Post-surgical pointers?

My nearly 10 year old "kitten"(she still thinks she is,any way!), Ginger, just came home from surgery-- removing a mammary gland and spaying. She hadn't had the surgery at a younger age because she has idiopathic epilepsy and when she was very young her pre-op testing had liver enzyme readings that ill-advised putting her under anesthesia. SO! Nine years go by without a hitch, and she developed mammary hyperplasia, which could eventually lead to pyometria or cancerous masses, and it became obvious that the surgery had to be done, regardless of liver tests & so on. The surgery went great, she is home and healing fine, but I have to keep her from being active for 14 days, and she has to wear one of those elizabethan collars to prevent her from chewing on the sutures. She is miserable! I had to put her in a big dog cage to keep her from jumping up and down on the furniture, which could rupture her 6 inches of stitches on her tummy (*not* a pretty site! very swollen). She has been eating OK, but the pain meds may have made her constipated...she has urinated once a day, but has no bowel movements-- although she continues to eat (I feed her every 3-4 hour, little meals and of course hide the antibiotics & pain pills in the food too).
Anyone have any pointers for post-op care? Can I gradually increase her activity after 7 days or so? How many days of no bowel movements indicates constipation? Thanks-

Hi and welcome to the forum!

I really do think you should consult your vet and ask him or her all of these so important questions. Perhaps the constipation is more of a problem with a cat after operation? Maybe they can change the medications to something with less side effects?

Let us know how she's doing!

The day after I posted, the vet called to check on her, and she has "gone to the box" since and it doing great..she did manage to twist herself in such a way, even with the collar on, to remove the end stitch on her belly. She is feeling so much better that when I let her out of her pen, she jumps around and starts playing...which I unfortunately have to disocurage for a few more days till the stitches come out. The better she feels, the more she wants to run around like she used to.

Of note to other post-op kitty caregivers present or future, canned pumpkin is what my vet prescribed to get things moving. Mix it with some of her food, and cats apparently like the taste. An easy and non-Rx way of treating constipation.

Thanks for responding and for the suggestion~

-j