A Big Deal

Emme's little bump turned into a big deal. She came home with a shaved rectangle on the back of her neck about four inches wide by five inches long, a 2 1/2 inch incision and seven sutures. The skin around the incision is a raw looking and pink and she is miserable. Until her first pain pill kicked in about six o'clock last night she yipped and cried in pain every time she moved. Now she seems in less pain but she wants to scratch the incision and rub it on the rug or furniture. The only thing that stops her is one of us holding her in our arms. So we did, all night last night. Ken and I spent the night in the living room with one of us holding Emme in our arms in a recliner chair and the other trying to sleep on the couch. We traded positions every two hours so we had some relief, but it was a long night. Right now Ken is holding Emme while I shower, dress and check my email. Then it will be my turn again.

On a positive note, Emme came through yesterday's surgery just fine. The vet said that the bump was a sebaceous cyst and he was able to get all of it out. The incision is larger than we expected because the cyst was larger under the surface of the skin than at the surface. It was about the size of a quarter. The surgery was uneventful. The cyst was removed and Emme's teeth were cleaned while she was under.

The recovery is another matter. Emme is miserable and we are trying to keep her as comfortable as possible. This will mean a lot of holding her until things ease up. We had an appointment in Akron this afternoon that we will cancel to stay with her. Today's focus is just on helping Emme heal.

Last night Emme ate a few pieces of kibble from Ken's fingers and this morning he hand fed her again. She has gone outside to hurry up twice since she came home. So all systems are working.

I hope she never has another cyst. I never want to go through this again.