What to use after spay surgery?

Maggiemae said:

After your pup was spayed, did you use a cone, a onesie, or a belly band to protect the area? Was there something else you used instead? What would you recommend? I'm looking for tips for those who have gone through this. Abbey's a bit young but I'm thinking ahead... Thank you!

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Pixel didn’t need anything, because she had a laparoscopic ovariectomy. (which I wouldn’t recommend for a small Havanese after our experience) But she only had a couple of internal stitches, so she had no need for a cone or onesie.

Panda wore a cone and had no problem with it at all. But she is very much a go-with-the-flow girl, and she was 6 years old when she was spayed. I have a breeder friend who uses lycra surgical suits with her girls when she has them spayed and likes them very much.

Maggiemae said:

After your pup was spayed, did you use a cone, a onesie, or a belly band to protect the area? Was there something else you used instead? What would you recommend? I'm looking for tips for those who have gone through this. Abbey's a bit young but I'm thinking ahead... Thank you!

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We had a cone from the vet, and bought a three-pack of onesies from Target. The cone was on for less than 5 minutes, and we never used the onesies. Ruffin simply never bothered his incision. Moral of the story: be prepared, but observe your dog—if he/she doesn’t worry the incision, don’t pop a onesie or an E-collar on because you think you must.

We used onesies and they worked great,
but definitely could be tough with a dog with a longer coat. We got our girl cut in a pretty short puppy cut before her spay to avoid matting. They have these expensive ones called ‘suiticles’ that are specifically for surgery but we bought several cheaper ones on Amazon. The good thing about girls is you can have ones that protect them but they can still potty… when I had one on my boy for a mass removal, we had to roll it up every time he went out.

I got the suitical. It worked fantastically. But you need to button and unbutton them for every bathroom trip lol. Way better than the cone though. It is a good thick fabric that the dog can’t bite through.

Thank you for the recommendations, everyone. I'll look into the suitical. I'm not familiar with it.

Do look at the “Bite Not” collar. You can get them on Amazon now. We used them when the boys were neutered 16 years ago. I had forgot what a game changer they were until now going through Sydney’s spay.

Hi! When Cally was spayed we used a onesie. But looking back I think a very soft belly band would have worked perfectly. Totally recommend finding a soft belly band since Cally was still able to lick through the onesie. It will be so much easier to change as well. Best of wishes to you! -Newfie and Cally

Newfie and Cally said:

Hi! When Cally was spayed we used a onesie. But looking back I think a very soft belly band would have worked perfectly. Totally recommend finding a soft belly band since Cally was still able to lick through the onesie. It will be so much easier to change as well. Best of wishes to you! -Newfie and Cally

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I would be very careful with a belly band. It is REALLY easy for a determined dog to remove them, and unless it is on very tight, they can get their muzzle underneath. (which is why they are NEVER used to prevent unwanted pregnancies!!!) If a onesie won't keep them from bothering their incision, they should probably be in a cone or collar of one sort or another.