westiemum

Interestingly all the westies are ignoring the barking schnauzers. Thanks for letting me know about the vibration collars - I'll do that only as a last resort but need to check their use in relation to Andy's occasional focal epilepsy - should be OK I think.

Thanks everyone for your kind suggestions and responses. Not a peep out of anyone (the westies) since I came home last night - but the schnauzers across the road are going nuts. The note said he stands at the gates and barks continually - but given it's all quite enclosed I'm wondering how they know that unless they were on the property and when they were putting the note in the letter box? One of the neighbours I spoke to said one of the suspect neighbours yells at Andy (?) to 'shut-up dog'. Need to go out this morning so I'll take Andy with me and see what happens - wait in the street to check it's not Sarah.

I can only claim a Dol education here :D I have two boys with very different personalities. My "Mr issues whimpy the world is gonna end" boy and my "Mr teflon everyone loves me,whatever" boy. It was only when they were boarded for the first time I found out Mr complex was fine, he lives in his own mind and Mr Happy happy joyjoy was the one who had a break down when taken out of his family circle. It was a huge eye-opener and made me realise you don't really know your dogs until something happens to make you realise, er, you don't really know your dogs... Well said - I thought I was really getting on top of Andy's anxiety/lack of confidence - but I suspect the move has shown just how fragile - 'two steps forward, one step back' it can be with rescue dogs... my old house was the first 'home' Andy ever had - and yes its dawning that all this is probably proving very tough for him to adjust to... new house... me gone all day... Thanks C - very helpful thoughts...

Yes it is - here's hoping it settles down. Going to be a busy weekend!

Yeah Perse - maybe I underestimated what a big change it would be for my babies... beleive me they aren't the only ones who miss the old house...

Thanks MM - thats a very good point - there are two barking mini schnauzers across the road and a dog behind a fence next to them and another down the road - interestingly opposite the people who I think might have complained. Hmnn... Might get the mother on point duty Monday if it isn't too hot while I think of some way to record... thanks! audacity is free to download and works well - it has a nice graphical interface so that you can actually see from the soundwave pattern when a dog has barked - saves having to listen to hours of audio :-) I can pick a bark from a plane from a winge after a bit of practice. You DOLers are brilliant - thanks dwynwen - and I've used audacity at Church to record the sermons when I'm the data projector operator for the morning... I even know someone who could advise on setting it up - again - why didn't I think of that!!!

Couldn't agree more - I think I've bnarrowed it down to the likely neighbour out of two likely neighbours - niether of whom were home/answered their doors tonight - so will try and catch them in the morning. Its strange around this neighbourhood - few neighbours seem to know each other and many have really high front fences, security , eyeholes in front doors - and one even had CCTV! Just not used to it - feels very strange!

That reminds me of another weird thing since moving. One of my boys gets bored with toys within seconds. It's like "Hey Wow! a new toy!!!!!! wait, bored now" yet since we moved we gave him a new toy bribe and it's now his favourite thing ever. In the past all toys were surgically disemboweled within a day but now his new Mr squeaky monkey is the best thing ever!!!!!!!! He hasn't killed it at all! He even sleeps with it! Yeah, weird behaviour after moving.... Cannibal that all really is food for thought. Come to think of it Andy has been more anxious since we've been here - so moving and anxiety could well be a potent mix... Yes it might be the dogs over the road - will try and find out for sure it is Andy before jumping to conclusions. Thanks again.

Exactly!! I was very diplomatic with the neighbours that I managed to meet for the first time - and it was good to take the westies with me - it personalised them rather than them remiaing some annoying anonymous dog over a fence. They got lots of pats and attention too. The follow-up note is a good idea DD - thanks - I;ll try and catch more neighbours tomorrow and then follow-up with a note next week - hopefully after I've made some progress.

Thanks Jed and cannibal - will pick up a new toy or two for him in the morning - and maybe a Kong... and yes they can be trusted with bones... time for a big one that will keep him/them busy I think! Ill trial over the weekend. Cos now I think about it - it could also be boredom in the small courtyard area... Thanks everyone - anxiety decreasing....

Why didn't I think of that??? (Where's Mr Rolley Eyes when you need him!) - Thanks again KC. And I may have just the place... 30 kms away!

