Jean26

Cool, thanks for the replies and advice everyone. I normally give them brisket bones but saw these chuck bones and thought i'd give 'em a go. I'll supervise them with it just incase and see how they go. Thanks all!

Righto. I'll keep an eye out for that then. I'll see how they like this pack though and decide. reddog21: My older girl crunches through flaps easliy too. I hope these chuck bones do a better job keeping them clean...

Thanks for the link PF!! Does that diagram generaly apply to other animals too? I always wonder what part certain bones come from....

They were next to the gigantic marrow bones (about the size of my forearm). It was labled 'Chuck' bones and had a fair bit of meat on it. Its cut into about 8cm thick slices. What part of the cow is it?? I'm assuming its safe to give to my dogs right? ETA: Also, how often do you give your dogs meaty bones? I give the them one HUGE marrow bone each week, plus Chicken frames for brekkie. I wanted to increase meaty bones in their diet. Their normal diet is Royal Canin (GSD pup & Adult Lab) plus bulk human grade mince (cheaper in bulk) sardines or tuna and a whole raw egg, shell and all. Plus a spoonful of natural yoghurt as well.

Bayliss sounded like a brilliant dog

I wrote a letter to mt neighbours about the dogs barking. It basically said: I didnt realise they were barking so much. I apologise for the noise, i'll be taking steps to minimise and hopefully eliminate the problem barking. It wont happen overnight so please be patient. And feed back would be greatly appreciated. And i left my mobile number for them to contact me on. I dropped off the letters on Tueday night and this morning my opposite neighbour called me. She was really nice and friendly. Had been in the neighbourhood for 20 years. She's at home everyday and loves dogs. She told me that she can never hear my dogs barking during the day She said "Dogs are dogs and they will bark. But your dogs dont bark to the extent that i feel like they're being pests" It made me feel better.

Thanks GSD Lover. I popped to into the IGA and bought really BIG bones. The are about the size of my forearm! Mya will have a heart attack!!!

I'm thinking about those bark collars too, but i'll see how it goes this weekend. I like my side neighbour, she is a nice old european lady Her son visits her every weekend with his little brown staffie - it would be nice if they can play together occasionally. I'm goning to ring around and see if vets hire them out. Those collare are pretty pricey. Oh, marrowbones are a good idea. I'll get some today!

I was going to let my neighbour (with the low fence line) come around on the weekend and give them a pat/a treat - not something from their kitchen, but one of my doggie treats. I only leave my back door open when i or my housemate is at home.

Okay, so far this is what we've done to the back gate. We bought 2 tarps and folded them in half then weaved it through the iron and secured it with cable ties: As you can see from the right gate the whole street is in full view. Hopefully this will stop them barking at the people walking up and down the street.... I've also spoken to the neighbours and asked them to visit occasionally when we're at home so they can give the dogs a treat and pats. I'll see if there's any improvement during this week.

I've searched through this forum but i dont really have an answer to my situation. I live on a hill and the side neighbour's on lower ground. My house has a high yard with a retaining wall and about a meter drop from the highest point to the lowest point. The retaining wall was the original fence line. The owner's bought up the side allyway from the council decades ago. Thus the split level ground. When Kaiser is on the left side of the bricks he can see 50% of the neighbour's yard. He is only 5.5 mnths old so long walks and too much exercise to tire him out is not a good option. I have no desire to wear out his joints while growing... As far as i can make out he barks when he sees and hears the neighbours. He will stop barking if i a there to correct him (after telling him "no" a few times) but i am concerned about times when i am at work. Monday to Friday 9-5. My older SheppixLab girl does not bark at them and only barks when strangers come within about 3 meters of the house. I am going to introduce him to the neighbours today to see if that will make a difference. I am worried as the owners of this house told me that my neighbours CAN be feral. The have poisoned trees growing into their yard, jumped fences to hack down trees etc. So i wouldnt put baiting my dogs past them and would like to sort this porblem out before it gets to this stage. He has Mya to play with and for company, toys inclduing Kongs, tennisballs, tug toys and empty milk bottles with food in them. Plus others which gets rotated. Any advise would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks!

to the owner. What a sad way to loose a dog.....

I tried putting Mya in the bathtub with no luck. I aint straining my back trying to lift 30kg doggie into the bath either!! She hopped right into the shower and sat there patiently as i washed her My hydrobath lady brushes, shampoos, towel dries, ear cleans and blow dries each of my doggies for $20.00 She's great with the doggies too. I am going to get a shower head attachement for the laundry sink and bath them both in the laundry.

