westiemum

.And we all know how successful legislating behaviour change is!!! (insert rolly eye here). So yes I certainly can see the value of it. IMO to be done properly it would need sponsorship and that in itself would need to be carefully managed - but it is possible (cf Petrescue - in fact a chat with Michelle Williamson wcould be valuable). I'm a techno clutz as well and don't have much interest from a technical level - but the business models around I do get. In fact off the top of my head (don't ban me Troy!!) - is this something that could start easily and sustainably as an offshoot of DOL, under the DOL banner or under a different banner? Start as a small online newspaper, using the multitude of talented people on DOL for initial content with a band of online editors? Then as it grows looking for outside sponsorship if required - similar to the way Petrescue, after some dicey early days, became sustainable? I suppose I'm wary that if you start too big and complicated it will be too difficult to get off the ground. Yet if you start simple and small but high quality using existing infrastructure then you have more hope of it being sustainable into the future. It could potentially benefit DOL as well I think through advertiser attraction and increased profile. Could cross benefit other allied online sites as well such as Petrescue (with their blessing of course!). Vets could also be interested as well as a centralised point of information and information dissemination at a non-professional/general public level (bad words but you know what I mean) - which I don't think they have at the moment. Anyway, just some thoughts off the top of my head.

Tralee I can't remember where I found this - but I hope it helps you. Rest in perfect peace Sooki. To my beloved owner, there's some things I'd like to say. But first of all, to let you know, that I arrived okay. I'm writing this from the Bridge. Here I dwell with God above. Here there's no more tears of sadness. Here is just eternal love. Please do not be unhappy just because I'm out of sight. Remember that I am with you every morning, noon and night. That day I had to leave you when my life on earth was through, God picked me up and hugged me and He said, "I welcome you. It's good to have you back again, you were missed while you were gone. As for your dearest family, They'll be here later on." God gave me a list of things, that he wished for me to do. And foremost on the list, was to watch and care for you. And when you lie in bed at night the day's chores put to flight, God and I are closest to you... in the middle of the night. When you think of my life on earth, and all those loving years, because you are only human, they are bound to bring you tears. But do not be afraid to cry: it does relieve the pain. Remember there would be no flowers, unless there was some rain. I wish that I could tell you all that God has planned. If I were to tell you, you wouldn't understand. But one thing is for certain, though my life on earth is o'er. I'm closer to you now, than I ever was before. There are rocky roads ahead of you and many hills to climb; But together we can do it by taking one day at a time. It was always my philosophy and I'd like it for you too; That as you give unto the world, the world will give to you. If you can help somebody who's in sorrow and pain; Then you can say to God at night... "My day was not in vain." And now I am contented... that my life was worthwhile. Knowing as I passed along I made somebody smile. God says: "If you meet somebody who is sad and feeling low; Just lend a hand to pick him up, as on your way you go. When you're walking down the street with me on your mind; I'm walking in your footsteps only half a step behind." "And when it's time for you to go... from that body to be free. Remember you're not going... you're coming here to me." Author unknown.

Love the oldies. Rest in peace little man.

I used to babysit an old Airedale - I din't think he was the sharpest knife in the block and he was quite stubborn!! But he was a gorgeous beautiful dog - would love to have one one day.

Thanks Rosetta Pers, B and all. Yes I think you might be right Rosetta - particularly as I've no doubt the dark is quite confusing for a deaf, going blind, dementing old fella.

Christina I see your point but how is this any different to existing websites/news outlets?? I see your point too,but at some stage,its up to pedigree breeders to stand up and refute or at least debate these issues in the public eye. You can focus on results as current legislation does and never change,or focus on change to get results. On line would be best,but I think a printed version would get more attention in the beginning. Yes Moosmum that was the thinking behind my comments too - just not completely sure about print - it seems to be a dying medium. Might be better to consider cross medium advertising (billboards, existing broadsheets etc) of a really good website? One which somehow becomes the national authority on all things companion animal - the 'go to' site - and run subscriptions that way. The successful model seems to be an abbreviated free subscription and a detailed members subscription with benefits? Have a look at 'InDaily' an online Adelaide independent newspaper which started with a print version but its folded and the online version seems to eb going from strength to strength. Maybe look at sponsorship?

Ingredients for the Complete Mix described here Westiemum :) http://www.vetsallna....au/CMsheet.pdf Thanks very much Rosetta - much appreciated.

What are the ingredients of VAN please? Does it contain grains? I've searched high and low on the website and can't seem to find the ingredients listed anywhere? Or have I just missed it? TIA.

