We Have a Routine...

We have settled into a great new routine with Amos and he is getting the hang of it nicely. We start the day off with getting him up, take off the H U G E e-collar (we have to keep him in the e-collar so he leaves the incision alone), we feed him then give him his meds and then take him outside to go potty. Once he is done pottying, we bring him back in to give him some love (short love session so we can get to work) in the pen then put the e-collar back on and secure him in the pen. Once we are ready to leave we make sure he is secure and give him a sedative to keep him safe while we are gone to work.

Rick and I have adjusted our work schedules so we can try (traffic is the deciding factor as I have an hour commute each way to work on a non-traffic accident day) to get home from work about the same time so we can get Amos out to potty. He is a B I G boy so it takes two of us to take him outside so that one of us can take the leash and one of us can sling his back end to support it so he doesn't slip and hurt himself. So once he goes potty, Rick sits with him while I move his pen and bed from the bedroom to the living room so he can be with us through the evening until it is time for us to go to bed for the night. We feed him and give him his meds and then I usually sit in the pen with him for a while so he can get some major 'lovin' and a break from the e-collar. As long as he is being scratched and brushed and loved on he leaves the incision site alone, so I usually hang out in his pen with him for about 30-45 minutes so he gets accustomed to us. Rick hangs out with him sometimes too, but it is mostly me at night.

Tonight he fell asleep while I was brushing him.

Isn't he the most adorable thing you've seen?

Once we are done giving him some lovin' we put the e-collar back on and secure him in his pen to resume our evening activities. I usually hang out in the living room with him and take care of emails, blog updates, etc. while he sleeps. Rick works on the computer in the office and usually washes blankets or beds, depending on what needs to be washed. We think he inherited a bad habit at the vets office and has a tendency to urinate in his crate, so we are working on that.

When it is time for us to go to bed we take his e-collar off and take him outside one more time to go potty and give him his sedative for the night. Again, Rick sits with him while I move his pen and bed into the bedroom so he is close to us at night. We place the e-collar back on him and walk him into his bed. We secure him for the night and we all crash to get up and do it all over again tomorrow.