Spay surgery & LP update for Lulu - YorkieTalk.com Forums

JDS · 12-07-2010, 12:14 PM

I didn't post this morning about Lulu going in for her spay b/c I've been a nervous wreck. But the vet just called & said everything went great and she's recovering now. They are keeping her on IV fluids until later this afternoon but she will come home tonight (as I requested). Surprisingly, she did not have any retained baby teeth that needed extracting.

Now to update our LP situation. I saw a new vet Friday regarding Lulu's LP. Our previous vet graded both at grade 3 & immediately said surgery (he was going to do it himself & only deepen the groove...I wasn't comfortable at all with him). Second opinion still graded right rear as a 3, but her left rear as a 2. I knew Lulu had LP, so my second opinion was really regarding treatment options and not necissarily the diagnosis. Anyway, I love the new vet. She spent about an hour and a half with us. Her recommendation is crate rest & Metacam for 2 weeks. She also recommended glucosamine & omega 3 supplements. Re-evaluate the situation in 2 weeks & go from there. She will refer us to a board certified surgeon if she believes surgery is our best option. However, she is hesitant to recommend surgery without trying the crate rest & anti-inflammatories first. She said many small dogs can live their entire lives with LP & not need surgery. But she still prepared us for the possibility of surgery.

So for now we are in a wait and see. I am very happy with the new vet & switched over completely after our LP second opinion visit. Lulu's spay was done here as well & not my old vet as I wasn't comfortable with them. The hard part is going to be the crate rest. It was very hard the past few days (we began the crate rest immediately after our visit Friday). Lulu isn't used to being crated so she cried a lot. I still allow her to sleep in her playpen at night, but she jumps up in it during the day so it's the crate only during the day. So far, she is still lifting her right rear leg occassionally when she is out to potty or to eat.

That's it for now. Lulu will be recovering from her spay surgery & continue crate rest for at least the next 1.5 weeks.

yorkieusa · 12-07-2010, 12:28 PM

I'm glad she did well in her surgery. I think you were very wise to seek out a second opinion. That is the sort of surgery you want a board certified surgeon to do. Good luck with the crate rest, etc.

JDS · 12-07-2010, 12:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yorkieusa

I'm glad she did well in her surgery. I think you were very wise to seek out a second opinion. That is the sort of surgery you want a board certified surgeon to do. Good luck with the crate rest, etc.

Thank you. That is exactly what my new vet said regarding the surgery being done by a board certified surgeon. Makes me wonder why the other vet was all set to do it himself???

deeda9999 · 12-07-2010, 01:36 PM

I'm glad to hear Lulu is doing well after her surgery.

I am right there with ya about crate rest being tough. When my vet suggested the same thing for Gilmore for his LP I thought to myself- OMG- how am I am going to last 10 days. Now because he had the surgery we are on 3 months of crate rest. I shouldn't have complained LOL.

Crate rest is so tough. Tough on us and tough on them. I have found that putting the crate on bins in the room I am in makes him more at eye level which I think makes him feel more a part of everything and not so isolated like he was on the floor. I also sit with him on the couch a lot with a leash on him and wrapped around my wrist so he can't jump up.

I hope that she feels better and you won't have to do the surgery.

Mom to Hot Rod · 12-07-2010, 05:21 PM

We went thru lp surgery with Hot Rod. It was a very long 6 weeks but I am glad we did it. The first 2 weeks, in my opinion are the worst. Maggie may has been diagnosed with grade 2 in her knees but does not seem to be having any problems. I was shocked when they told as she is a little nut case and is always bouncing around and standing on her hinds.

Good luck with Lulu and her lp treatments. We are now giving Dasuquin. Hope Lulu has a quick recovery from spay.

JDS · 12-08-2010, 05:40 AM

Thank you both. Dasuquin is the glucosamine we are giving as well. She takes it okay if it's covered with a little cheese.

Recovery from her spay is going pretty good right now. She wanted to be quite active last night when we got her home, but I just held her for a while, took her to potty & then put her in her crate. She cried quite a bit.

She wouldn't eat last night (other than a small piece of cheese as a treat) but she did drink some water. I had to make her stop drinking the water to prevent her from making herself sick. She ate a little of her food this morning & took her Metacam. Now she's resting in her crate again. She must be very tired because she's not crying to be out with us.

Good news is she isn't even offering to lick her incision site. She did lick the place on her front leg where they shaved her to put in her IV. I put on her jammies to prevent her from licking it & she hasn't tried since. She does look kinda silly with both of her front legs shaved just a little (vet said her vein blew in the first leg, so they had to swap legs

). So, it's going well so far. I just hope the crate rest continues to go well. I hate hearing her cry & wanting out to play and romp around with us.

yorkieusa · 12-08-2010, 06:20 AM

You can always get her out and carry her around.

JDS · 12-08-2010, 06:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yorkieusa

You can always get her out and carry her around.

Believe me, I do! My husband told me last night that it was like I had a newborn again.

I was carrying her around in her little blankie and hubby had to pick up my "slack" around the house. Thankfully, I have a great husband whom doesn't mind.

yorkieusa · 12-08-2010, 12:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JDS

Believe me, I do! My husband told me last night that it was like I had a newborn again.

I was carrying her around in her little blankie and hubby had to pick up my "slack" around the house. Thankfully, I have a great husband whom doesn't mind.

