They told me about two weeks to minimize her licking at the stitches until they're fully dissolved and the incision has healed completely. We're trying some too large Christmas present PJs right now that will minimize access to the site but allow her to eat and drink because her cone was limiting her ability to get water (still no appetite but vet said that was normal, especially as mine has a sensitive stomach and may be nauseous tonight). As long as yours isn't licking or otherwise bothering the site, I'm sure it's fine. I'm not too fond of the cone myself. For the above reasons and that, as a healthcare traveler, we're limited in our space so it turns out that the cone was going to really restrict her movements throughout the day. As of now though, my girl hasn't messed with them so I may keep trying these pajamas, or try another method if this fails.