Imperial Beagle, Ripperius Magnus

TOGA, TOGA, TOGA - well, that beats diaper, diaper, diaper.

Anything to avoid the dreaded "cone of shame" (see inset picture with clear cone) that Ripley hated wearing to keep him from chewing on his stitches. When we left the vets office last Thursday, following the invasive surgery required to remove the peach pit that went down way too quickly. However, it came out slowly and expensively with the help of two veterinarians and perhaps several technicians, AND he had to wear the "cone of shame". He didn't like it and he ran into things (a clearance issue); he couldn't scratch his ear, he couldn't sniff stuff on the ground, and for a beagle that was the worst form of punishment - the inability to sniff things on the ground. So, when he went back on Saturday morning, the vet tech suggested a small shirt and a spray of Bitter Apple, which we bought at the nearby pet store.

He also had not been able to use his crate, as the cone would not allow him to go through the gate. Two nights of him in our bed wearing the "cone of shame" were not fun, for Ripley or for us. The "toga" is one of Elizabeth's old sleeveless tank tops, slit up the back (along his spine), and using a twist tie at the shoulders to gather it up. Where it's slit, we then tie the two sides and this covers his stitches. A squirt of bitter apple spray further discourages licking that area.

Ripley is on a prescription diet ("I.D."), and he eats this wet canned dog food four times a day, with a quarter can every four hours (8, Noon, 4 and 8). He's also on three meds, in addition to the four meals. Neosporin on the wound whenever we can get him to sit still (not easy). He's somewhat lethargic in the morning (his pain meds are also administered in the morning), but by noon he perks up.

And aside from the fact he's not drinking any water, we can add a bit of water to the wet dog food, and he will lick an ice cube I hold in my palm. He's getting enough to pee, and today I discovered a new trick - I let him taste my fat free milk in the glass I use to take MY pills, and then quickly withdraw it and water it down a lot - it's still milky in color and he finishes it.

Maybe water is the next challenge to overcome, but he's doing fine on processing the dog food through his system. Too bad he couldn't process the peach pit as well. So no more "cone of shame", and he's now known as "Toga Boy" around the neighborhood.