Articles with post-op

CCL Surgery Post-Op Care: Example Plan for Your Dog’s Recovery after Cruciate Ligament Surgery

What happens after surgery is as important to a successful outcome as the surgery itself. Don’t ever allow the surgeon let you walk out of the hospital without detailed instructions on how to manage your dog’s post-op recovery. The stakes are high—the situation is stressful. You can anchor yourself with our FREE Veterinary Visit Checklists. Too often, dog parents are…

by Jana Rade

Canine TPLO Post-Op: Coco’s Diary

Obtaining and carefully following post-surgery instructions from your veterinarian/surgeon is essential for a positive outcome. Make sure you ask for a detailed, day-by-day recovery plan. You’d be surprised how often surgeons allow dog parents to go home without them. You can see an example of a cruciate ligament (ACL/CCL surgery post-op care plan looks like here. There are some…

by Jana Rade

Surviving The Post-Op: After Your Dog’s ACL/CCL Surgery

How to make it through your dog’s surgery recovery —tips for surviving the post-op time. You’re probably all worried; I was too. Let me start with the good news. Based on my experience with Jasmine’s bi-lateral ACL surgeries, I truly believe that the post-op recovery is actually going to be much easier for your dog than it will be for…

by Jana Rade

Canine Post-Op Physical Therapy: Best Practices After Your Dog’s Surgery

Many hours of my work week are spent caring for dogs after surgery and guiding their owners through the recovery process. I am often amazed by the lack of adherence to post-op instructions. Some owners neglect to read them at all. Even worse, some veterinarians don’t provide written documentation about post-op care. The first few days and weeks after surgery…

by Susan E. Davis PT

Canine Post-op Recovery: Don’t Forget the Physical Therapy

The medical establishment, at least on the human side of things, has been preaching the gospel about the benefits of physical therapy for a long time. One of my family members recently had hip replacement surgery. Her doctor went so far as to say that he could perform a flawless procedure, but if my Aunt didn’t hold up her end…

by Dr. Jennifer Coates, DVM

Jana Rade

I am a graphic designer by day, dog health advocate, dog writer, member of the Dog Writers Association of America, and an award-winning author in my spare time. Jasmine, the Rottweiler of my life, was the largest female from her litter. We thought we were getting a healthy dog. Getting a puppy from a backyard breeder was our first mistake. Endless veterinary visits without a diagnosis or useful treatment later, I realized that I had to take Jasmine's health care into my own hands. I learned the hard way that simply seeing a vet is not always enough. There is more to finding a good vet than finding the closest clinic down the street. And, sadly, there is more to advocating for your dog's health than visiting a veterinarian. It should be enough, but it often is not. With Jasmine, it took five years to finally get a diagnosis for her initial issue. Unfortunately, other problems had snowballed for that in the meantime. Jasmine's health challenges became a crash course in understanding dog health issues and how to go about getting a proper diagnosis and treatment. I had to learn, and I had to learn fast. Helping others through my challenges and experience has become my mission and Jasmine's legacy. I now try to help people recognize and understand signs of illness in their dogs, how to work with their veterinarian, and when to seek a second opinion. My goal is to use 20 years of hard-earned experience to save others from the steep curve of having to learn things the hard way, as I did.

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