Lab_Rat

Hmmm...sorry you had to go through all that just for me . However, sounds just like my two chalk & cheese!!! Miekah - who had osteosarcoma in her front right leg that resulted in amputation - was like an angel. The very best first ridgie! Wheras Zola is like you describe Mandela, crash & bash. She is definitely the devils spawn .............And not without her "problems" either!! Ahh, the things we go through having our wonderful dogs Thanks for sharing, I know how hard it is to retell the story. I still get weepy telling Miekahs story although its almost four years since she left us! Thinking of you, Rat

Hi Erny - have just done an update (have been nightshifting for a couple of days!)......You poor things! Still no closer to an answer. I feel your frustration . I also understand your happiness that his pancreas is ok, and your disappointment at not finding anything yet! Hang in there, as you probably know its a long and winding road to get the bottom of these things sometimes! Your Vitamin B theory sounds interesting. I dont want to upset, but do you mind me asking what ailed Kal?? Well big hugs to you and Mandela, Erny. Hope something comes to light very soon for you both. Rat

Hi Erny . Im glad to hear you had a useful visit to your vet! Cute photos of poor Mandela and his ear "arrangement" I hope this test will give you some sort of direction to take with his recovery, and you can relax a bit and not have to worry so much about him, poor little soul..... Please keep us updated! Rat

Ours get brekky and dinner, but its usually whenever it happens! When Im working & OH is working they will have their breakfast about 6.30 am and dinner after us, around 8pm. Thankfully they dont seem to worry when they are going to be fed. Days off its even more random - especially breakfast, poor buggers. But they do like a sleep in... Im sure my last ridgie had a bloody wristwatch!!! Come about 6pm she would start pacing and whining. Just the littlest of whines, then if no-one noticed it would become a snort - like a damn horse!! She was very time savvy was Miss Miekah The snort thing was so funny, it seemed to be more through her mouth, her top lips would ripple with the snort, but it sounded like it came out of her nose . Of course I would be mean at times and ignore her "requests" just so I could see and hear it again :D ..Poor dog. The horse seems to be more time aware than the dogs. You can hear her belting on the gate at around 4.30 each arvo. Rat

Wooooo....I can actually add to this thread! Wandy & I started back at obedience last night - training that is. What a great little dog she is. Makes me grin just thinking about it really! As with all official doggy things Im a complete newby to the world of real obedience, so Im a very average handler at the moment. Well after a couple of tips from the trainer last night, one major one being DONT LOOK AT YOUR DOG, Wandy & I just clicked. I have never had a dog on the end of a lead walking next to me staring up at me asking what to do next. It was the best feeling ever! It just blew me away My goal is too improve as a trainer, and to keep having fun! Of course I guess I'll have to do the official tests now too? Any tips on teaching "Stand" - one thing that the kelpie brain just cant get hold of , actuall one thing this human just cant communicate properly Ive tried luring to a stand, the arm under the belly, hand in front of the chest...probably others I cant think of. She will do it off lead at home, but on lead at lessons she just continues to sit. Rat

Hi Erny, just wanted to let you know Im thinking of you and young Mandela. I hope it goes well for you both on Monday (.....hurry up Monday ) and you get some answers about what is wrong with the poor little bloke. I understand whats involved with dealing with a "ridgie with problems"...........so if you need another shoulder to PM - Im here!! Take care over the weekend! Rat (& Zola)

We dont have problems handling either of our dogs, at home or the vet . Since they were both babies (6y.o kelpie and almost 3 y.o ridgeback) I made sure I did all the "little" things with them - checking their teeth, trimming their nails checking their ears etc.. I dont ever really remember having a struggle or hard time doing these things, I guess I would do it gradually with lots of treats and in short sessions. I can even clean the tartar off my dogs teeth without a problem. Their nails are done horse-style, that is standing up with me holding up each paw and clipping them, I just find it easier with a big dog to have them stand and hold their foot up. Their ears are checked & cleaned regularly. Because of anal gland issues the ridgeback will allow me to tend to that problem also .....Not a nice job though I am very tactile with our two, and I guess touching, rubbing and massaging your dogs all over is a positive thing - it makes them less sensitive when someone strange or new needs to go over them, like a vet, or a judge. Strangely though the ridgeback turns into a bundle of nerves when at the vet. She will pant and shake the whole time we are there. But she is no problem to do anything to. I dont know whether its the smell or something else. She has been going there since a pup, did puppy preschool there and hasnt had a "bad" experience there that I am aware of. But I guess theres something about it that worries her. The kelpie is the complete opposite - pulls and barks the whole way from the car to the waiting room, thinks she owns the place and everyone that works there !! Rat

