Advise on caring for my dog after bilateral mastectomy

ProudSchnauzerMom, I am very sorry about your diagnosis and the difficulties you are in and facing because of your illness.

>>I'll need to travel by plane for surgery and then recover at my sister's house.<<

If you absolutely must travel by airplane to and from the place where you are to have your surgery, you should board your Little One. Whether he could fly with you would depend on particular Airline policies, and also on weather conditions, besides. After your bilateral mastectomy with reconstruction, you must not lift even a small breed doggie in a small travel crate. You can expect to be on strict lifting restrictions for an extended time after your surgery.

You can fairly assume that all the pet boarding facilities will shortly be filled (or shortly will have taken reservations to be filled) to capacity because of the upcoming long holiday weekend. Go ahead and get your Little One a nice long reservation -- yes, a few weeks, as you anticipate) for suitably comfortable accommodations for his time away from home. Make this arrangement for him as soon as you can.

Take him with his travel crate marked (or tagged) with his name; Take along his accessories (leash, hairbrush, toys, doggie bed and/or blankies, all marked with his name) to which he is well accustomed. Spend appreciable time before with his toys and his blankies (and if he he has a soft-bodied /all-fabric doggie bed, that too) stuffed inside your shirt or other clothing, turned around (or repositioned) often therein, in direct contact with your skin, for his comfort items to absorb a good deal of his Mommie's scent.

Take with him an adequate supply of his own food/s, all marked with his name. Prepare (for posting on the door of his enclosure) a largish index card with neat/legible writing (use of a Sharpie marker should be conspicuous enough) with his name; indication of his own supply of food/s having been left there for him; indications of any special needs or care instructions, such as feeding amounts and frequency; indications for any needed food additives; any medications and the dosing schedules therefor; etc.

If your Little One uses a (monthly type) topical bug repellent product, and if it has been at least two weeks since his last such application, it is okay to go ahead and accelerate his next such application before he goes to the boarding facility, so he will then have a fresh dose to be effective throughout his stay away from home.

If I needed to use any pet boarding service, my first choices would be first-rate Animal Hospitals or first-rate Veterinary Clinics. They would make their best efforts to board apparently healthy animals in segregation from sick ones and/or those having questionable health status.

(((Hugs)))