Spay Recovery - Page 1

Looking for insight on recovery after a spay for a working dog.
How long was it before you felt comfortable putting your female back to work?
TIA

I brought my dog home and they told me to 'keep her quiet' for a few days. I put her outside in the backyard to pee, and when I Iooked outside, she was jumping 2 feet off the ground trying to catch a squirrel! 

I'd say the dog will let you know. I'd certainly wait until the stitches are out, though. But I wouldn't hold off on doing non-strenuous stuff such as basic obedience exercises (NO jumping of course) scent detection, etc.

Usually stitches come out at 14 days, crate rest is really the only way to keep her quiet. Slow walks and I do believe she will let you know; just remember those stitches are the only thing holding her together, that would be everything inside her. Sooooo caution. Good luck Nan

I'd wait with jumping and bitework for 4 to 6 weeks.
The health of an animal that's depending on us is more important than the next trial.
When the stitches are removed time for some obedience shaping and tracking... 😀that's where the points are lost normally...

Dogs instinctually hide any pain or disability no matter how much it hurts.  My vet always told me keep the dog quiet as long as there are stitches.  Let the incision and her insides heal.  Working too soon or being active too soon will cause adhesions (scar tissue) to form where the surgery was performed which will impact performance and comfort later in life.  Adhesions and scar tissue can also become a site for cancer tumors at the worst, and at best can cause pain in later life because the internal organs are not able to move as freely as they are supposed to, causing tugging and pain (think thick glue causing things to stick together and then hardening).  Make sure she gets her pain meds on time (nothing worse than letting your dog get behind the pain curve because the can't say "I hurt", and then it is hell to catch up.)  I am sure you are aware of the signs of a dog in pain, panting, restlessness, whining, anxious look, licking site, irritability (some dogs will not tolerate other dogs or kids or even adults around then and will growl as a warning). My girl used to give me this look that told me she was in pain.  She gives me that look now at 12 years old when she needs extra pain medication because she was overly active (hard to keep a drivey dog down despite her physical limitations) and is now hurting (at worst, she will be restless, irritable and grumble a lot, panting and whining, so the look gets the meds so she doesn't get to the next level of pain).  Good luck, your dog will let you know when she is ready and you are the one that gets to put limits on until she is 100%.