I'm getting my dog spayed next week (advice?)

[Ariana Celeste]

I'm really nervous about it. My SO has been through this, so he's not worried about it. I've had dogs before, but I was a small child and my parents took care of everything.

We are paying extra for some little puppy pain killers for afterwards, so I'm sure she will be fine, but like I said, I'm nervous as hell.

Anyone have any tips or advice or just experiences with this? I'm not looking for anything specific really... just wondering how she will probably act afterwards, what should I expect, and what can I do for her when it's all over. Ease my mind, please. :D

[matcom]

1. two words

sharp. knife.

[Ariana Celeste]

4. eek

Part of why I'm nervous- Sharp knives freak me out. :scared:

[taterguy]

2. relax

I've only had male dogs but they were just fine, a little sore but back to normal after 48 hours. Follow the advice of the vet. He or she is a paid professional and we're not :)

[Ariana Celeste]

3. Lol.

Oh I'll be doing that too, but I like some friendly advice from regular people, too. :D

[China_cat]

5. She'll probably be loopy and silly

when you bring her home, a bit unsteady on her feet. Don't worry about it, it's normal...just a leftover from the anaesthetic. Your vet will probably give you a care sheet but the best things to do are not to let her eat right away and don't let her drink too much at one time...unless you like cleaning up dog barf. She may not even want to eat but WILL probably be thirsty. Just a little at a time will do it.

She'll probably have a cone to keep her from chewing on the stitches. Good luck on getting it on her. And keeping it on. Keep an eye on the incision that it's staying clean and dry. Report any redness, oozing or seeping to your vet IMMEDIATELY.

In over 30 years of dogs, I've never had a bitch yet that had any after pain from a spay. Most of them have wanted to go out and run and roll within 24 hours of the procedure. So, unless she's showing actual pain, try not to give her any of the pills. If she does seem to have pain, check for redness, swelling, oozing or seeping at the incision and call the vet if you see any.

[Ariana Celeste]

6. Thank you

I'll keep that all in mind, and definitely will be on the phone with the vet if anything looks bad. :hi:

[Beausoir]

7. My dogs and cats always got a little chilly after.

They would shiver so I always had a nice warm (not hot) heating pad for them to lay on if they felt so inclined.
They usually just want to be left alone to sleep and heal. They know what is best for themselves.

And they heal so fast.

Don't let her around the stairs where she could take a tumble.

I always feel badly for them at the time, but it is a good thing for them to be spayed.

[Ariana Celeste]

8. Definitely good.

There are far too many cats and dogs without homes as it is, and I surely wouldn't want to contribute to the ever growing population.

Thank you. :)

[hfojvt]

9. it ticked me off that I could not take her home that night

it wasn't like somebody was there at the office monitoring her. I saw her after the operation and she was still completely zoned. My sister said much the same about me after my operation. I wish I had put my foot down and taken her home that night though. There was a huge thunderstorm that night and I could imagine her alone, in a cage, in a strange place, in pain, and with cannons going off all around her. She is not skittish about thunder, but still, it was not cool.

When I picked her up the next morning she was better, but still not very perky. I took her for a car ride, instead of going straight home, because I knew she would love that. She still was not bothered by the vet's office. She loved the vet. I used to walk her to pay the phone bill and she would try to drag me across the street to the vet's office.

[Ariana Celeste]

10. Oh my, I would have been so worried!

Mine is pretty scared of thunder. She peed all over the place during her first thunderstorm, she was 2 months old I think at that point.

Fortunately I get to take her home in the afternoon. The clinic I take her to only does surgeries in the morning, 7:30- 9 am. So I get to pick her up around 3pm. Which makes me feel a lot better.

[Arkansas Granny]

11. I've had several dogs and cats spayed over the years. Just

follow the vets instructions and she'll be fine. She will be a little dopey and groggy for a day or so, but none of my girls acted like they were in pain and none of them had any complications from the surgery. They were back to their normal selves in no time.

[Ariana Celeste]

12. Thanks

I like my vet a lot and trust him, this is just a first experience thing for me, lol.

[seemunkee]

13. Is your dog active?

You need to keep her calm while the stitches heal.
Our pup was a real pain with the licking and rubbing and running. She opened up the incision twice. The second time the vet was so frustrated that they kept her for almost a week to keep an eye on her.

[Ariana Celeste]

14. She's fairly active

She can get worked up, but most of the time she just hangs out. She likes to burn energy in spurts.
We'll both be keeping an eye on her and trying to keep her calm the first day- second day after, I'm on my own.