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Ted diagnosed with SM today

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Please for Ted . . .

Hi Fiona,
I have been following this thread and I have found myself going through a range of emotions whilst doing so. From utter dis-belief at how casual the 'vet' has been, to frustration and concern on Ted's behalf. I note that you have insurance for this operation so feel finance shouldn't be a concern to you?
Please, please, please for Ted's sake, he can't talk for himself, seek advice from a 24 hour vet and tell them clearly what your concerns are. I don't believe Ted should be up and walking about if he has had what you say he has had done to him. You only have to look up the links people have given you here to see that qualified people are telling you that Ted's current post operative care is not at all safe and he runs a very high risk of complications that could be life threatening.
It really is that serious Fiona.
Ted deserves the best post operative care he can get to ensure a safe recovery and quite frankly - in black and white - you cannot afford to wait until tomorrow. Ring a 24 vet in the UK for advice if you need to
Chestergates on 01244853823 are specialists in SM and surgery and I just know they will be horrified to hear your story but equally they will advise you what to do to keep Ted safe.
Please Fiona. This is serious and time matters.
Dawn
 
I cannot give any advice about medicine except to urge you to get him to a board certified veterinary neurosurgeon as soon as possible.

Your situation with Ted is very troubling because he was mishandled so badly by the surgeon. Now I worry that other vets may be hesitant to become involved in his case because the risk is so high. I think you will need make it clear to a qualified professional at the veterinary college that you now understand Ted's case has been mishandled from the start and you feel it is imperative that he must be under the care of a neurosurgeon. They might be hesitant to take him on, and perhaps you could ask to sign a waiver that you understand Ted's outcome has been negatively impacted by the situation before he came into their care.

Have you tried calling UCD today? Is there a qualified professional there who you can explain this to?

Edited to add: I think Dizzy has given good advice on how to proceed as well.
 
Hi

I have called UCD again on the out of office hours no and they have no consultant neurosurgeon on duty, I have checked my own vets website and their out of office number is the same as UCD's along with another vets practice that I found which is not too far away from me.

I have just called Chestergates and they are going to get a neurosurgeon to call me back, thanks dizzy xx
 
Jenny from Chestergates just called me, she said that most dogs are well enough to go home after this surgery between 24 & 48 hrs, she says that it all depends on the dog, what they are are like when they come round and how they react the pain medication. She said that my vet obviously felt that Ted reacted well to everything and therefore was well enough to go home.

She said it is ok to proceed with the parectemol twice daily for 3 days but to make sure the dog is always kept calm relaxed and warm. She herself feels that dogs do better post op with their owners as they can get distressed when they are away from them in unfamiliar surroundings.

Fi xx
 
In general, I agree that dogs are better off with their owners, but just seeing Riley after her decompression surgery I can say that she was so drugged up to keep her pain free that she really didn't seem to care where she was. All she did was lie down and sleep in the crate at the hospital unless she was out for pee and poop. She got lots of attention as she was monitored there 24/7 for 5 days. I took Oz in for an MRI for SM the day after Riley's surgery and they let me hold her during Oz's consultation with the neurosurgeon. She was so out of it, there was no way I would have been comfortable with her at home - and I'm a nurse (for humans though, not dogs). I'm still amazed that you're getting information that it was o.k. to send Ted home that early.

Please try to keep Ted quiet, quiet, quiet - no walking around even. I was told that Riley should be on strict crate rest except for the three 5-minute walks/day. She was either in my arms or in the crate for the first couple of weeks.

Similar to Ted, Riley never showed signs of pain post-op (once I got her home). She came home with a fentanyl patch on for her first 72 hours and after that was off, I never gave her a pain pill. She never whimpered or cried out and didn't demonstrate any guarding behaviors that would indicate she was in pain. She was still on steroids and gabapentin though. Maybe that was enough for her.

I do hope that this gets sorted out. We all just want the best for Ted. When is his first follow-up appointment?
 
We have a check up with our own vet tommorow evening, then we need to go back to the hospital in 14 days to get the stitches out and then a further check up after 4 weeks.
 
Just wondering about Ted. I'm sick and as alot of you know there has been a storm that has swept the south. Snow which is unheard of down here. I'm worried as its a 2 1/2 hr. drive to Auburn, AL where I am at. The consultation and prep is tomorrow for Abbey with surgery on tuesday. I've been a mess today as I can't bear the thought of us not getting her there tomorrow because roads are suppose to be an icy mess. Hubby is taking day off to drive it as I just can't. I can drive in snow but not ice. Would if I had to but 2 1/2 hrs away is a little scarey for me. Please pray for us that we get there as I will literally fall apart if this surgery is postponed. We tried to talk to them this a.m. to let us bring her in today and do consultation on phone but they wouldn't hear of it. We've already had a consultation when she was diagnosed so don't know what this is about in the first place except the usual that any surgery is a risk blah blah blah. Fiona please e-mail me--I'm not real with it either--sick with cold and fever and worried sick etc. I truly hope everything is ok. Been worried about Ted and your family etc.
 
I have never heard of a dog being released in 24-48 hours from Chestergates for either decompression or shunt surgery, so I am not sure why they said this. I was in having my dogs scanned with Geoff Skerritt a couple of months ago -- the neurologist who actually does the surgeries, and he said a minimum 3 days to 5 if things went very well.

I remain deeply concerned at the lack of follow up information received about a very critical recovery period and would NOT recommend using this facility in Ireland. If others are considering decompression in Ireland, please PM me fpr details on options.

Closing this thread now as it is going off topic on several different dogs and now has moved to discussing recovery so folks can open a new thread to continue these separate conversations or take discussions to PMs if they are personal discussions between two individuals, please. (y)
 
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