Hey Brooke, sorry I'm just seeing this, so sorry to hear about Tatum but glad its all over and she is on her way to recovery!!! Big huggs to you her and sted.

Awww girl, you are so sweet...and you are so welcome! :) Tatum does have an AWESOME surgeon! We love him!!

I am going to do an update on her right now! ;)

5 days after surgery update....
 

Well, here I am for today's update. Sorry I am a little late, I was planning on doing this alot earlier, after I posted the pictures of Tate's house for bonbon, but Tate had a visitor :D A friend of mine came over to see her and to see how she was doing. She was here for a few hours and I got off the computer so that we could visit for a while.

Anyway, today has been a MUCH better day than yesterday. :thumbup: Yesterday Tat was in alot of pain....and guess what she is doing today??? She is WALKING ON HER LEFT LEG - AND SHE ISN'T LIMPING!!!!! :cheer: Hooray for Tate! Way to GO baby girl!! :cheer: I am soooo proud of her! :D When I first took her outside this morning to go potty, I looked, and then had to blink a couple times and look again just to make sure my mind wasn't playing tricks on me :eek: She really was using her left leg...and no limping!! :D You guys....I was so happy that I literally was almost in tears. I have not seen Tate walk like that in I don't know when. It is TRULY a miracle. She stills holds her left leg up off the ground when she picks up speed (sorta kinda running, but not really...if that makes any sense) - however, I am hoping that once she is fully recovered, and after some time has passed, that she will slowly start to use that left leg again when she runs. She might not - we just never know. Only time will tell. But right now I am just thanking God that she is AT LEAST using it to walk...and without a limp! I couldn't be any happier! :D This just made my day!

She was a little uncomfortable today when I did her second round of physical therapy (she was in pain)...so I didn't quite get finished with it, but I will finish in a little while (just letting her rest right now)....and then I will do her last round of therapy later on tonight. Also, she is still continuing to poop lol...thank God. She has been going once a day, in the morning.

That is pretty much the update for right now. And of course I will be back later with another one. Here are a couple of pictures of her knees/stitches. They are looking really nice and clean :D They are starting to itch her though so I really have to watch her and make sure that she doesn't chew at them. I can't WAIT until she gets them out (this coming Monday - on the 13th) and I know she can't either :(

P.S. - Thank you EVERYONE for the continued thoughts and prayers for her proper healing and for all of the PM's. I just love you guys sooo much. You're the BEST!!

Oops....the pictures might help :rolleyes:

I forgot to add in a minute ago when I posted the update that today is the first day since her surgery that she has chewed on her Bully Stick! I am so glad that she is chewing it because this just tells me that today she is feeling much better. Tatum LOVES Bully Sticks and will (normally) usually chew on them for about 2 hours straight if I let her :eek: but since her surgery she hasn't wanted to even touch them. Well today I offered her one again and she actually started chewing on it! :D Awww.....I just love that little stinker :p :love:

Check out Bed Bath & Beyond also. Yes, Bed Bath & Beyond. I got one for my two to share on the boat or just out. They had it in 2 colors, tan and then tan and blue I think. I got the tan. It is really big and it was 19.99. And you can use a coupon if you have one. Mine is folded away, otherwise I would have taken a picture for you.

Wow! That's a great price. I'll take a look, thank you! How's Mr. Hot Rod doing today?

Of course, I had to check in on sweet little Tatum this morning. Her knees really look good. I am so happy she's using her left leg!!!:) And chewing her bully stick - now that's progress!!

Wow, her incisions look really good. She is a good little healer. I'm sure you feel better about this every day. Congrats on a successful surgery!

Thanks again for the update. I have to agree with luvfla that the incision looks like it's healing really well. Wow, I can't believe that their taking out the stitches soon. Yay for little Tatum!!!

I am so, so glad you are doing better, Tator! I was worrying about you!! :luvu:

I have to say Brooke ,her stitches really look good. The surgeon did
an awsome job. I am so happy for you that she is healing nicely
without any problems. Thank heavens.
Enjoy your bully stick Tatum. It's wonderful to know your feeling better
and hopefully forgetting the tramatic experience.


Hugs to you too Stedman,

He's doing fine. Daddy must have bumped his leg or something, he let out a yelp when he picked him up to take him out. Ouch!

Brooke, the stitches look very nice! I can not believe that she is walking so well already! It is amazing how resilient they are. Poor Hot Rod has yet use his leg. He's been lowering it to the floor but not putting any weight on it at all. That is great that little Tator Tot is on the mends!

