Luxating Patella Surgery - Simon's Mid-Recovery Period Swelling

Today is 3 weeks to the day from Simon's surgery day.

I noticed some swelling around the area of the top 2 stitches. That of course meant a call into the animal hospital. The surgeon's "staff member" asked me to bring him in.

After an exam by several hospital doctors, the diagnosis was swelling around the internal stitching because they could actually feel the stitch causing the problem. Since Simon is walking fine and experiencing no pain, we are supposed to "wait and see." If it's any bigger in 2 days, there'll be another trip to the hospital for a re-assessment.

Turns out there's a level of difficultly associated with getting a good shot of the area to use as a benchmark, but I did measure it (as instructed) - it's about an inch long, although it appears bigger in this photo:

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Canine Luxating Patella Surgery - When Puppy Exercise Is Not An Option

Post Surgery Recovery - Puppy Playing Is Only In Simon's Dreams

Simon's into the third week of post canine luxating patella surgery with 3 more weeks to go.

How Simon Is Reacting To Inactivity
You don't really know how an active dog who's forced to be inactive will react. Simon's reaction ranges from whining to restlessness to scratching incessantly. He wants to run and play with Alvin. Since that's not an option, he behaves like a confined animal.

An Example - one morning after we removed the ecollar, he bit or scratched a hot spot in the lower part of the surgically repaired leg. Of course that means treating the hot spot AND putting the ecollar back on.

Puppy Exercise Banned
Since puppy exercise is banned during the six-week recovery period, the owner becomes the social director for deciding how to keep the dog inactive but engaged.

Funny thing - a wonderful article on puppy exercise showed up in the author's mailbox. It lists 10 Ways To Engage Your Dog Indoors (in case he cannot exercise outdoors). Some of these suggestions are perfect for Simon.

Here's the article:
http://www.dogster.com/articles/Rain-or-Shine-10-Ways-to-Engage-Your-Dog-Indoors-224.

Halfway Through Post Surgery Recovery! Lifting Simon up and down stairs is backbreaking!