Gunnar is sick

[Adrienne]

Gunnar is doing well this morning. I went to bring him some food because of his special diet and he was perky, ears up, eyes bright and happy to see me. He ate a whole can of venison and rice. The incision is really icky looking though, kinda frankenstien like all the way up his belly and down to his penis, looks like they detached his penis and stapled it back on, ouch! They will montior him for a while today and as long as he doesn't vomit the food I should be able to bring him home tonight.

I don't fault the vet with the decsion, based on his status when I brought him in and what they thought they saw on the x-ray surgery seemed like an imediate necessity. I do however hope the price will not be quite as high due to him not having to actually open the bowels up. I guess I will find out when I pick him up.

He barked and cried when I left, broke my heart . I have to work a 12-9 shift today so I will leave to get him and then my mom will come stay with him at my house and keep an eye on him for me.

Thanks again for the well wishes and I will update tonight after work.

 

[Renee750il]

Well, glad he is going to be able to come home! They always do so much better at home. Give Gunnar a kiss on the snoot for me

 

[smkie]

Hope Gunner heals quickly, that is so sad this had to happen to him and to you.

 

[rij73]

Poor pupster! You're doing great!

 

[Adrienne]

Well Gunnar is doing well. Little doped up from the drugs but acting like he feels ok. He is oozing a bit from the incsion so he has a t-shirt on. Haven't had to put on the e-collar yet because the t-shirt covers the wound.

This is what the vet said on his discharge papers. I feel like we did the right thing by exploring him. I was very concerned about his presentation yesterday. However, it is innately part of my own makeup as a person to feel utterly awful about putting an animal through surgery when in hindsight it becomes apparent that surgery wasn't needed. For that reason there is a significant discount on the bill, putting it well below the estimate we discussed. I am certainly frustrated to not be able to tell you what was making Gunnar feel so awful yesterday, but ultimately I am at least pleased to nwo that he seems to be acting more normal today.

Total cost was $427

He also said the radiodense object in the films yesterday may still have been a wire that was poking the inside of his intestines and causing discomfort, but by the time we anesthetized him, perhaps his relaxation caused whatever it was to start moving again and not take a form that was easily detectable on the exploratory. It is entirely possible it moved into his large bowel and passed without difficulty. This is just a theory that relates the x-rays to the outcome of the case, but at this time I don't have a better explanation.

Thanks again and he is being spoiled rotten of course!

 

[rij73]

Interesting... Seems like the doctor was straight up with you. Poor Gunnar, though! Keep us posted. He's such a beautiful dog.

 

[Barb04]

Gentle hugs & kisses and prayers go out to Gunnar for a speedy recovery.

 

[bubbatd]

As long as you have a doggie on the way to recovery I'd be happy . At least the vet was up front . Is this a well established vet clinic .?

 

[Adrienne]

I am happy he is on his way to recovery! It is a well established vet clinic. They treat the sled dogs and some of our zoo's animals. The Vet that did the surgery is actually an internal medicine specialist.

Mistakes can happen and I'm just happy we reacted quickly and he is fine.

Thanks again for the prayers, thoughts, and well wishes.

 

[rij73]

Cool... Keep us posted, ok?

 

[Adrienne]

Gunnar is doing great! He's totally back to his old self, rammy, bugging Neva, barking, mouthing, etc. He is defienetly on the road to recovery! Thanks for all the support guys. The incsion is also healing very nicely.

 

[Zoom]

I am so glad to hear that! Gunnar is very lucky to have you, and it sounds that you are very lucky to have your vet, who will work with you and be up front.

 

[Melissa_W]

I'm so glad that he's doing better!

 

[Adrienne]

Gunnar has been bonkers! No walk for seven days drove him nuts and me too! Staples come out on Tuesday and he is healing just great. Thanks again for all the support and well wishes, I am sure they helped out!

 

[Brattina88]

Glad to hear he's doing so well!

I know how you feel - not being able to walk the GSD... let's just say... you can tell when they don't get one lol!

 

[rij73]

Wow... So GLAD he is healing well. And yes, I can't imagine ow much pent up energy he has in him by now! LOL

 

[ToscasMom]

I am VERY glad to hear Gunnar is doing well again!

 

[Debi]

such GREAT news!!! goodness, Gunnar will want to make up for lost time. LOL

 

[Doberluv]

So glad he's doing well. No, when I read that, my feeling was that the vet was covering all bases. Sometimes you can't see things on an x-ray and it would be awful to not check if there was something there. So, exporatory surgery is often indicated. I'm sure it's a relief to you. And the cost sure wasn't bad at all, I don't think. What a relief!

 

[~Tucker&Me~]

Glad to hear he's feeling better .

~Tucker