JRzipper

Hi Rubyblue, I had the same problem but worked out that it won't accept grammatical characters like apostrophes. Try taking those out and see if it will accept your text. It's very annoying as I try to be grammatically correct and had to change lots of sentences around to make it read properly with no grammatical devices LOL... JK

I've been working hard to get my online submission completed but keep getting the following message "A Database Error Occurred Error Number: 1366 Incorrect string value: '\x80\x9Cfact...' for column 'answer' at row 1" Is anyone else getting this? Yes, I put in a submission and kept getting this message. After a bit of head scratching, I worked out that it doesn't accept grammatical symbols such as apostrophes. Not sure why, but when I took them out, the program accepted them. JK

Thanks Zeebie. With my litter due in two weeks, the timing of this seminar couldn't be better JR

I've been feeding garlic to my dogs as part of a raw diet for more than a decade with no ill effects. I know a lot of people pooh-pooh the idea of garlic as a flea deterrant, but I haven't seen a flea on my guys since I started feeding garlic despite living in dry dusty areas - so I'll keep doing what works for me and the naysayers can believe what they like. :-). This little article might be of interest. Humans have been using garlic as medicine for at least 5,000 years. And for as long as people have been using garlic, they have also been feeding it to their animal companions. A key function of garlic is to stimulate white blood cells to increase immunity to infection, but it also has antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic and antiviral properties. A compound in garlic assists in reducing cholesterol levels and fat build-up in the arteries which makes it an excellent cardiovascular tonic for older dogs. Because it improves circulation, dogs who suffer from arthritis will benefit from periodic garlic supplementation. Human studies have demonstrated that allicin, the active ingredient in garlic, increases the levels of important antioxidant enzymes in the blood. Garlic also contains the powerful antioxidant, selenium. Selenium activates enzymes which protect against cancer. Garlic is thought to increase the activities of killer cells (cells that seek out and destroy invading microbes and cancer cells) and to boost the immunity and assist in preventing cancer in healthy dogs. For the skin, garlic it makes its way through sweat glands and pores. Garlic has a high sulphur content and since insects are 10,000 times more sensitive to its smell, it is thought that the sulphur excreted through the dog's skin, repels fleas, ticks, mites and other biting insects as well as bacterial or fungal microbes, helping to heal itching, irritated skin. It is also thought that worms in the gut are repelled by garlic. Sulphur excretion also occurs in the dog's lungs, making garlic a strong expectorant. It encourages the expulsion of irritants such as dust, spores and pollen from the lungs, and helps kill any bacteria that may be present in the lungs. This makes it a helpful remedy for hay fever, seasonal allergies, kennel cough, or any other respiratory problems. Garlic is renown as a powerful natural antibiotic and fresh garlic fed as part of a dog's diet can fight infections of the mouth, throat, respiratory tract, stomach, or intestines. Crushed garlic diluted in olive oil can be used as a topical antiseptic for minor injuries, ear infections, or ear mites. Unfortunately in recent years, the feeding of garlic to dogs has been getting bad press because garlic is related to onions. Onion - cooked or raw – is toxic to dogs because of its high concentration of thiosulphate that can trigger haemolytic or "Heinz factor" anaemia. Garlic, on the other hand, only contains tiny concentrations of thiosulphate, so for garlic to be dangerous to a large dog you would have to feed them multiple bulbs daily on an ongoing basis (since red blood cells are constantly regenerated from the bone marrow) to cause permanent harm. Recommendations for dosage rates vary but most holistic vets consider one crushed clove a day for large dogs well within safe limits. If you feed dried garlic, whether in a powdered or granulated form, make sure the garlic has not been heat-treated which will destroy the active compound allicin. As with any drug or herb, it's important to watch for any sensitivities particular to your dog's body. Do not feed garlic to pets with a pre-existing anaemic condition, or to those scheduled for surgery due to it’s natural blood thinning properties. Very young puppies should not be given garlic because they do not begin reproducing new blood cells until after 6-8 weeks. Feeding garlic to bitches who are nursing puppies is also not recommended as it can change the taste and smell of the mother's milk and may also contribute to colic because it passes from breast milk into the puppies’ gastrointestinal tract. JR

I've been feeding raw for more than a decade and would never feed any other way now. I mixed up a tub of food today (which will feed my four Bullmastiffs for about 8 days plus some RMBs) and will try and remember what I threw in: About 4kgs of minced chicken frames About 5kgs of a minced meat/offal mix (from the abbotair) Some chopped up liver Fair whack of Sprint Oil 5 tsps of liquid kelp 1 kg tub of natural yoghurt Some leftover cooked spagetti chopped up Mixed into this were the following all juiced together: Dozen eggs with shells Bulb of garlic Knob of ginger bunch of parsley box of green outer lettuce leaves half a bunch of celery half a dozen apples half a pumpkin small bag of carrots about 10 stalks of silverbeet a punnet of strawberries that had gone soft in the fridge Then I pull on the rubber gloves and mix it all throughly together and pack into big icecream containers. A couple in the fridge and the rest in the freezer :-) JR

