Daily drivel

HI all,

Elgin is doing well.  I continue to ice his incision a couple of times a day, and while I’m down there, I pick at his grody scabs from the razor burn, which covered almost all of his left bun.  They come off easily and I find that he’s easier to look at when that scabby patch is gone. Makes me wanna puke, tho.

Yesterday was a little tough on us both, as he is becoming more restless and mobile (or “clingy” as my husband, Gary, says, because it amounts to Elgin trying to find me, wherever I am in the house).  I thought I could get away with not putting up his pen in the living room, and simply putting on his inflatable donut, letting him have free access to the ground floor of the house.  He had been sneaking licks in and irritating his incision.  Up I went to the second floor, to start my work day. I heard him hopping around down there, and then all was quiet.  I thought, “COOL.  I can actually make some good progress on this book!” After about 10 minutes I heard noises down there and when I checked on him, discovered he can lick his incision AROUND that donut!  Dogue de Bordeauxs are very long-bodied, and it turns out in his favor, that he can reach his hindquarters.

So I put on the GINORMOUS satellite dish E-collar he was sent home in.  I went back upstairs, and continued up and down the stairs the rest of the afternoon, as he proceeded to get stuck in every doorway, catch every corner, and crash into every chair we own, with that vast expanse of plastic…. it reminded me of an object ‘d arte by Cristo! So I gave up and stayed downstairs with him, and when he would get up, I would get up and walk with him, to hold the edges of the collar so he could squeeze past the couch, or make it around the kitchen.

I did try boxer shorts, but I picked the wrong pair.  (I’m not accustomed to pilfering my husband’s underwear drawer to find something for the dog to wear!) When I put them on him, Elgin hopped right out of them, in addition to them not being very comfortable. My frustration was getting the better of me. I am not willing to spend my day walking around the house holding the edges of an E-collar! Nor do I think Elgin wants this.  So when Gary came home last night, I went to the gym.  When I got home (in a much better mood!) he had let Elgin outside to enjoy the night air without ANY collar, and Gary could still see him through the doorway to supervise the licking thing.

This morning, Gary picked a really good pair of boxers and put them on Elgin. Voila! They fit him much better, they didn’t fall down, and Elgin can’t lick the incision!  I actually got a lot of work done today, until the landscapers came and started up their leaf blowers and lawnmowers (which means a mandatory break for my recording, and a chance to blog).

I’ve begun to taper his Tramadol, and by Friday, he is to have stopped all pain meds.  I think this will be good, because he was a little weird sometimes, and we’re chalking it up to the meds.

5 thoughts on “Daily drivel”

  1. Have you tried putting his tail through the fly? Sometimes they fit better that way- I mean as well as backwards boxer shorts fit on a three legged dog.
    My little pug Maggie was also a left rear amp. I was lucky with her recovery in several ways- one was that she was a slug and didn’t overdo anything. Another was that because of her short face and Buddha belly she couldn’t reach her incision!
    Elgin sounds like he is doing pretty good so far.

    Karen and the pugapalooza

  2. Oh Elgin, life is so hard. I have NEVER seen a plastic collar so wide! I admit, I’m wiping tears from laughing at your post and the photo of poor Elgin in that collar pushed me over the edge. Poor guy… not much longer now and those stiches will come out and there won’t be anything to lick and the collar will go away.

    Hang in there mom. It sounds like you guys are managing and your sense of humor is still intact! We are only days ahead of you in recovery, but I found being able to laugh at the absolute absurdity of this whole thing was a milestone in my own recovery, which is helping Samdog too.

    Hugs from friends – thank you for the smile.

  3. Wow….that is a satellite dish of an e-collar. Hoping the boxers do the trick! I’m guessing the staples will come out soon? Thanks for sharing photos!!

    Our Charlie’s staples will be removed on Monday the 10th (his surgery was 8/27) We can’t wait!! Being a front leg amp – the incision is a bit more difficult to lick, but Charlie can get to the bottom portion. Thankfully a ‘soft’ e-collar did the trick. (we’ve tried the donut….and he was miserable when laying down)

    Best wishes to Elgin for continued progress with your recovery!! Can’t wait to hear updates and see more pics!!

    hugs from Charlie and his Mom

  4. That satellite dish is too much. Refuse to wear it. Put your paw down. You look like you are enjoying it too much. They’ll keep putting it on you if you keep looking so happy!

    Sound like you are coming along just fine.

    Spirit Magnum

  5. awww Elgin. You sure a handsome guy, and your accessories are simply fabulous. The shorts are so on trend 🙂

    Glad to hear you are up and about, now give your mom a break. She needs a few hours of peace and quiet.

    Perhaps you can just watch a little TV, and let her work??!!

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