| Post Surgery
Bladder Care
The Bladder must be completely expressed at least twice daily! After surgery, all
dogs are susceptible to "pooling" or "partial urine retention". This
increases the chance of Cystitis (Urinary Tract Infections). This is true whether your pet
is totally down, partially down, partially walking or completely walking. Preventative
care is crucial in post surgery bladder care..
For 10-14 days following surgery or major injury onset, it is safest to use a
"Urinary Acidifier" to help express your pet’s bladder. This is oral
medication of an antibiotic or steroidal nature which is obtained through your
veterinarian. It will protect your pet from infection as well as make it easier for you to
express your pet’s bladder. It will also make it easier for your pet to urinate,
because the medication will usually increase a pet’s thirst to stimulate urination,
as well as make the urine itself less acidic
If no symptoms of Cystitis ( dark or bloody urine with a strong odor ) occur after
10-14 days following surgery or injury onset, you may stop using the Urinary Acidifier and
continue expressing your pet’s bladder by hand without the help of medication.
Following are instructions on how to manually express your pet’s bladder but ASK YOUR
VETERINARIAN TO SHOW YOU HOW! A demonstration is always the best way to grasp a
procedure.
HOW TO EXPRESS YOUR PET’S BLADDER
NOTE; Smaller pets are easily managed by one person . Larger pets may require two
people.
- Support your pet in an upright position.
- Take your left hand and place it on the small of your pet’s back.(reverse if left
handed)
- Take your right hand and feel where the ribs end on the abdomen. Your thumb should be on
one side of the abdomen and your four fingers on the other side.
- GENTLY SQUEEZE your thumb and four fingers together and while holding that position move
hand towards rear of abdomen.
- Urine should be released in a fairly steady stream and when urination decreases to a
dribble, the bladder has been sufficiently expressed.
NOTE; The bladder must be manually expressed for 1-2 months or until it is clear
whether your pet is only temporarily down or whether your pet is permanently down. Having
the bladder expressed at least twice a day is a permanent Nursing Care necessity for
permanently disabled pets
SIGNS OF A BLADDER INFECTION INCLUDE
- Excessive frequent urination such as constant dribbling.
- Repeated licking of the vagina or penis area.
- Urine being a darker color than normal and/or having a bad odor.
- ANY TRACE OF BLOOD IN THE URINE INDICATES ADVANCED CYSTITIS AND URGENTLY REQUIRES
IMMEDIATE VETERINARY CARE!
- Pet stops eating or drinking
- Pet drinking grossly abnormal amounts of water.
- Pet unusually moping or depressed
- Pet possibly running a fever.
A URINARY TRACT INFECTION WILL REQUIRE IMMEDIATE VETERINARY SERVICES SUCH AS:
1) Possible urine culturing, especially with resistant Cystitis
2) Administering antibiotics
3) Administering additional medication combined with "Flushing the Bladder"
If you suspect your pet has developed a Urinary Tract Infection, CONTACT YOUR
VETERINARIAN IMMEDIATELY!
BEDDING
Confining your pet to an area where there is plentiful clean, soft bedding is crucial for
your pet’s recovery. If given a choice, your pet will choose a hard cool surface on
which to rest instead of a soft padded area, and Decubital ( pressure ) sores will develop
We recommend:
1) Confining your pet to a cage or enclosed area depending on your pet and your
home’s size.
2) Obtaining either boards or foam padding /or egg crate type of padding that exactly
fits the dimensions of the cage or confinement area( a playpen is ideal for a smaller
pet).
3) Encasing the boards or foam in plastic (trash bag) will work on a small area.
4) SECURELY WRAPPING THE PLASTIC ENCASED BOARDS OR FOAM IN MULTIPLE WASHABLE LAYERS of
soft bedding (e.g. soft quilts, comforters, large towels etc). Artificial Sheepskin is
ideal. Local thrift stores are a good source for these items.
Note: all bedding MUST be securely wrapped around the boards or foam so that the pet
cannot use its front paws to "pull back" the soft bedding and lie on the cool,
harder boards or foam padding.
5) The washable bedding MUST BE CHANGED DAILY to discourage infection and Decubital
(pressure) sores! So make sure you have a volume of soft materials available and ready.
SPECIAL BEDDING NEEDS OF GIANT BREED DOGS
We strongly recommend a homemade "water bed" for giant breeds.
Obtain a wooden frame with corner cleats for tying down plastic and soft absorbent
washable bedding that fits in pet’s confinement area.
2) Obtain a simple water bed mattress and plastic liner which fits within the frame.
First cover it with a washable mattress pad and then cover it with well secured washable
bedding.
Do not use a waterbed mattress without a frame or you may induce mattress
content’s leakage or total rupture.
Do not use a waterbed mattress without a waterbed confinement cover or you risk your
pet’s nails puncturing it.
NOTE; As former Veterinary Clinic owners, we can assure you that the cost of purchasing
the materials for the frame and the waterbed mattress are significantly less than the
bills you will incur from struggling to treat Giant Breed Decubital Sores!
