Lab_Rat

WOW - Thanks Sas, you mustve been posting the same time as me and I didnt see it - Ive been out all day!! You have given me quite a number of products to look at, but I definitely want to get to the root of the cause her anxiety! I think I would much rather try a herbal or vitamin based product and stay away from anything too pharmaceutical if possible, but will see what the vet thinks! Sorry for the rest of you with anxious doggies too! Its not nice for them to suffer in such a way! Karly, my girl is the same, fine at home though a bit off with visitors she doesnt know, but a completely different dog away from home!! Rat

Thanks for the replies guys! Pers - I had forgotten about Roberts stuff, sounds like it could be good!! Megan - I totally agree, I would much rather work on her behaviour than put her on drugs! But I also think herbal remedies like the one Pers recommended or the one in my link can be helpful. I will be taking her for a vet visit before I start anything though, just to rule out anything physically wrong with her! Rat

I have come to the conclusion that my ridgy suffers from anxiety. She displays the same behaviour at shows, obedience classes and on social doggy outings(we have RR fundays a couple of times a year), even when out walking with a friend and her two dogs. She pants, refuses food, her ears sit right back on her head, she sort of vagues out and ignores other dogs and humans alike, and is really hard on the leash, and she generally looks like she'd just rather be somewhere else!! Like home on her bed. I gave up showing her as she had to be almost dragged around the ring, wouldnt stack nicely at all and I couldnt bear to see her so stressed! I am taking her to see the vet in the next week or so to see if there is something medically wrong with her, like hearing or something and to find out if there is some kind of vitamins or herbs that can help her out. I came across this stuff online Calmdown, not sure if its importable to Australia. I was wondering if anyone has used it or something similar available in Australia. Has anyone dealt with an anxious dog and what sort of "therapy" is useful?? I would love to start obedience again or even agility, but while she is like she is I just cant! Thanks, Rat

Hi Mickeymoo - I dont think anyone can answer that question - Not even the experts!! My two eat grass quite often. Not very often though do they vomit afterwards. The kelpie sometimes eats a small amount in the afternoon when they are running about in the paddock. The ridgy goes through stages of wanting to go outside and eats grass quite manically, then she is happy to go back to sleeping on her bed. She has a few stomach issues so hers may be related to that?? I find it interesting to watch as both are very particular about what blade of grass they will eat! Obviously not all blades of grass taste the same! I think if either of our girls continually ate grass and vomited then I would have them checked by our vet. Rat

So.....................who was showing yesterday??? Who saw Xolo and her pair??? I wish I couldve been there! Mirawee - I noticed there is a Working Dog Champ show on the 12 September - with Kelpies on first!! Will you be there with Mr Banjo?? Do you know if there will be any others? Like the little red bitch?? Maybe some of her pups?? Ill be up for the hound shows that weekend, and its a bonus that the working dog show is on too!! What a spectacular weekend it will be for me! Both my darling breeds on at once! VCBR - How is Lincoln going after his surgery?? Rat

Not fair DA - now I want a GSP...............We had a boy, Ben as kids. What a dog!! Corvus, I reckon I could go a Basenji too! Rat

Ahhhh, thanks for that Gillybob - makes sense! Yes I know Holsteins!!!! I am so thankful we only had one cow to handmilk when we were kids! Doing that twice a day was enough thats for sure! She was a sweet old Guernsey, very patient with us four learning to milk her. Oooh cold winter morning were the worst, good thing we only had to do it on the weekends!! Poor mum! Cows with horns definitely know they have them and how to use them! A few of our beef breeders (of unknown parentage) had huge Ayrshire type horns and when they had babies, watch out!! We phased out horned cattle though for beautiful Angus, although some of those girls had dubious temperaments! Its nice reading others milking/dairy experiences. I really dont think Id like to be milking 1100 though. What a full time job - how long to get that lot through?? Rat

Ridgys came into my life as I wanted a big dog to go out bush with me horseriding. The short list list was RR, Dalmatian and Dobe. I think I was so taken by the ridgy as Id never really seen them before and they are quite easy on the eye! They are an easy to love breed and while I 'think' I may want another breed I just dont know if Ill ever have another big breed other than ridgys! Kelpies - have had them in some form (pure and cross) from a kid. I love that they are easy going, want to please you (soooo opposite there to the ridgy ) and are generally happy energetic dogs! We will always have Kelpies, I truly think they are my heart breed!! Sure there are plenty of other breeds i love, but after plenty of research i have decided that i couldnt give them what they need in regards to their general temperament, if you know what i mean. For example, Malamutes and Akitas are so beautiful - but they need alot stronger personality than mine to have one and do them justice! They would just walk all over me! Not good for the dog! Its a good thing there are lots of dogs to complement lots of different human personalities! Rat

