Help with answers to spaying
 

My 6 mo old yorkie will be spayed on Friday. I'm so nervous. I don't know what to expect. I have so many questions. Could someone plz try to answer them for me: 1. What do I do if she has problems going pee/poop? 2. What food is better, wet or dry to assist above question? 3. I've heard that dogs hide their pain and try to make you think they have bounced back after a couple of days? How will I know when she's ready to have normal activity (play, fetch)? 4. Do all yorkies have problems with taking pain meds due to "liver"? 5. Do I put the onesie on after she comes home or take it to the vet and have them put on before I pick her up? 6. Is a onesie better or should I use a diaper incase she can't go outside to eliminate cuz she is so druged, especially on the first day? 7. If she doesn't eat the first day or two, is that bad and should I still give her nutri-cal for nurishment? 8. Is it better to leave her in her playpen while recovering for a couple of days to prevent jumping? Thank you so much for your help. I'm really scared !!! Sheryl, Bartlett, IL (PeanutAnn mommie).

Have you had pre-surgery bloodwork done? If so and everything looked good, then she shouldn't have any problems and will be just fine.

LOL! Boy!!! do you sound like I did last week!! I just had the girls done a week ago last Thursday. Mine are 4 yrs old and 2 yrs old...I just kept putting it off because I was so nervous...They pulled through just fine. I have had many dogs through the years and had them spayed or neutered but was never as nervous as I was with these little ones. Sadie is 5 1/2 lbs and Lillie 4 1/2 lbs....I will answer your questions for you to the best of my knowledge.

Hello Sheryl, I know exactly how you are feeling I had my little Prada spayed january 8, she is my First EVER girl and I was worry sick about spaying her..she is 6.5 lbs. first I was told no food or water after 10 pm the night before surgery, then I took her in at 8 am to the vet's office. she had surgery that day about 11 am,since my son works there i was able to bring her home that evening about 6:00pm. she was still groggy and quite sleepy, so I very carefully put her onesie on and put her in her crib where she slept until about 10 pm, she got up and wanted to drink some water and i did offer her a bit of wet food and she ate a little. she went back to bed after a VERY LITTLE pee. the next morning she got up and wanted food and drank a LOT..:) but I could see by the way she was walking that she was in pain, I gave her the pain med the vet gave me and the antibiotics she went back to sleep by that afternoon she was feeling better and eating almost normal and she pee and poop almost normal too.. by the third day I offer her some kibble and she ate it, and drank and was acting a little more like herself, I did change her onesie every night for 7 days and noticed that her sutures were not disolving, so i call the vet and I took her back and they remove what was left of them and they ask me to keep her in her play pen for about 3 or 4 more days.
by now she is back to her little self and she is playful and happy..
So best of luck and can't wait to hear that she is done and fine..
best of luck.
hugs,
cArmen in nj

As long as you get the presurgical bloodwork she should do fine. My vet gave her a pain shot after her spay and said it would last 24 hours and then gave me pills for pain after that. Roxie seemed to do fine so I never gave her the pills. She ate fine was just a little quieter for a day or two. I know your baby will do fine with your TLC.

Dont bathe for 2 weeks after the spay

Thank You All
 

1. What do I do if she has problems going pee/poop?
She should pee by the next day and poop within a couple days. If any of it is bloody or she isn't going, call the vet. I wouldn't expect a problem though.

2. What food is better, wet or dry to assist above question?
Probably not much difference. If she isn't used to canned, it may give her loose stools. I would feed her regular food but you can entice her with dog-friendly people food if you want or you can try canned.

3. I've heard that dogs hide their pain and try to make you think they have bounced back after a couple of days?
Could be but she should be on pain meds, so you can just continue giving them for a few days.

How will I know when she's ready to have normal activity (play, fetch)?
Seven to ten days or whenever the vet says. No running, jumping or playing until the vet gives the okay. No bathing until after suture removal unless the vet says otherwise.

4. Do all yorkies have problems with taking pain meds due to "liver"?
Any dog with a liver functioning problem can have problems processing anesthesia and pain meds. Not all Yorkies have liver problems though. Those dogs who do not have problems can still have a hard time because of the things their livers are being asked to process but that is rare. Preop blood work will check her liver enzymes to make sure everything is normal. You can take that a step further and do the bile acids test to check liver function (very good thing to do) but if the dog is asymptomatic, the vet may make you feel like it is a waste of time. In my opinion, if is best for all Yorkies to have it done after 20 weeks old and before surgery. If there is a problem (which isn't too likely), anesthesic and pain medication protocol may be changed.

5. Do I put the onesie on after she comes home or take it to the vet and have them put on before I pick her up?
You can put it on but she can't be allowed to get to her incision on the way home. If she tries to get to her incision through the onesie, she will have to wear an e-collar. Some vets may prefer that you just use the collar to start with so that clothing doesn't irritate the incision. Two vets were just fine with Ellie wearing the onesie though.

6. Is a onesie better or should I use a diaper incase she can't go outside to eliminate cuz she is so druged, especially on the first day?
A diaper won't keep her away from the incision. It has to be a onesie. You can carry her outside if she is too drugged.

7. If she doesn't eat the first day or two, is that bad and should I still give her nutri-cal for nurishment?
She will likely be interested in food by the next day. If you want to give nutrical, I don't see a problem with that.

8. Is it better to leave her in her playpen while recovering for a couple of days to prevent jumping? Thank you so much for your help.
You can put her in a crate or playpen but I held Ellie a lot of the time. She would've peed on herself and I couldn't bathe her.



Preop blood work should be done (that is before surgery).
Surgery should be done on a heated surface.
An IV should be placed before surgery.
Isoflurane or Sevoflurane anesthesia should be used for maintenance.
It isn't safe to leave her overnight if nobody is there to watch her.
Pain meds should be given.

I am no expert on this, but I just got Gracie done last thursday, She chewed through the onsies and is now wearing a funnel, she seems to not mine it but it was the only thing we could do to save that last stitch. She is now back to her active self again. I too was a wreck, but it all turned out fine. Good Luck :aimeeyork Gracie

My vet does the blood work the morning of the surgery. If it is not OK, they cancel surgery.