Thanks for the suggestions.  I will see Maybrie's vet tomorrow, (I take her in for follow up) and also get a referral to Texas Gulf Coast. I will let him know that  I would like to get started with the water treadmill and need a referal, and that I would also like a consult with an orthopedic surgeon at Texas Gulf Coast in case there is an emergency it's 20 minutes vs 2 hours.   He already offered to give a referal, but I told him "later."     Great idea!   

......I will also call and ask to speak with Dr. Stephan Kerpsack.  I doubt he will allow me to speak to him without a consult visit, but that could be arranged.  We will be in Austin in January, about a month from now.

 Smatulewicz:   You better believe it!!   Without this forum I would be totally lost, and Maybrie wouldn't stand a chance.  I honestly believe that.  There are not enough words in the dictionary to express my gratitude.  AMAZING people on this forum, and honestly, I could NOT get through this ordeal without you.   Maybrie is like a child to me. She is the best!  You're advice is not in vain!

I will share pictures soon!  I cannot wait to see where we are with Maybrie 6 months to a year from now!  I'm sure that the great people on this forum cannot wait either!

You know I belong to many GSP forums, and FB pages and this one is by far the best. It is very obvious to me that everyone on this forum has their dogs interests foremost and we all love them like our kids. I am on the Board of Directors for the GSPCA and I mentioned that today when I was talking to them about communication and education. I feel like this forum rocks. That is totally because we have a great bunch of posters. Love you guys.

And yes, we will be waiting on pictures and news on Ms. Maybrie's progress. BTW when will you be in Austin? Would love to meet you guys while you are here. I am going to be out of town on vacation 5 - 12 Jan, but should be around the rest of the month.

Glad we could encourage and provide helpful information as well.

 kpwlee, thanks again for your wonderful advice.  Yes, I understand about the necessity of starting very, very slow.  It is also comforting to hear that the underwater treadmill is not considered swimming.    I will also consult with an rehab VET not therapist.   I don't know if I will have as much luck as you did in just being able to call and talk to someone.   I will go in personally if I have to.  We are scheduled to see her vet tomorrow because I am worried she hurt herself this morning really bad.  She rolled her bad hip/knee under her when trying to get up on her own.. She was excited to see me and sat up fast, and she was lying on her right side..  She now cries anytime she sits up or lies down, even when we help her.   That was the last time I will put her in her kennel until she is no longer in pain.   We just slide the ortho bed  from room to room with us.  She is on her ortho bed and with us tonight ....she doesn't get on our bed.  She keeps wanting to jump onto one of her favorite chairsin the living room becuase she thinks it will be more comfortable.  She is not understanding why she can't, but is listening well when we tell her , "NO!"  In our room, there is nothing to jump on.  I have had her cone off of her all day and she has not even tried to look at or lick her staples, however, when we are sleeping, she has a cone on!  It's not worth the risk.  These dogs are super smart, and she knows when she's not being watched!

Please keep your fingers crossed that she did not cause harm sitting up onto that bad hip and knee.  I am afraid to put her back in her kennel. If she had been out of her kennel this morning, I might could have assisted her. It was a horrible cry, and I hate that she circles round, and round to find a comfortable way to lie down.  There is not comfortable way to get up either.  Yesterday, she did not have this trouble.  

 Texas Belle,

Yes, this forum totally rocks!!

I am moving my daughter up there on Jan 19th.  I too would LOVE to meet you as well! Very much so! I may  actually be up there a couple of days talking with and/or meeting with rehab vet specialists or orthopedic surgeons!  I will keep you posted when the date gets closer, but let's plan on it.  Yes..pictures soon!!

 Thanks Texas Belle,

I too hope she is okay.  Her appointment is at 11am, and I won't be home until about 4pm, but I will let you know.  Perhaps I can post from my phone.  I will definitely keep you posted.  Thanks again for all your support and encouraging words. 

 GREAT NEWS!!   Maybrie's foot is FINE!!  The vet just pressed one of the pads and instantly she pulled her foot away.  I did the SAME thing, but it didn't work for me!  He told me she was just keeping pressure off the muscles that come together at the tibial tuberosity, the base of the patela.  He said the incisions looked great, and she was able to get up twice today with NO pain!   

I talked to him about rehab.  He says that the underwater treadmill is a waste of money until she is putting her foot down.  He said he would give me a referral when he was sure she wa ready!  He said, they would LOVE to take your money, but I want to make sure she's ready!   He still says that the "assisted swims" with life jacket and assisting a pull through the water are the best for her right now.  NO SWIMMING without assist or life jacket.  He says he really feels it will be a few weeks before she even moves that back leg.   The following is a paraphrase of our visit today:

"Maybrie's case is unusual in that she has minimal muscle mass in the back leg to support the femur or her knee.  For months now, she has trusted her knee to support her because the hip was too unstable.....hence severe, chronic, arthritis in the knee, and severe muscle atrophy in the hind quarter. She has not been using that hip, but has been placing undue stress on the left hip (hence the spacing), and the right knee.  She hasn't trusted her hip in a LONG time, and now, she cannot even trust her knee.  She has to re-learn how to trust both at the same time, but she will not be able to trust the knee until that hip can support her.......to do that, it needs MUSCLE and the build up of fibrous cartilage and equaling of muscle in both hips, and healing of the TPLO in the right knee......ALL have to take place, and SLOWLY, or she will end up with a TPLO in the left knee.  So, for now, the ONLY form of exercise, and her only hope of building muscle in that right hind quarter is through gentle non weightbearing swimming until she can build enough muscle to safely bear weight on that knee, and learn to trust herself to bear weight on that knee.  Most of my TPLO's begin to toe touch by day 7, and they are walking on the knee fairly well by 6- 8 weeks...though still very much in the rehab stage.   I'm not expecting to see anything in the way of exciting with Maybrie for 6 months.  Please be patient, take ONE day at a time, and I will give you a referral for the water treadmill when she is ready!"   End of paraphrasing! 

