Tilly

Our GSD has particularly smelly feet. Our vet suggested it was similar to tinea. They suggested we soak his feet in a solution of Malaseb for about 10 minutes but we found getting him to sit still for even 5 minutes was imposible. We ended up wetting his feet and then rolling him on his back and rubbing the malaseb directly into his feet. After 5 to 10 minutes of that we just rinsed his feet. It only too 2 or 3 applications to notice a big improvement.

Lol ... if you are lucky it is a passing phase . My 5 year old still occassionally has these moments. He went through the totally nutty stage but eventually got through it by us being very firm and consistant ... even though I wanted to ring his neck. I think he only survived because he was so cute :D

Maybe try giving her some vegemite disolved in a bit of hot water and given with her food. It might be worth a try while you are waiting for vet results.

I know for humans - take a teaspoon of vegemite and hold it directly on the mouth ulcer for as long as possible (it stings like anything) and then eating the rest will get rid of them overnight. I find I get ulcers if I don't have vegemite every couple of days. So I assume this is because a deficiency in vitamin B. Not sure if that would be the same for dogs....

Was the dog was vomitting and having runny poops or just vomitting? If she was just vomitting and hasn't pooped then I would be concerned about a blockage. I find that when I change food suddenly I just get runny poops but not vomitting... Edited to add: If she seems happy in her self then I wouldn't stress too much at this point. If she was vomitting up her food then her stomach might just be empty - hopefully tomorrow will bring a nice big poop

Now that my boy is an only dog - he will bury them and dig them up later. Yes ... maggots are gross but he just thinks they are extra protein ... they will probably keep the flies company

I have used CETRIGEN and it is great - and having a black dog is an advantage ;)

I give my GSD Eukanuba which is about $100 per bag just for the same reason. I have heard Bonnie is good so give that a try. We haven't changed yet as our boy does well on Eukanuba but I might try mixing it to see if our boy likes it. Have you tried lamb flaps - we give them to our boy during winter when we want to put a bit more weight on him. I also make up a mince mix which I add to the dry food. I make batches of about 10kg - it is made up of about 6kg of beef, 4kg of minced chicken frames (winter I get the butcher to add some chicken skin - which makes it fattier), 3 or 4 tins of mackerel in oil, some cooked rice and vegies. You can also add minced heart and liver if you want. If I am lazy then just a 1kg packet of frozen vegies. Mix it all together with some hot water (this makes it easier to mix). I then portion it out into chinese take-away containers and freeze. I also add Thrive D to the mince and dry food - this also seems to help.

I used an Omega 3, 6 & 9 supplement and occassionally added sardines to their breakfast - that was sufficient to bring out a beautiful healthy coat.

Definately get the vet to check for infection and/or prostate problems. Our rottie started with wetting when he was over excited which continued to a little drip most of the time. As he drippled for so long we didn't worry about it too much and just learnt to live with it. It wasn't until he didn't dripple one day that I rushed him off to the vet. He was diagnosed with a massive lump in his prostate. Without tests the vet wasn't sure if it was an enlarged prostate or a tumour - so we had him chemically castrated just incase it was an enlaged prostate but the vet was pretty sure it was a tumour. It turned out to be a tumour and he died in June this year. Getting him desexed might be an option to consider. We didn't have our male desexed decause he was a working security dog. When he retired we didn't want to put him through the trauma of the operation - due to his age. Definately better to get things check out now and look at all the options.

The link to the Brisbane City Council info are at :pc=PC_1826#dogs" target="_blank">Brisbane City Council. The permit conditions are listed here Permit Conditions but you will see they only relate to dogs how are used by commercial premises and are without a handler. Security dogs who work with handers don't fit into this category so are treated as pets. All well trained "personal protection" security dogs are safe to have around families and children - well ... just as safe as any loving family dog. We also have friends who are police dog handers and they take their dogs home with them at the end of the day - they are not required to have anything more then a secure yard in which to house the dog. You are probably best to contact your local council and see what they require - every one will be different.

The solid fence is personal preference - we didn't want to run the risk of people sticking their fingers or hands into the yard and risk getting bitten. We did double pale the fence on one side because they had an 11 year old boy who tried to stick his fingers through the fence to pat the dog. The dog was sleeping up against the fence while I was handing out the washing - I turned around when I heard the dog growling so I could called him away before he could react to the poking. We had extra paling put over othe gaps that afternoon - to protect our dog from the kid. There was no specified council requirement for fencing / containment other then sufficient to contain our dog - but you will find different councils have different requirements.