Thanks - thats interesting - Mac was the most unsettled and confused for the first week to ten days - he seemed to have difficulty workign out the layout of the new house... but appears to have settled now. Oh and they don't have the run of the house while I'm away - only the cordoned off area in the court-yard, a small areas inside the back door where the doggie door is and they have their vetbed and blankets and the laundry.... ETA - yes it could be Sarah... but gut is strongly suspecting Andy is the culprit...

Thanks MM - thats a very good point - there are two barking mini schnauzers across the road and a dog behind a fence next to them and another down the road - interestingly opposite the people who I think might have complained. Hmnn... Might get the mother on point duty Monday if it isn't too hot while I think of some way to record... thanks!

Thanks so much KC - its a good simple suggestion - and thats a good description - Andy is young (ish) and excitable and does seem to like the sound of his own voice. This is very new territory for me so feeling quite anxious!!

Hi All, I've been in a new house-sit for a month - and tonight I got home to a quite nasty anonymous note in the letterbox saying one of the westies - I suspect Andy - has been barking continually during the day. I don't know how long this has been going on for - this is the first I've heard of it . I work full-time. I lived at my house which is being demolished for ten years without one complaint. The westies have a doggie door as they did in the last house. The main difference between here and the old house is the old house had a HUGE high fenced back yard and here they only have a small cordoned off area ( high fenced on two sides) within a small unfenced courtyard outside the back door. This cordoned area is only about 3.5 metres by 4 metres. I've erected a lattice barrier on one side to contain them and to keep them away from a see-through gate which is about six metres away. Have I inadvertently made this area too small? I know its not Mac - his laryngeal tie-back surgery effectively prevents him from barking. Its unlikely to be Sarah - she's always been a good alert barker only - so I suspect its young Andy. I knocked on the doors of all the immediate neighbours (and then some) tonight to apologise and see if I could further define the problem. Am fairly sure from talking to the neighbours that were home that I've narrowed it down to the those who might have left the note but if they were home they weren't answering their door. Interestingly one set of immediate neighbours who I thought might have had a problem if anyone did, said they didn't even know the westies were there! Which has made me wonder just how much barking is actually taking place (this neighbour is a husband and wife where the wife is at home during the day with three small children). I suppose I'll have to find out somehow. I expect to be here about another 8 months so I need to solve the problem. I really can't afford trouble with a neighbour which might jeopardise my house-sit. So I'd really appreciate some advice from the DOL brains trust - I can give them a bit more space if you think that would help by opening one gate and padlocking another - but it would take them closer to the neighbour's fence who I suspect wrote the narky note. TIA.

Hi Wilfred, You poor bugger! I'm with you - I have absolutely no interest in breeding and leave that to the experts - so I can truly imagine your sense of panic, desexed or not. I'd be the same. Earlier in the year a rescue I took on was entire - poor little mite arrived from NSW via country Victoria on Friday and had his balls whipped off on the Monday! Mind you he's better for it. So as others have said - one step at a time. And get them both done if your not intending on breeding. I'd try the previous vet for desexing info first if you can. If that doesn't work then try the tests - you don't want to put her through an unnecessary GA and surgery if you can avoid it. Good luck and do let us know how you get on. :)

Perfectly put. Absolutley perfectly put Rabanne. Big hugs to you Jelly and to the beautiful Roo. Treasure the memories. You're both in my prayers.

Good to hear BL. I hope all goes well at the vet. Might be worth taking with him/her about trying the Vivitonin. It might help slow any dementia symptoms. Will be very interested to hear how you get on. Good luck.

Hi again jess, Yep apologies - misread your first post. Good to hear you are in specialist hands. Hopefully they'll work it through for you. But at the same time, don't be afraid of surgery if it comes to that - its made a huge difference to my Mac, even though it was in a different spot. Good luck and will be really interested to hear how you get on .

As does cheese and cheese slices

My three westies love the back seat buddy. They travel well and snooze! BTW I've solved the problem of not being able to use seat belt restraint with a harness with the BSB. I found some ute ties with double ended clips that work perfectly clipping into the ring on back of the seat where the child restraint thingo is and then onto their harnesses For pics of the BSB and ute ties just google! Personally I wouldn't bother with the cheap ones. My BSB has had three westies on it and is 5 years old and looks like new.

