Recovery Period
Morning Update
Received a call from Brandy this morning at around 9:30. She informed me that Remington is still in a lot of pain, but that he is raising his tail a little bit today, which means he is feeling a little more comfortable. She told me that yesterday evening after surgery he did have a bowel movement in his kennel and he got it all over himself, but she cleaned him up the best she could and he is scheduled for a bath later this afternoon. She did warn me that the staining may not come out of his fur until we would have his hair cut again. She said that his bum is completely shaved and he has some razor burn that is causing him to be very uncomfortable as well. He also has a patch on his back shaved above his spine where they have been injecting some pain meds. Remington is eating pretty well and taking his pain meds in a meatball. I asked her if she thought he would have a normal bowel movement before we came to pick him up, and she said they were sure hoping so. Right now the plan is still to pick him up Saturday morning.
I'm extremely worried and nervous at this point. Not only am I worried that I'm going to be overwhelmed when he comes home and not be able to care for him properly, but I'm really worried that this accident in his crate was a sign of incontinence! Remington has NEVER had an accident in his crate, so this pretty much tells me he was unable to control what happened. I swear if he is incontinent, I will NEVER forgive myself for doing this surgery. I'm beyond scared at this point!
Evening Update
Brandy called me around 5:00 in the evening and had good things to report. Remington is back to his old happy go lucky self! He is alert, tail wagging, pulling at his leash, and walking around. She said he is the same dog she met the first day :) He has not had a normal bowel movement as of yet, but she is hoping sometime later tonight or tomorrow morning before we get there. She gave him a good scrub down after his accident in the kennel and got all the stains out of his fur except for a little spot on his elbow. I told her I was nervous about bringing him home tomorrow and she assured me that he will be just fine and is ready to go home. I'm pretty happy and relieved at this point. If he would just have a normal bowel movement I would feel 100 percent confident. It's amazing what just a few hours can do!
Anal Sacculectomy Finished!
Remington went in for surgery today (Thursday) at 11:30 in the morning. I got a call from the vet doing the surgery at a little after 2:00 in the afternoon saying that they had just finished up, so he must have went in later than expected. The surgeon said that everything went very smoothly. They were able to remove both anal glands with no problems. They did have a little more bleeding than expected, but nothing to worry about. This is a huge weight off our shoulders! I feel like I can breathe again!
At 3:35 in the afternoon, Brandy called me to tell me Remington was awake. I felt so happy to hear this because for the past couple of nights I have been having dreams about him not waking up after the surgery. However, my happiness was short lived because then she told me that Remington was in quite a bit of pain and she was giving him pain meds to manage it. My heart dropped and my happiness started to crumble a bit. I'm not real sure why because of course we knew this was going to be an extremely painful recovery, but it is hard to feel like you are the one who caused this pain for him. I have spent much of the evening crying and thinking if this was in fact the right thing to do for him.
So far we have made it past the surgery, but now the hardest part starts... his recovery. We will spend the next few days dealing with his extreme pain and waiting to see if he has control of his bowel movements. I won't lie... I'm more scared now waiting to see if this whole thing was worth it.
At 3:35 in the afternoon, Brandy called me to tell me Remington was awake. I felt so happy to hear this because for the past couple of nights I have been having dreams about him not waking up after the surgery. However, my happiness was short lived because then she told me that Remington was in quite a bit of pain and she was giving him pain meds to manage it. My heart dropped and my happiness started to crumble a bit. I'm not real sure why because of course we knew this was going to be an extremely painful recovery, but it is hard to feel like you are the one who caused this pain for him. I have spent much of the evening crying and thinking if this was in fact the right thing to do for him.
So far we have made it past the surgery, but now the hardest part starts... his recovery. We will spend the next few days dealing with his extreme pain and waiting to see if he has control of his bowel movements. I won't lie... I'm more scared now waiting to see if this whole thing was worth it.
Week #8 of Kendra's Cooking Challenge: Pioneer Woman's Favorite Meatloaf
Yes, I decided that it is time to make a meat dish. I'm hoping for a perfect 10 on this one!
