Wolf Instincts

Yesterday, Abby had her follow up appointment at the vet to have her drain removed. She’s such a sweetheart. I thought she might be afraid to head back in there, but no, as soon as we pulled into the vet’s parking lot she was ready to jump out of the car. With the help of my little handmade sling, I got her out of the car, and then had to trot alongside as she hopped happily to the front door. She went in, all smiles and wagging tail. Everyone there was SO happy to see her. And she was so happy to see them. She’s such a love. They all thought she was doing great!

While I was there, I asked about her aloofness (which continues, as shown in the photo below of her “hiding” in the jasmine again this morning). They said it’s normal after surgery and is most likely due to some continuing discomfort. As some of my friends and family theorized, it is believed to go back to their wolfy instincts, where, in the wild, a hurt animal will go off on its own in an attempt to hide its weakness. Then last night I downloaded the great Tripawd e-book (wish I’d had it from the very beginning) and saw the same advice/explanation. So, while the Tramadol may be making her act a little weird (it definitely makes her tummy upset), I think it’s better to put up with the side effects than have her be in pain, so I’m erring on the side of giving her a bit more pain meds for now, rather than too little. The vet said there is not really a fear of giving her too much, as there could be with some other drugs. The guidelines they gave me (1/2 to 2 pills every 6 to 8 hours) really give a range so I’ve been tweaking how much to give her and have kinda come up with something that seems to be working. She only spent a little while by herself this morning, and then came back inside. In fact, she is laying here by me while I type this. Things are moving along – and I keep having to remind myself we are only at day 6, post-op, so she’s doing really great. I’m officially going to try to stop worrying! At least for now. 🙂