If little Miss Tate is worried about the scars, just remind her that Yorkies don't usually shave their legs. So when the hair grows back, no one will see them! She'll be as pretty as ever!:)

Morning update....6 days after surgery
 

Well guys, this update isn't going to be as good as the previous ones have been :( Tatum is REFUSING to eat her dog food and she hasn't been drinking hardly any water at all, so I have been having to give her water and pedialyte through a syringe. And I don't know how many of you have read what has been going on with my brother, but today is his Birthday and my mom was going to cook him his favorite dinner tonight....well now she is sick (throwing up) and can't do it. Then to make things worse, his soon-to-be ex-wife has been calling him and giving him sob stories and making him even MORE upset. I called him this morning to wish him a Happy Birthday and he sounded soooooooo depressed. My sister told him that he could come over to her house later on tonight but he said that he is just going to go home and watch a movie or something. I feel SO BAD for him. I swear I feel like I am going to have a nervous breakdown. I can't even go and see him on his Birthday because I can't leave Tatum....he is super depressed, my mom is sick and Tatum won't eat or drink and she threw up this morning because she is so hungry, and to top it all off, our T.V. in the living has decided that it wants to just die (it keeps going black every few seconds) so now I won't even have a T.V. in here! I swear I am just about to lose it :cry: I feel like I am just a ball of nerves and I literally have butterflies in my stomach. Tatum is whining in her house and I don't know why :cry: I HATE THIS.

What in the world do I do to get her to eat??? :cry: I cannot stand this, her not eating. It is driving me crazy and I am so worried about her. I don't want her to keep throwing up the yellow bubbly stuff but I cannot keep giving her chicken all the time. She HAS to eat her dog food...but I don't know how to get her to! :cry: If I mix anything in there with her dry food, I know she will just pick out or lick off whatever I put in there and leave the kibbles behind. And I don't know why she has decided to stop drinking water on her own. It is soo time consuming giving her syringes full of water and pedialyte ALL DAY LONG. And she gets SICK of it.

Also...I usually put her Cosequin in Cottage Cheese and she licks the bowl clean...well now she won't even eat the Cottage Cheese and she loves it! So I am having to take little pieces of shaved chicken breast lunch meat and sprinkle the Cosequin in it and give it to her that way....but there is SO much powder in those Cosequin capsules and it takes forever and I don't want to have to give her that much lunch meat all the time. UGH!!! I am soooo stressed! :cry: They make Cosequin in chews right? I may just have to get those and give up on the sprinkle capsules. I just can't do this everyday....she cannot have lunch meat all the time. But then she may not even want to eat the chew....omg....I am going to lose it.

I don't know...maybe it's worth a try. At this point I am willing to try anything :cry: Are the chews as good as the sprinkle capsules? Are they basically the same thing?

Sigh.....:cry:

I'm so sorry Tat is having a bad day. Try calling the vet and maybe he can give you some advice. Has she went to the poo poo yet? I wish I could think of something she would eat. (blend up the kibble and put over white rice) carrot, apple,??? Maybe the lunch meat has her stomach messed up and she doesn't feel like eating. Or if she is not eating and taking pain meds, this could upset her stomach just like in human? Its weird cause you said she's been eating and drinking. What would make her stop today. Poor baby. I'll be praying for her. I'd call the vet to be on the safe side. She may not want her kibble now cause she got a taste of the good life. lol She probably snapped at Steddy cause she just doesnt feel good.

As for your brother. I wish I could help ya out. Maybe hubby can watch Tat when you get home and you can go visit him. Or move Tat to a room with T>V and invite him over to your house to watch a movie.

Let me know if you need anything. Hugs to you!

Try offering her ice cubes to just lick in a bowl. You may want to check into buying some raw liver for her to eat.

Hey girl, thanks so much....her surgeon said that I could give her chicken and rice...but if I keep doing that she will NEVER want to eat her dog food :cry: I just don't know what to do with her. I am at a total loss. She WILL eat boiled chicken if I give it to her...she always gobbles that down...but when I said she "stopped eating" it's because I haven't been giving her the chicken. I have only been giving her lowfat shaved (very thin) all natural chicken breast when I give her meds in the morning. So she is eating when taking her meds (cause her pain med has to be put on top of food)....and plus I have been putting the Cosequin in the chicken breast as well. I know what she wants....she just wants PLAIN BOILED CHICKEN. But goodness gracious, she HAS to start eating her dog food :cry: As for her not drinking any water, I have no idea WHY she started this now....maybe cause she hasn't been eating much? Sigh I don't know...this is just driving me absolutely crazy. I have been giving her Nutri-Cal...but she needs to eat her food! :cry:

Thanks so much for all your help girl and I will let you know if I need anything...big hugs to you and Bella :hug:

Yeah, I forgot to mention that...I do let her lick on ice cubes sometimes, cause she LOVES ice.

Oh dear. Well, it's not the end of the world if you just have to stop Cosequin for a bit, it may only be a few days.

Suggestions - her tummy must be nauseous. I'd clear it w/ your vet to give Pepto - or, ask for Sucralfate (sp?) to soothe the tummy. It's important to get her some carbs quick as this will give energy, stim. appetite, and will help absorb tummy juices. I always keep canned/sliced white potatoes on hand - micro them, mash, bit of butter/salt - and just give straight (no protein) - you can feed just potatoes for a good few days, if she'll eat them. You can also give her some bread or crackers to try get some carbs in there too.

Adding/sprinkling Parmesan cheese can also help, as it's nice and pungent.

Dogs take at least 10 days to get "out of balance" nutritionally - so at this point, just feed her what she'll eat until her appetite improves.

Also, have you tried sweetening her water w/ honey or karo?

