And They're Off!!!!

Sound the trumpets! Bring out the DJ! The cones are off!!
We were supposed to keep the cones on until next Tuesday, but yesterday when we were putting the cream on their ears, we noticed that both of the littles had red, irrated skin under the edge of their cones where the cones were rubbing them raw under their chins. They have grown quite a bit in the nearly three weeks since we had their ears done, and I think they simply outgrew their cones. We took the cones off to see if we could adjust them and to put A&D ointment on their poor little necks, and called the vet. He gave us the go ahead to take the cones off. He told us that the ears were most likely finished and set already but to just keep an eye on it. The basic idea was that if they took the tape off that was fine but otherwise try to keep it on until Tuesday.

Miss S walking tall and cone-free with the two bigger puppies checking things out in the background

Mr. M's tape had been loose on one ear for a few days already anyway. We had used the little tape in our camping first aid kit to keep it in place. So within a few minutes of having the cones off, the tape on his left ear was pulled off the rest of the way- it was a joint effort between the two of them.

"Look, Ma. No cone!" There is still a little bit of adhesive stuck on the edge of his ear that would hurt if I pulled it or scraped it.

Miss S and Mr. M were soooo happy to have the cones off! She immediately started rolling around on the floor making the funniest noises ever while we took his cone off. As soon as his was off, he started scratching at the tape that was still on at that point. Then the two of them looked like they had gotten a turbo boost. They ran circles around the dining room table at top speed- happy to be able to run without bumping things with the cones. They both drank out of the water dish at the same time, and then wrestled with each other, chewing each other's collars and chasing each other around. We were a little cautious about bringing the big puppies out at first. We were afraid they would mess with the ears too much or try to chew on them. We let Mr. C out first because he is calmer than Miss B. He went straight over to them- he had a serious look of concern on his face. He smelled their ears  and then smelled the other end. He didn't try to lick the ears at all. After that went so well, we let Miss B out, and she did the same thing.
Once the tape was off of Mr. M's ears, Mr. C and Miss S both tried to lick his ears where there was still adhesive stuck to the fur. Google says that we should try olive oil or peanut butter to loosen the adhesive. Seeing as how all four of them go nuts when there's peanut butter around, I think it may be safer to try the olive oil first. I will post an update on how that goes.

Business as usual- sitting for treats

So far, Mr. M's ears are looking good. They are standing up nicely and he hasn't been scratching at the adhesive. Mr. M sat very still and let Mr. C lick his ears for quite a while this morning. He seems to have gotten some of the adhesive off, but we will still try the olive oil thing too. Miss S's tape seems to be holiding really well, so we don't want to mess with it, but I will be glad when we can take that off too.
UPDATE: Miss S's tape on one side was a little loose, and we were worried about the plastic form being pushed into her ear during playtime without the cone to deflect the other puppies. So we used a little bit of olive oil and gently took hers off as well. There was still quite a bit of adhesive left, but it was easier to take off with the olive oil on the tape.

Napping with no cones and no tape- 2 very happy puppies