So gorgeous, I will be buying those! Rat

After years of living in cold old farm houses we now have the most efficient lovely house! I actually shut our bedroom door so it doesnt get too warm to sleep in! No electric blankies here! Sometimes I dont even use the doona, just a cotton blanky..... We have a wood fire that the dogs worship of course! But most of the time its just ticking over, dont often have to have it roaring! I grew up in a farm house that was freezing, electric blankets were a must. We used to get dressed in bed it so freaking cold Mum comments now that she didnt realize we were so cold! We have R/C aricon at work, its amazing what people think is warm!!! Hello, 24 degrees is just a little over the top to work in!!!!! It is nice to relax for smoko or lunch tho in a nice warm room - 'specially when smoko is at 2.30 am!!! I definately WONT get to the Winter Fest now. Ive changed shifts completely so my entire life has to be rejigged!! But I may now get to see the ridgys at the Royal, Yay!! Rat

MMMmmmmmmmmmmm...................Cows! Gilly - could you expand on this a bit, sounds extremely interesting!! Would loved to have seen that show! Danielle - great pics of the new babe! All this cow talk has made me yearn for another now, but alas our property aint cow friendly .....Will just have to stick to my sheepies So, can anyone tell me why on earth the dairy breed bulls are so darn nasty?? My uncle used to have Jerseys and they were buggers of things. Have also had dealings with Fresian bulls - scary!! We only ever had beef cattle, angus, herefords and murray grey bulls. We did have to dairy babies that came with a Guernsey house cow, Cuddles and Blackie. They grew into montrous beasts, but oh so gentle. Unfortunately as things go on farms they were eventually sold - much to my and my sisters disgust! We also used to ride some of our younger cows who were befriended with peaches and nectarines (had a huge orchard too).....Mary was the best to ride, she would just continue to graze really while we just sat on her back! Who mentioned cow breath???? Mmmmmmmmmm.........miss it soooo much! "If" I do ever get a bigger property I think I would like to have either Brahman or Droughtmasters! Love em. At last years Perth Royal a farmer had the biggest Brahman bull Ive ever seen, and what a gentle giant he was!! Rat

Zola has the Jack - with the rope, but the rope has gone now and she did have the grippa with the little ropes through it. That has dissapeared somewhere?? She loved both of them to bits, alot more than other chewy throwy type toys. I like that they make them in different sizes for different sized dogs! Rat

I found Orka chew toys, made by Petstages to be great! They are chewy but durable, and they have a few different shapes with ropes or heavy duty canvas strings through them. I only managed to buy two before not being able to find them anymore though. Of all the toys bought for our ridgy these are the only two still in one piece! Have a look here! Rat

Hi Dained, thanks for some first hand knowledge!! I do understand that the calves are sold - but here in WA there are alot of calves that are bought by farmers that are grassfed till a few years old, then sold for meat. When the beef industry took a dive a few years ago there were quite a few beef farmers that got rid of their breeders and restocked with poddy steers to keep for a few years, till they were mature and ready to eat. Being mostly Frisian or Holstein, I agree they dont fatten quickly - which is why they are kept for longer! I totally understand the logistics of keeping and feeding the babies - I cannot believe the price of milkpowder for calves/lambs these days! Back on topic - I agree also with dianed - if hes a bull calf make sure he is castrated!!! Rat

You have done a great job saving such young calves, but I must comment on the above statement! Not ALL dairy calves are killed at such a young age!!! The majority of them will be sold to farmers and grass fed till for a few years before being sold for meat! I know they may still end up being slaughtered, but to say they all die at a young age is just not truthful! Heifers will also be onsold for breeding.....and milking. Please make sure you put up some photos of the babies when you can - 'specially the twins! We had heifer twins years ago and their faces were mirror images of each other! One was barren though, the other was a great mum! Rat

I am sorry you have had such a horrible thing happen to you but so many people here support you and it is very good to see you back again and getting better. Have you received all the money that people here have given for you? I hope it will help so you don't have to worry about money for a long time, until you can work again Hi Pippa, I believe that $7,000 odd giving by people here was deposited into an account for me - me daughter has full details and she is in USA. That was done soon after the fire on 12 May so I guess that was donations, although I am not sure. I also think there is another $3000 to be deposited into the account. I am so grateful for the support. ;) Thats excellent Jed - I believe that is an outstanding effort DOLers!! :laugh:

