Abdominal surgery; partial intestine removal

[easyjet95]

On Wednesday 6/4 my 7yo Blackmouth cur underwent an exploratory surgery for what they thought was a tumor in his abdomen. He had been losing weight and had not had an excellent appetite, though here, in Texas it has gotten hot and he usually eats less in the summer, so I thought nothing of it, until he began to really lose weight.  

I was allowed to watch the surgery, as they were afraid they might lose him, and when the doctor opened him up he found that he had a blockage in his intestine. It was actually horse manure that he'd eaten (I train for a living) and he'd not passed it due to a hole in the mesenteric wall the Dr. said. They removed that entire section of intestine.

They kept him at the clinic through Friday afternoon, and sent him home with canned dog food, and told me to mix a can of water, and a can of food and feed him via a 60cc syringe 2x/day and also give him yogurt.

He is still not wanting to eat, and I feel like that might be a bit much for his stomach. He has got a major case of diarrhea and today I caught him throwing up and yowling in pain and his stomach was very tense. I understand that because he was blocked he's going to have trouble in his digestive system. The doctor had him on antibiotics that he was giving via a shot, and now he's on a pill. He also sent home pain pills.

What can I expect as far as this is concerned and should he be getting better? The vet seemed to think (he's been practicing for 40 years) that if he made it past day 4 he'd pull through, but the poor dog just lays and barely wags his tail. It's obvious he doesn't feel good. I understand that this is major surgery, but I don't want him to be in pain.

[peekawho]

My first piece of advice is to call your vet immediately.  DO NOT WAIT FOR FURTHUR ADVICE ON THIS OR ANY FORUM.  The dog needs to be seen to be sure he does not have a twist or furthur blockage in the intestine that can sometimes result from this surgery.  A DOG WHO HAS RECENTLY HAD INTESTINAL SURGERY AND NOW SEEMS TO BE IN PAIN WITH A TENSE STOMACH IS A CLEAR EMERGENCY.

If a new blockage or twist has been ruled out, you can try minor things.

We had a dog who ate half a bath towel once, and had to have 4 feet of intestines removed.  He had a stormy recovery for the first week, but was willing to eat, at least.  We put his food in a blender, and fed him small amounts every 4-6 hours.  He did have to have antibiotics, as he ran a fever for about a week after surgery.  

After he recovered, he began developing twists in his intestines.  He was reoperated on a couple of times, until an after hours emergency vet clinic missed yet another blockage and he infarcted his entire intestinal tract and he had to be put down as soon as my regular vet saw him in the morning.

I can't stress enough, if you haven't already, take your dog in to rule out a major problem.

[chihuahuagrandma]

Did you start the pain med at home? Lots of dogs to not eat well on pain med...
You know you will contact your vet again on monday...
give dog some other options maybe:
Can Libby's pumpkin diluted is great on stomach
boil rice, drain, use the rice water
gatorade no red just mild flavor
to keep hydrated...all this can be syringed...
the vomiting hurts the surgery by straining....try those options w/syringe
did vet give anything for bowels...pectin or ????
you can give pepto bismal to dogs....I have by the suggestion of my Texas vet...
Hope your little fella gets better...

[BabaluandOtis2]

Hi,
Sorry to hear about your baby.
You should post this question under the "ask a vet" forum....it's under "A" at the top of the pet forum directory on the forums page.
Hope she can help you!
Take care, and sending tons of licks and smooches from my fur-babies to your baby to get well ; )