Complications

[Zahrii]

My chin was supposed to go in for surgery this morning, but something came up so he's staying overnight and the surgery will be done tomorrow. I have a couple concerns with this.

1. How will his brother feel once he finally comes home? I don't want their bond to be broken because he was at the vet for so long. Any advice for introducing them?

2. I already gave the vet hay, food, and they have water, but that's it. Should I give them some wood chews for him, or will he be okay until tomorrow afternoon?

 

[Amethyst]

It's hard to say how his brother will react, I've never actually taken bonded chins to the vet separate. One idea is to rub some fleece from their cage that smells like them (not peed on though ) on the one that had surgery to try to make him smell normal again, normally I would also suggest a dust bath but I'm guessing that is not an option in this situation.

If you want to bring chews over to them you could, but he'll probably be ok, just maybe a bit bored.

 

[Zahrii]

It's hard to say how his brother will react, I've never actually taken bonded chins to the vet separate. One idea is to rub some fleece from their cage that smells like them (not peed on though ) on the one that had surgery to try to make him smell normal again, normally I would also suggest a dust bath but I'm guessing that is not an option in this situation.

If you want to bring chews over to them you could, but he'll probably be ok, just maybe a bit bored.

I was thinking about just leaving him in the travel carrier for a bit so I can cushion their cage (gives him time to at least get some scents of home on him too as well as attempting to gently rub some fleece on him), and then when I'm done I'll put the carrier on the second level so they can safely interact (not as much stuff that they could get territorial over is on the second floor). If they seem eager to socialize more I'll try slowly opening the door. Would that work?

I also just remembered that he had a stick with him, so he'll be fine.

 

[Amethyst]

I was thinking about just leaving him in the travel carrier for a bit so I can cushion their cage (gives him time to at least get some scents of home on him too as well as attempting to gently rub some fleece on him), and then when I'm done I'll put the carrier on the second level so they can safely interact (not as much stuff that they could get territorial over is on the second floor). If they seem eager to socialize more I'll try slowly opening the door. Would that work?

I also just remembered that he had a stick with him, so he'll be fine.

That sounds like a good plan. The biggest problem tends to be they don't smell right when they come home from the vet, and chins do rely heavily on scent. Another trick I've read some people use if they had an issue with the more gentle approach you mentioned, is put a drop of vanilla on your finger and touch their nose. The smell of vanilla is very strong and can over power their sense of smell long enough for the "vet smell" to fade and the chin that went to the vet to start to smell like their normal self again.

 

[Zahrii]

That sounds like a good plan. The biggest problem tends to be they don't smell right when they come home from the vet, and chins do rely heavily on scent. Another trick I've read some people use if they had an issue with the more gentle approach you mentioned, is put a drop of vanilla on your finger and touch their nose. The smell of vanilla is very strong and can over power their sense of smell long enough for the "vet smell" to fade and the chin that went to the vet to start to smell like their normal self again.

I also decided to just remove all the ledges and put two cushioned ramps and a cushioned half shelf leading up to the second floor. However, someone suggested that I just keep him on the first floor but he tends to get aggravated when I block him off for weekly cleaning. Do you think the cushioned ramps and half shelf is okay for just an abscess removal surgery recovery, or should I block him off on one level?

 

[Amethyst]

I also decided to just remove all the ledges and put two cushioned ramps and a cushioned half shelf leading up to the second floor. However, someone suggested that I just keep him on the first floor but he tends to get aggravated when I block him off for weekly cleaning. Do you think the cushioned ramps and half shelf is okay for just an abscess removal surgery recovery, or should I block him off on one level?

Personally I would try to limit him to one level if possible, the less he moves around the quicker he will heal and the less likely he will end up hurting himself since he'll have less room to try to run around. However I really don't know how much of a wound there will be so I don't know if he will even really need to be that restricted. Maybe try just limiting him at first and keep an eye on him, then as he heals in a few days to a week, depending on how the healing is going, open up the rest of the cage. You can always just try and if he seems really stressed by it just open up the rest of the cage sooner.

 

[Zahrii]

Personally I would try to limit him to one level if possible, the less he moves around the quicker he will heal and the less likely he will end up hurting himself since he'll have less room to try to run around. However I really don't know how much of a wound there will be so I don't know if he will even really need to be that restricted. Maybe try just limiting him at first and keep an eye on him, then as he heals in a few days to a week, depending on how the healing is going, open up the rest of the cage. You can always just try and if he seems really stressed by it just open up the rest of the cage sooner.

Yeah, I may just try limiting him and see how he does. At least for the first 48 hours or so of recovery. If he starts yanking on the bars and cage wall hopping, that would the sign to open up the rest of the cage correct? I'd hate to break his bond with his brother though from them being separate for so long, or does their bond not break since they're still semi-close but on different levels? I would just put them both on one level, but that would be too small right? I'm also not sure what to do first, the reintroducing or trying to keep Buttons on one level.

 

[Amethyst]

Yeah if he wont settle and is acting stressed out, like pacing or biting the bars non stop, those would be signs he isn't happy with just one level. If you end up leaving him in one level I would just let him recover alone for a day before reintroducing them, that would also give the vet smell some time to fade. It takes weeks or even months for the bond to break, so a few days shouldn't be a problem. Since they are use to two levels with lots of ledges and stuff normally it may feel cramped for them to both be in one level together.

 

[Zahrii]

Yeah if he wont settle and is acting stressed out, like pacing or biting the bars non stop, those would be signs he isn't happy with just one level. If you end up leaving him in one level I would just let him recover alone for a day before reintroducing them, that would also give the vet smell some time to fade. It takes weeks or even months for the bond to break, so a few days shouldn't be a problem. Since they are use to two levels with lots of ledges and stuff normally it may feel cramped for them to both be in one level together.

Yeah, I'll ask the vet but since she's in the back of the building or out of office often it may be hard to get an answer. So if she doesn't respond in time I'll just do the safe route and leave him on one level and put his brother on the second level. Not sure if his brother will be very happy about that at all though, which may stress Buttons out by hearing his brother freaking out.