He was a saint. Robbie is only two years old, and yet he continues to surprise me & make me proud of how amazing he is doing not only with training, but also the socialization required to be a service dog. In this post, I will talk a little bit about why I had to go to the hospital, but mostly about how Robbie behaved throughout the long day of pre-op procedures and then the unexpected overnight stay that we were luckily already prepared for because of our always ready to go Go-Bag! Why I Had to Be in the HospitalIn the past, I have had problems with my jaw dislocating about once a year. In February of 2016, my jaw dislocated and stayed that way for 4 weeks, which prompted a discussion with an oral surgeon about having an Arthroplasty done in late March. For those interested, an Arthroplasty is when a surgeon files down part of the jaw joint so that the jaw can no longer dislocate. Over time, the bone will grow back, but it will take several years, so for the next 10-15 years I won't have to worry about my jaw dislocating anymore! As exciting as this is, it unfortunately meant a 2.5 hour drive to St. Louis for a pre-op appointment one day, then a 23 hour overnight stay in the hospital after having the surgery done that day. We were not given the details of the procedure or told about the overnight stay until the day of the surgery, which was extremely rough on me, Robbie, and my boyfriend, but we got through it together. The whole thing was very painful for me to endure, and Robbie was mildly stressed out about all the traveling and me being pain, but he did great nonetheless. We are safely home & recovering now, and while I am on bed rest, I wanted to take the time to write up a post about how wonderful Robbie did throughout the entire ordeal. There were a few points where he could have performed better, but he is still growing and learning as a service dog. Behavior in the Waiting Room & the Pre-OpIt was a long day for Robbie. We got to the hospital at 9am and didn't leave until around noon the next day. In the waiting room, I asked Robbie to do a long down underneath my legs, but in front of the chair. His command for getting into that position is "Robbie, Low." He knows to drop his body to the floor and crawl on his belly, which is a great command for maneuvering a large dog into a small space. I prefer having him under my legs as opposed to under the chair directly for two reasons: 1) Sometimes there isn't a way for him to get under a chair, and 2) It seems to be easier for him when he needs to stand up & help me brace. We were in the waiting room for about 3 hours. He held his down perfectly, occasionally lifting his head up and poking it between my legs to watch other people. We got several comments from other patients about how well-behaved & quiet he was in his spot. When we were finally taken back to the pre-op section, he got a little more distracted and less focus as the day went on, but that was understandable. The pre-op was very busy and the area they put me in was a tight fit with a bed, equipment, and two chairs. At this point, I gave my fiance the leash as I needed to get ready for surgery. Adam had Robbie position himself between the two chairs, and let him switch off every now & then between sitting up or lying down at Adam's feet. Whenever a nurse came in to do something to me, Robbie would sit up and keep solid eye contact with me or watched every move the nurses made. If the nurse did something that made me cry out in pain, his ears would shoot up into alert mode and he'd shift his weight a bit, as if he was trying to resist coming over to me. During moments of peace, Adam would let Robbie come over to my bed to check on me, and so that I could love on Robbie. In pre-op, Robbie helped me brace while I changed, and braced again for me in the bathroom. Unfortunately, he was not able to help me walk to the bathroom or down the hallway because he was so distracted by his surroundings and would pull on me a little. It wouldn't have been noticeable to the average eye, but any slight tug on me can be one that pulls me down or causes a pain flare, so we have extra high heeling standards. Other than that, Robbie was a trooper! We were in the pre-op room for at least another two and a half hours before the surgeon came to speak to us and they took me to the OR. Robbie's Care Throughout it AllLuckily, I am not alone and am fortunate enough to have an incredible fiance who comes everywhere with me and who helped me train Robbie, so Robbie accepts him as a second handler. Adam acted as Robbie's primary handler for the majority of our stay at that hospital. He took Robbie outside for potty breaks when possible, fed Robbie, gave him positional commands, and took him for short walks outside. Adam had his hands full with trying to keep an eye on the nurses to make sure they listened to me & didn't make me worse, as well as seeing to the needs of Robbie. Both of which are a full time job. Given my condition, we have learned not to trust medical professionals, so it really is necessary to have Adam at all of my procedures and appointments. I wish that more time had passed and Robbie was older & more experienced before our first hospital stay, but sometimes you just can't control things. We don't have friends that would be able to care for him, and Robbie is calmer with us than apart from us. Tasks He Performed Overnight & the Next MorningWhen I got out of surgery, I was immediately put in an over-night recovery room and joined there by Adam & Robbie. My team had been patiently waiting back in the front office area for my surgery, Robbie under Adam's care. Robbie was excited to see me once I was out of surgery, but also exhausted from a long day of public access work. Because we had Robbie with us, the hospital gave us a double room and kept it as a private. Robbie stayed on a dog blanket by Adam for the night, and Adam slept in a chair by my bed side. The hospital had put circulation cuffs on both of my legs, and that took up too much space in the bed. Otherwise I would've had Robbie curl up beside me. Once they took them off, it was much better for me pain wise, but Robbie didn't get on the bed with me until that morning. Once he was on the bed, he did amazing! He was very excited to be with me, and even laid his head on my legs. When a nurse came in to mess with my IV, and triggered a high pain spike, Robbie nestled closer to me & licked my hands. During breakfast, Robbie did a superb "leave it" exercise. He was lying about a foot away from a plate of eggs, sausage, and other yummy smells, but only needed one "leave it" command to completely ignore it. When I was strong enough to walk to my in-room bathroom, I initially walked there with the aid of a nurse, but when I needed help getting up and back to bed, Adam gave Robbie the "Find Sally" command. Robbie left his blanket to come into the bathroom, tail wagging, and promptly braced for me without me needing to ask. He then helped me walk back to bed and curled up beside me once more. Having both of them near me helped me feel so much more relaxed and confident than I would have if they hadn't let Adam & Robbie stay with me. I am proud of Robbie for his performance during that stint in St. Louis. It was overwhelming at times, but he stuck with it and maintained the ability and drive to help me. Hopefully it will be a very long time before I need another surgery. I hope that this post will be helpful to other handlers getting ready for their first overnight hospital stay.
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My Name is Sally...I have a condition called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome. This blog is about my journey training Robbie, a dog who helped me regain independence, confidence, and achieve the impossible in the face of my disability. It continues on with the training of Austin, Robbie's successor. Check Out... - "More than a Dog" was published on a site called The Mighty Categories
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