Christina I see your point but how is this any different to existing websites/news outlets??

Yep Pers it is. You know that feeling of relief when the penny drops and things settle? Well its like that here at bedtime. Sarah and Andy are happily settled in their own beds and Mac now sleeps through. I was starting to feel desperate I was so sleep deprived - the 3 am wanderings were happening every night and then often I couldn't get back to sleep. In thinking about it, its almost as if the bed provides boundaries for Mac at night so he stays there, if that makes sense - bit like boundaries for a human dementia patient. (I often lift him off the bed in the morning and he trots off quite happily). And the Stilboestrel still seems to be doing its job. So all good.

Further update - Mac's turned the corner!! He's still on his Herb Robert, raw diet and Vivitonian. Don't anyone laugh but after kicking all the westies off my bed, I've let Mac back on. His 3 am wanderings were driving me mad and badly interrupting my sleep. Id have to go and find him at 3 am and put him back to bed so we could all sleep. Now we have a cuddle at bedtime with his head on the other pillow and then he departs for the end of the bed where he sleeps through like the dead. I often have to wake him to give him his pill in the morning. Its also dawned on me that he feels more secure on the bed given his confusion and deteriorating sight . I've sensed he's more relaxed and less anxious. So we finally have a routine that works for us all. And the new little foster has slotted into the routine as if he's always been here! So all well here at the moment.

Thanks Hank. Verrrry interesting. Will have a look next time I'm at the chemist - think it might help my westie girl.

Great story!!! Reminds me I re-homed a 4 year old westie girl to an 82 year old a few years back - and it was a match made in heaven. After the lady went into care her daughter's family took this little westie on (she already knew this home and people well). And the westie still visited her 87 year old owner at the aged care facility and the elderly lady vited the dog for Sunday lunches. So the relationship was ,maintained. As far as I know she is still there! I think we can do a lot more re-homing to our elderly folk... Well done everyone! Fabulous!!!

Chasjas as a number of others have said, the constant chopping and changing is probably not helping you or your dog. Clearly the various shampoos are not helping and the sheer variety may well be making it worse through residue of the previous shampoo interacting with the next one. Schnauzer has rightly pointed out that Frontline should not be used on dogs with skin problems. And anti-histamines work for some and not others. The black patch could be a yeasty spot. Here's what I would do: *Take him off all dry food and switch to a raw diet with one protein source. (There are fillers in all dry dog foods and they are notorious for making dogs itchy and you'll find it cheaper anyway if you shop cleverly). He'll likely cope with a straight switch - mine did - kangaroo and pork are good options for allergic dogs. *Stop all chemical treatments - oral and topical - you have no idea what's working and what isn't anyway. *Vinegar is your great friend - and its a very cheap cleaning agent. (Thanks sooo much Sheridan! ) Wash all bedding with vinegar as the final rinse to remove any detergent residue (switch to a gentler detergent like washing soda if you can - at least for the dog bedding). *If you have a steam cleaner - steam clean your floors with vinegar in the steamer part. Otherwise use an ordinary mop with lots of vinegar in hot water. *Toilet using a lead on concrete or paving for a week and keep off any grass to see if the grass/garden contact is part of the problem and if there is any improvement. *Bath each day for a week in calendula tea as Erny suggested in a previous post to give the skin a chance to return to normal. If its easier put the tea in an old stocking in a clean laundry tub (wipe out with vinegar and rinse) in hot water to steep until water has cooled to tepid. Make sure the tub is clean and clear of any detergents. Watch carefully to see what seems to be working and what isn't. Write a daily journal - doesn't have to be extensive - you'll see any patterns and improvements much more clearly and quickly. If still scratching after a week but improving then continue for another week. I know it seems like a lot of work but believe me its worth it. You mentally just say to yourself that this is the priority for the next 2-3 weeks and don't let anything interfere with it - I even said no to a dinner invitation one night so I could be home for bathing! This is what I did with Sarah. It was essentially getting all the chemicals out of her system and off her skin, giving the skin time to heal and making sure that the diet was as non-allergenic as possible - essentially veggies and meat. In my case the grains in the dry food were the cuplrit. I also reduced all possible environmental allergens as much as possible. She still licks her paws and I'm convinced that this is a contact allergy from the garden which I'm hoping and praying that the re-build I'm doing here including razing the garden will solve it and get rid of whatever is causing her problem. But overall she is sooo much better since being off any grains. Oh and BTW she got worse before she got better. A dermatologist may be able to help too if this doesn't work. But if like my Sarah its a contact allergy then it will recur at the end of a very expensive treatment! Hope that helps.