Hi Tris, Gee its hard to know what to do. Here's an abbreviation of a post from the Dementia thread in Health and Nutrition. The research suggests that 60% of dogs over ten have at least one dementia symptom. So its not uncommon. Hopefully Sheridan might pop in too to talk about Grumpy who went over the bridge in December and she faced the same decision athough from memory Grumps went downhill pretty quickly (RIP gorgeous boy). From what you've said I'm too going to go against the flow and if your vet agrees, suggest you try some Vivitonin first and do a baseline blood panel if you haven't already. I started Mac on Vivitonin right at the beginning and its been brilliant. Makes a huge difference to him but apparently it doesn't work for all dogs. Its not overly expensive and is a good safe drug. There are other dementia drugs available but I think they are for more severe cases. Mac doesn't need them and does fine on the Vivitonin. Incidentally, I ran out of Vivitonin ten days ago and had to wait for the vet to get a box in for me - and I really saw a difference in him - he wasn't as alert and spritely as he usually is. Within a day or so of being back on it he was much better again - so I think it really helps him. I have also used Herb Robert which I think also helped. Its highly antioxidant and the Romany people have used it for centuries. Essentially just gave him his 'herbal tea' with his breakfast and dinner in it. Someone also has had good success with Chinese herbs (dogmad?) but I haven't needed to try them. I also have kept him on a raw diet with very very little processed food and I think that helps a lot too. Back in June Mac started 3 am night pacing. This is where it got tricky for us as he was waking me up most nights and I work full-time. I was so sleep deprived and he was miserable and panting (I thought it was dementia panting). It was becoming a real problem. I took him to the vet and we thought it was an exacerbation of his dementia and he prescribed Prozac (human not canine as the human is a fraction of the price). He also gave me some valium to use until the Prozac kicked in. That was Wednesday 19 June. On the Saturday night the 22nd he didn't settle at all and neither of us slept at all that night. - the valium didn't work even with doubling the dose under the vets instruction. He paced ALL night. The next night he had emergency surgery for laryngeal paralysis to clear his airway. He hasn't paced since he came home from hospital on the 25th of June and he hasn't had the Prozac or Valium since. We clearly mistook his panting for dementia panting when in hindsight he was clearly heading for respiratory crisis. I also thought his slowing down at the dog park was just part of his age when in fact his gradually closing airway and difficulty getting air meant he was becoming very exercise intolerant. I didn't connect the dots and neither did the vet. So overall an easy but not good mistake to make. Once he had his laryngeal tie-back surgery he was a seriously new dog. The improvement was incredible. And he came through the surgery really well despite being three weeks off his 14th birthday. If your dog being unsettled overnight continues and becomes regular, he starts to not to enjoy his walks and he starts panting or seems to be a bit breathless then he needs investigation IMO. Don't assume like I did that its his dementia and miss something serious. So Mac continues on his Vivitonin, Herb Robert and raw diet. He gets very very little processed food. His immune system is very good for a 14 year old, and his blood panel is perfect. Hope that helps. Will be very interested to hear how you get on.

