Just a note about recovery from SM surgery - Yes, it's a long recovery, but I think it's harder on the owner than the dog. Riley was definitely uncomfortable for about the first week, but then after that, it was hard to keep her down. Because I have a multiple dog household with one of them being a rambunctious pup, I had to reintroduce her to the crate. She took to it beautifully and considered it her sanctuary. It's also important no to let them jump for quite a while, so the crate was invaluable. She was allowed 3 leash walks for 5 minutes at a time- basically just to let her out to pee and poo. Her surgery was in June and I took her out on the leash throughout the summer because she was still on restricted activity and I couldn't let her run and play with my other three. Of course, once she started feeling better, she wanted to be more active but didn't seem to mind being held back. She is such a sweetheart and never complained. I was the one who felt badly. Every time I loked at her, my heart would well up with sympathy, but she was quite content and still is. I do think her recovery was harder on me because my mind got involved and I constantly questioned whether I made the right decision. Even now, 8 months post-op, my mind still creates problems. Every time she has an SM related symptom, I look at her with pity and say "My poor Riley". Luckily, she has no clue what I'm saying. Like I said in my post above, she is happy and content and unbothered by any of her lingering SM symptoms and her surgery is only a memory for me, not her.