Dog being spayed and wearing lampshade collar?

Question

My dog is getting spayed as I write. The vet told me this morning that she will be going home with the lampshade collar and she has to wear it for 10 days until the stitches are removed. I can't see my dog willingly wearing this. Has anyone dealt with this before and have any advice?

Answer 1

She'll be fine, if it's fitted correctly she won't be able to pull it off. She'll more than likely be able to eat, drink, and sleep with it on.

Now, my hamster had a difficult time with hers, but that's a different story...

(it's called an Elizabethan collar)

Answer 2

I use the "lampshades"...I have a toy poodle who had knee surgery, and after 2 weeks, the vet told me to remove the lampshade...he said there was no way she could open the stitches at that point. I was home for 10 minutes before I was in the car heading back to the vet to have her stitched up again...she COMPLETELY opened the wound back up, it cost ANOTHER $180 to do this and she had to go back on antibiotics to prevent infection. Dogs don't care for these, but they are for their own good. They can still eat and drink with these on (make sure the bowl is smaller than the collar, if possible), and they prevent your dog from injuring herself. Every day, for about 1/2 hour, I would take the dog's "lampshade" off after wrapping her VetWrap around her body to prevent her from chewing her wound...you need to watch the dog VERY closely anytime you remove the collar...the first thing many dogs will do is to head straight for their incision.

Answer 3

Your dog doesn't need to wear the lampshade (elizabethan collar), unless she chews at her stitches. So don't put it on unless you see her chewing. Most females will not bother their stitches. Mine did not. My vet didn't even give us a lampshade collar.

An alternative to using the lampshade is to use clove oil. You can get it at a healthfood store. You put the oil around the incision site -- NOT on the stitches or in the wound, just around the area. Clove oil tastes horrible (but is not harmful), so after a few licks of that stuff, she will not bother her stitches anymore. When my dog was spayed I got the clove oil but never had to use it because she never bothered the stitches.

Answer 4

Depending on you vet's return policy, you might want to pick it up to have on hand if you need it. Most dogs do fine without one, but the incision area can get itchy and a lot of dogs do chew. I've seen the same dog remove stitches multiple times before the owner would give in and use the e-collar. If you're not going to be home much, it might be good to have when you can't keep an eye on her.

Answer 5

Yup, you're dog has to wear it or she'll tear out stitches. And while some dogs hate it, most dogs get used to it. My dog -- who's been in a collar a lot -- actually extends her neck when I need to put the collar on her. She's not thrilled but it's not that big a deal. Think of yourself as a parent -- it's not your favorite thing to do -- but it is the responsible thing and it's for her good.

Also, if you are directly monitoring her -- in other words with her and looking at her -- you can take the collar off for short periods of time if you'd like to relieve her. Just make sure you don't leave it that way!! But the fact is, it's just easier to leave on...

Answer 6

All of my dogs were spayed and not once they had to wear those lampshade collars....unless your dog happens to chew on the stitches, then yes, that's when this lampshade collar becomes useful to keep her away from the stitches so it will heal. :)

Answer 7

I personally would never put one on my dog, but I've used something similar in concept:

http://www.dog.com/itemdy00.asp?T1=220104%20003

This collar keeps them from biting their stitches, but still allows them to see, keep from running into things, and allows movement such as drinking, laying down, etc. These collars don't tend to cause the frustration of "lampshade/elizabeth" collars. Plus, I've seen dogs wreck the lampshade or bend it and still get at the stitches. Or, I've also seen them run into things and cause neck pain/injury when using the lampshade collars.

Good luck.

Answer 8

Ten days seems an awfully long time for this. My vet has always given me one, but told me only to use it if my dog licks the incision. I have found it much easier to keep my dogs crated for a few days, to keep them calm and prevent any mishaps with stitches. They usually heal very fast, and your vet should also send you home with antibiotics, just in case there is infection. I have only ever had one dog get infected, and that was because she was spayed at a kill shelter in an unclean environment. Antibiotics cleared it right up.

Answer 9

Dogs generally don't need it for just a spay. I would only put it on the dog if the dog licks or chews at her stitches. If she leaves them alone, don't bother with the collar.
They HATE the e-collar and I don't blame them.

Answer 10

My sister-in-law had a dog that wore the e-collar and the poor dog would run into everything including doorways, carpeted floor, chairs, ect. I told her about a collar one of our dogs used in lieu of the e-collar. It allows the dog to function normally but prevent the dog from licking. Here's a link to it.

http://www.handicappedpets.com/acc/nobite/index.htm

However I've never had a dog that needed the collar so it depends on how your dog reacts to the stitching.

Answer 11

Yes, I've had dogs use those collars, but only when I'm around them. Some dogs adjust pretty well. Ideally you should take off some time to be with her while she heals, and watch to make sure her stitches don't pop.