Hey DD, just checked out that clip - now I know what Im up for!!! She certainly is enthusiastic isnt she!! Rat

Thanks washa.....will chase it up. Am planning to get into it when I get back from our holiday! Rat

Cant help you out sorry Willow, but I hope your friend finds one. Have they contacted any kennels?? There seem to be heaps in Southern River (kennel zone) area. I am just about to contact my local country obedience club with the same query. Can my dog be a member with titre testing records and not vaccination records. My ridgy is titre tested, but I also want to tt my kelpie, and shes doing the obedience......Wondering how that will go down with Dogs West also??? Rat

Thanks guys - cant wait to really get into it. We have been doing weekly obedience classes for a while, but its just round in a circle, up and down stuff. I really need to learn what is required in the different levels! Is the rules book the one on the ANKC website?? RAt

Hope all goes well for your poor dog!! I too lost my girl a few years ago from bloat/gastric torsion..... Glad you got her to the vet in time for help! Will be thinking of you. Rat

Yes luvsdogs, it can be brought on by spaying - a hormonal thing. Of all the females weve had, and theyve all been spayed, only one had incontinence. Funny, I didnt even think about it with my latest girl, til just now! Perhaps ask your vet about the occurrence of it, whether its a very common thing?? Rat

Im hoping to find some guidance regarding official obedience trialling (hope thats what its called ). I can take my girl, Wandy the Kelpie, to weekly dog club obedience where we are members, which is great and I will be continuing, but what else can I do at home to get my dog & I to a good enough standard to start competing?? Are there any really good books, websites, DVD's that will help me? Are obedience rules the same Australia wide? I want to improve my training abilities as well as improving my dogslearning, but being in the sticks theres not a huge number of physical persons I can call on to help out. I get frustrated very easily when I cant figure thingsout, why things dont work ( :D ), and dont want to risk wrecking or boring the dog or getting fed up myself. Any pointers would be great! Wandy has done "kindy" class about 18 months ago and passed, in the rain with a score of 85/100. I was very proud of her as she hadnt really done much work at all. After trying to progress with the ridgeback I found working a kelpie is a breeze. Id like to move forward with my training abilities so I can then return to the ridgie and get her "obediencing" as well. I hope some of you wonderful competitors out there can help me onto the right track! Rat

We had success with Sudafed tablets, although I dont remember the dosage. Our ridgie bitch was incontinent after spaying (a hormonal thing apparently), and our vet suggested sudafed which worked well. Im quite sure that after a while she wasnt incontinent anymore. Nothing to do with the sudafed Im sure, maybe just her body adjusting? A "natural" remedy would be good though. Perhaps enquire about Chinese herbs if you have an alternatlve thinking vet. Good luck with your girl Rat

Great thread! We have used RC Large Dog & the Vege Protein one for the ridgie and Optimum for the kelpie, but I got tired of having different dry food everywhere so we wanted to find one food that they would both do well on. The ridgie has protein intelerances/allergies?, so it couldnt be beef or chicken or roo based. I found a WA made, lamb based dry food at the same place I got my RC from, so made the switch and YAY, we had success. Both dogs do really well on it, with raw lamb, chicken wings/frames, fish and veges added. But the company have now upped the price, so its no cheaper for me than RC or any other super premium brands I would love to try another brand - Bonnie or Coprice, but am worried that the ridgie will react badly. Do any of the big companies make a dry food that is lamb based, available in WA and not over the top in price? Rat

