Credit Where Credit is Due - Brinkley's TPLO Surgery Thanks!

Well the good GREAT news is that Brinkley went for her 8 week follow-up xrays for her TPLO surgery yesterday.  The vet said she couldn’t be healing any better!  Woohoo, I’m so relieved.  Since this ordeal began, and now hopefully is coming to a close very soon, I would like to take a few quick moments to give credit where credit is due.

1.      Midwest Veterinary Referral Center, the specialty vet group who performed Brinkley’s surgery, and more specifically Dr. Jill Luther, VM, MS, Diplomate ACVS.  She could not have been more professional and compassionate about the situation, in handling Brinkley and answering my numerous questions.  The entire staff at MVRC was equally as wonderful in returning calls, emailing documents in a timely manner and following up after the surgery. They all went above and beyond in my book.

 

2.      PurinacarePet Insurance, who paid out on Brinkley’s insurance claim in a timely and efficient manner.  Not only did they pre-qualify the claim for me so it would payout once the bills came in, Lisa, an underwriter, specifically contacted me when a piece of information was missing, as well as emailed me while the claim was in process just to keep my up-to-date of when I should receive the reimbursement check.

3.      My work… what other company would be so wonderful to understand what a huge deal this was to me.  To so many others she’s ‘just a dog’, but at the office they know how important my pets are to me and had no qualms with providing me the time off to make the numerous vet visits.

4.      Orthodogs Yahoo Group, you are awesome.  There are so many knowledgeable people that are going through or have gone through the exact same experiences.  Everyone in the group is so willing to share whatever advice and opinions they have to help someone first experiencing a situation like Brinkley’s.

5.      To my friends both online and over the phone who have provided referrals, advice, experience and simple phone calls to see how we were doing.  This probably meant the most to me!  I had no idea how many supportive people Brinkley (and I) had in our lives.

So again, a big thanks to those who played such an integral part in Brinkley’s recovery.  I hope that no one who is reading our story has to go through this, but please feel free to contact me for any questions you have about our experience.  Now that I know how important it is to have experienced support, I am ready and willing to provide whatever help I can. 

A Mastiffs Journey through Cranial Cruciate Ligament Surgery

In an effort to help anyone out looking for canine ACL/CCL tears and TPLO information and advice I have made this post an index log to each different post regarding Brinkley Mastiff’s CCL tear and TPLO surgery. Please leave us a comment if our story helped you out in any way!

A Mastiffs Journey through Cranial Cruciate Ligament Surgery
In the Beginning... Well in less than 24 hours Brinkley will get dropped off for her TPLO surgery. I have deliberated back and forth, back and forth on whether to do the TPLO surgery or the Tightrope surgery on her and I have decided that I think the TPLO will yield the best results for the long term for her. Read More...

Preparing the House for a Mastiff After TPLO Surgery

In preparation for Brinkley coming home this evening I spent the night last night cleaning the house up and getting everything post surgery ready. I bought two 3x5 rugs yesterday to go on the linoleum in front of the sliding door so she doesn’t slip when we go outside. Read More...



Coming Home From the TPLO Surgery Center
Well I got Brinkley home. She is doing well. The leg and incision both look good and she’s already bearing weight on it a little. I don’t know what kind of dog food they fed her but MAN does she have some nasty gas. Might be from the anesthesia, but it is deadly.

They gave me the basic instructions before they sent me on my way. No physical activity other than on a leash to potty only for the next two weeks. She is on the same dosages of pain killers as she was before, 150mg Rimadyl 2 x per day and 150mg of Tramadol 3 x per day. Read More...


Day 2 Post-TPLO Surgery
Brinkley is still doing good, limping even less today. She is using the leg much more than I anticipated. It’s already getting difficult to keep her still. She wants to go out in the backyard and play. I did get her Xanax prescription filled and was only going to give it to her if need be, but after an hour of whining this afternoon she started getting ancy... Read More...

Day 3 Post TPLO Surgery

Brinkley is doing even better today. She only whined at us for 45 minutes this morning while we watched T.V. That’s down from the 2 hours yesterday. She wants on her couch so bad. I feel like we’re teasing her by sitting on it where she can see us. The only change I made to her meds was that I didn’t give her the Xanax this evening. I’m not really sure it does anything or not, and I really don’t feel like giving her even more pills that she doesn’t need. We’ll see how it goes without them. We took Boone for a hike today and while we were gone we put the inflatable e-collar on her.  Read More...