So what does everyone use to "clean" up the drool?? It cant just be wiped up as its so bloody sticky!! Its almost like this stuff we used at work (stuff called flocculant - which helps settle fine material in water) ..........The more water you add, the stickier it gets and just keeps spreading!!!!!!!!!! Anyway Im glad to see Im not the only one who puts up with it! ;) Dear darling dogs! Rat

Hi Jed, and welcome back. I havent ventured in here much Im sorry to say, but I have been thinking of you and your recovery constantly! I did read your beautiful tribute to Magnus - what an incredible dog, to say the least. Im glad you are getting sickness benefits, and glad you have dear friends to put you up! Im glad also you got to see your beloved dogs!! I wish you continued healing, both physical and emotional. Thinking of you LabRat ;)

Zola is a drooler - big time! Generally only at feeding time, but sometimes when shes begging for snacks Im amazed at the speed at which it leaves her mouth and how much there is for Dogs sake!! What I really hate about dog drool is how damn slippery and sticky it is and hard to clean up ...My floor is covered in stains from missed drool episodes that I just didnt see! I have learned now to make her sit on her bed whilst preparing food and making her do a very short sit and wait before she eats! Rat

Yes I did see that mentioned on Facebook too , but Ive been a bit crook this week and have only just managed my OHs birthday!! So, :cool: Mirawee!!! Hope you had a good one! Rat

That would be a lovely holiday - trekking through the snowy mtns! When I was a teenager, all I wanted to do was go on one the riding holidays down near Pemberton with the Muirs - a week or so out moving cattle. Dont know if they still do it but I would still love to do it. That or the big muster theyre having around now over east. You get to ride along with the muster during the day, but then unfortunately get taken back to "camp" at night time. Wheres the fun in that?? Would much rather rough it under the stars and eat whatever the real drovers are eating! And it costs the earth - mostly insurance I suppose! Strange, since our darling old mare was PTS about three months ago, all Ive wanted to do is go riding!! Rat

Congrats labsrule! I only hope one day I can say the same thing for me and my ridgy girl! Im sure our problem is actually "my" problem, and I need to change something Im doing, just dont know what atm! Rat

Puggerup - to me he looks great, and I have no experience with small dogs at all ........But I do understand your feelings about feeding and your dogs behaving like they are still hungry. We have a ridgy and a kelpie - the kelpie eats about 1/4 to 1/3 of what the ridgy has. She has had to lose some weight recently, and it has been hard. When I make up their meals the ridgys dinner looks enough to feed a small army while the kelpie seems to be on a super-models diet ;) . At first I wondered how on earth a dog could survive on such a small amount of food...But she did and does. She is looking great now, and is alot more fit. She gets a chicken wing for breakfast (compared to the ridgys dry and meat of about 300gm) and about 150gms food for her tea (ridgy gets closer to 500gm)! I have come to realise the kelpie doesnt need that much food, the ridgy does. There are all sorts of reasons why - temperament, coat, exercise etc., but it works. My last kelpie ate like there was no tomorrow and never put on weight. Keep up the good work with him - you will have a healthier dog for longer! ;) Rat

I was also going to suggest a Burmese - we had one who knew how to organise the dogs very well! We also had a Siamese who loved the dogs to bits, to the point of sleeping in the sunshine with the ridgeback! I think if they are brought up together it doesnt really matter what breed the cat is, just a matter of making sure the dog knows they are not to be chased! As adults our Burmese boy and ridgy used to play chasey, taking turns in chasing. Of course the cat was in control the whole time and ended the game when he saw fit! Rat

He is not due for his vaccines until July, would i do the titre then or before, I am not sure exactly how it all works except that it measures antibodies?? I would get the titre test done and a letter from your vet stating Your dog stating this and that they have imunity! My vet was quite happy to do this for kenneling and my dog club if nesessary. Our kennel (the one we use that is) generally accept titre test, which I think is becomming the norm! Rat Thanks Rat, I will do so, I cant even think about leaving him in a boarding facility but if there is an emergency etc I may have to, dont know how he would get on as he only eats raw etc and he has allergies. You should be able to find a kennel that will feed only your food! Or one that feeds raw. You may be pleasantly surprised when you make some inquiries. Good luck! Rat