Hi Erny, just wanted to say that I hope you find some answers about your little boy soon! Its quite distressing having a crook dog and not knowing why??? I went for quite a few months trying to find out why my girl was having so many problems with her digestive system. We now seem to have her problems under control with diet, but would be interested in the use of goats milk! Andisa - could you shed some light on the properties of goats milk, and why its so good?? And do you use the honey as a feed supplement? Feel free to PM me about it, improving diet and digestive health is a top priority for me and my girl I have also recently begun using a Probiotic product made by a company called PAWS. It has probiotics, kelp, spirulina and a few other goodies in it. When my girl starts with the soft stools, I will dose her with this in her dinner for a few days, which seems to help immensely! Anyway - about the rough pads. Both our dogs seem to have relatively smooth pads, although their back ones and the ones near their dewclaws seem to ba slightly rougher. They live on tiles, grass, dirt and gravel, so if that sort of terrain was going to give them rough pads I wouldve thought they would be candidates! Perhaps its a weather, hydration, illness thing?? Wish I could help you out, but Im just making wild suggestions Please keep us updated on your little boys health :p Rat

Sorry BonnieK - I thought the thread was a bit more in depth . And now her I am about to ask a question about dry dog food...................... Neats - what are ingredients (just the main ones) in Bonnie?? I had a look at their website, but they dont actually have a list per se, just mention the meats they use?? I would be interested in changing dry food if I can find one similar in ingredients, but a tad cheaper than what I use at the moment. Rat

I discovered a new? product called PAW (Pure Animal Wellbeing) Probiotic Powder last time one of mine had some tummy upset, and had the runs for almost a week! I have used protexin, and think its good, but my vet recommended this. It has other goodies in it as well, like kelp, spirulina, and Vit C. It worked wonders on the sick girl. It is also organic . And made by FloraFern, P.A.W. P/L in NSW. I will now use it for my ridgie who has quite a sensitve gut and is prone to the onset of the runs for no apparent reason :rolleyes: . She likes it so much shes trying to get the container out of my hands now while Im trying to read it I have also used the Inner Health Plus capsules when I didnt have any other probiotics in the house! Worked as well. Rat

Hi Bonnie If you check out the "Dry Food -the good, bad, and ugly" thread you will get an idea of how to pick a "good" dry food. Its quite a personal thing, if your dog does well on a particular one - stick to it! Its a matter of trying different ones til you find one you and your dog are happy with! Good luck Rat

Yep, Ive got it and read it. I actually got it from my vet who is very into feeding raw and natural, which is great. I reckon its pretty comprehensive, tells you not only what to feed, but why and how as well! Definitely a good addition! Rat

Has anyone used the plastic or fibreglass electric fence step in posts?? Thats what Ive seen used at two clubs over here in the West. They arent that expensive (plastic ones, not sure about f/glass), you can get different ones and they are easy to put in the ground. Not sure what angles you need, but these can be put into the ground at any angle! They would be available at most feed places, rural shops etc. Rat

We have just discovered the "BEST" thing for removing dead hair from both our dogs - Kelpie & RR. I bought these so OH wouldnt rip his hands while cleaning out the gutters, and being the comedian he is, he put them on and started rubbing down our ridgie girl. Not only did it work amazingly, but she loved it!! She doesnt like being brushed much, but she loved the massage of the magic gloves! They even work on our Kelpie who has hair alot longer than a RR, she enjoys her rub down also. I usually get them on the back of the ute so they are at a nice height, and give them a few minutes each of grooming. They are Ansell, Powerflex gloves and can be found in the gardening/glove section in hardware shops like Bunnings etc. He even passed on the idea on to a workmate with a pug, whos "mum" was getting sick of all the hair Hope this helps -

Just found this - dont know how many people are still interested, but its encouraging to see more people questioning vaccinating! Name: Zola Breed: Rhodesian Ridgeback Age: 2.5yrs Vaccs had: C3 @ 6wks,C5 @ 12 & 16wks, Fortdogde C4 & KC booster @15months Titer Test: done @ 2 yo. Parvo & Distemper 1:80, Adenovirus (Hep?? the one that has to go to Scotland) 226 Hopefully I wont have to vaccinate Zola again as she suffers with tummy probs, food intolerances! Wandy the Kelpie however is as fit as a mallee bull - no unusual food related, skin or other probs. She is six and has been fully vaccinated so far. Next year I will get her titer tested though. No sense in continuing with something not needed!! Rat

Thanks terrorbull, would be interesting to know! I just had a look at some online prices, they range from $102-$114, for the three different ones. And I just discovered that there is another Natural Balance - made by Dick Van Patten!! So, labsrule - do you get the Aussie one or the DVP Nat.Bal.?? Weird - I didnt even think there would two of the same name! Rat