I attached an x-pen to Riley's crate so that she would have more room after her surgery. She was allowed 3 five minute leash walks for the first couple of weeks. Other than that, she had to be in her crate or in our arms. I also put her crate right next to our bed at night so that I could hear her and tell if she was in pain. She came home with a fentanyl patch for pain which she had for the first two or three days which worked liked a charm. I only gave her extra pain meds once the first night home. THe hardest part for me was keeping her quiet in my multi-dog household. I had an 11 month-old pup who was so full of energy, that even when I was holding Riley, I couldn't trust that Oz wouldn't come and barrel up into us.
Truthfully though (and I've said this before) the recovery will be harder on you than on Winston. You will look at his shaved head and you'll feel his pain and you'll question whether you did the right thing, whether you've prolonged or shortened his life, whether you've given him a better quality of life, and you'll probably cry. It took a good 6 months for Riley to really recover, for us to figure out her meds (Winston will most likely be on meds even post-operatively), and for me to not look at her as if she were going to die any minute. It took another year for me to stop treating her with kid gloves and feeling like nobody else could take care of her like I could. I was afraid to let her out of my sight. Now, almost 5 years later, I treat her normally and treasure every day I have with her. I realize every day is a bonus that I didn't think I would get. She loves life. She runs, she loves walks, she is happy. She is certainly not a normal dog, her brain was too damaged by the time she had her surgery for her to be healthy normal, but she is living life and loving it.
Wishing you all the best on April 4th.
(By the way, Riley did have the titanium mesh implant)