I am happy to report that Arwen is doing really well. The day after my last post we started rewarding her with treats for going potty, and she immediately started going regularly again instead of holding it. She is consistently sleeping through the night, still eating and drinking normal, still taking all her meds with no problems, and she is more and more comfortable getting around on 3 legs. A little too comfortable, in fact.
Arwen is clearly done being on bed rest and wants to be able to go out again. Unfortunately, she still has another week of recuperating before we can really take her anywhere (assuming the doctor declares her fully recovered at the 2 week mark and allows it). So she has settled for the backyard, and resists coming back inside the house when we take her out to go potty. We are fine with her hanging outside so long as she stays off her feet and lays down, which she’s been doing. (Yesterday she unfortunately chose to lay under a juniper tree and got patches of pitch in her fur that I had to cut out with scissors. So today I put her bed outside for her.)
My husband and I have been so happy with Arwen’s progress. The first days after surgery really were the worst, and I am getting more and more used to seeing my sweet girl with 3 legs instead of 4. Though when her bandage came off a few days ago, I had to get used to seeing her incision. It’s very large, and when I saw it my first thought was that I couldn’t believe I was uncomfortable with other people seeing Arwen with the bandage on.
But I’m already getting used to seeing it, and I know her fur will cover the scar when it grows back. And I cannot wait until we can start taking Arwen back out to the mountains and woods and lakes again.
She is beautiful, yay Arwen! So glad to hear she is doing well 🙂 Slow and steady wins the race. I don’t think 2 weeks post op is going to be fully recovered, but she is well on her way there 🙂 You are doing a wonderful job!
Jackie and Huckleberry
This makes us soooo hoppy! Yay Arwen! I see that sparkle, you are so over this recovery thing and ready to get back to the mountains. It won’t be long now beautiful.
Love your chill backyard too. The Westie is super cool!
Thanks! Arwen loves road-tripping in the Westie, but it’s currently out of commission until it gets a new engine. 🙁
Hi, my female Leonberger is going to have one of her front legs amputated on Wednesday due to cancer. Reading your blog has been so helpful! Did you have to buy Arwen a special harness? And, can she wear it yet? How does Arwen go from lying down to standing?
Aww, a Leonberger! You know we thought Arwen was possibly a Leonberger and that the rescue was possibly mistaken about her parents. But we did a DNA test and she is 50% Saint Bernard and 25% Border Collie; no Leonberger to speak of.
The first week was definitely the hardest. Arwen couldn’t really get up from lying down. We had to help lift her and get the sling under her to get her outside. But after a few days she got the hang of shimmying back using her front right leg as a brace to work up. We never had to help her after that first week to sit/stand up.
We used the sling the vet gave us for just over 2 weeks. We didn’t use a harness until after her stitches were removed (18 days post-op). We got the Ruff Wear Webmaster Harness with a brush guard attachment. I am sorry to say we have only used it a couple times so I cannot give an accurate review yet. So far so good. Arwen is stopping and standing a lot when we walk, and I think it might because she’s still getting used to the feeling of us helping her with the harness. The Ruff Wear people (I talked to a girl named Rachel who was SO helpful; she had a dog with osteosarcoma so she’s super understanding about the process) said that they just came out with a Flagline Harness which they also recommend for amputees, but since they just came out with it there weren’t any reviews so we went with what everyone else recommended.
Best of wishes to your family and your Leo. I would love to hear how she does!