Cookie's Cruciate Pt 3 -Dec 21st 2018

Tuesday was the day for Cookie's scheduled operation and it was incredibly quiet in the house. Usually at 6.30 when I come down to feed the dogs she is the first one to greet me, standing with her front legs on the third stair up so she can get the kisses in first. As I came down Monty stood back as if she was there, waiting his turn which is always second when the heffalump is around. He was very subdued all morning and if I didn't know better I'd think he was actually missing his hooligan sister.

As the morning went on I was concentrating on what Tom the vet had said that no news was good news but almost immediately my phone rang. As I feared it was the hospital and Tom explained that the operation had been cancelled. Cookie was ready to go, shaved and anaesthetised when she suddenly had an upset stomach. Without going into graphic details it meant that her number 2's were looser and more explosive than normal and the risk of infection was too great. Although obviously disappointed and frustrated it was actually very reassuring to hear that Cookie's welfare was the number one priority.

Later on that afternoon we travelled over to pick Cookie up and Tom went through the medication while she was being blow dried after her 'clean up'. Christmas and New Year was now obviously an issue in terms of rescheduling the operation and apart from the stomach upset she had some infected spots on her leg that needed cleaning up.

We left with a shaved and sweet smelling girl but she was certainly feeling sorry for herself and was desperate to get back into the car.

The Help'Emup harness has proved invaluable already and really offers fantastic support when moving a 60kg dog around or helping them into a vehicle. This has been a fabulous aid and worth every penny for the peace of mind it gives.

Sadly for Cookie due to the fact she'd had loose stools she was unable to have any Metacam until she did three solid poops and as far as pain relief, all she had was the paracetamol and codeine tablets we brought home.

Thankfully her stomach upset cleared straight up and she was able to resume the Metacam on Thursday so hopefully that will help to ease her discomfort but she had a very painful night last night and was finding it very difficult to settle.

One of the main recommendations from a number of people has been to make sure the floor isn't slippery. When we planned the house with Newfies in mind we went for a tiled floor as both of them struggle with the heat even in the winter. We have added non slip rubber backed industrial mats which are very adaptable and can be moved around as needed.

We have totally covered the room where Cookie will recover from her operation with mats and she is certainly finding it uncomfortable at times so we left the ceiling fan on for her last night.

I'm sure there are a few places that supply the mats but we have used Splendid Pets after some very good recommendations and we've always had very good reliable and speedy service from them. The link is here http://www.splendidpets.co.uk/dirt-trappers-c12

The current situation is that we are trying to clear the spots on Cookies leg with Douxo Pyo Foam Mousse twice a day and Douxo Calm shampoo. She is provisionally booked back in for her operation on the 27th December but because that's an emergency only day at the hospital it will be cancelled if anything more serious comes in. We also need to make sure that her infected sores are cleared up as infection is our biggest enemy and we know that the staff at Liverpool University hospital will not take any risks. Wish her luck.