Boas Surgery - any tips/advice?

[summerep]

Hey guys,
Bear has been to the vets today for the boas assessment after stating in my previous post that she thinks he keeps aspirating his food making him poorly. We have recently bought him the fluff trough and so far so good! :D
After being examined by our vet (bulldog specialist) she has confirmed he needs the surgery as expected.
She has referred us to another vet at a 24 hour vets so just waiting for that to all go through.
However I’m absolutely petrified of my boy having this surgery :’( I know that it will make life easier and more comfortable for him but I still cant help but worry.
I guess the point of this post is just for anyone to share their experience to put my mind to rest.
I guess a few of my questions are:
- is there anything before surgery we need to know to do?
- aftercare tips?
-anything to avoid?
- (the toughest question of all) how to keep a hyper boy calm for the days after surgery?
Sorry for the long post, thank you

 

[ddnene]

I understand how scary it is about surgery, but IMO the BOAS is crucial for bulldogs if needed. Both of my current bulldogs had it done, as their first surgeries... by an experienced bulldog vet. Bulldogs are beyond stubborn, so if you have a crate use it to keep him from overdoing it after the surgery. It's extremely important to let that area heal...

I don't remember any beforehand instructions, except of course nothing to eat before surgery which is very important.

 

[2BullyMama]

Yep, toughest thing is keeping them calm after. Soft food for a few days and do your best to not let him bark too.

 

[summerep]

I understand how scary it is about surgery, but IMO the BOAS is crucial for bulldogs if needed. Both of my current bulldogs had it done, as their first surgeries... by an experienced bulldog vet. Bulldogs are beyond stubborn, so if you have a crate use it to keep him from overdoing it after the surgery. It's extremely important to let that area heal...

I don't remember any beforehand instructions, except of course nothing to eat before surgery which is very important.

Yeah I agree it’s important for him to have it he’s such an energetic boy and doesn’t know when to stop, I’m really hoping after this surgery he can enjoy walks and playing with other dogs without exhausting himself. Thank you for the advice

 

[summerep]

Yep, toughest thing is keeping them calm after. Soft food for a few days and do your best to not let him bark too.

Ahh yes I did see about putting him on soft food after! He’s not that much of a vocal dog unless he’s after attention so I guess it will be constant attention on him for the days after which I’m sure would be the case anyway lol. Thank you

 

[cefe13]

Soft food after surgery, as stated, and also make sure the surgery is performed at a 24/7 vet hospital so he can stay over night after the operation. There is a slight risk of swelling afterwards, so important he is under surveillance after surgery. My Castor went through this surgery at 1.5 years and it made a huge difference.

 

[summerep]

Soft food after surgery, as stated, and also make sure the surgery is performed at a 24/7 vet hospital so he can stay over night after the operation. There is a slight risk of swelling afterwards, so important he is under surveillance after surgery. My Castor went through this surgery at 1.5 years and it made a huge difference.

The vet hospital is open 24/7 that was one thing I made sure of, would definitely feel better if he stayed in over night at least if anything was to happen he would be in the right hands. Aww I’m so glad it was successful for Castor and made a big difference! Really nice to hear success stories

 

[ddnene]

Yeah I agree it’s important for him to have it he’s such an energetic boy and doesn’t know when to stop, I’m really hoping after this surgery he can enjoy walks and playing with other dogs without exhausting himself. Thank you for the advice

He is precious... we are always here to help!!!

 

[summerep]

He is precious... we are always here to help!!!

Aw thank you so much!! I really appreciate the help. This site has been a life saver!!

 

[ladywebb]

My Gilbert had his done back in October (@ almost 14mos) along with a neuter (so he had a few more restrictions for a bit). Definitely no food before surgery....soft foods after for few days to a week...calm and quiet (good luck with that ). Gilbert was able to come home the same evening. He had done so well with everything they figured it would be best, especially with his anxiety. They also dubbed him an "escape artist"... every time they would go into the kennel to check on him or for meds he would escape as soon as they opened the door ( stinker). The surgery has made a huge difference!! Good luck with everything! Bear is a handsome boy!!