My Favorite Meatloaf (www.pioneerwoman.com)
Ingredients
My Favorite Meatloaf (www.pioneerwoman.com)
Ingredients
- 1 cup whole milk
- 6 slices white bread
- 2 lbs ground beef
- 1 heaping cup of grated Parmesan Cheese
- 1/4 teaspoon seasoned salt
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- freshly ground black pepper
- 1/3 cup Parsley
- 4 eggs beaten
- 10 slices of bacon
- 1 1/2 cup ketchup
- 1/3 cups brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon dried mustard
- Tabasco to taste
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour milk over the bread slices. Allow it to soak in for several minutes.
Place the ground beef, milk-soaked bread, Parmesan, seasoned salt, salt, black pepper, and parsley in a large mixing bowl. Pour in beaten eggs.
With clean hands, mix the ingredients until well combined. Form the mixture into a loaf shape on a broiler pan, which will allow the fat to drain. (Line the bottom of the pan with foil to avoid a big mess!)
Lay bacon slices over the top, tucking them underneath the meatloaf.
Make the sauce: add ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, and hot sauce in a mixing bowl. Stir together.
Pour 1/3 of the mixture over the top of the bacon. Spread with a spoon.
Bake for 45 minutes, then pour another 1/3 of the sauce over the top. Bake for another 15 minutes.
Slice and serve with remaining sauce.
Did I get my perfect 10 you ask! YEP! Dan said it was better than Grandpa Rhoton's meatloaf recipe! BOOM!
Anal Sacculectomy Postponed!
Just recieved a call from Purdue. They have moved Remington's surgery to Thursday in the afternoon. Things got backed up in O.R. and they were unable to fit him in today. I'm kind of upset... mostly because Remington has not ate in 2 full days and that could have been avoided. Brandy fed him a half can of food and said he gobbled it down... well DUH! She will call me and let me know more details later. Very Very VERY frustrating!
Before Anal Sacculectomy
It's been a long day... where do I even begin. I suppose 5:30 in the morning is best...
I was up at the crack of dawn because first I couldn't sleep and second I had a horrible upset stomach... if you get my drift. Even typing this now, makes my stomach do back flips. Of course, once I was up that meant Remington was up and ready for breakfast. Dan then got up and took him to potty and surprisingly he didn't fuss too much about not eating. I was happy about that. I'm sure feeding him 4-5 treats at around 9:30ish helped curve his appetite a bit. We all got ready and loaded up the Element for the hour and a half trip to Purdue. Below are pics of Dan and I saying our goodbyes since we weren't sure if we would get a chance to do this once we got there.
I was up at the crack of dawn because first I couldn't sleep and second I had a horrible upset stomach... if you get my drift. Even typing this now, makes my stomach do back flips. Of course, once I was up that meant Remington was up and ready for breakfast. Dan then got up and took him to potty and surprisingly he didn't fuss too much about not eating. I was happy about that. I'm sure feeding him 4-5 treats at around 9:30ish helped curve his appetite a bit. We all got ready and loaded up the Element for the hour and a half trip to Purdue. Below are pics of Dan and I saying our goodbyes since we weren't sure if we would get a chance to do this once we got there.
Traffic was not bad at all for the drive. We actually made great time and made it to Purdue 30 minutes before our scheduled appointment. Better early than late I always say. The hospital was really nice. I felt like I was in a hospital for actual people. When we walked in of course everyone was loving on Remington and telling us what a beautiful dog he is... We checked ourselves in and then waited for our name to be called. Remington coward between Dan and I's legs since by this time he figured out something was going on.
Soon a student, Brandy, called us back and talked things over with us. She is the student who will be caring for Remington for the duration of his stay. We gave her all of Remington's history and then she took him back for a full physical and other tests. At this point I was a little unsure of her because as she was pulling Remington away from us he was pulling her toward us. I wondered if she was going to be able to handle him. Of course, I shouldn't judge because at times I can't handle him myself. We sat out in the waiting room while all the tests were going on. Once called back in, Brandy said... "Man, he's a big boy!" LOL! I told her not to let him take advantage of her. She said... "Okay, I'll tell him his Mom told me that."
