Recovering from surgerey

[Jeri Jessee]

So Maggie was spayed last week and is supposed to be kept calm for 10-14 days..yeah, right...no running, jumping or playing...and now she is taking antibiotics for a rash so an additional few days of being calm tacked on...Vet doesn't want her even going around the block or to her obedience class. She's used to a lot of activity and exercise so she is bouncing off the walls right now. Any suggestions for low key activities? Poor thing doesn't understand why we can't play ball.

[WildFlower]

Hello,

 

Do you have Kongs or other treat dispensing toys? These are great if you stuff them with kibble/treats and water and freeze them. It takes a while to empty them. You can fill them with just about anything and freeze them: peanut butter, cottage cheese, yougart, etc.

 

Does Maggie like bones? Naylabones?

 

I would think that it would be ok for you to practice a little bit of obedience on your own too, in short sessions? Doing a sit or down every once and a while should be ok and help keep her mind active. Maybe teach her to shake?

 

Best wishes!

[bn_here_b4]

I would put all the active toys away for the duration. Out of sight, out of mind might help a little.

 

Maybe you could teach some tricks Maggie can do in a laying down position. Jody likes the cup game where I hide a treat under one of three cups and then mix them up. He plays that game sitting or laying down.

 

Good luck with that whole quiet business! It's a tough assignment.

[rushdoggie]

This is from the Shirley Chong website "Keepers" page (old posts from Clicktrain), its a list of things one owner did with her dog who was on crate rest. It may give you some ideas. There's a link to the website at the bottom, there's some other articles that might be useful as your dog isn't on crate rest per se.

 

Category: Fun Stuff ¤

Author: Susan Fraser ¤

Title: 101 Things To To With a Dog IN a Box ¤

 

Date: Thu, 5 Nov 1998 23:08:18 EST

 

Sez Andrea:

<< **Susan, I remember that someone else had asked for "resting" c/t and I thought

of you but I had not kept any of those posts. Maybe a recap of what you did with

Shammie might be enjoyed (please pretty please..... G) >>

 

Well, since you said pretty please... <g>

 

First, I took the Rx for crate rest to mean "lying down" rest. So I put a mattress

on the floor next to the crate and when Shammie was awake, I tried to be on the

mattress with her. She had already learned "down" so she got lots of c/t's for

just staying in a down. Now remember too that she was just 3 months old, so some

of these games might be too juvenile...

 

We played a lot of "mouse under here" where I put my hand under a towel and

scritched and moved it around by her front feet, and she would bat at it with her

front paws. Then I would put a sheet or towel over her, and tickle her. And I would

hide a treat or toy under a towel and she learned to nose under it. That progressed

to treats under empty cans, even sliding the cans around - "guess which can"?

 

I stuffed torn strips of an old sheet in a FisherPrice plastic ball with holes and

she would puuullllll the strips out. (Again, again, and again!! ) I also would

leave a tail of a strip dangling thru the door in the crate, and she would pull it

in there, too. I let her shred a few pages of the newspaper every day (probably not

the best idea <g>).

 

And she got lots of ice cubes (beef, chicken, even fruit), carrots, broccoli, hooves,

real bones, and STUFFED Kongs (my husband said that HE was tempted to lick the

stuffing out a couple of times! LOL!), etc. Also drill holes in Nylabones and fill

with cheese, pate', etc.

 

As far as teaching with the clicker, she learned to put her paws over her nose

("Shame, shame!"), Hold (she's a retriever!), and touch her nose to the correct

one out of three toys in front of her when I said it's name.

 

And then there's the Fisher Price crib toy. We spent a LOT of time with the Farmer's

Pop-up Barn. When she pushed the round thing (with her nose) the chicken popped up.

She used a paw to slide a bar, and that popped up the cow. Also a dial for the farmer

and a lever for the sheep.

 

The chicken was her favorite, and self-rewarded, as it honked and popped up whether

she got a treat or not. (Now, it's a cute party trick for little kids, who get more

of a kick out of her getting it WRONG - I say "Where's the cow?", she bonks the

chicken, and they say "That's not the *cow*, Shammie, that's the *chicken*!!"

Over and over...:->)

 

I also taught her "speak" and "quiet". And we watched T.V. shows with animal sounds.

And she got brushed with one of those hand mits, and learned about brushing teeth.

Did I mention belly rubs and aroma therapy?

 

She had vet's permission to go out to potty on a leash. He never said she had to

come right back in....<g>. So we sat in the yard and tore up leaves and pine cones

and made cloud pictures pretty often, too. And there were the car rides in suckerdaddy's

arms...

 

Oh, and she had a stuffed bear almost as big as she was, that she took out a lot of

aggressions on. It's name was "Omega Bear". (We're on about the 5th generation

'Mega now...)

 

I'm sure there's more, but the bottom line is that this doesn't have to be such a

bummer for you *or* the dog. We both got frustrated, but really, having a dog lying

down and looking to you for entertainment is an incredible bonding experience.

 

My biggest problem was keeping the OTHER dog from going nuts!!

101 things to do with a dog in a box

[Jeri Jessee]

Thanks, to all of you!

 

Yes, she does have a Kong and a Nylabone and I will check out PetSmart tonight to see what else I can find for her.

 

We practiced our sit and down last night as well as take it/leave it. So we are doing those things and I will check out the other suggestions below.

 

Great!

[NCStarkey]

Hello "ShesMaggie",

 

You have received some great suggestions so far about ways to engage and entertain your pup while she is recovering from spay surgery, but here's something else to keep in mind. You should also reduce her food (energy) intake while she is convalescing, as she will not need nearly as much energy when she is inactive. Hopefully, she is currently eating adult dog food, but if she isn't, now would be a good time to switch her to an adult food with a moderate protein level.

 

Regards,

nancy

[Jeri Jessee]

Thanks, Nancy. I hadn't thought about the food. I thought the pain meds and antibiotics might slow her down but not so far. She has a lot of energy, of course, and is used to getting lots of exercise and activity. I don't want her to get depressed or feel she is being punished. We just need to make it 10 more days!

[Jeri Jessee]

Maybe you could teach some tricks Maggie can do in a laying down position. Jody likes the cup game where I hide a treat under one of three cups and then mix them up. He plays that game sitting or laying down.

 

Tried this last night and realized I don't know how to teach her this...she just looked at me like WTH?