Some people recommend going to the whole sale places and buying chicken/turkey wings, necks, guts, frames by the box and freezing portions of it. I dont feed raw just on its own, but i give my two chicken wings and frames from the IGA near my work. Wings are $3.99 per kilo and the frames are $2.49 per kilo. Its really good quality too. Some of the stuff at Coles are small, boney and just yuck but charge an extra dollar or two. ETA: I also feed them human-grade hamburger mince from the same IGA. I think it was $3.99 or so per kilo and is HEAPS better quality than the stuff they sell at the Coles near my house. I work 8.30 - 5 and dont get home till 6ish so i cant get to a butcher in time. They're open on saturday but all the good dog stuff is gone by the time i get there

Okay, here's the scenario: New housemate has a westie. Louie as about 12 years old. He belonges to a friend of my housemate's but he couldnt take care of him anymore due to cancer. Louie is not desexed. He has met my two a few times now and seem to get along finr. Pup is a bit boisterous towards him though... 1. He has his mind set on peeing everywhere..... Will this wear off as he settles in? 2. Tried to hump my girl (GSD x Lab) fairly often. She is desexed so no problems there.... She does warn him and tells him to back off..... Will Louie calm down? 3. I've noticed that Louie is overweight and he was trying to do number 2 in the laundry. He was straining and only did a little bit of diarrhoea like poop that smelt REALLY BAD! My pup's poos are 10 times that size and doesnt smell as bad! Is there any type of "training" i should be encouraging to prevent this? Or is he just excited about having new doggies to be with? I'll get housemate to have him wormed (bought bulk all wormer off the net and i dont mind sharing) and ask what Louie is fed. Any suggestions?? Thanks in advance!

Not a problem, happy to help!

He was on it for a good month and a half or so. He came with a 3kg sample pack from the breeder and when i ran out i ordered the large bag... 12 kgs i think...I had it delivered for about $80.00 or so... Its the big bag so about 12 to 15kgs. He had pasty, pankake mix like poo for about a month. He was weaned on to NB. I took him to the vet and we went through all the standard procedures like worming (he didnt have any) put on a bland rice and chicken diet, antibiotics and probiotic formula. The vet said that if the diarrhoea persisted Kaiser could risk developing a condition called Intuesseption (sp?) there the intestine rolls in on itself like a rolled up sock. Not only is this painful, but it can lead to severe infection and an operation is needed to correct the situation. Scared the daylights outta me! I contacted other GSD breeders and they all advised me that runny or sloppy poo in any dog for that long is not normal, even with the GSDs sensitivity (with digestion etc, i think same applies to GSP too.) I occasionally mix in a bit of the left over NB with his RC and it seems fine. But if i increase it too much he gets runny poos, not as bad as before but a bit too sloppy for my liking.

Is this Natural Balance the one made in Oz? http://www.naturalbalance.net.au/ My breeder recommended it for my GSD pup. I found that he had runny poos on it though. I think its the corn that made him have diarrhoea. Apart from that i cant say i have any objections to it. I had it delivered to my door on the same day and i found that the staff and service was excellent. If Kaiser didnt have the runny poos i think i might have stuck with it. I was given lots of good advice on this health forum. You'll get heaps of past threads regarding dog food. I ended up choosing Royal Canin GSD fromula for both my Bitch and Pup. If your dogs arent sensitive to specific foods you should give it a go. I still have a little over 2/3rd of a bag left and i mix it in to their food a little bit at a time.

I suppose one psoitive is that you have understanding neighbours that were nice to you! I agree with the letter dropping, it'll let them know that you are working on the solution so hopefully they'll be more patient. Have you tried Kongs? Oh, my pup loves old milk bottles with the lid and ring taken off. I put kibble in them and he shakes it, chewes it and eats the kibble out of it. I leave a few lying around. I also try (very hard with this cold perth weather) to get up a bit earlier and get him out in the backyard for a good play. Gets rid ot the excess energy. Hope things go well for you!!

I bought one of those Dummies Guide to Puppies book. It was pretty insightful, but its american and they can sometimes refer to american things, weights, measurements, ammerican kennel clubs etc. It has things like, basic training, different stages of a puppy's development, puppy and dog behaviour etc and you dont have to read from the beginning. I just find the chapter that i want more info on and read. Overall its pretty decent as i didnt want to do heavy reading. I also have a few books on different breed types and they usually have a little section on puppy care, though it is pretty generalised.

Just keep an eye on them.... I think they should be fine apart from runny poos I give my doggies a little drizzle of olive oil with their dinner. I was told it would help with the digestion process. Maybe give them something bland for a bit until they settle down like boiled rice and chicken??

My goodness! How stressful for you and your poor girl... I cant say i have any tips, sorry... Maybe as Falling_dawn suggested, like chew toys and brushing her teeth.

I was recently informed that the Lab Adult food is formulated to combat the Lab metabolism. There's no 'lite' option for the adult Lab kibble as it is already incorporated... Maybe that's why your dog lost some weight Stevie&Jodie??

I use Royal Canin for my pup and the Labrador adult one for my older girl. They have the breed specific which is why i like it. Also, Kaiser is sensitive to certain foods, noticably corn in dog food which will cause diarrhoea. I've had no problems with it. Both my dogs look great and are healthy. Kaiser is growing well. I do sometimes add things like sardines, eggs and chicken wings/frames too for variety.

Now that you mention it ;) ;)