BATHING
The rear quarters of your pet must be gently bathed at least once daily with warm water
and a soft, clean washcloth. If your pet has an excessive amount of hair, you may want to
clip the rear of your pet for sanitary reasons and ease of keeping the area clean. The
larger the dog, the more difficult it is to prevent Decubital sores. Bathing at least once
and preferably twice daily is truly crucial to keeping the skin of larger, heavier pets
clean and healthy while in recovery. Larger pets take more time and more care to heal
should they incur sores.
NOTE; Clean bedding and proper bladder care will reduce the role of bathing care in
preventing Decubital sores. A urine soaked, ulcerated dog or cat is an obvious indication
of inadequate owner bladder care.
PHYSICAL THERAPY
Physical therapy together with a good nursing care program is very often instrumental
in bringing a pet back to "walking on all fours".
The therapy you provide will depend on the size of your pet, what your pet will
tolerate and the time you have available. Not all of the following suggestions will
pertain to all pets or all conditions.
SWIMMING & FLOTATION BATHS.
Swimming is an excellent form of physical therapy! If you have a pool, then take your
pet in the pool with you. Life jackets are available from many pet and Marine stores if
you feel they are necessary. Our Walkabout™ harnesses have handles and are
helpful in supporting pets while swimming them. If you have a large dog and do not
have a pool, call an equine (horse) center and inquire if there are any pools in the area
that swim horses for exercise. They may allow you to swim your pet there.
FLOTATION BATHS
Fill your bathtub with warm water, deep enough so that your pet ‘s feet are off
the bottom of the tub. Support the rear of your pet and let them swim with the front legs.
Baths help keep the skin clean and healthy and very often pets, like people, are able to
move more in water than on the ground. Swimming has the added benefit of helping with
weight loss in an obese pet.
SWIMMING IS NOT A GOOD IDEA IF YOUR PET HATES OR IS AFRAID OF WATER!
RANGE OF MOTION EXERCISES
CHECK FIRST WITH YOUR VETERINARIAN TO ENSURE THAT YOUR PET’S HIPS OR KNEES ARE NOT
DISLOCATED BEFORE ATTEMPTING TO DO THE FOLLOWING !
It is important that your pet retain normal range of motion in the limbs so that they
do not become rigid and the joints immovable or frozen. Sometimes pets will scoot around
on their bottoms (very common in the smaller breeds ) with their rear legs out at a 45
degree angle. DO NOT ALLOW THEM TO DO THIS AS THIS MAY PRECLUDE RETURN TO NORMAL FUNCTION
SHOULD THEY REGAIN FEELING IN THEIR LEGS! Dragging around in this manner will particularly
affect the hips and knees. Two examples of cases where you find frozen limbs are Fractured
Backs in any breed and Wobbler’s syndrome in Dobermans.
When doing range of motion exercises, place the pet on its side and with the paw flat
on your hand move the leg up and down towards the abdomen . You may want to keep one hand
on the knee of a larger pet or on the hip if a smaller pet. Then turn the pet over and
repeat with the other leg. Although your pet may have no feeling in its legs doing this
daily will help ensure that if and when feeling does return , the joints will be flexible.
MOBILITY
Use of a cart is important in aiding your pet in the recovery process or for improving
the quality of life should they not come back to walking on their own. Please read about
CONDITIONS to see when we recommend the use of a cart.
Please be aware that use of a means of mobility or wheelchair for your pet will not
discourage return to full mobility. I have had clients say that they are afraid to get a
cart because then their pet will not try!. Pets do not have "hang-ups" like
humans, if they are given the help they will try harder and when they are able to struggle
to their feet on their own, they will do so! As evidenced by the fact that if they have no
cart they will drag from point to point however they are able!
IT IS A FACT THAT CARTS ENCOURAGE RETURN TO MOBILITY!
The cart is simply a "walking" aid to help keep your pet healthy and mobile,
support the back and take the stress off the rear limbs.
Once your pet has the ability to stand and take a few steps, we suggest the use of the
"walking" conversion to the cart. This allows the pet to walk with the rear
limbs without the added weight of their body. Note that you must walk the pet slowly in
the cart , placing the feet properly in a walking position. They very often are used to
tearing around in the cart and when rehabilitating them , DO NOT ALLOW THEM TO MOVE
QUICKLY AS THE REAR FEET WILL THEN DRAG AND NOTHING WILL BE GAINED FROM THIS EXERCISE BUT
BLOODY PAWS!
A FINAL WORD TO THE
NURSING CARE PROVIDER
Like most health care procedures, the hardest part is getting adjusted to the time
frame demands which nursing care requires within the day’s normal routines.
Nevertheless, Nursing care is ultimately just another series of routines that need not
take unreasonable amounts of time, once the necessary procedures become a habit. Be
patient! Success is likely as long as you treat Nursing Care as a Game Plan that must,
like any other important health care routine, be diligently, dutifully followed. We
provide this Nursing Care information for the same reasons we provide K-9 Carts themselves
– because we believe that disabilities should not deny pets or their owners the
choices of good health, mobility and happiness of life itself. Knowledge enables good
decision making. Don’t hesitate to call us us if you have any additional questions
regarding Nursing Care.
GOOD LUCK! |