 He cautioned also about "therapists!"  He said they LOVE to take your money, but they aren't always too savvy in their rehab plans.  He said he wants to follow Maybrie very closely and work with the therapists in putting together a plan because her case is so special.  He is also personally consulting with an ortho rehab vet from A&M!    I did not know this, (I knew a couple of vets were standing in during her surgery), but the vet he practices with, as well as 2 other ortho specialists from A&M stood in as well!  He is REALLY wanting Maybrie to have a great recovery.    He gave me his emergency number and his alternate number in case that number fails!   I have called up to the office several times and he has answered the phone himself late at night or early morning when making his rounds checking on Maybrie and a couple of others he had there.   He was in the waiting room trying to get people through  this morning and saw Maybrie in the waiting room!   After our visit  I asked "What do I owe you for this visist, "Absolutely NOTHING! I'm sorry you drove this far. Please don't hesitate to call me anytime."   Maybrie even likes him and went up to him wagging her tail! He knelt down to take a look at her and she gave him a licky kiss!  I never thought about it this way, but he really does have a lot invested in Maybrie's recovery!  He's the first to do this procedure that he knows of!   He is doing everything in his power to make sure she recovers.  He even asked me what food I was feeding her, and said proper nutrition was also a really important part in healing.  He cautioned me  not to overfeed her because gaining weight is the last thing she needs.  She is perfect now. Lean and on the thinner side. 

Just wanted to give you the update and see what you think.  I am SO THRILLED that her foot is okay.  I was so worried that she was paralyzed in that foot and we were going to go through all of this for nothing.  I am also THRILLED to have a vet that is SO invested in her care, and truly cares about her recovery and is reminding me to be PATIENT and giving me his emergency number and alternate number!     I am even LUCKIER to have the WONDERFUL PEOPLE OF THIS FORUM, and such a WONDERFUL DOGGIE!!    

I will keep you posted.... 

 Thanks guys!  Yes, I'm very happy!  Now, all we have to do is WAIT!  I can do that!   I am SO excited for her to get her staples out and for her incision to heal over the next 10 days.  She hates wearing her cone!  I keep it off of her during the day, but at night, I just fear she might pull the staples.  The incision is absolutely the finest line I've ever seen!  I want to get one of those baby pens that will allow her more room to turn around in her ortho bed, but that will confine her.  Her energy is picking up, so it's going to get harder to confine her.  Soon she will HAVE to go in her kennel.  I only hope it's not before her pain level is down a bit more. 

Thanks!

 Thanks so much.  Yes, I feel 100% supported by our vet!  Couldn't do it without him!  I'm so glad I made the 2 hour drive!  It made all the difference in the world!  

I think Maybrie has finally learned how to lie down on her good side!  Poor thing, she used to lie on her bad side even before the surgery, so it was just habit.  Habits die hard, but pain is a great motivator!  Poor baby.  She is now safe to leave in her kennel for short periods of time because I can trust she won't get stuck in there on her bad side and try to get up on her own...That's a pain I wouldn't wish on anyone, and her cry ....oh, man. I wouldn't wish that on the ears of anyone.  Let's hope she continues this trend of lying on her left!

Just ordered 2 more sets of doggie non slip slippers....she's already chewed off the first set!  We have 2 left of the first set!  I'm going to have to get out the bitter apple spray or buy her a longer cone!  In the kennel I can take them off of her, but when she is sleeping outside of her kennel, it's too hard for her to get up because she doesn't have enough traction.  She laid down for the first time yesterday on the laminate flooring with no padding!  I have fluffy comfy beds strategically placed throughout the house!  She chose the hard floor for some reason! 

 Lol!   Yes, me too!  It's definitely a challenge keeping the booties on, although she kept them on without chewing today!  We have 2 good booties left, the other 2 didn't make it!   I will look into some cheap runners.  The booties are EXCELLENT, stay on her feet, and are cheap! 15.00! They are super soft and made by ultra paws. 

The runners I've seen in the past are about 100 per runner!  I need my entire house done!  I could easily spend 1000! At one point we had a runner in the mudroom, and it wasn't terribly expensive, but it had a hard time staying on the floor, and would fold up and was a tripping hazard.  I think I've not had the best luck with carpet runners.....I must be doing something wrong! I will have to look more closely for better deals.    Where did you find your runners?  

I bought cheap rubber backed rugs from a variety of places - Target, Costco, TJMaxx/Marshalls
Here's the room I set up for him and he basically lived in there for the first 4-6 wks. our living room (next to this room is carpeted so I eventually allowed him in there BUT he is such a live wire more room just meant more activity and more insanity)

 Awwww!!  Yes!  That's perfect!  We actually have a room just like that adjoined to the living room.  That's a perfect set up!  Thanks for the idea!!