Thank you all for the reassurance and validation that these trials and tribulations are mostly just part of the recovery process. Forrest slept well through the night, I heard him trying to get up around 4:45am but he didn't seem to be crying, just maybe moving a bit slower. 

He was still having trouble putting weight on that paw this morning, so we decided to keep our appt with Dr. C for a recheck just in case. Of course, as soon as we showed signs of getting his harness and leash out he popped right up and seemed really excited and was walking somewhat better - still clearly avoiding stepping right down onto it, but we questioned for a moment if we were being overly paranoid, but we decided to go just for peace of mind. 

Dr. C checked him out and said that overall he thinks it's likely muscle pain, it does seem like it could be coming from the knee so there is a possibility it could have to do with the cruciate ligament (of course this sends me into a spiral of TPLO fears) but his reco was to try and take it extra easy for a few days, we can re-up his pain meds if we feel it's necessary or hold the course so we can accurately monitor if he is getting better or not. He said in general for the first 2-4 weeks following amp he doesn't put too much stock into these types of "setbacks" unless there's major signs telling him to have concern - in this case, he said there was nothing to suggest we should get more xrays or anything, so bed rest it is. He also said we can try adding Methocarbamol (500-750mg 2x/day) which is a muscle relaxant if we wanted to try that, so we'll keep that in mind but I'm hesitant to keep adding more to his cocktail of meds. 

I guess it's just a waiting game now, but finding comfort in knowing this isn't uncommon and no signs point to a need for major concern at this point. Like they say... time heals all wounds. 

George - thank you so much for checking in, I've been thinking about you guys. Totally understand the need to step away for a few days, this whole process is incredibly exhausting and can feel really all consuming. I hope you find some comfort in the update above and I'll cross my fingers for both our strong boys that they bounce back quickly and are back to their smiley, happy selves really soon. Happy Holidays to you, Emma, Boston & Bella - keep us posted on how he's doing when you can. 

Good morning from Team Forrest!

Man, I just have to say it somewhere - this whole process is SUCH a rollercoaster. The highs are high, but wow are the lows ever low. I've been struck so many times by this awareness of the absolute mental & physical exhaustion that follows feeling like he's maybe showing signs of improvement, only to have the wind completely blown out of my sails the second he regresses. For anyone else reading this and feeling the same, just know that I see you and you aren't alone. This is hard. 

Following yesterdays update, Forrest was doing okay during the day until about 2pm - he'd had his 600mg gaba at 9:30am and was due for his next dose at 5:30pm. He was still really reluctant to put weight on the back left leg, there were a few times where he shifted and would cry out a bit, but overall he was just seeming to want to lie down and just stay put for hours. Except, when he was awake he just seemed sooooooo out of it - licking his lips a bunch, burping, eyes glazed over and looking away from us, ears pushed all the way back, trembling a bit and truthfully there was just something nagging at me that said "is he over medicated? could that be it?" It was really hard to think that way because at the same time he's clearly still in pain from whatever is going on with the back leg, but the other symptoms just felt like they might actually be caused by the medication/dosage we had him on...

So, we got ahold of Dr. C (bless this man, he is a godsend) and talked it through, he ultimately suggested we try reducing the gabapentin back down to 300mg every 8-12 hours and see how he does. So, instead of giving him his 600mg at 5:30pm, we held off and proceeded with his metacam at 8pm (his last dose of a 10 day course) and gave him 300mg of gaba at 9pm. He slept soundly through the night and he did seem a lot more alert/less druggy when I woke up this morning around 5:15am. He was lying down in the kitchen resting and I held off giving him another 300mg until about 7:45am and he showed me no signs of wanting anything sooner. I spent 20 mins or so massaging his back legs and he seemed to really enjoy that and was even stretching the back left leg out a bit more which yesterday he really hesitated to do. However, when I tried to feed him about 20 mins later (just his regular kibble) he got up for a few steps and then laid right back down, seeming quite stiff and like he just doesn't want to get up and move around yet. He is much better than he was yesterday when he is lying down, but ultimately he's telling me he isn't up for walking much at this point. 

I added some tuna, bone broth, water and plain 0% Greek yogurt to his food and brought it to him and he gobbled it down pretty quick!! I also reintroduced Cosequin and his CBD oil (link here to what we use) as I'd like to start getting him back on supplements sooner than later (Dr. C had no issues with us doing this). I'd really like to try adding the Myos supplement as well, so might pick that up over the weekend. 

So, that's where we're at - my new approach is just to let Forrest tell ME when he wants to move around. He will get up on his 3 legs when he damn well wants to until then, if what he needs is to rest and he is less strung out on the smaller dose of gaba (but not showing significantly more pain signs), then I will call that a win!