Hang in there, dear, you'll get through this and we're all here for you!

How many days post-op, btw?

I boil chicken breast & cut them up in little teenie weenie pieces & mix it in their kibble...at first, they only pick out the chiken (smart little rascles) but they start eating the kibble too. After awhile, they'll eat their kibble even though there's no chicken. (When I say they, I'm referring to Mimi & Momo). As for Tator not drinking water, maybe you can offer her some ice cubes...they love mnching on ice cubes. Sweet little Tator Tot...hope she feels better real soon, we're all worried about her & wish her back to her widdle self.

awww mommy... tater tot loves all her attention! :) When my Dex got fixed he turned into the little monster prince that he remains today. I am convinced if I didn't baby him 150% for 3 days he wouldn't be AS needy as he is today! LOL I would give her what she'll eat for now. Its only been a couple days, at least you won't need to worry too much. I would ask hubby to stay home tonight and watch Tat and you go visit your brother with a bottle of wine and a small cake. Sounds like you both could use each others company! :) As long as Tat is safe, warm, with daddy, fed and watered, she will be fine for you to leave for a couple hours to visit your brother. I think he needs you tonight! :) As for little miss cutie tat.. the more we give in, the more they want. She might have to cry in her bed in for a bit while mommy takes care of herself! :) You're doing great Brooke!! Shes a lucky little girl! :)

Bless your heart, any one of these things would send me into a tailspin, all of it combined is just a lot to deal with. :hands: & :love-hug3 for you Sweetie. Praying God sends some extra angels to you today and in the days to come to bring you some peace and strength.

I, too, thought that maybe her tummy is just too upset to want to eat, but you said she'll eat the chicken, so ??? But 3 things that have yet to fail me are Oatmeal, Scrambled Eggs or Mashed Potatoes. They are easy to eat, easy on the tummy and usually see to jump start an appetite. The Pepto is a good thing too, check to see if you can give some of that.

:love: Teresa

:thumbup::thumbup: Great post. I would imagine that her tummy is upset from any/all of the medications she's been getting. Is she still on antibiotics or any pain meds? They can really do a number on them. Her appetite could be suppressed also due to the lack of activity. I know she gets NB Duck and Potato, but what about the canned version? That might get her excited.

I also agree with the pepto and very much about the sucralfate. Sucralfate is an antacid-type product used to treat ulcers, which make for a very upset tummy. If she is the type to internalize things, she could be starting with some ulcers or her stomach lining could be getting irritated from her not eating much.

I also agree with Celstu about 1) the pampering and 2) YOU getting out of the house and making a visit to your brother. He's been through an awful lot. I know Tatum's your girl and a total mommy's girl, but it would really be good for BOTH of you for some separate time. I know she whines when you leave the room, but if you left the house she would be fine as long as your hubby was there. It would be SO GOOD for YOU to get out of the house, which in turn would be good for Tate because she needs a sane mommy!!

She is probably whining because she senses you are about to have a breakdown ;) She could be certified as an anxiety-detecting dog :p

Oh boy. I sorry you're having to deal with so much right now. I think you've got some great suggestions from the others. Maybe you and Tatum would both benefit if you went to visit your brother for a couple of hours? Just stay strong, and let us know if there's anything we can do. Sending more prayers and :hug::hug:.

:thumbup::thumbup:


Looks like the general consensus is that you could use a little break!...:D:

Thanks everyone. I read a very touching story on YT and it made me so happy to read it, so I have perked up a little bit finally. She is sleeping now but I am going to make her some mashed potatoes - thank you for the recommendation! I hope she'll eat them :hands: I don't know if her tummy is upset...I KNOW she will eat chicken...she just doesn't want her kibble. I guess it could be a little upset from not eating, and possibly form the meds....but I know she has gotten spoiled (already) to the chicken. She will probably eat pretty much anything I offer her at this point, except her kibble. I just don't want to get her too spoiled to "human food" because then I am going to have a real time trying to get her back on her kibble. Don't know if that makes any sense or not? On the other hand, she HAS to eat SOMETHING...so I am going to try the potatoes. I may even grind up some kibble (really fine) in my food processor and mix it in with the potatoes and see if she will go for that (sounds delicious, huh? :rolleyes: lol) - but if she doesn't, then I will do just straight potatoes. As for sweetening her water - I can definitely try that also. She has a real problem with honey (she HATES it - lol) but I will have hubby pick up some Karo from the store later.

Thank you all again soo much for your replies/help - I greatly appreciate it! I will let you all know in a little while how it went with the potatoes, lol.

P.S. - Ann....today is 6 days post-op :)

It makes sense, I know what you mean. But shoot, even if the stinker gets a little finicky as a result of bowing to her demands :p now, it might be easier (for you too :)) just to give in to her while she's healing, knowing later you can play hardball w/ her when she's all healed up (easier said than done w/ THAT cute face, sheesh). Since she is 6-days post, I agree w/ Amanda then, in that it's probably the other meds.

Hang in there, Brooke, and try to take some time away for yourself, if you can. You need spoilin' too, sometimes! :D