Yesterday was our dachshund Li'l Girl's four week follow-up after her right-sided hemilaminectomy. She had nothing but growls for the surgeon, but he had nothing but nice words for her. In other words, she had a great check-up. He watched her walk outside, where she also showed off her peeing and pooping skills. In preparation for a possible scan, she had nothing to eat or drink for 12 hours prior to the appointment. However, because her mobility and neurological status seemed to be almost-perfect, he said there was no need for a scan.
She has been in confinement in a small pen my husband built for these past four weeks following her surgery, only coming out for potty breaks. The surgeon said we can now start slowly reintroducing her to her regular routine over the next two weeks. I'm certainly nervous about this and am going to make sure it is indeed a slow process. We still have some preparation to do, such as buying or building some ramps so that she (and her best pal LittleBear, our other dachshund) can get on and off the sofa without jumping.
The surgeon also gave us a brochure regarding laser disc ablation, a procedure that is performed on dogs with IVDD to theoretically reduce the risk for other discs rupturing in the future. I have mentioned it in a previous post. My husband and I will be discussing it in depth, including the cost involved, before we make any decisions. Right now we are just focused on getting her fully healed and recovered from her hemilaminectomy.
Yesterday was incidentally also my birthday, and while I have not been physically feeling so well lately, Li'l Girl's great check-up made my birthday a good one anyway. We are so happy with her progress and our goal is to make sure her recovery keeps going just as smoothly as it has been. She is past the initial phase, but the spinal cord takes months to heal, as does the vertebral bone in which the window was made during her surgery. I look at her like she's made of glass, like any twist or overly-enthusiastic turn is going to break her. We have to be very careful for the rest of her life, but at the same time I have to learn to let her enjoy herself again. Slowly but surely, she is on her way back to chasing squirrels.
