Exhausted this morning. Sebastian was up all night long whining, panting and moving around. We didn’t know if he was in pain or if it was the medication. He would calm down a bit if I iced his incision. I don’t know if that was because I laid next to him when I was doing it or if it was helping to relieve some discomfort that he may have been having. I thought about just staying on the floor with him for the night but I didn’t want to start a pattern of him whining and me having to lay with him to get him to stop. We did end up giving him one of his pain pills early to see if that would help and it did not. I don’t know how to tell if he is hurting or just reacting to the medication he is on. I really don’t want him to be in any pain. Hearing him whine like that all night was heart breaking.
He is getting better at getting around. We even tried the front porch steps this evening and he did great. I am a little worried that he may not be drinking enough water. His pee seems really yellow. We have water in his space with him but he seems to only want to drink when he is outside. Rather it be rain water pooled in a chair, bucket or the bowl we keep for them outside. He is eating better but only because we have added chicken and sweet potatoes to his dog food. If it is just his food he won’t go near it. Travis made up a big batch of chicken, sweet potatoes and rice so we would have it to add to his food the next couple of days. We also opened up the space a little more for him in the living room also so that he could be with everyone. The other dogs are behaving really good around him. We still have a space that he can get to if he wants to be alone. We also will not leave him intermingled with the other dogs when we are not around. I don’t want to take any chances.
Fentanyl is of course very powerful, but Casey did not have access to a patch. We relied on Gabapentin, Rimadyl, and Tramadol. He’d been on Rimadyl and Tramadol for the two weeks leading up to his surgery, and the osteo pain was breaking through them somewhat. Adding Gabapentin post-surgery was the miracle drug for us; Casey had very few issues. The Gabapentin also seemed to block any phantom limb pain.
Talk to your vet and get their input.
All we got was tramadol. Nothing else and we definitely had some pain issues. You’re doing a great job though. The second week will be easier. Be sure to communicate any concerns to the vet. I started making only real food during recovery and I’m still making home cooked 6 months later.
Is he still on the Fentanyl patch? My dobe didn’t tolerate it well, and we had to take it off early. Some of the same symptoms…whining, restless. After that we just had the Tramadol and Gabapentin, which worked good for him. The first 2 weeks are usually the roughest, so hang in there. As for the appetite, at this point whatever gets him to eat is fine. Did anyone ever tell you that Tripawds get spoiled beyond belief, and come to expect it? 🙂
Paula and Warrior Angel Nitro