My fiance and I slept downstairs last night with Lorna. Every time Lorna would even move, I would wake right up. I got a very bad nights rest. Around 4:30AM she tried to get up but let out loud yelp and cried for a few seconds.
Now…..my dog does NOT yelp at all. She is a tough tough Bullmastiff! Bullmastiff don’t yelp, they cry. (:-()I have only heard her yelp 3 times in 2 1/2 years. She is tough, and to see her yelp really freaked me out. We believe it was from the pain meds wearing off? We hope!? Then she had an itch on/near her staples and tried to scratch it! That ALSO freaked me out! I hope she doesn’t scratch while we are at work. (Longest 8hrs ever)
We both had to leave for work this morning (thats where I am writing this blog now) and we hope and pray she is ok alone at home. Usually those pain meds knock her out for a few hours? Very nervous.Tonight we have our last pre-marriage class with the church – grrrr more time Lorna is alone.
The rest of the week I have to work in Boston and will be driving back and forth. (CT to Boston = 1hr 15min). Saturday my Fiance has her Bridal Shower in NJ and i’ll be with Lorna from Saturday morning to Sunday evening. This Saturday would be 9 days after the amputation….i am hoping for a much smoother weekend? Thoughts?
You guys rock by the way for reading and commenting on all of this. It true DOES HELP and we can’t get over the support from TRIPAWDS people. Thanks again – I’ll take some pics tonight
Most of us have stayed up the 1st 2 weeks….our “2 weeks” stretched out to “4 weeks” because Daisy went through 2 surgeries.
Perhaps Lorna is yelping due to Phantom pain? Daisy did not have that but lots of other dogs have. Ask your vet.
Hope things settle down for you. Try rubbing a little Neosporin on the staples/stitches, it might help the itch.
We want pictures! 🙂
Thank you very much for the tips! I just hope she doesn’t scratch…..i can’t even work right now
we were very fortunate as gayle was never alone during the healing process. is lorna going to be in a crate or ex-pen? hopefully she’ll take many medicinal naps and be a rested and happy puppy when you get home!
charon & gayle
Lorna has the living room. We covered the couches so she can’t jump on them (her favorite spot)
We put some pillows and blankets on the ground for her to lay on.
My fiance is checking up on her at lunch
Hi. The yelping does sound like phantom pain, I agree with Daisy’s mom. My dog, Roxy, experienced this. When an episode kicked in you could tell that she was trying to raise that shoulder area and it sounded almost like a scream. With Roxy these episodes lasted usually between 10 and 30 seconds, but it felt more like 10 minutes. That sound was horrifying. Our vet gave us Gabapentin for the phantom pain. I’ve seen where a lot of people have used it or suggested it to others on here. Maybe you can give your vet a call to see if they agree with the phantom pain theory and could give you something.
I also wanted to echo what Daisy’s mom said about the neosporin. They have neosporin that has some kind of pain reliever in it to where it kind of “numbs” the surface of the skin. You could try that out to see if it helps with the itch.
Hope things smooth out soon and she doesn’t have anymore painful episodes.
Leslie
When, how do Phantom Pains go away?! It kills me to hear that
Well, I’m certainly not an expert on that. It varies. But with Roxy it seems like hers tapered off within that first two weeks of recovery. I know it’s hard, but you can help her through it. Just remember she’s going to feed off your emotions. Try to stay as happy as you can around her. Oddly enough, my grandmother had a partial amputation of her leg several years ago. She experienced the phantom pains too. Sometimes it’s just a fact of amputation. I think it has something to do with the severed nerves…
I remember the not sleeping well. Chili Dawg had a couple rough nights the first few nights, and I like you was worried about having to leave him alone while we were at work. It’s tough to do after they have been through a procedure like this. I made sure to slobber on him when I came home though. He usually hadn’t moved very much while I was gone (thank God). I would definitely call your vet like Leslie suggests, because I agree, it does sound like phantom pain.
Hello,
And welcome to Tripawds. I wanted to give you a couple of links to information on phantom pain.
Here is one link in the blogs: http://tripawds.com/2007/10/30/phantom-limb-pain-in-tripawd-dogs/
And here is the result of Phantom Limb Pain search in the fourms: http://tripawds.com/forums/?forum=all&value=phantom+pain&type=3&include=1&search=1.
I know you have your hands full right now, and you are probably pretty tired, but when you have a chance you should check out the forums. Lots of good information there, and many more people hang out in the forums: http://tripawds.com/forums/.
I slept on the floor with my pug Maggie for at least a week. We were lucky not to have phantom pain.
It does get better, so don’t doubt that you are doing the right thing, and the best you can for your pup. I know I got discouraged when Maggie didn’t bounce right back after surgery, but she got there (the only thing the vet really said is dogs do fine on 3 legs).
Karen and the pugapalooza
We are a little slow around here but welcome to the coolest club no one ever wants to have to join.
Lorna Doone is adorable. She is a cookie – just like me, Ginger Snap.
You have heard from a lot of good dogs and pawrents out there. It is true, the first 2 weeks are complete hell. But, know that it gets better and better each day. There were several nights when the three of us had a slumber party on the living room floor.
It sounds like Lorna is having phantom pain and recommend you talk to the vet about some meds that may help her through. Also, remember those pain meds can really mess with the mind and make you see crazy things.
It sounds like Lorna is doing just fine. I know it seems weird to say that but everything you have said rings true. Very excited to see more pics of Lorna and of the upcoming wedding – congrats!!
Ginger Snap and pawrents
Called the vet. She said it sounds/could be phantom pain. It KILLS me to hear it. She NEVER yelps! EVER! Vet said it should go away with in the next day or so. Today would be day 4 post surgery. GRRRR what day is going to be the best one?! Still hasn’t happened yet?
Yup, sudden yelps are a common indicator of phantom pain. Consider these tips for managing phantom limb pain in dogs found in the Tripawds Downloads blog, if you haven’t already