Ginger's Tripaw Journey

Well here we are one month after surgery and it’s been quite a month.  Ginger has done fabulously and I’m still investigating resources and next steps now that meds are past and incision seems to be pretty healed and hair growing back.   Am looking at getting her in with a dog PT as soon as school is out and kids are off my plate and back with their parents. (Nothing against the kids, just prioritizing and time management).  Getting used to the hop, she’s doing great but still has an occasional fairly epic fall due to balance lost and tipping too far – but seems to be less anxious about it.  Planning to be back on the board more regularly when I make it to end of school year also and get back to looking at resources, just praying we don’t accidentally injure her other leg while we wait.  I’m careful but others like to play also and she doesn’t know when she should stop, especially if someone holding her fetch toy.

She continues to be very affectionate and in lap dog mode, a real change from before her injury.  I still wish she didn’t enter hardcore cuddle mode at 3-5 a.m. in the morning but not going to turn her down, last night she made it mostly through the night before launching herself on top of me 10 mins before alarm went off.  Lick, wallow and don’t know if this is purposeful or not but without a front leg she tends to launch that side of her body right on top of me like “without my leg I can press this entire side of my body directly against you”…. oh well I love it, sleep loss or not.  Hoping we can start working on exercise, strengthening, etc. soon.

A couple pictures of her taken this morning, she looks a lot better than this day in April.

Well vet prescribed stronger antibiotics and an antibiotic ointment stronger than neosporin, said keep it covered or collar on and she should be fine.  She looks so darn miserable in the collar but can move the t-shirt around, so decided might be time to try the harness.  Fortunately harness itself doesn’t sit on top of incision to aggravate it, but will hold t-shirt in place and make it harder for her to get to — also nice to have a literal handle on my dog.

As shared on forum I think any confusion she might have had about ownership is over, since I had rescued her a year and a half ago but she still gets to see part of her family of origin considering the kids came with her and their dad came to visit regularly.  In a month the kids go back with him but she stays with me.  So not complaining but after the injury, surgery and caregiving she has changed from a slightly adoring “I really like you, you take me places and love on me” expression to good morning or welcome home or even middle of the night-“HI, let me snuggle beside you/wriggle, or sit/lay on top of you, lick lick lick, I literally almost worship you response. ”  Nice to have a stronger bond but it’s like suddenly having a 70 lb puppy.  Her behavior has turned around almost completely (in a good way).  So anyway here’s a couple of morning pics now that we’ve added a harness to the equation. Hate she had to go through this but a silver lining in terms of the bonding.

Thanks to all for the continued support, life getting easier as Ginger adjusts and I keep having projects to tackle regarding her recovery and grow closer in process.  Latest projects, get incision healed up, research rehab exercises and improved food choices.  Test drive some joint supplements on aunts aged arthritic yard dog to get some ideas of what works best for when it’s time to start with her.

Getting used to this harness thing, not so bad

Mmmm breakfast time

Well someone got a little overenthusiastic after staple removal and decided to do some wound licking.  Vet had initially said should be fine keeping a t-shirt on her…. guess we should have told her that, the dog is now in a cone.  Came home last night to see blood and slightly gaping wound.  Good news is no new stitching but a new round of antibiotics, ointment and a few more days of the cone.  Mischievous dog, I’m also considering getting a video of her newly discovered talent of eating a mouthful of food/treat and spitting out the pill like a gumball out of a machine and the sassy look she gives after.

April 17th, a full 12 days after surgery and out came the staples.  Ginger of course handled it like a champ though seems the skin folded in on itself in a few places so now we are adding neosporin to a couple “raw but sealed” places as part of the medication regimen that she generally hates.  They also recommend keeping it covered via cone or shirt to keep her from licking.

Stitches out but still wearing a shirt, more becoming than a collar

Will consider it a positive recovery sign but Ginger is now in “I hate taking meds mode” and don’t know if it’s her nose or her being able to read my behavior but even if I bury it in the middle of pill pocket, hot dog, etc…. if I don’t bury it enough she will refuse to take it at all.   Seemed completely uninterested in peanut butter so I keep sticking to the meats.  But even if I am successful in burying a pill completely in treat/food technique she will take it, manage to eat the treat and spit the pill on the floor.  We’ve had more than one “hold head back and drop it down throat” session at this point.

We finished our pain med scripts Sunday morning.  At about 2 a.m. Monday I woke up and she was panting, a little whining and repeatedly licking her paw… based on research seemed like a reasonable assumption she was probably in some pain.  Fortunately my aunt has both tramadol and gabapentin in exact same dosage that she can’t take and gave to me, with vet approval to use them – so she is now on a PRN dose, which for now I’m just giving her before bedtime and watching closely.

So Ginger continues her recovery and showing us what a resilient dog she is, and I shift into another mode of research into joint supplements and exercises to start looking at adding to her routine.  Thanks as always to this site for a wealth of information as well as support – until next time.

And we are back…. Sorry didn’t expect that delay in posting but seems like it’s been nonstop since she returned and busy keeping my focus on her recovery, which means half holding her down and half getting her out for some controlled exercise so she doesn’t tear down the road and lose another leg.  Have seen her gaining strength and getting better by the day.

It has been a busy week of readjustment, new routines.  A switch from the anxiety to the caretaking, but having her back is a great way to refocus .  As expected she came through like a million dollars and is making a speedy recovery.  Surgery was Weds and she came home on Friday, walking, playing a little fetch and perfecting her tripod hop.  Have been able to take her to work with me all week. She came home with what sounds like the standard, antibiotics, probiotic, Tramadol, Gabapentin and Rimadyl, seems to be doing well on them.

I will post more a little later, but here are a couple of pictures.  Of course I buy her a nice orthopedic mattress and she’s already back to sleeping on my bed.  A little challenged by going downwards and on our walk I ended up carrying her downhill but it’s obvious when she’s getting tired.

Hanging out with me at work

Day after coming home from surgery and already back up on my bed

While waiting for hair to grow back, after her trip to park for first short walk. Did great, only required minimal carrying on hills