The vet that will be doing the surgery came in shortly after that. Am I a bad doodle Mom because I don't remember the DVM's name! EKKKK! He was awesome and did a great job going over everything that will be taking place in the next couple of days. He will be doing a closed technique surgery, which I was kind of surprised about, because most vets do a open technique surgery because of its speed even though it increases the risks. However, a closed technique surgery, even though it lasts longer will lower the risks dramatically! Here is a picture of what the closed technique surgery looks like...
Soon a student, Brandy, called us back and talked things over with us. She is the student who will be caring for Remington for the duration of his stay. We gave her all of Remington's history and then she took him back for a full physical and other tests. At this point I was a little unsure of her because as she was pulling Remington away from us he was pulling her toward us. I wondered if she was going to be able to handle him. Of course, I shouldn't judge because at times I can't handle him myself. We sat out in the waiting room while all the tests were going on. Once called back in, Brandy said... "Man, he's a big boy!" LOL! I told her not to let him take advantage of her. She said... "Okay, I'll tell him his Mom told me that."
The vet that will be doing the surgery came in shortly after that. Am I a bad doodle Mom because I don't remember the DVM's name! EKKKK! He was awesome and did a great job going over everything that will be taking place in the next couple of days. He will be doing a closed technique surgery, which I was kind of surprised about, because most vets do a open technique surgery because of its speed even though it increases the risks. However, a closed technique surgery, even though it lasts longer will lower the risks dramatically! Here is a picture of what the closed technique surgery looks like...
Closed techniques attempt to keep the anal sac completely intact, and dissection is directed from the base of the gland toward the duct. The vet will make a vertical incision lateral to the anal orifice over the base of the sac. He will use careful sharp and blunt dissection to free the anal sac from the muscular fibers of the external anal sphincter. The most difficult part of the procedure can be dissecting the anal sac away from the surrounding tissue. Of course the risks of the surgery is incontinence as well as a few others, but doing the surgery this way will lower those risks greatly. The vet said that only 2% of dogs will have this problem and because Remington has healthy glands with no scar tissue or infections this will lower the risks even more. The surgery will last 1 1/2 hours to remove both of the glands.
It was then my turn to ask him the questions. I told him that I had 2 full pages worth of questions and he just laughed and said... "Well, I'll go ahead and sit down then." I asked him about Remington's recovery period. He said that after the surgery Remington will be monitored very closely for the next three days. After that we will be able to pick him up (Friday). He will have stitches on both sides of his bum and have to wear a lamp shade around his head for the next two weeks. We will have to make sure to keep him calm and not have him running around. It will be okay to have him go up and down the stairs, but the vet suggested that we leash him so he doesn't go to fast. By the time that we get him on Friday he should be pooping okay and there should be nothing oozing out of the incision area. We will not have to bring him back to have the stitches removed, they can be removed by our normal vet here in Indy after 14 days.
I asked him about pain medications and antibiotics that Remington would be on. He will be on one pain med for 7 days after he leaves. He was put on antibiotics the day that he got there and will remain on them for 14 days since the risk of infections will be high because of the area it is in. The main side effects of these meds will be vomiting and diarrhea, so we will have to watch that and make sure he stays hydrated and take him out to potty more often.
I asked about Remington's diet after surgery. The vet suggested that we get canned food to feed him, so this will soften his poo a little bit and not make it as painful during the bathroom time.
I asked about what would happen if an emergency would arise, who should I call? They said that the clinic is open 24 hours a day so call them anytime that I had questions or if I was worried about something. This made me feel very reassured. The vet also told me that while Remington was there Brandy would call me twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening to update me on how Remington was doing. The vet will also call me right after the surgery to let me know how things went.
So, we left after speaking with them both and I made the vet and Brandy reassure me that they were going to take good care of Remington. They both did. Brandy told me that she would call me later in the evening to let me know how Remington was doing and when the surgery would be scheduled for Wednesday. We paid for half of the cost then and will have to pay the rest when we pick Remington up.
We did not get to say goodbye to Remington... this was really hard on me, but actually probably better. I completely broke down right after we were out of the doors of the hospital. It isn't because I don't think he is in great hands, it is just dealing with having to leave him and be without him for several days. He is a best friend to me and I hate that I can't be there to comfort him during these next few days.