Day 7 Post TPLO

Well the last couple days have been fairly uneventful. Brinkley is still pretty tired of being in the x-pen, but at this point she’s figured out that’s where she’s supposed to be. Once we come back inside from potty time she goes straight back in and lays down. Her incision is healing nicely and the fluid that was building on her ankle has greatly improved. There is still a bit there, but it’s much better than it was. I haven’t given her a Xanax for 2 days (I think I’ve only used 3 pills total) and since the second day home I have only given her the Tramadol twice per day.  Still no luck ice packing her leg, but it really doesn’t seem to need it, so I’m not too stressed about that.  Read More...
 

Brinkley Mastiff - Walking on Day 8, Post-TPLO Surgery
All I have for today is a quick video of Brinkley walking in the yard. Shawn is putting very minimal pressure on her sling, just enough to keep the handles taunt. She looks pretty good I think! (Click the article title to see the video)

Makin' Mischief Mastiff Collar... Plus Brinkley Day 11 TPLO

Well Brinkley gets her stitches out tomorrow. Since she’s been so whiny and has been barking at us because she doesn’t want to be in her x-pen anymore.... I found this ribbon a while back, but it was out of stock everywhere online. I just happened across it the other day back in stock and super cheap, so I bought up several yards. Meet Brinkley's new collar. I just LOVE it! It is so fitting for her. Green is so her color too. Isn’t it adorable?  Read More...

Passive Range of Motion Exercises in Post TPLO Mastiff

For those keeping track, we're now on day 13 post-TPLO. Brinkley’s appointment for her staple removal and follow up/check up was yesterday. Per the surgeon she is doing very well. They told me I didn’t need to be using the sling to help her walk anymore. She also got the go ahead to go on 2-3 five minute walks per day. We are also supposed to start the PROM.  Read More...

Day 18 Post TPLO
I can’t believe it’s been nearly 3 weeks since Brinkley’s surgery. As far as my personal opinion goes she is doing amazing. We have been doing some PROM exercises each day, and our 2-3 five minute walks per day are all going well. The only dilemma is that we've had some icy weather lately, so instead of going in the back yard for our walks we walk circles in the house through the living room, dining room and kitchen. Read More...

Credit Where Credit is Due - Brinkley's TPLO Surgery Thanks!

Well the good GREAT news is that Brinkley went for her 8 week follow-up xrays for her TPLO surgery yesterday. The vet said she couldn’t be healing any better! Woohoo, I’m so relieved. Since this ordeal began, and now hopefully is coming to a close very soon, I would like to take a few quick moments to give credit where credit is due. Read More...

Preparing the House for a Mastiff After TPLO Surgery

In preparation for Brinkley coming home this evening I spent the night last night cleaning the house up and getting everything post surgery ready.  I bought two 3x5 rugs yesterday to go on the linoleum in front of the sliding door so she doesn’t slip when we go outside. I put up an x-pen in the living room so she can be around us when we are home, but she will still need to be crated when we aren’t home.  I'm forseeing sleeping in the floor with her the first few nights, but we'll see how it goes. 

When I pick her up they are supposed to give me a harness that goes under her abdomen so I can help her walk and an e-collar, but I’m hoping we won’t have to use either of those much.  I hate those giant plastic e-collars, and I’m sure that’s what they have ready for her.  I purchased one of the donut type inflatable ones that should fit her in case we need to use it instead. 

Here is the setup I have ready for her.  I hope the drive home goes well.  We’re expecting some snow and it will be rush hour St. Louis traffic I’m driving back through, so it will probably be a long ride home.

 

To read the beginning of Brinkley's CCL story start here: A Mastiff's Journey Through Craial Cruciat Liagment Surgery

 

And to read about the rest of Brinkley's journey:

Coming Home From the TPLO Surgery Center

Day 2 Post-TPLO Surgery

Day 3 Post TPLO Surgery

Day 7 Post TPLO Surgery

BrinkleyMastiff - Walking on Day 8, Post-TPLO Surgery

Makin'Mischief Mastiff Collar... Plus Brinkley Day 11 TPLO Update
PassiveRange of Motion Exercises in Post TPLO Mastiff