westiemum

Yes this is what I was told too as well as have no opportunity to buy in bulk. I've got some meds (some expensive skin meds IIRC) from the Chemist but had to pay over $100 a script as that was the non-PBS price.

I bought a child's three wheeler stroller on Gumtree for my old Mac when he got too old to get to the park. Perse found it for me and it was a Phil and Ted's Three Wheeler in red - of course! I paid $50 and it was brilliant and much more manouvreable and sturdy than the pet ones. Highly recommend.

I'm so sorry to hear this LMO. It's so devastating when the oldies go. We're all thinking of you and sending much love.

Yep agreed. Iadore my cruisey smoochy boys - but she's adamant that it has to be a black girl. She'll be waiting a long time I think.

Thanks B - but she's absolutely adamant that she wants a black girl... sigh...

I'm going to be the old pupper out here - my old Mac was on Propalin for a while - but man did he become aggressive. And the moment I took him off it the aggression disappeared. I then switched to belly bands with pads and Mac was a happier old man until the day he crossed the bridge. So personally I'd use Propalin carefully and watch them like a hawk - and yes I do think pads and belly bands are much better options.

Happy Christmas Jules and thank you for the heart-warming photos!

Update: The Victorian poodle didn't come off - which is a shame as it looked like an excellent match - but as expected the breeder had no trouble finding a Victorian buyer. I think I've convinced my neighbour to wait until more dogs come onto the re-home market; when more people return to work and the novelty of their impulse buy wears off when they realise managing pups and full-time work is much harder than they imagined. Fingers crossed the right dog for my neighbours our will come along when the time is right. Thanks for your help everyone - appreciated.

There's a beautiful 3 year old toy poodle that has popped up on DOL today. With my neighbours permission, I have whipped off a response even though we aren't in Victoria, as my neighbours are genuinely such a good home. So all fingers and paws are crossed here and hope they will consider my neighbours.

Thanks very much JRG - will get to it tomorrow.

Where should it be reported to JRG? (I'm in SA). If someone can help out with some links I'll report.

Hi all, Just an update on the poodle search which just got a bit more difficult as I'm now trying to convince my elderly neighbour to wait for a while until this price madness abates - at least a little - and hopefully toy poodles become a little easier to source. While its simply crazy at the moment, I think I'm seeing some slowing down and 'bloating' of the market? There are just soooo many crossbreed litters and puppies around at the moment its unbelievable. And the sad thing is I'm seeing so many obvious crossbreeds being advertised as purebreds: Couldn't believe this when I saw it tonight - and sadly people will get sucked in by it: Sigh... it really is time for a pure-bred fight back...

Hi All, My delightful neighbours, a retired couple have just lost their beautiful but elderly toy poodle. So there is a vacancy for a girl adult toy or miniature poodle at a beaut home in the Adelaide Hills. Prefer to take a poodle who needs a home. Have noticed that the Poodle rescue in Queensland is closed during the pandemic. Apart from gender and toy or miniature they aren't fussed. References available. Happy to pay rescue fee and transport. No rush, let me know if anyone knows of a poodle who needs a good home. Thanks, Westiemum.

GAP grey - now hear me out, The elderly parents of an old friend of mine were after a small rescue dog - no luck. I suggested a GAP greyhound and after their laughter subsided, they did their research and discovered what a great breed greyhounds are for elderly folk (lounge lizards and not trip hazards among other things). They fostered to adopt and now have three greys in the family.

Jimmy this is where I beg to differ. I'm a neuro Speech Pathologist in a previous life and I promise you - I do know what I'm talking about. I actually had a discussion with the Emergency Vets after Mac's crisis about 'why the hell don't you people use videofluroscopy to differentially diagnose what is a life threatening condition'? They couldn't give me a good answer. In my case, Mac suddenly went absolutely critical literally overnight - he was suffocating from a blocked airway and I almost lost him. Not to mention how distressing this condition is for our pups in the lead up, not to mention the crisis. I strongly suggest that you get a firm diagnosis now, don't wait, and then go from there. The tie-back operation does have its side effects as the airway has to be left permanently open - so you need to make some adjustments eg to your feeding regime (elevated bowls etc). But these are easy to manage and this is where the GOLPP support group is absolutely invaluable and I suggest that you join it now (and yes you'll get the same advice). But the operation itself is NOT huge in the hands of a skilled surgeon - but a good outcome depends on it being performed by an experienced surgeon who absolutely knows what they are doing. So question your surgeon and move on if they are not experienced with the condition - your dogs life may depend on it. And it sounds like your vet has little experience with this. LP-GOLPP is a miserable condition for dogs. So if for no other reason, please go back to your vet (or find another one) who is prepared to treat this with the seriousness it deserves. Progressively deteriorating airways which are slowly blocking are serious. It will save you time, money and incredible heartache in the long run - and maybe an expensive emergency admission. You have an opportunity to manage this well and without the expense and misery I went through and I so wish someone had been able to point me in the right direction before we got to the point of a medical emergency on 23 June 2013. (Bloods, films, endoscopy, surgery, IVs, drugs, consults, three nights of emergency accomodation - it got really expensive! And yes I'd do it all again in a heartbeat). Sorry to sound a bit blunt. Even a google and a read though that thread will show you that you need to act. Good luck and please let us know how you get on.