 

[summerep]

My Gilbert had his done back in October (@ almost 14mos) along with a neuter (so he had a few more restrictions for a bit). Definitely no food before surgery....soft foods after for few days to a week...calm and quiet (good luck with that ). Gilbert was able to come home the same evening. He had done so well with everything they figured it would be best, especially with his anxiety. They also dubbed him an "escape artist"... every time they would go into the kennel to check on him or for meds he would escape as soon as they opened the door ( stinker). The surgery has made a huge difference!! Good luck with everything! Bear is a handsome boy!!

We’re definitely going to struggle keeping this crazy boy calm, he’s a nutter!! the vet did say to us that if he does well then they will try and send him home the same day aswell - Bear is a very excitable dog so she’s worried that if he goes too long without seeing us then it’s going to be a bit of a nightmare when we go to pick him up. Awww bless Gilbert, I’m so glad the surgery has been successful for him definitely settles my nerves hearing other people’s stories and the success. Thank you soo much for your reply!!

 

[Deanojft96]

Hi good luck i had a 2 year boy in foster a few weeks back wirh his girlfriend they both had ops the female had tail removed and spayed the boy had boas hernia nostrels widened and neuter, its hard trying to keep a dog calm after surgery make sure you get some pain relief meds i use metacam and i had to feed him soft food so kibble soaked in warm water rolled into small balls and fed him by hand he also liked a bit of ice cream to help and when postman knocked i had to distract him from barking didnt always work but after a few weeks should be fine.

 

[oscarmayer]

I guess a few of my questions are:
- is there anything before surgery we need to know to do?
- aftercare tips?
-anything to avoid?
- (the toughest question of all) how to keep a hyper boy calm for the days after surgery?
Sorry for the long post, thank you

No food or water after midnight before surgery day.
Do not be surprised or alarmed if he's not hungry for a day or 2 after surgery. Some patients are dopey from the G/A for several days and some are not. Most will have a sore throat.
Offer the canned food equivalent of what he normally eats if available. Otherwise, soak his food in warm water to soften it before serving...with some foods this can take hours, over night even! Serve small amounts at a time slowly building up to his normal portion over 5 or so days.
Do NOT rush to get back to norm...ease into it.
Kennel the boy...he will be tired after surgery and should sleep good. The next 1-2 days keep him kenneled unless going out to pee/poop.
Your main enemy in this battle will be aspiration of food. If he throws up (even a small amount) call your Vet right away!

 

[summerep]

Hi good luck i had a 2 year boy in foster a few weeks back wirh his girlfriend they both had ops the female had tail removed and spayed the boy had boas hernia nostrels widened and neuter, its hard trying to keep a dog calm after surgery make sure you get some pain relief meds i use metacam and i had to feed him soft food so kibble soaked in warm water rolled into small balls and fed him by hand he also liked a bit of ice cream to help and when postman knocked i had to distract him from barking didnt always work but after a few weeks should be fine.

Hi thanks so much for the advice! I see you’re from the UK aswell so assuming you have heard of forthglade? It’s wet food which Bear is currently on (we used to feed him raw however Bear suffers with allergies and a sensitive stomach since being on this food it’s made a huge improvement!) do you think this food would be ok to feed? I have read somewhere to feed plain food like chicken and rice?
I’m so glad the surgeries went ok for both of them! Thank you

 

[summerep]

No food or water after midnight before surgery day.
Do not be surprised or alarmed if he's not hungry for a day or 2 after surgery. Some patients are dopey from the G/A for several days and some are not. Most will have a sore throat.
Offer the canned food equivalent of what he normally eats if available. Otherwise, soak his food in warm water to soften it before serving...with some foods this can take hours, over night even! Serve small amounts at a time slowly building up to his normal portion over 5 or so days.
Do NOT rush to get back to norm...ease into it.
Kennel the boy...he will be tired after surgery and should sleep good. The next 1-2 days keep him kenneled unless going out to pee/poop.
Your main enemy in this battle will be aspiration of food. If he throws up (even a small amount) call your Vet right away!

Hi thanks so much for the advice! This reply has been really helpful Bear is currently on wet food would that be ok to give? Bear has never been kennel/crate trained we have a decent size kitchen but due to the layout of it we couldn’t have a crate in there. Bear has always just slept in his bed in the kitchen at night. Do you think it would be worth getting a crate for the living room for day time? However I’m concerned that cos he’s never been in one that would do more damage than good? As he’s only 10 months old and still very mischievous we have always just put him in his bed and shut the door to kitchen for time out, which has usually worked?
I’m really open to suggestions as I think we may struggle with this
Thanks so much!