly asleep! LOL

[mrowe.livejournal.com]

Dat face!

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

He was Not Pleased, though now he's started to be a little resigned to it.

[mikononyte.livejournal.com]

"I HAD PLANS FOR THOSE!"

Yup, I know that one well from my Persian boy Robin. He tried to "prove himself" on his own mum at barely 6 months old.

Boys.Can't.Just.Leave.Things.Alone.

LOL

And the lion is awesome!
RAWR!

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

He most definitely was starting to make plans, mostly on blankets, fortunately and not on our legs. :/

[shirebound]

I do wish you luck! I had no idea there was such a thing as a soft cone. And such adorable ones!

Swift healing to you, little pup!

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

The soft cone is definitely more comfortable but this morning he contorted himself so he could reach the incision. :/ Fortunately, no sign of infection, but I may have to dab some bitter apple spray around it.

[lindahoyland.livejournal.com]

My cats calmed a lot after the procedure. Hope it is the same for Boomer.

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

I think in the long run, it will make him a bit calmer. Right now he's so full of general Puppy-ness that it probably won't seem to make much difference. But after being fixed, he won't spray/mark in the house and aggression issues should be curtailed before they start.

[ellynn-ithilwen.livejournal.com]

good luck! :)
and yes, really cute cone! :)

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

It's cute but I discovered this morning he's figured out how to contort himself past it to lick. Argh. Time to try the bitter apple spray.

[layne67.livejournal.com]

That picture and that expression are beyond awesome!!

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

I just love that pic! *g*

[elwenlj.livejournal.com]

Lol. I always thought that neutering slowed them down.

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

You'd think! And it will slow him down, long-term. But the surgery itself didn't seem to faze him a bit!

[claudia603.livejournal.com]

I love that soft cone idea! Poor Boomer!!!

Ah, even when a sedate middle aged cat had to wear the cone, it was tough keeping it on him! He still wanted to jump up on things when he wasn't supposed to, he wanted to groom, and even eating was hard. He was very outraged about it and managed to wriggle out of it a few times (!!!).

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

From what I've read, there really are not fool-proof e-collars. The plastic ones are uncomfortable and half the time the dog wiggles out of it or can contort around it, and a lot of the soft ones don't keep the dog from reaching the incision. I've caught Boomer twice able to reach his incision, so I'm resorting to bitter apple, which... that was a fun time, trying to dab it onto the area around his incision which he kicked and wiggled. I'm just going to cross my fingers and pray this thing heels up without any complications because it's definitely not possible to keep him from EVER doing any of those things he shouldn't!

[curiouswombat.livejournal.com]

Glad everything is going well. That is not only mega cute, but it looks a good deal more comfortable than the plastic ones, too.

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

He really doesn't seem to mind wearing it, now that he's used to it. I do take it off when we go for a walk, though, or else he constantly trips over it.

[ysilme]

Glad to hear everything went well! That cone looks too cute indeed, I hope it works out! Snorri's late "little green hood" proved to be too flexible after all, he'd managed to gnaw one of the stitches out of his paw too early. Thankfully our vet had put in a few more than strictly necessary, as it was such an awkward place and such a long cut, so it wasn't necessary to re-stitch it, but he kept a visible scar at the place.

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

This cone wouldn't work well for a paw injury, but it seems to be mostly effective at keeping him from licking, though I have caught him *almost* reaching the incision. He now wears a baby onesie along with the cone. Two layers of barricades!

[imbecamiel.livejournal.com]

That is the CUTEST "cone of shame," I cannot. <3 He may not appreciate it, but I sure do.

So glad he's doing well post-surgery, even if he is outraged by every aspect of recovery instructions, lol.

[cairistiona7.livejournal.com]

Isn't it great? XD

His outrage has cooled to Resigned Annoyance now.