Not sure where in QLD you are but we are in Brisbane. My brother did a security course and then a dog handling course. He brought his first dog from his boss and did a couple of sessions with the dog before taking him on. Some of the better security companies will expect you to attend regular weekly training sessions - as it is in their best interest to ensure dog and handler and properly trained. As far as keeping the dog - we keep our dog in the back yard with a secure 8ft timber paling (double paling on one side because the kids there tried to stick their fingers through the gaps). The gates are padlocked and we have clear signage on the fence. Because our dogs are not "Guard Dogs" but "Security Dogs" they are treated like normal dogs. If they were "Guard Dogs" then they would be required to wear the special collars, be secured in cages/runs and cost $275 per year to register. When I spoke to the council they told me "Guard Dogs" are the dogs that are secured in car yards etc and don't work with a handler. While we had our rottie alive (he died 18 June this year) we had to be careful about having people in our backyard because he was protective and didn't like people much - this was because he had been trained to work security overseas and didn't tolerate people getting close to him. Our GSD on the other hand is trained as personal protection so he is much more friendly. He loves most people but still has moments where he just doesn't like someone - but we can usually tell immediately by his body language and he hasn't been wrong in how he judges people.

Maybe try taking the dog for regular visits with lots of yummy treats being handed out by the staff and vet - with nothing bad happening to her. I often used to take my GSD to the vet for weigh-ins and just so he got to know the staff etc. I didn't want to take him once a year for a jab - he might end up associating it with pain. My boy now gets excited when he is told he is going to the vet - he knows the girls have treats for him and he just loves them.

If she does get out - rather then chasing her and calling maybe you could try just sit down and wait (don't make eye contact). They neighbours across the road have a little dog who is often let out by the kids - once she is out then she bolts off down the road. I often catch her for the owners. I just take a very tasty treat and a leash (which I now keep by the front door) and sit on the front lawn. By not making eye contact (I look down at the grass like it is really interesting) - she immediately runs over to see what is so intersting. When she starts jumping around on me - I offer her the tasty treat and slip my hand on her collar. I then praise her and clip the lead on and walk her home - making it all as fun as possible. I know her owners have spent hours trying to get her home but it takes me only a minute or two.

That is true but thankfully we haven't needed to access the funds for a major emergency. We started the account when we got our GSD pup - he is now 5 years old. We opened the account with $500 and were then putting $30 to $50 per dog each fortnight - the account now has over $10,000 which would hopefully cover most expenses. It didn't take that long to build up to a decent level.

I would love to have pet insurance for my dog but I found most had clauses that stopped them from paying out on a lot of things and also most require you to pay the bill and then claim it back. We found our best option was to open an ING Direct account and put a side a set amount each pay - we were putting aside $30 per dog. This money is there just in case something happens to our dog and will be available to cover any vet bills as required.

1:50 is something like 1ml of Malaseb to 50ml of water. After you have massaged the ears the dog will shake their head removing a lot of the liquid etc. I let them have a shake and then wipe the ear out with a moist cotton square (you can use the same solution mix).

Our GSD cries like a baby when he sees the ear cleaning solution. After he had numerous ear infections as a puppy - he simply doesn't like having his ears cleaned. He would allow us to use a cotton wipe with the solution on it - and allow us to wipe out his ears. According to our vet the wiping is not effective in getting into the areas of the ear where the infections occur. We now hold him down and squirt in the cleaner and massage his ears for a few moments before allowing him to shake it out ... then we give them a wipe out. He currently has an ear infection so we have to force the issue with him. He is currently getting his ears cleaned every morning and has ear drops twice a day - it is a trying process but it is for his own good. If the ears are very dirty then you might need to have them flushed out by the vet - where sedation can be used if it is a big problem.

Their phone number is 0411 017 454 - maybe give them a call. I am sure they are still up and running - they were there the other weekend when I went past on my way to work.

I tried heaps of different repellants with my GSD when he was a pup but nothing worked. He ate through the aircondition power cables (twice) and also the fish pond pump (he dug up the cables and then chewed through the covering and cables). Do you have a good circuit breaker? I know that was the only thing that saved this dogs life ... and the fact he was cute otherwise I would have killed him many times over!!!! Rest assured they do grow out of it. Maybe when you catch her at it give her a correction (verbal) or/and then entice her into a game with an acceptable chew toy. Does she like squeaky toys - my boy would instantly stop what he was going when he heard a squeak from his toy and could bolt over to play a game.

Our dog is allowed 3 barks - it is something like bark ... long space ... bark etc. This is his warning bark as to say ... "I am watching you". If he barks more then that (a vollie of barks) - we always investigate because he never barks at nothing. He will go off with the kids walking past bouncing their basket balls or if people take too long to walk past the house (because they are probably spray painting crap on the letterbox!!!) We still check it out and he is told he is a good boy and thanks for letting me know or something like "its ok - I can see them". Occassionally if he is howling at the ambulances or police then he is told "enough".

I think the diet is most important. My boy has a beautiful coat but he get sardines and eggs which I think really help.

When our GSD used to get ear infections every other week - we only ever had ear drops. That was always sufficient to quickly clear up the problem. Hope your baby is feeling better soon...

My boy loves it but the bags are not sufficient to feed my GSD as a meal - and at about $5 a bag it is expensive.