In saying'newspaper' I assumed it would be either online only or both print and online. But I think online only is probably the way to go.

Thanks luvdogs. Yes i think the consensus is he's mainly silky with some Cairn and something white/cream. Once his coat grows back and he's had a makeover with Elise at the Spoilt dog and he's an even more handsome little man than he already is, I doubt i'll have any trouble finding him a great home.

- Yep and they continue to 'fess up!! Hot smoked salmon!! Ness you're as bad as I am!!! Apologies for last night - but their waistlines will thank me!!

Strange!! you wanna hear strange ness lol. Stan and Maddie get fed around 4/4.30pm and if the Bold & The Beautiful music plays and Stan hasn't been fed then he starts marching around with Maddie's bowl, too hard to carry his own which is a scoff stopper bowl. Ok fed and then it's lay on the lounge time. Sun goes down so Stanley wanders in to my bed, around 9.30ish I go to get into bed and Stan is doing the starfish and will NOT move sooooo I say "who wants a treat?" Stan leaps off the bed, I give him a liver treat and run into bed to take up position before he comes back in :) Next day....repeat. :laugh: Yep the bedtime routine here is quite convoluted as well!! But since I've let Mac the old dementing boy back on the bed, he sleeps through the night and so do I - suspect it was slightly anxiety related as well.

Thanks little sev. Yes I thought he had a silky face too but not being an expert wasn't 100% sure. So its good to have that confirmed. I'm becoming more confident that amongst others he's a Silky/Cairn cross. I've discovered his tail while carrot shaped is more the length of what you would expect in a silky. But here have been too many Cairn/westie comments as well to ignore that. And his nose is soooo like the westies!!!

Thanks you two. Yes I do have to a find a home for him Jules. Can't have four dogs here permanently and I don't have enough arms or money for four. But my loss will be someone else's gain. As I keep saying he's a fantastic little dog. He's learning soooo quickly about 'indoor living' (haven't had an accident in days) and he's mastered the art of sitting for his dinner and eating out of a bowl. He's walking on a lead is improving and he's sleeping through the night. So have the big ones ticked off. Bianca he's had Revolution for his fleas before he left Sydney and there's been no sign of them since he's been here. But will discuss ongoing management for his flea allergy when I see the vet again next Friday. His ears are improving remarkably as well - he doesn't smell anymore!!!

Bad Ness!!! You don't need to encourage them. Particularly after the veritable feast they are getting tonight!! Have just cooked and mashed up a kg of sweet potato for them this evening. And the initial tasting from the TM on the slaves finger passed muster. Will of course havbe a sardine garnish when served this evening!

Yep but if I feed the westies that early then they are demanding seconds as a bedtime snack!!! I have a spare collar here too but the spare lead got run over by the car 12 months ago sadly! But the collar swims on the poor little guy so I figured he deserves his own collar and lead - so got a rather smart collar and padded lead from Woolies - yes really! Very smart black matching numbers ready for the dog park this afternoon. Oliver did very very well at the dog park - very social little man who was everyones friend!! Very pleased with the little bloke. He's coping really well with so much change and new stuff in his life.

Ness love to!!! I already have four here so another two will make no difference at all - they'll just have to bring their own lounge (Mine's booked out at the moment! ) The menu for this evening is raw meat, veg and sardines for them all - oh and there might be some sweet potato as well assuming I get around to cooking it? Would that suit your royal starvees??? Dinner is served at 6.30 pm sharp! Which reminds me any interested Adelaideans - I've just bought the last bag of the 7 kg grain free from Woolies at the Arkaba - so you will need to try somewhere else! Yep Ness I've just looked at the Woolies bill - mainly canned fish, collar and lead for Oliver, 7kg bag of VIP dog food dog food - and rice flour for me!!! Its all dog stuff!!!!

Ha!! Home made fish and chips! I knew it!!! I'm not the only one!!!. Come on everyone...' fess up! Who else has been known to feed 'funny stuff' on occasions when the cupboards bare? :laugh: love the fish and chips Stan just opens the fridge and helps himself they get a meat pie on their birthday :D And I'm sure they love their pie!! Do they have it with sauce??? No sauce but I do heat it up a little...I have no idea why Smell and flavour enhancement of course!!! (Cold pie is yuck!!!)