On the mend

Look at this face! Look at it!

It's been two days since Max's craniotomy and he's definitely on the mend. Our little guy is such a trooper! It's incredible to us that he could undergo such major surgery and be doing as well as he is only two days later.

Max has much more control over his mobility than he did yesterday. He's pretty steady on his feet and has a better sense of judging spatially. He's still not allowed to have big means, so he's getting lots of small hand fulls of kibble throughout the day. He's big on the frequency of snacks but it's obvious he resents the paltry portions.

Last night was a little rough as Max was really whimpery in the night. He was up and panting a lot, which meant lots of trips outside. He also really wanted to scratch his stitches, which seems like a REALLY bad idea, so I spent a good deal of time trying to keep his behind under a blanket. He hadn't pooped since coming home from the hospital and had pungent gas. Poor guy. This morning he woke up and wanted off the bed NOW. Well, we can only move so fast, but I threw a hoodie on and scooped him up and put him on the floor where he immediately walked into the bathroom and took a massive dump on the floor. Way to go, Beag! I didn't even care about the floor - I was just happy he'd finally pooped cuz now we're cookin' with gas. Or dung. Either way, it's good.

Our kitchen calendar has notations for who gets what meds when so we can keep Max and his brother, Taz's, scheduled straight. Taz is our 17 year old cat undergoing a steroid load and taper right now, too. The boys' shelf in their kitchen cupboard looks like a mini pharmacy. Good times.

Yes, Taz is usually as crabby as he looks.
Brandon considers this his best quality.

Warren offers moral support by sacking out on the couch. 

After preparing and dispensing the four customized feeding and medication distribution as appropriate, we got Max ready for a morning walk with his dad. He's so cute in his coat - I wanted to snap a picture, but Brandon's not so indulgent in the mornings. You can take it up with him.

After picking up a bit in the house, I went to the front door to check on my guys. Brandon had max in the park across the street from our house and I could see him trotting along in the cold morning, looking for all the world like a normal dog. These are the quiet moments we're grateful for.

Max's head gets puffy from air that leaks into the space between his skin and his skull that was
destroyed by the saw blade because they had to go in through his sinuses to access his brain.
The amount of air varies depending on his breathing patterns. It's a bit creepy.