Thanks for the info guys, I've contacted Cryogenes today to see what they say. JR

Can anyone tell me if tomorrow's (Sunday) show at KCC is definitely outside or inside? I heard at Bulla yesterday that Monday's show is supposed to be inside but no one I spoke to knew about tomorrow's show. Just thought I'd ask before I haul the gazebo out of the shed! :-) JR

I haven't got too much time as my girl will be in season in late July if she keeps her normal cycle, but I'm always happy to talk if someone has a plan :)

Hi all, I'm looking to bring in semen from Germany in the next couple of months and am wondering if there is anyone who is also thinking of importing semen and may wish to share a container to cut costs. Cheers JR

I do this too, but omit the boil/simmer bit at the start...just slice thinly and lay out on some grease-proof paper and put in a slow oven (140 deg celsius) for an hour or so. Becomes rather leathery on the outside, but still soft-ish on the inside. Chop into whatever sized bits you like. All dogs in this household give it the thumbs-up Yes that is what I do too, although I only cook it in a slow oven for about 1/2 hr and then leave it in the oven until cool. JR

I have five big dogs and have been feeding a totally raw diet for more than a decade. As others have said, the total cost depends on finding a cheap source of meat and being able to buy whatever you can in bulk. I have found a chicken processor and an abbotair that supply bulk meat at good prices. Neither of them are all that close to me but I have a BIG freezer and make my meat buying trips worthwhile. Also find out what day your Supermarket discounts their meat the most. Here, Tuesday mornings are a good time to pick up a heap of cheap offal that can be frozen for use over the next few weeks. Overall I think it can be cheaper than feeding commercial but it is hard to compare as you don't buy everything every week. For example I might buy kelp only a couple of times a year, or a friend might give me a heap of roo meat or fish heads which can save a buying trip. I'm a firm believer in people doing whatever works for them and their dogs. I talk to quite a few people who like the idea of feeding raw but can't be bothered with learning how to put together a quality diet, spending the time to make/defrost raw meals, or doing the research to source good quality, cheap ingrediants. In those cases they are probably better off staying with a good quality kibble IMO. I find it hard to evaluate raw feeding on costs alone. I don't actually know any raw feeders who keep tabs on the cost of feeding their dogs. Perhaps it's because for many raw feeders, feeding raw is part of a dog keeping system that reduces your reliance on commercial flea and parasite control, vaccinations and vets so the costs involved in feeding raw can be considered an investment in reducing many of the other dog related costs. The other interesting thing I find is that some friends who feed their dogs a commercial diet often also supplement with many of the things included in a raw diet - sardines, eggs, yoghurt, fish oil etc, but they don't tend to include those things when adding up the costs of feeding their dog. JR

I've made up my own "never fail" recipe for giving pills I mix some raw mince with a good big dollop of cream cheese and a good big dollop of smooth peanut butter. Moosh it all up together and roll into a ball with the pill inside. None of mine have been able to resist this even my cunning-as-a-rat pill spitter-outerer! Any leftovers I wrap in gladwrap and pop in the freezer for next time. JR

I think they might be the more healthy type of purebread Bullmastiffs - multi-grain multi-strain!! ;)

Please, please, please.... it's "Bullmastiff" not "Bull Mastiff". I've been wincing seeing this written incorrectly on DOL all week, but I've reached my "Bull Mastiff" limit and have to say something ... Bullmastiff = one word!!! For we Bullmastiff fans it's like seeing the following breeds written as: Kel Pie Grey Hound Dober Mann Fox Hound ... just wrong! JR

This brings back memories. I have an old Bullmastiff bitch who is famously known in our family as the "accidental mouser"! She used to love joining our Jack Russells on their mousehunts, much to their exasperation as she constantly knocked them over and got in the way in her lumbering excitement. Anyways, one day the JR's and the bumbling Bullmastiff had a mouse cornered behind some junk in the shed and it was chaos until the dogs realised that the mouse had somehow broken through their defences and escaped, so they went searching in another part of the shed. Only the Bullmastiff bitch remained standing stock still, staringly fixedly at the place she last saw the mouse and determinedly willing it to give itself up!!! In the end I felt I couldn't stand the sight of a Bullmastiff wasting all that effort trying to achieve mind control over a mouse that wasn't even there, so I took her by the collar to gently lead her away to new and more stimulating forms of intellectual fulfilment. I cracked up to see that under one of her big ol front paws was the mouse, cut down dead as he made his bold break for freedom - squashed flat by his clueless 50 kg conqueror. JR