[mhvonalmen8908]

Well...as the title implies tomorrow Virga is going under for her spaying. I'm probably going to be a nervous wreck but at least my husband is here this time. But I just wanted to see what, if anything, I need to be worried about, what should I look for after we get her back, just general kinds of stuff. Doppler was neutered and a neuter is less involved surgically as a spay (I believe) so we don't really know what to expect. I know the vet will tell us something to do and watch out for but I guess I just wanted a heads up. Thanks in advance!

 

[Soundtrack]

Spays are pretty routine, I've never had a problem from one.

 

[LuciaB]

Our girls have done well, my Chihuahua was in a lot of pain but the basset was barely phased.

 

[SophieB]

Virga will be fine... we had our two girls done on the same day (6mths) so we had double the worry but both were totally OK and unconcerned that they'd been operated on and my vet was so neat (maybe ladies are neater at sewing) that when we took them to be checked over, their white sticky covering was still intact and the stitches were not visible apart from a tiny thread at the end.

 

[bubbad]

You just don't want her to chew or be licking her sutures.

 

[MollyMcFrecklesMom]

Make sure the area around the stitches isn't swelling and hot to the touch. No discharge or smell either. As gross as it sounds, they are important to watch for, as it signals infection. The skin should be pretty much normal looking except that there are stitches. Of course licking and chewing is discouraged. You can get an Elizabethan collar for her from the vet if she won't leave them alone, though I never needed to use it with Molly. No running, jumping, or rough play until the stitches come out (easier said than done, but the dog won't do something that hurts more than one time). It sounds more daunting than it is, so don't worry. If you suspect anything weird or are worried, call your vet. It's what they are there for.

Molly got her stitches out today...HOORAAAAAY!!! It's time for some serious fetch!

Good luck, Virga! You'll be back to your old self soon enough. Molly sends love and drool (lots of drool).

 

[Boomer's Mom]

And more love and drool to Virga from Boomer.

 

[MollyMcFrecklesMom]

I forgot to mention this. Molly came down with a small urinary infection a couple of days after surgery. I've read conflicting things about whether or not this is tied to her surgery, but it wouldn't surprise me if it was. I caught it right away and a round of antibiotics cleared it up quickly. Just something else you may watch for.

 

[fred'smom]

good luck to you and your baby. Fred and her new sister are both going in end of february I am so nervous. I *think* bassets can be prone to a bleeding disorder but not sure thats what we were told.

 

[mhvonalmen8908]

Well...we just picked Virga up from the vet's. She did great they said and everyone raved about how she's such a good dog. When she woke up they said her tail was just a waggin'! They said to feed her a small dinner tonight. She's thrown up about five times since we've gotten her back and we called the vet and they said that it could just be excitement from being home. So we're just going to hold off on her dinner until later. We moved her kennel out into the living room so she can use it to "escape to" and just sleep and she's in it right this minute fast asleep. She's moving at about half speed right now. But she's seems to be doing fine except for the grogginess. She goes back in two weeks to get the stitches removed. Thank you for everyone's thoughts!

 

[MollyMcFrecklesMom]

Great to hear! She'll bounce back to her old self before you know it.

 

[mhvonalmen8908]

Thanks for the thoughts everyone! Virga is definitely back to her old self. If you didn't see the stitches or know that she had gotten spayed, you wouldn't have any idea! She's bouncing around, wrestling with Doppler, running in the back yard. We're having a hard time keeping her calm enough to not hurt herself. She tripped when she came tearing up the back steps into the house. But she didn't hurt herself luckily.

The biggest issue we've had is keeping Doppler from licking her stitches. She only bothered them twice and both times we put the cone on her and she left them alone after we took it off.

That was hilarious as well! When we would put the cone on she wouldn't move a muscle. She'd just look up at us through the cone and be all hunched over like her head was too heavy for her to hold up. We'd try and tempt her to come to us with treats but she wasn't having any of that. I'll try and get a picture of her with the cone on. We also put the cone on her at night when she goes in her kennel so she can't spend all night licking her stitches.

 

[SophieB]

Glad all is going well... you could maybe put a t-shirt on Virga to stop any licking and fasten it at the end!

 

[Maggie Sues Dad]

Glad to here all is well! It makes for a long day when they are gone to the vets.