Hi BlueyLove, You're very welcome. Good post - you're obviously very observant. Apologies I haven't got back to you - I'm packing my house up ready for demolition (long story!) and I'm up to my neck in boxes. I wouldn't be worried if I were you as this is really manageable with the help of a good vet. You've got onto it early so you can start managing it - and I think that's part of the key to a better longer term outcome. The research suggests that 60% of dogs over ten have at least one dementia symptom. So Gus isn't alone! Where to start? Yes its possible its the beginnings of some dementia - but you need to confirm this with the vet. I know exactly what you mean by the staring into space. Mac does that and he growls at nothing at times. That was the thing that really alerted me in the first place that something was wrong. He also occasionally gets caught under the dining room table and can't work out how to get himself out. Started him on Vivitonin right at the beginning and its been brilliant. Makes a huge difference to Mac but apparently it doesn't work for all dogs. Its not overly expensive and is a good safe drug. If your vet agrees thats where I'd start along with a baseline blood panel (I have my oldies done every 12 months now). There are other dementia drugs available but I think they are for more severe cases. Mac doesn't need them and does fine on the Vivitonin. Incidentally, I ran out of Vivitonin ten days ago and had to wait for the vet to get a box in for me - and I really saw a difference in him - he wasn't as alert and spritely as he usually is. Within a day or so of being back on it he was much better again - so I think it really helps him. I also have used Herb Robert which I think also helped. Its highly antioxidant and the Romany people have used it for centuries. Essentially just gave him his herbal tea with his breakfast and dinner. Back in June Mac started the night pacing. This is where it got tricky for us as he was waking me up most nights and I work full-time. I was so sleep deprived and he was miserable and panting (i thought it was dementia panting). It was becoming a real problem. I took him to the vet and we thought it was an exacerbation of his dementia and he prescribed Prozac (human not canine as the human is a fraction of the price). He also gave me some valium to use until the Prozac kicked in. That was Wednesday 19 June. On the Saturday night the 22nd he didn't settle at all and neither of us slept at all that night. - the valium didn't work even with doubling the dose under the vets instruction. He paced ALL night. The next night he had emergency surgery for laryngeal paralysis to clear his airway (see earlier posts). He hasn't paced since he came home from hospital on the 25th of June and he hasn't had the Prozac or Valium since. We clearly mistook his panting for dementia panting when in hindsight he was clearly heading for respiratory crisis. I also thought his slowing down at the dog park was just part of his age when in fact his gradually closing airway and difficulty getting air meant he was becoming very exercise intolerant. I didn't connect the dots and neither did the vet. So overall an easy but not good mistake to make. If Gus' being unsettled overnight continues and becomes regular, he starts to not to enjoy his walks and he starts panting or seems to be a bit breathless then he needs investigation IMO. Don't assume like I did that its to do with his dementia and miss something serious. So Mac continues on his Vivitonin, Herb Robert and raw diet. He gets very very little processed food. His immune system is very good for a 14 year old, and his blood panel is perfect. Hope that helps. Will be very interested to hear how you get on.

Hi Jessg, I buy the strongest Manuka honey I can find online from New Zealand - website is Green something or other - worked fantastically with Kennel Cough - so you might be able to source source it that way, but I have to say that I doubt it will do any good because pseudomonas is such a bastard of an infection. And I know 20/20 hindsight is a wonderful thing - but my only regret with Mac was I mucked around with him for months - drugs and other alternatives - and all the time he was in pain and the infection getting more and more entrenched. Not to mention the huge amounts of money which got spent which might have gone to his surgery. I think we are talking about a really really nasty bug here - which is incredibly adaptive and resistant to drug therapies - which is why I'm sceptical that any alternative therapies will work. And yes if you go down the ear ablation road, IMO it's specialist surgery - although according to Rappie, some non-specialist vets may have had training but I'd be careful to make sure they have sound experience in the area if you use a non-specialist. I'm sure there are specialist surgeons in Perth you could get an opinion from. Maybe the vet school at Murdoch? Just a thought. Anyway - I used a specialist surgeon for Mac who was brilliant. It was long difficult surgery - four hours - and two big GAs. But best thing I did for Mac. They removed the ear canal, ear drum and inner ear which was chock a block full of infected pus - and they removed all that as well. The surgeon rang me afterwards and said it was so bad there was no way we would ever have got on top of it clinically and surgery was the correct and only decision. And%2

Hi Jessg, I'm really sorry to hear this. My Mac had a chronic resistant pseudomonas infection and unfortunately it was bad news. Same here - I reckon we went through every last drug known to man - and then some. He became resistant to Timentin and then we flew another drug in from Sydney - zeniquin (?) - and he became resistant to that too. So at age ten he had a complete left ear ablation. Best decision I could have made - his left ear was so infected it was the only solution and despite being a deaf old boy he hasn't looked back. Remember these infections are terribly painful. I'm curious as to why you/your vet wouldn't consider surgery? Or does your boy have other probs which would make surgery too risky? I so feel for you and your boy - it's such a virulent resistant infection - and although i believe in them, I doubt alternative therapies would work in this case and your drug options narrow all the time. Revisiting the surgical option if at all possible would be my suggestion. Good luck.