At the Clinic

We dropped Hickory off this morning and left him for his surgery. We took Holly along so she'd understand where he his...and we didn't have to leave there dog-less (and she was happy that she wasn't staying!)

We talked to Dr. Dew a little bit. I asked about arthritis, and he said that it's a given, but he believes the TTA surgery is the best at keeping it in check. I also asked about the narcotic patch that will be sewn onto Hick, and should last a few days, since some people on the Orthodogs list have mentioned dogs reacting to it.

Dr. Dew said that it can either cause anxiety, and he said the eyes are all wild looking (like Marty Feldman), or it can cause skin irritation.

His assistant, Pam, came in, and we asked her a few questions about the ramp and getting Hick in and out (she said to help him both ways) ,and I said I was thinking of having a twin mattress on the floor in the room we're going to confine him and whether that would be a problem. She said on the floor was fine...it's the threat of jumping, and the stress to that joint/bone that is what we need to avoid at all costs. We'll need to keep him tightly restrained at all times thru rehab, and it really sounds like it comes down on us to make this successful.

Now we get to wait until about 5 or 6 p.m. to hear that he's awake, and that the surgery went well. In the meantime, I'm trying to work and continue to get the house prepared for Hick's return. Holly is sticking VERY close to me.