I should be sleeping. It is 4am, afterall. But Xanadu woke me up to go outside. He went potty and came back in so I went back to bed. 5 minutes later, he was in the bedroom again, whining. I let him out again and this time, he went to lay down in the dirt/bushes at the perimeter of our yard. I hate it when he does this. How can I go back to bed when he is laying in the bushes? He is not an outside dog and he has never slept outside in his life. So I am waiting for him to get cold or bored and come back in. This is a recent behavior that I associate with pain. He feels crappy so he wants to be outside. He did this for the first time last Wednesday night, which is the night I decided that we needed to remove the leg. We now countdown the nights until surgery.
Only one more night to get through before the amputation surgery. Hang tough, Xan!
you are anxious, so he is anxious. you are nervous, so he is nervous. he probably thinks YOU are going for surgery and he is scared for you. he’s thinking of memorializing you in his mind.
as hard as it is, stay brave. show a smile, hope, happiness. be the regular, dependable, happy, loving person xanadu knows – make that the one ‘for sure’ ‘always’ thing he knows will never change.
you will get through this, xanadu will be brave and show you how it’s done. have faith in your pup.
paws crossed for successful surgery and quick recovery.
charon & gayle
Don’t take it personally, this type of behavior is perfectly normal for injured dogs in the wild – they will often leave the pack and find a cool lonely place to heal on their own. Hang in there and keep us posted!
Thank you – this community is such a comfort. I feel better just hearing/reading about other dogs and pawrents that have gone through amputation. I just want him home, recovering!