Canine Surgery Recovery

By Deb D’Andrea
4TheLuvOfDogz
Making Tails Wag Better
www.4theluvofdogz.com

A friend of mine wrote on Facebook that her dog had undergone surgery for cancer on her nose, had lost her appetite and wasn’t drinking much. As I’ve worked with several post-surgery dogs as a canine massage therapist, just like with humans, they can feel pretty yucky afterwards. It can take a couple days for the affects of the anesthesia and other drugs to work their way through the system.

The first thing I recommended to aid in recovery was a gentle canine massage, no more than 2 pounds of pressure as the touch. This gentle, whole body massage assists in moving oxygen and blood through the system, increasing the body’s ability to heal. For humans, post-surgery massage has been shown to improve recovery time, and is now recommended and included post-op by several hospitals.

As her pup wasn’t drinking much, to help keep her hydrated, I recommended a no-salt Beef or Chicken stock or broth, significantly diluted and added to her water. This usually entices them to drink up and will help their system naturally pass more of the chemicals. Water is key in healing, just like with us. (During summer months I make broth ice cubes as treats for my pups too!)

Sometimes the drugs can upset our pups’ stomachs and cause them to lose their appetite, along with experiencing loose stools. When my pups don’t feel good, their favorite meal is when I boil up and simmer a whole chicken in a big pot for about an hour. I let it cool and patiently remove and trash all the chicken bones (no cooked bones ever for dogs). After that, I mix all the juicy chicken meat,  chicken broth, and well-cooked white rice together and feed them several small meals during the day until they feel better. The key is several small meals versus two large ones.

Of course, always check with your veterinarian to ensure something else isn’t happening that is causing them to feel icky.

Note: Special thanks to Lauren Rice and Siri in helping with this article. Siri is happily recovering from her cancer nose surgery.

Deb D’Andrea owns 4TheLuvOfDogz, providing mobile Canine Massage, PawQuatics, Canine Agility, and Dogz Nanny services. She also sells her homemade peanut butter dog treats. Contact Deb at 720-675-7078 or email: info@4theluvofdogz.com

If you have questions regarding your pups, drop Deb an email.