Won't Drink Water

[DeeDee]

Oh I didn't even think about the pollution! Thanks --- definitely something to remember next winter! I do think that the water coming out his nose is really uncomfortable and annoying for him. I think a lot of the water goes out his nose and it takes a long time for him to drink because he has to lift his head up and snort and cough and choke between every sip!

 

[cadillactaste]

[MENTION=1874]DeeDee[/MENTION]

Oh I didn't even think about the pollution! Thanks --- definitely something to remember next winter! I do think that the water coming out his nose is really uncomfortable and annoying for him. I think a lot of the water goes out his nose and it takes a long time for him to drink because he has to lift his head up and snort and cough and choke between every sip!

Yeah...pollution...it sucks, I have fond memories of homemade ice cream during winter months.

As to his snorting, coughing and choking between every sip. Is that due to his clef? That would be irritating...I might be tempted to purchase a snow cone maker...and shave him some ice...this way it's like snow...and he would really enjoy it. You said the clef didn't take...can't that fall under the surgeon not preforming it correctly? I would think they would have to correct their error of not doing it properly the first time...

 

[DeeDee]

[MENTION=1922]cadillactaste[/MENTION] -- thanks for the snow cone idea! He probably would love that as he loves ice cubes! Yes, the snorting, coughing, etc is because of his cleft palate. His palate was opened from the front of his mouth to the back of his throat. After the surgery, part of it has stayed closed, but a 1.5 inch hole remains. It isn't that they didn't do the surgery properly. The problem is that it is a very difficult thing to fix and often takes 3 or 4 surgeries to fully correct. But each surgery has a smaller chance of being a success! We were told before we even agreed to the first one that there was no guarantee that it would be successful. Basically, they have to accurately "guess" how much skin to pull over the hole; how much tension to put on it; etc. and then Busters has to do his part by not damaging it while it is healing. That's the hard part. He wasn't able to chew ANYTHING -- even soft toys. We had to take his blanket, pillow, toys, etc away and leave him in a cage with absolutely nothing for 3 months. He's a real chewer. There was no way to stop him from touching it with his tongue though! If we chose to do it again, the recovery would be just as long and difficult; and again, no guarantee of it working. Actually -- the only guarantee is that it will be a more difficult situation because there will already be scar tissue in the way from last time!