Anya goes in on the 19th for the deed. I decided she's got lots of talented brothers and sisters left intact- including her brother standing at stud with Clay back at Lehmschlog- and for all her nice qualities she's just NOT the sharpest pencil in the drawer.

The toughest part will be keeping her 'calm' while she heals. If there was ever a candidate for an in-kennel hampster wheel, she's it.

I remember my vet telling me to keep Molly quiet for several days---makes you wonder if they have ever treated a GSP.  It used to be you just told them to spay the dog, now they have all the extras--laser, extra tests, more pain meds---all very expensive.

My vet told me before Daniel got "tutored" that he might be a little groggy and out of it for a day or two. He was bouncing off the kennel walls at the vets within an hour after waking up from the surgery.

Have I mentioned that I LOVE my current vet? Apparently she got to thinking about the little Tazmanian and had her front office gal call me today to ask if she could keep Anya over the weekend at the vet's, but only charge me for one night. Like me, she just wants to make SURE that those stitches stay in for the first few days. FWIW her dad raised GSPs, so she knows what I'm up against.

She also knows that my dogs are perfectly happy camping out in a vet's crate over the weekend and making new human friends in the process. Here's yet another plug for MAKING SURE YOUR DOG IS USED TO ODD TEMPORARY HOUSING ITERATIONS WITH STRANGE PEOPLE... in this case it means my vet is willing to do extra post-surgical care for no extra money!!!

How did the "tutoring" go? I just set up a tutoring appointment for my new dog Layla. The thought of GSP (or even half-GSP) puppies running amuk in my house gives me nightmares, so I would have her spayed even if it wasn't part of the adoption process!

Hopefully I fixed the cartoon in the first post, because it's a classic and IMO should be used often in these discussions.

Anya is doing very well.... almost TOO well, the little brat never acts like anything wrong and doesn't slow down a lick, LOL. I still have her dog house pulled out of her kennel so she doesn't jump up/jump down, but it's been warm and she still has shade and protection from the wind so no harm there. She hasn't been bothering the stitches at all so that's a major plus.

I'll have to check with the vet but I think her stitches can come out on Thursday, which I may just do myself since my parents aren't going to be able to watch my almost-2yo while I run the dog to the vet.... last time she screamed bloody murder until I let her down in the waiting room to go poke at some homeless kittens in a large cage in the waiting room, then loudly protested leaving.

So the final score is: Anya 1, kid 0, mom -1.

Wow, that's amazing! A good thing to have her spayed though, because you certainly wouldn't want to take a chance (however remote) of passing that along.

I figured I'd just use this old thread instead of starting a new one... My Ladybug is getting 'tutored' today and I pick her up tomorrow.  While I was reading this thread it said to keep her calm.  Are there any tips for doing that outside of lots of drugs?!?!?!?  She has been a pretty calm girl these last few days, but she was just getting used to me too.  I was looking for feedback on how to keep a gsp "calm."

I am glad to hear everyone had pretty much the same reaction to me when told by the vet to keep your dog calm for a few days. I had no idea on how I was to go about that task.

Somehow we made it just fine, although Jed was ready to go on like it was just another day..... he showed no signs that the "tutoring" even took place even when I picked him up from the vets he was his normal self ready to run/play/jump..