I just had my jpouch removed, anus closed up and perm end ileo Oct 17th - doing pretty well actually. I had asked my surgeon about keeping the jpouch in, but she said people run into problems down the road so it's best to remove it ASAP.
I was most worried about the anal closure. I didn't have any drains in the butt area, and I was closed up down there with dissolvable sutures on the outside. For the first week I didn't feel any pain or discomfort with the butt sutures at all. After a bit I could feel them if I moved a certain way, and when they start to get a bit dry, they tend to pull. I have a nurse come to my home daily, she helps clean down there in the morning, and I do it myself at night. I just saw my surgeon a few days ago, the wound is healing great and the sutures will dissolve when they are ready. At this point, I can barely tell they are there.
He will want to sit on soft surfaces, nothing that will pull the butt cheeks apart. I just sit on a pillow or soft couch and I've been ok.
You may want to post this in the ostomy section as many members there have had their pouch removed and anus closed.
Best of luck to you and your husband.