When can my dog return to normal feeding and activity after surgery?

In general, the next day is what I recommend. We want to go light on their food on the day of surgery or the evening of because sometimes the anesthesia can make them a little sensitive with their stomach. As for returning to activity, it depends on the type of surgery done. In general, we would say two weeks because that's the general healing time for most incisions. And then, of course, if it's anything major or orthopedic surgery, that would be much longer.

So there is a little bit of variability with that, depending on the procedure that they've had. Most dogs can resume eating the night of their procedure. Sometimes we will alter the volume or the type of food they're eating, and activity level is a bit variable. Many of our dental procedure patients can return to their normal activity level the following day, versus some of our soft tissue surgeries that will require waiting about a week to 10 days before we let them do much physical activity.

We recommend a small meal for most routine procedures on the night of surgery. So generally, you should give half of a dog's normal meal, and the morning after surgery, they can return to their normal eating routines.