Day 47 update

Spent two hours in consultation with the veterniary specialist today.  He was very through and patient and we did not feel as though he was trying to pressure us into anything.  He has been specializing in TPLO (tibial plateau leveling osteotomy) for 10 years. We decided to schedule the surgery with him but can not get in until a week from Wednesday at the earliest.  I gave Gracie aspirin to help her with pain and that was a mistake if surgery is to be performed within 8-10 days.  He doubted he could have scheduled her this Wednesday anyway but it might have been possible if not for the aspirin I gave her.  Too big a chance for excessive bleeding while on aspirin.

And Monday, he has been called to jury duty.  He is fairly confident he will "get out of it" due to his profession but will not know for sure until then.  So for now, we wait for the green light on Monday.  If Gracie gets in next Wednesday she will spend the night with the doctor and we will be able to bring her home on Thursday.  The Doctor actually spends the night with his patients to insure all goes well.  Unbelieveable!

Will need to return for a two week follow-up and stich removal appointment so we are not sure of our plans for the immediate future.  We also need to return after two months for a final evaluation of the proceedure.  Not really too sure about anything at this time.  Kind of a sharp blow to our trip (and finances).  But a small consolation is if we have to "hang out" anywhere for two months to "fix" Gracie, there is no better weather to be found.  It's not that we can't leave the immediate area, just need to pass through here on our way home.  So we will still explore California, but our range will be limited so we can return for the final evaluation.  However, there may be some options for the final evaluation if we simply do not want to return here if we can at least get to another "Board Certified" vet approved by our chosen Doctor.

Anyway, we will work it all out.

Pictures are loading tonight so here they are:

One sad camper

Sorry to bore you with our "views" from the campground, but we have not been able to do much except drive to dog doctors.  Getting back "home" to this is very comforting.

The edge of our overflow parking lot campsite

Saturday night sunset

The limit of Gracie's world.  We can "set" her out in the sand but she can't (won't) go anywhere so we sit out there with her.

Looking back at the park office from our "perch"

Good Night!

DAY 47

It's Monday and we are getting ready to drive Gracie into Palm Desert to see a veterinary specialist.
She had not improved by Friday morning so we made a run into Brawley (about 65 miles away) to see a vet - the nearest one.  X-rays all but confirmed a torn ACL.  That requires surgery and the Brawley vet was not able to do that type of proceedure.  He recommended a clinic in Palm Desert that has a vet who is current on the latest techniques.  We made a call Saturday morning and set up a consultation for 11:00am today.  Palm Desert is about 2 hours away.  With luck, we can get her scheduled for the operation as soon as Wednesday.  If so we will come back here to Borrego Springs for our last night and move to an RV park close to the animal hospital tomorrow.

Won't know until we talk to the specialist exactly what will happen or when, so what I just said could change.  Poor Gracie.  She seems so depressed.  She is able to put slight pressure on her bad knee and can "do her business" as long as we lift her in and out of the Rv (thank God).  Otherwise she just lays down and looks at us with those sad eyes.

So, got to finish and go to Palm Desert.

I'll put a few pictures below but they are just from the RV resort.  We have been unable to leave Gracie to do anything for ourselves.  We did opt to stay in the dry camping parking lot instead of the spot we had reserved for 4 days starting yesterday.  The parking lot is far better than the "hired help" area.  Put the HDTV on the side of the RV and watched the Super Bowl outside.  It got to 82 yesterday and with the game starting at 3:30 local time we saw the first half in the sun and the second half with the sun setting.  It stayed warm enough to finish the game, but did need to put some warmer clothes on.

Ellen fixed a "killer" dinner of lamb and mashed potatoes with guacamole & grilled tortilla chips for an appetizer.

Pictures wouldn't load.  Out of time to retry.  I'll try again tonight after we get back.