InspectorRex

Thanks Jed for your very valued input. :p "the girls" had California Natural mixed in with their tea last night( they had both been on chicken and rice due to Gracie being unwell) and so far no upset tummies(no vomitting or diarrhoea) and they wanted more. Now just have to get them both pooping again after being on the bland diet for over a week so they have just had some Nature's Gift Chicken and Vegetables. it s the only tinned food I will feed as when it was first made my Collies were the "trial dogs" for the Company and we never had issues with it.

Then you need a referral to a Veterinay Specialist for more thorough diagnostic testing like CT or MRI

Hi Sags- Yes it all looks like Gracie is on the improve Nice to hear from you. Tried them with a few pieces of the California Natural Chicken and Rice tonight and they woofed it down and wanted more

Has your Vet done any blood tests etc? He has offered to refer you to a veterinary specialist who might suggest say a CT Scan or MRI to try and find a cause? If he/she hasn't I would be changing Vets!

Prayers sent for a good recovery and good biopsy results

yes but they DO NOT sell puppies or kittens( at least in my friend's store), She only has Goldfish

I am with Petplan as are alot of DOLers You do have the right to appeal any decision made by any Insurance Company

Would be interesting to see what a Vet Dermatologist makes of Benson's condition.We had a pup with severe Atopy. You are like my Dad and I- we took out PetPlan a few months ago and so glad we did.We are only on Pensions but would rather know the furkids can get the care they need if and when they need it and like you would live on mince and 2 minute noodles so they could Let us all know how Benson goes please

Penski- will let you all know as I will be trying both Gracie and her Mum Phoebe( avatar) girl on it.They both have sensitive tummies. Belgian.blue- why not give Pet Goods Direct a call and find out if there is a way you can get it to WA? They have state reps for the product. I know that Pet Goods Direct (here at least) are extremely helpful and try and meet the customers needs as best they can

send a PM to Charles Kuntz as he is wonderful and did a seminar on these things last week for the VCA(Dogs Victoria)

When he has done then for me I usually have emailed results withn 7-10 days

Well at least the source I can get it from does not sell puppies or kittens

Re Gracie unwell- there is a topic on it. She has shocking diarrhoea and all the tests indicated a possible food poisoning. Collies have a sensitive tummy at the best of times. I am lucky in that I can get California Natural from another source as my friend is Manager of a pet supply store( Not PP) plus she gives me a discount

Just wondering if anyone has tried the California Natural Dry Food Range? After Gracie getting ill from being on the Raw Diet I won't feed Raw again. The one I am looking at it Chicken and Rice- three ingredients: chicken, chicken meal and brown rice plus all your Vitamins and Minerals.Great for dogs with sensitive tummies. They have other varieties such as Herring and Sweet Potato too Apparently the same as Innova but not as expensive feedback welcome

Rappie is a wealth of knowledge and so is Charles Kuntz( specialist Vet surgeon who is on DOL)

PPS- done all that. living in a totally different area then when our Maggie got IBD ( two hours away) and much cleaner environment( ie no pollution from coal mines etc). House is only 16 yo and there are no plants in the backyard(front yard is for plants and backyard for the dogs in this household), just grass and two very big conifer trees. House is brick with a mixture of lino and low pile carpet. My suspicion is when we went to training the other day(before Gracie took ill) she made contact with the sheep and the ducks(actually caught a duck and plucked a feather from it's bottom) and may have picked up a bug there as she was fine before that.

So true you would think Cordelia but you get these Vets still trying to tell you that drugs that are mectin based- revolution etc- are safe

Prayers coming your way

Sorry to hear about Rambo but gad Detroit is making progress yes I have pet health insurance too and it has come in handy this week with our Gracie being ill

Okay- Vet phoned at 8am this morning. Faecal culture did Not show anything abnormal like salmonella etc. His Gut(pardon the pun) feeling is that she may have eaten something in the yard ( she is a Hoover on legs) and it has irritated her gut hence the diarrhoea or it is a viral gastro. So far since she has been on the Clavulox she has not had diarrhoea. so she has to finish the clavulox and then we re-introduce her normal food. Gracie is full of beans and not showing any other signs of being ill.She was doing zoomies around the house last night chasing her mother. Thanks everyone for your support

Andisa- it is a known fact that breeds, like Collies etc( and crosses of the breed), that are Ivermectin Sensitive, are also usually sensitive to drugs like Rimadyl and metacam.( Collie Health Foundation of America is my source there). One dose of metacam nearly killed our Avatar Collie so i know what you mean(3 days on a drip at the Vet)-NEVER AGAIN! As I know both our Collies are Ivermectin Sensitive ( had them DNA tested) I carry with me to every Vet consult the list of drugs they CANNOT and MUST NOT be given due to neurotoxicity.It includes commonly used drugs like morphine, ACP and heaps of others PM me your email addy and I will email you the list.

Still haven't received the faecal culture results.Our Vet phoned to say he should have them either late tonight or Monday Very frustrating waiting and wanting to know but you cannot hurry science As far as I know Gracie hasn't had any diarrhoea yet today so hoping the Clavulox is kicking in Keep you all posted and thank you for being there, again

Dexapressen is a cortisone based drug used by Vets when dogs cannot have NSAIDs

I would not give Rimadyl or any non-steriodial to a dog and cartrohen is related to Rimadyl.Metacam nearly killed my avatar girl with just one dose( 3 days on a drip at the vet ) there are other options like Dexapressen which is not in the same class of drugs

Our homebred Rough Collie "Gracie" has been unwell since Monday. She had yucky diarrhoea so I iimmediately started her on peptosyl, boiled rice and chicken and probiotics. By Tuesday it had not resolved so took faecal sample and Gracie to the Vet. Her temp was slightly elevated but all her other signs were good. Vet sent faecal sample off for faecal float and analysis and told me to continue what I was doing plus give her electrolyes,which I did. I though she was picking up but this afternoon she had another bout of mucky diarrhoea( duly collected) so back of to the Vet. Faecal float showed No signs of parasites, no signs of giardia or coccidia , he is waiting on the microculture results and should have them tomorrow. In the meantime he has now put Gracie on Clavulox as well as all the other things I am doing. Boy I am so glad I took out Petpalan health insurance when I did - I have racked up nearly $300 so far and will get all bar $100 back Dad and I are praying it is nothing sinister.We have already losy our beloved Maggie( our first Champion) in 2005 to Inflammatory Bowel disease and we don't want to lose Gracie. If you can please include Gracie in your prayers. Thank you