At around 4:30 in the evening Brandy called. She said that Remington was resting in his kennel and was doing very well. She said he is a very sweet dog and she has been extremely impressed with how smart he is and that he listens and does all the commands she has asked him to do for her. Of course, at this point he hasn't ate since 5:00 Monday evening, so he would probably do anything for her if he thought he was going to get some food. HA! The surgery is scheduled for 3:00 on Wednesday afternoon. I was a little shocked to hear this, because this means he will not eat for 2 days straight. YIKES! They won't allow him to eat anything because they want his system to be completely cleaned out for the surgery.
The house is very lonely and quiet. Dan and I have been keeping busy to keep our minds off things. We miss him terribly, but know that this is something that needed to be done and that we did our very best to find the very best vet to do this surgery. Please say a little prayer Wednesday for the vet doing the surgery and for our sweet Remington Bear!
More to come after tomorrow and the surgery is over with.
Preparing for Remington's Consultation!
We are heading to Purdue bright and early tomorrow morning for Remington's consultation with the soft tissue specialists at Purdue. As you probably already know, I'm a complete mess. I have 2 full pages of questions to ask when I get there. We have been busy getting his food together, picking out a toy for his stay, and figuring out directions to the clinic. I'm soooo nervous and my stomach is FULL of butterflies.
Here's what will happen in the next couple of days... Remington's last meal will be tonight. He is not allowed to have any food after 10:00 pm this evening. That is going to be hard on him because his meal schedule is soooo ingrained in him, but he will manage. We plan to leave our house at 7:15 in the morning on Tuesday. It will take about an hour and 30 minutes to get to Purdue, but we want to allow enough time with traffic and because we don't know exactly where we are going. Our appointment is at 9:15 am. Once we check in we will meet with all the people that will be involved in Remington's surgery and his stay. They will go over what will take place and what to expect with the surgery (more to come on that). They will then take Remington and do blood and other tests on him to make sure that he is healthy and a good candidate for this surgery. That will take a good 2-3 hours. If he ends of being a good candidate then this is where we will say our goodbyes. Remington will stay the night at Purdue and they will do the surgery on Wednesday. We will be called afterwards to let us know how everything went as well as the following days as he recovers.
I have been praying every night that everything goes perfectly and that there are no problems. I will keep you all posted as we find out more and more in the following days to come.
Here's what will happen in the next couple of days... Remington's last meal will be tonight. He is not allowed to have any food after 10:00 pm this evening. That is going to be hard on him because his meal schedule is soooo ingrained in him, but he will manage. We plan to leave our house at 7:15 in the morning on Tuesday. It will take about an hour and 30 minutes to get to Purdue, but we want to allow enough time with traffic and because we don't know exactly where we are going. Our appointment is at 9:15 am. Once we check in we will meet with all the people that will be involved in Remington's surgery and his stay. They will go over what will take place and what to expect with the surgery (more to come on that). They will then take Remington and do blood and other tests on him to make sure that he is healthy and a good candidate for this surgery. That will take a good 2-3 hours. If he ends of being a good candidate then this is where we will say our goodbyes. Remington will stay the night at Purdue and they will do the surgery on Wednesday. We will be called afterwards to let us know how everything went as well as the following days as he recovers.
I have been praying every night that everything goes perfectly and that there are no problems. I will keep you all posted as we find out more and more in the following days to come.
Paige's Graduation Party!
This Saturday was a busy one. It was my friend Debbie's daughter's graduation party. I had promised I would help get things ready for the party, so I was there bright and early on Saturday to get started :) Below are some pictures of Paige's big day!
These are the center pieces we made for the party! Aren't they cool!
Here's a close up... we decided we should work for "Edible Arrangements" :)
The festive table decor
Party favors!
A smiling Belle!
Long lost sibling Elements :)
Paige's cake...
Paige's other cake!
Pretty Paige!
Up close pic :)
The proud parents!
Even though I didn't stay for the whole party, Debbie said that everything went really smoothly and that they had a steady stream of people the whole afternoon and evening. Greg (Debbie's husband) had made a really nice video of pictures of Paige throughout her life. It was really good and I got choked up. It even made we want to have kiddos... WOW!
Happy Graduation Paige! I'm glad I could be a part of your big day!
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