Zuko's Journey

So, it’s been one week since Zuko became a tripawd! and it has definitely been one hell of a week!

First night home/Day 1 was great! he was still woozy from the meds so he slept like a baby. There were great achievements the next morning from going potty to walking on his own to eating! more details are on my previous post 🙂

The 2nd day was NOT so great. He was restless all night. I was pretty much sleeping in 1-2 hour increments and I felt miserable! I was so happy he ate the day before but now he wasn’t having it which made it VERY difficult to give him his meds. He doesn’t like to be forced to take anything so he resist SO MUCH but I was determined! Aside from that, he was peeing and poopin normally (well aside from having mushy poop but that was expected). He was even hopping around already like nothing even happened!

On Day 3 things seemed to be getting better. He was sleeping a little longer but I was still not getting enough to where I felt rested. Bruising around his groin area and right rear leg had developed and by that night, it had gotten worse. Since I was still fighting for him to take his meds because he wasn’t eating, I bought him some puppy milk with probiotics to help his tummy and give him some nutrients. Boy, did he loved it!! I don’t know if it was the milk or anything but that night he was a little more interested in food but still very picky.

On the 4th day, his bruising looked better! and he was eating more and taking his meds easily. His appetite is definitely not like before but I found that he likes and would only eat boiled chicken and Nutri Source Pure Vita Grain-Free Beef Stew Dinner wet dog food. I bought him a variety but he only likes that one! haha I also noticed he started licking the incision site on occasion and there looked to be some fluid build up as well.

 

Day 5 I went back to work at the clinic and brought Zuko along to get checked. Everything was alright but Doc advised to put an E-Collar on to stop the licking. He freaked out after I put it on and fluid started dripping from his amputation site and I started freaking out! but doc said it was serous fluid and some blood and ensured that it was fine. I stayed with him for a bit to calm him down. By the end of my shift/day, Zuko looked better and the amount of fluid excreting decreased. However, he didn’t even want to walk or do anything with the E-collar on so I removed it. With the dripping, he’s been licking more so Ive attempted to cover it or put some shorts on him but he always manages to take them off! I’ve also been icing the area to reduce redness and inflammation.

These last two days have been good! He’s sleeping through the night longer and eating more – I’ve even managed to add some dry kibble to his food. He’s still having mushy poops but I’m not surprised with his current diet and the meds he’s on. As far as the amputation site goes, the bruising has cleared and it looks to be healing great! It’s still oozing some serous fluid but very minimal.