How sweet! A little spoiling will go a long way.

12-07-2010, 12:14 PM	#1
JDS YT 500 Club Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: the good 'ol South Posts: 683	Spay surgery & LP update for Lulu I didn't post this morning about Lulu going in for her spay b/c I've been a nervous wreck. But the vet just called & said everything went great and she's recovering now. They are keeping her on IV fluids until later this afternoon but she will come home tonight (as I requested). Surprisingly, she did not have any retained baby teeth that needed extracting. Now to update our LP situation. I saw a new vet Friday regarding Lulu's LP. Our previous vet graded both at grade 3 & immediately said surgery (he was going to do it himself & only deepen the groove...I wasn't comfortable at all with him). Second opinion still graded right rear as a 3, but her left rear as a 2. I knew Lulu had LP, so my second opinion was really regarding treatment options and not necissarily the diagnosis. Anyway, I love the new vet. She spent about an hour and a half with us. Her recommendation is crate rest & Metacam for 2 weeks. She also recommended glucosamine & omega 3 supplements. Re-evaluate the situation in 2 weeks & go from there. She will refer us to a board certified surgeon if she believes surgery is our best option. However, she is hesitant to recommend surgery without trying the crate rest & anti-inflammatories first. She said many small dogs can live their entire lives with LP & not need surgery. But she still prepared us for the possibility of surgery. So for now we are in a wait and see. I am very happy with the new vet & switched over completely after our LP second opinion visit. Lulu's spay was done here as well & not my old vet as I wasn't comfortable with them. The hard part is going to be the crate rest. It was very hard the past few days (we began the crate rest immediately after our visit Friday). Lulu isn't used to being crated so she cried a lot. I still allow her to sleep in her playpen at night, but she jumps up in it during the day so it's the crate only during the day. So far, she is still lifting her right rear leg occassionally when she is out to potty or to eat. That's it for now. Lulu will be recovering from her spay surgery & continue crate rest for at least the next 1.5 weeks. __________________ Jenn & Lulu

12-07-2010, 12:28 PM	#2
yorkieusa Crazy about Kacee! Donating Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Kansas Posts: 21,173	I'm glad she did well in her surgery. I think you were very wise to seek out a second opinion. That is the sort of surgery you want a board certified surgeon to do. Good luck with the crate rest, etc. __________________ Karen Kacee Muffin 1991-2005 Rest in Peace My Little Angel

12-07-2010, 05:21 PM	#5
Mom to Hot Rod Donating YT 5000 Club Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: MD Posts: 10,908	We went thru lp surgery with Hot Rod. It was a very long 6 weeks but I am glad we did it. The first 2 weeks, in my opinion are the worst. Maggie may has been diagnosed with grade 2 in her knees but does not seem to be having any problems. I was shocked when they told as she is a little nut case and is always bouncing around and standing on her hinds. Good luck with Lulu and her lp treatments. We are now giving Dasuquin. Hope Lulu has a quick recovery from spay. __________________ www.kissecollar.com Soft Cone Collars for Post-surgery and much more! 10% (non-food) - Discount code YT10

12-08-2010, 05:40 AM	#6
JDS YT 500 Club Member Join Date: May 2010 Location: the good 'ol South Posts: 683	Thank you both. Dasuquin is the glucosamine we are giving as well. She takes it okay if it's covered with a little cheese. Recovery from her spay is going pretty good right now. She wanted to be quite active last night when we got her home, but I just held her for a while, took her to potty & then put her in her crate. She cried quite a bit. She wouldn't eat last night (other than a small piece of cheese as a treat) but she did drink some water. I had to make her stop drinking the water to prevent her from making herself sick. She ate a little of her food this morning & took her Metacam. Now she's resting in her crate again. She must be very tired because she's not crying to be out with us. Good news is she isn't even offering to lick her incision site. She did lick the place on her front leg where they shaved her to put in her IV. I put on her jammies to prevent her from licking it & she hasn't tried since. She does look kinda silly with both of her front legs shaved just a little (vet said her vein blew in the first leg, so they had to swap legs ). So, it's going well so far. I just hope the crate rest continues to go well. I hate hearing her cry & wanting out to play and romp around with us. __________________ Jenn & Lulu

12-08-2010, 06:20 AM	#7
yorkieusa Crazy about Kacee! Donating Member Join Date: May 2005 Location: Kansas Posts: 21,173	You can always get her out and carry her around. __________________ Karen Kacee Muffin 1991-2005 Rest in Peace My Little Angel

12-07-2010, 01:36 PM	#4
deeda9999 Senior Yorkie Talker Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: long island, ny, usa Posts: 115	I'm glad to hear Lulu is doing well after her surgery. I am right there with ya about crate rest being tough. When my vet suggested the same thing for Gilmore for his LP I thought to myself- OMG- how am I am going to last 10 days. Now because he had the surgery we are on 3 months of crate rest. I shouldn't have complained LOL. Crate rest is so tough. Tough on us and tough on them. I have found that putting the crate on bins in the room I am in makes him more at eye level which I think makes him feel more a part of everything and not so isolated like he was on the floor. I also sit with him on the couch a lot with a leash on him and wrapped around my wrist so he can't jump up. I hope that she feels better and you won't have to do the surgery.