I learned about surgical onesies from a client.
Cassandra told me about them first. Her dog Bella wore one, and Cassandra could not say enough good things about it. I filed it away the way you file good advice you hope you never need.
Then Praline had abdominal surgery earlier this month, and I needed it.
Before I go any further: Legacy Veterinary Hospital in College Park caught the problem. Dr. Azalia Boyd and her team listened to me, and identified the problem and referred me to the team at BluePearl Pet Hospital in Sandy Springs who took it from there, and they are open 24 hours. I have thanked them in person. I wanted to thank them here too.
Praline came home sore and sleepy, with an incision to protect. That’s when I remembered Cassandra, Bella, and the alternative to a dog cone she swore by.
Here’s everything I learned, including the part nobody warned me about.
What a surgical onesie is
It’s a soft bodysuit for your dog. It covers the belly and chest, fastens along the back, and folds back so she can go to the bathroom. It’s like a child’s onesie.
It has one job: keep your dog off the incision.
That job is not small. A dog who licks or scratches an incision can pull the sutures out and let infection in. A few seconds of chewing can undo what the surgeon did.
If you’ve ever watched a dog try to live in a cone, you already know why people go looking for another way. A 2020 study in the journal Animals put numbers on it. Of the 434 pet parents surveyed, 77% said their pet’s quality of life was worse in the collar.
Before you try an alternative to a dog cone, ask your vet
I ordered one for everyday before Praline’s surgery I just knew a cone was not going to be it and it worked out however I would advise to ask your vet.
I bought a onesie for every day of the week
Here’s my first piece of real advice: buy more than one.
A onesie has to stay clean and dry. The incision has to stay dry, with no baths and no swimming while it heals. Wet fabric sitting on an incision works against everything the surgeon did.
I was not about to be held hostage by a load of laundry while my dog was healing. So I bought one for every day. Dirty one off, clean one on, and the washing waited for me instead of the other way around.
I bought all of them from The BellyGuard. They’re a family-owned company, and if you know me, you know I’m going to spend my money with a small business every time.
Plainly: that’s an affiliate link. If you buy through it, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
The stroller I didn’t expect to need
Every dog has a spot.
You know exactly what I mean. Your dog has one patch of grass, one corner, one tree, and that is where business gets done. Praline is no different.
Her spot is a walk away from our door. On a normal day, that walk is nothing. After abdominal surgery, it was too much for her.
So we used a WonderFold stroller. She rode to her spot, did her business, and rode home. No long walk on an incision, and no standing in the yard trying to talk her into a place she had already decided against.
If your dog has a spot, and it isn’t twenty feet from your door, figure out how she’s getting there before surgery day. That question sneaks up on people.
Nobody shamed us. They asked questions.
They call the cone the cone of shame. Nobody gave the onesie a nickname, so I’ll say it plainly: there was no shame in any of this.
We got stopped constantly. A dog in a onesie, riding in a stroller, gets attention, and Atlanta dog parents are not shy. People commented without anyone asking them to. The questions were good ones:
- What is that thing she’s wearing?
- Where did you get it?
- Does it stay on?
- Did your vet say that was okay?
I answered every single one. Some of those conversations ran ten minutes on a sidewalk. I’d do them all again, because the person asking usually had a dog or a dog who hated the cone, and nobody had told them there was another option.
If you’re the one having that conversation this month, take the questions. You’ll teach somebody something they needed.
The rules I wouldn’t break
Your vet’s plan comes first. After that, these are mine:
- Keep it dry. Change it the minute it gets damp.
- Look at the incision every day.
- Put nothing on it. VCA says never to use cream, ointment, or disinfectant unless your vet tells you to, and to skip hydrogen peroxide and alcohol.
- Fold the suit back for every potty break, then check that it lies flat again.
- If your dog licks the fabric over the incision or chews at it, the onesie isn’t doing its job.
A healing incision has edges that touch, and skin that looks normal or a little pink (VCA). A small amount of clear or blood-tinged fluid right after surgery can be normal (ACVS). Thick fluid, pus, or a bad smell is not. Call your vet that day.
Recovering in Atlanta
Heat. A onesie is one more layer on your dog. Atlanta stays warm deep into fall, so go out early or late.
Wet grass. Morning dew, afternoon storms, the neighbor’s sprinkler. All of it soaks the fabric sitting over an incision. Dry suit, every time.
Quiet routes only. Your dog is on bathroom breaks, not walks. The BeltLine and the dog park will still be there in three weeks.
Know your 24-hour hospital before you need it. Ours was BluePearl in Sandy Springs. Put yours in your phone tonight, while nothing is wrong.
What this has to do with dog walking
Recovery isn’t one hard day. It’s two or three quiet weeks of short, calm, frequent trips outside, and most of them land between 9 and 5.
If you have a job, that math doesn’t work. That’s the whole reason Praline’s Backyard exists.
We care for dogs within 7 miles of Midtown, in neighborhoods from Grant Park to Kirkwood. During recovery, our Canine Enrichment Specialists work from the plan your vet set:
- Leash-only potty breaks, short and calm.
- Quiet enrichment in place of a walk.
- Dog taxi visits to recheck appointments, so you’re not leaving work.
- A daily report card with photos and video, so you can see your dog from wherever you are.
We follow your vet’s instructions. We don’t replace them. If something looks off, you hear from us that day.
With our Balanced membership, visits are unlimited, 7 days a week. One is set up for you every day, and recovery weeks need more, so you add them in the app.
Try Balanced for 30 days. If you’re not completely happy, we refund your first month in full.
Your next step takes 15 minutes
Do you have a surgery on the calendar? Or are you in the middle of recovery right now, reading this at midnight?
Book your free 15-minute call. Tell us what your vet said and what your week looks like, and we’ll build the visits around both.
The questions I got asked most
Is a onesie as good as a cone? It depends on the incision and the dog. ACVS calls the cone the common recommendation after surgery, with recovery body suits as an alternative in certain cases, with your vet’s approval. Ask yours.
Where did you get yours? The BellyGuard, a family-owned company. That’s an affiliate link, so I earn a small commission if you buy through it, at no cost to you.
Does the onesie stay on? Fit is everything. Too small rubs. Too big slides, and your dog can either reach the incision or snag the fabric on furniture. Preventive Vet also notes that some suits have no opening for male dogs to pee, which means the suit comes off at every potty break.
How long will my dog need it? Sutures that don’t dissolve usually come out 10 to 14 days after surgery (VCA), and abdominal surgery often means two to three quiet weeks. Your vet sets the date.
Can Praline’s Backyard walk my dog after surgery? We work inside your vet’s restrictions. That usually means short leash-only potty breaks and calm enrichment instead of walks, plus dog taxi visits to rechecks. See our service area.
One more time, because it matters: this is my experience as a dog parent, next to what the veterinary sources below actually say. Your vet knows your dog’s incision. Their plan wins.
Thank you again to Legacy Veterinary Hospital and to BluePearl. And thank you, Cassandra, for telling me about a onesie before I ever needed one.