| Ask The Vet -
Q&A |
Question
My 12 month old toy poodle had a hernia repair and castration
5 days ago. Since then he has been extremely lethargic, off his
food (although will eat very small amounts) and generally 'not himself'.
He does not have a temperature, his nose is cold and his gums are
pink. There is no obvious infection of his wounds. His behaviour
is so out of character and I had expected more of a recovery by
now. Is this normal or should I be more worried than I am?
Jane - Oldham
|
Answering questions:
Susie Samuel MA VetMB MRCVS from
Vet
Help Direct |
| Answer |
Hi Jane,
The
speed at which dogs recover from surgery depends upon several factors,
for example, the type of surgery, whether the dog is ill and the
breed and personality of the dog.
Castration
is usually a quick operation and most dogs recover from it soon
after the operation, having said that some do take longer to get
back to normal. You don’t say how big the hernia was or where
it was. The surgery that will have been required will vary enormously
depending on these factors.
You
have obviously been observing your poodle very carefully which is
brilliant. It is reassuring that his gums are pink and that he does
not have a temperature but it is a worry that he is off his food
and that he is still so lethargic after 5 days. You need to take
him back to your vets for a check up.
It
is very common for dogs to be lethargic for a short time after surgery.
Most of the time there is nothing untoward, however it is a time
when complications can happen so you do need to get your dog checked
by a vet.
Even
if there are no complications it could be that your dog is feeling
sore. Some dogs have lower pain threshold than others and need painkillers
for longer after the operation than usual. For a castration and
small hernia repair it would be quite usual to give a 24h painkiller
injection on the day of surgery and no further painkillers, this
is sufficient for most dogs. It may be that your poodle requires
a longer course of painkillers. Your vet will be able to assess
this with you, and prescribe some safe painkillers for him if necessary.
You
definitely need to take your dog to the vets at the first opportunity.
Hopefully
your vet will be able to reassure you that everything is OK. Sometimes
just having stitches or having to wear a buster collar can be enough
to make a dog down in the dumps.
Kind regards,
Susie Samuel MA VetMB MRCVS www.vethelpdirect.com |
| ©
D for Dog www.dfordog.com |
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surgeon. |
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