Sorry for the late reply. Please don't leave this for a week - your dog can suddenly got into respiratory crisis which is a medical emergency - and a lot of vets don't have any experience with it. It's more than likely it is laryngeal paralysis (or the syndrome GOLPP - geriatric onset laryngeal paralysis and poly neuropathy) as the restlessness and difficulty with breathing without exertion and the panting and resisting exercise could be a major clue. You need a vet who is prepared to go further diagnostically. Your dog needs a full blood panel to rule out an infection (probably not from what you describe) and as a baseline prior to surgery and then an endoscopy under GA. And if you find it is Laryngeal Paralysis then be prepared to go straight to tie-back while your dog is still under GA (best as avoids two GAs). I found the thread where I went through an incredible journey with my Mac (RIP) - mistook GOLPP for doggie dementia when it was clear looking back on it (ain't hindsight a wonderful thing?) it was gradually progressing laryngeal paralysis and polyneuropathy. Here's the page in the thread where the GOLPP discussion starts on p 18 of this thread - but if you want to see how me and my vet missed it and thought it was ccd then read the full thread. The absolute crisis started on 23 June 2013 and it was just lucky that his previous surgeon, Richard Savory came in to Anzac Highway Emergency to see another post-surgical dog after dinner on that Sunday night, saw Mac's films, recognised the plate he put in Mac's leg previously, had a closer look at the films, realised it was Mac, said 'hmm... that looks like laryngeal paralysis', rang me, sprang into action, did an emergency endoscopy there and then, rang me at 11 pm to confirm the diagnosis all while Mac was still under GA, and then he did an emergency tie-back there and then to clear the airway (Mac was literally suffocating to death). Be under no illusions - if it is laryngeal paralysis then this is a crisis in the making. I tell you there is a God - if Richard hadn't come in that night by chance I would have lost Mac. I got back a new dog two days later who had another 2.5 years of happy life until the polyneuropathy (not the LP) finally got him. So my point is that the differential diagnosis here is critical - and if your dogs symptoms don't resolve don't leave it and continue guessing like I did - get to the bottom of it now, save your dog and yourself a lot of heartache - and money. There is also an excellent support group run out of the US by Terri Golding which is incredibly helpful for dogs with suspected LP-GOLPP and those who are post surgery - just google and it should come up. Hope that helps.

And that's my position too for older dogs - from roughly 10-12 years I start doing annual panels. In general terms, IMO, it saves money in the long run if you pick up anything early.

Thanks PK. I'll go and have a look.

Thanks Anne, that's what I had in mind - does it lock?

Thanks Sangrubber - yes you're right but the carpenter has that issue under control. When I say French doors I'm talking about two doors and not necessarily the multi-pane ones.

Hi All, I'm in the market for a medium size doggy door to go in the bottom of a glass external French door. I'd like one that is simple, seals well against the weather and is easily lockable. Don't need any other fancy features - I don't think! I did a search but couldn't find anything recent. Please could the DOL brains trust give me some recommendations? TIA

John W another thing I found helped with socialisation and confidence with my puppy farm rescue westies and with my adult westies when I first got them was training. I've found Adelaide Pet Dog Trainings puppy/beginners 7 week class brilliant. Also the puppy program at Dogcity. I'm in the same boat as you - ad hoc socialisation opportunities weren't going to cut it.(My puppy farm rescues were coming off a particularly low base as well). So I had to find something regular (and something that my westies would enjoy during my long days at work). And Dog City and Adelaide Pet Dog Training has worked well for us. While I know many people here don't like doggy daycare, I do if its done well, for me it works well... and our differences are what's makes these forums interesting. Hope that helps. ETA: John the other thing I'm very lucky (and grateful! ) to have access to is a marvellous garden (complete with a mini Schnauzer) in the Adelaide Hills. My friend works from home and likes their dog to have the company of 'the white ones' as well. So my guys go to what I jokingly call 'Doggy Disneyland' once a week - they are both really animated, waggy tailed, happy and tired when I pick them up after work. So maybe you could find something similar near you? The garden is just heaven for dogs - huge with lots of space to sniff and explore, bark at the dog and chooks next door, get pats, play with each other, snooze and generally have a ball.

IMO the trick to good doggy daycare is finding one where the people understand dog behaviour, leadership and packs, are well trained and who provide excellent supervision. Any dog daycare where dogs are simply dumped in pens and not well supervised are a recipe for disaster. I use a brilliant one in Adelaide - Dogcity. All the staff are trained pack leaders, they are careful to match temperaments, there are enough of them compared to dog numbers and they take special care of special needs dogs (like the brilliant job they did with my old Mac before he returned to God). And I've not heard of too many problems. I'm now commuting and at work 10-13 hours a day, 5 days a week so for me its been a God-send. And I have no qualms whatsoever about leaving my guys there. While accidents can happen anywhere, they can happen while dogs are alone at home too. So I prefer to break up their really long weeks with a visit to doggy daycare. In terms of socialising, doggy daycare has been brilliant for my puppy farm rescue Andy - he has blossomed since going to doggy daycare - brighter, less anxious and much more confident.. But again you have to be smart about it and find a good one. Have a really good read of the Dogcity website here. This is what really good dog daycare looks like. Hope that helps.

As usual you didn't read my post. I pointed out that Im not going to spend hours linking to all the studies but linked a couple. True low carb diets are not full of fructose and in fact contain very little fruit - and citing one friends breakfast is not good science either. And yes low carb diets have a lot to do with avoiding highly processed foods. So no Im not guilty of cherry picking. Nor is Tim Noakes, Christine Cronau or a host of others. But Ancel Keyes is. But Im not going to argue with you further - you're welcome to believe what you believe and I don't have time and nor does my health or that of my dogs.

Or talk to Steve from K9 Pro