<p>Update - I was out all day at a workshop, but can share these two texts that I got from D, both last night and this morning. It does sound encouraging! (if anyone can explain to me the significance of showing signs of deep pain reactions, I’d appreciate it. I think I get it in theory, but not sure)</p>
<ol>
<li><p>last night - Pooch is out of surgery and all reports are that it went well. SO is expecting a phone call from the doctor with more details soon.</p></li>
<li><p>this morning - All good news so far. She had solid food overnight and is showing signs of deep pain reactions. They think we can bring her home tomorrow.</p></li>
</ol>
<p>And D decided to go to CommuniCon all day, so I’m glad she’s able to relax a little, because I think the next couple of weeks in particular are going to be trying!</p>
<p>Teriwtt, I’m so glad that puppy is doing well. The following is copied from a site about IVDD surgery: What is the typical order that neuro functions return? A dog gets better in the exact opposite order that it developed problems. The ideal recovery will progress from no deep pain sensation, to regaining sensation, to slight motor function, to enough motor function to ambulate.</p>
<p>@emeraldkit, have you tried the calming vest with your dog prior to going to the Vet? Also, you can order and administer your dog’s vaccines yourself. I believe all except rabies is available online. We used to do this for our cats and our dog.</p>
<p>Happy news after expensive vet bills! My beautiful gorgeous breed-show quality Sheltie cost me about $4000 18 months ago at age 3-1/2 for an immune system related encephalitis. She did recover (there were no guarantees) and TODAY (now 5 years old) she completed a big dog agility title – her PAX which is for 20 Double Q days at the Masters level (the easiest way to explain to non agility addicts is 20 days with both runs perfect at the top level of the sport). The ribbon is bigger than she is!</p>
<p>Pooch is coming home tomorrow. She’s eating, resting, and going potty. We have an hour of “down dog” training to do before we take her but otherwise she’s ready to go.</p>
<p>Gosh, after reading all these stories of what people have spent on their dogs, I realize how lucky we were with our first dog. She did have kidney stone surgery a couple of times, but recovery was pretty easy and uncomplicated. And I don’t think we paid more than a $1,000 or so each time. We were very diligent about getting her teeth cleaned and checked often, and when she died at almost 16, she had all of her teeth and they were in great condition. She was a miniature schnauzer and our vet always said she knew so few miniature schnauzers who had all their teeth at our’s age. </p>
<p>I know with Cavs, they have a much higher risk of cardiac issues, so we will definitely keep an eye on that. And supposedly they, too, have bad teeth. I’m hoping if we stay on top of keeping them cleaned when warranted, will allow him to keep them all for as long as possible. </p>
<p>@ECmotherx2 - thanks for the information above. Would you mind sharing the site where you got it? I’m trying to find more information about the ‘downed dog’ training, and haven’t found much.</p>
<p>Wow, Teri, fingers crossed! Pain is a good sign at this point. Rehabbing a 15 lb dog would be a piece of cake compared to towel-walking a 110 lb pooch.</p>
<p>Teri, a small warning - not everything you read on Dodgerslist is proven. Don’t let your D to get suckered into paying for the dog acupuncture etc. The surgeon will provide your D with detailed post-op rehab instructions. Those are to be followed religiously - my sister the vet confirmed that.</p>
<p>Congratulations cnp55!! Teriwitt, so glad your D’s dog is doing well so far!</p>
<p>We got guardedly good news yesterday in terms of the prognosis for my dog following her surgery for Salivary gland adenocarcinoma. We took her to get her sutures removed and the surgeon who did the surgery was there to do it. He felt very confident that he got all of the tumor out because it was completely encased in the salivary gland and he removed the entire gland plus some and all had clean margins. He said that it is unlikely to spread. We do have to bring her back in a month to have her lymph nodes checked for any signs of inflammation but he was pretty optimistic about her recovery :)</p>
<p>Emeraldkity,
When the dog ate the pan of brownies, we took her to the vet immediately and they pumped her stomach and, if I remember correctly, they kept her overnight. The next day, when we took her home she got very ill. Vomiting, dehydration, lethargy, etc. We brought her back and they pumped her full of fluids. She gradually improved over the next few days. I have always wondered if the stomach pumping was worse than the brownies and if that was what caused the subsequent illness.</p>
<p>@eptr My first golden–in his one and only counter-surfing incident at the age of about 6 mos–ate half a pan of brownies with extra chocolate in them. I called the vet, and they said it wasn’t going to be enough chocolate to harm him. My second golden ate an entire batch of rum butter truffle centers: a pound of chocolate, 1/2 lb of butter, 1/3 cup dark navy rum, plus heavy dream. She threw up–chocolate vomit–24 times, IIRC, in the course of the night. I did not call the vet that time. Afterwards she was just fine.</p>
<p>I suppose it depends on the size of the dog.</p>
<p>My dog ate some sort of a mushroom in the backyard when he was still a 6 month old pup. We found him on the grass, lifeless, foaming at the mouth. Mr B ran inside the house to grab a blanket so we could put the pup in the car to get him to the vet… As soon as Mr emerged from the house, the dog jumped up, shook his body, and proceeded to pee on the nearby tree! Go fugue. We called the vet, and the vet said to watch the dog and get him in if we saw anything abnormal. The dog was absolutely fine, and he learned to avoid mushrooms. He was a big dog at that time - already over 70 lb. </p>
<p>We never figured out what kind of mushroom that was - there were definitely chunks of something that looked like mushroom in what he threw up. Our dog was a GSD - he was extremely intelligent and never did the same mistake twice.</p>
<p>Nothing yet. I expect to hear something later today as it is still mid-afternoon there. Did get a text from D last night after I asked her if SO had gone to visit pooch. She said no, that he had stayed home with the other pooch yesterday, who seemed to be very confused, wondering where his mom and sister were (I think D is staying at a hotel with her friends for CommuniCon which ends today). </p>
<p>Thanks for more links, BB. I read it pretty thoroughly, and shared some of it with my trainer this morning when I saw him. He dated someone a few years ago who had a dachshund that developed IVDD; I guess they’re a breed that is prone to it. He told me everything they had to go through in rehabbing the dog, and how much work it was. Again, I’m glad they do not have to carry a 110b. dog up and down stairs to go potty!</p>
<p>In some other links I found last night, I saw one that had some wonderful ideas on how to keep a ‘downed dog’ entertained. I forgot to bookmark it, so I will go back and do that today and send it to D. There were actually some really creative ideas! </p>
<p>In my haze of falling asleep last night, I came up with the idea of sending pooch a handmade get well card. I have officially gone to the other side!</p>
<p>ECmotherx2 - I think it was a link I found on my own. It has some neat ideas, such as putting peanut butter on the outside of a toy and freezing it. Things to keep a pooch quietly entertained. When I find it (just have to go look through my history), I’ll link it. </p>