stormie

If you're going to do it properly, you need to find a food that contains all novel ingredients - nothing your dog has previously eaten before. Not just meat and carbohydrate, but EVERYTHING. I used Eukanuba's FP (Fish and Potato) when Orbit was young because it's the only one that supported growth. But I also preferred the ingredients over Hills Z/D. Be really careful and read all the ingredients thoroughly because 99.9% of dry foods contain chicken of some form. Otherwise you're other option is a home cooked diet.

I'd say that's a pretty reasonable price. Not sure then what the consumables would be - usually the things like needle and syringe is covered in what you pay for the drugs and the gloves etc they'd use I would have thought would be covered in the cost of the actual procedure.

could be bandages if any were used?

So this company charges pet owners $35/day for boarding, but uses the services of other people to actually do the job the owners are paying for, at a pay rate of only $6/day???? Their excuse of 'complaints' would be useless, I would think. They would still be liable to pay their 'employees' that they selected for the job and should cop any complaints on the chin themselves and take responsibility for the people they selected to do the job. I would be seeking legal action!

Oh the beds you win are part of their current promotion - buy a big bag of food and get one free. The beds are pretty small But a years supply of food would be pretty cool Loved the program though and great to see dogs at work!

Keep in mind that the reaction dogs have from Wandering Jew isn't so much an allergic reaction, but more a chemical reaction. There's something in the make up of the plant that irritates dogs skin, rather than a histamine response happening, so I wouldn't expect anti histamines to work very well in this instance.

Wandering Jew? Reactions to this commonly present in a chicken pox type reaction. The tummy, arm pits and muzzle and also affected the most as these are the parts that come into contact with the plant. If no wandering jew, I'd be looking at other plants and/or grasses.

Has it been diagnosed via scraping by a Vet?

I thought it wasn't expected to hit until Wed evening??

In most cases, particularly when owners are very upset, we tell them not to worry about it then and to just head on home when they're ready and they can settle the account at a later time, eg picking up ashes or after we've posted the account a week or so later. In cases of new clients coming in to have their pets pts, we will ask if they'd like to settle before they go in, so like Cris said, they can leave straight away after.

Hmmm I agree it sounds a bit like scare mongering. I had a look at their own foods and I personally wouldn't feel comfortable feeding a growing large breed their food with the calcium levels it has. Seems to be a fair bit higher than most other large/giant puppy foods.

I agree with you about the money making scheme. I really get annoyed at some Vets and their need / drive to make money and or do unnecessary surgery.....it makes my blood boil. To an extent, I do agree and I have heard some shocking stories of Vets doing the surgery on dogs who don't even have bad hips, but purely because of the breed and the possibility they might in the future. In terms of making money, well it depends on how you look at it. They would make money from the initial surgery, but if the hips are then great, there's no money to be made after. Where as if they do nothing, the dog will likely return for many more consults, xrays, medications etc etc. So you could argue that NOT doing it could be a money making thing too. But at the same time, it is a great thing they are doing with the surgery - much less invasive and from what I've read, seems to have pretty god results, so if a dog did indeed have not so great hips at that young age (and yes, puppies can and do have shocking hips at that age which are clearly not going to get better) then I think it's a great option to have. But in saying that, it's not something I would necessarily do based on one vets quick opinion. I would have xrays done and also probably consult with an Orth Specialist.

True, but some of the cases I've read about involving wrong dosage AND wrong species is pretty frightening! Did they induce vomiting? I wouldn't be alarmed if they didn't - it's only really of benefit if they've eaten it 30-40mins prior. The dose rate is '2.5-5mg/kg by mouth for 5 days to 6 weeks, depending on the specific product involved'. So it sounds like they're all getting an adequate amount There is no mention in this book of overdose, but is mention that anaphylaxis has been reported if it's given IV, so this is discouraged.

Yep I think the same about my boss. He won't watch wildlife documentaries because he finds it all too upsetting watching animals die so I know how difficult he finds euthanasia. But yet he always knows exactly what to say to people to offer them comfort and support. I used to think it would get easier as I 'got used to it' but it's the total opposite and I find it harder each time. I imagine myself in their position should I be losing Orbit and it breaks my heart knowing what they must be feeling.

I wonder if Black Hawk food could be an option for you? A fair few people seem to like it and from memory it's not that expensive?

She doesn't look that thin to me? She could do with a little more coverage on her ribs perhaps but I wouldn't want to see her waist get much bigger? The photo must be quite deceiving. My Dane will eat his meals like he's never eaten before too, but doesn't mean he's starving (well, I'm sure he thinks he is but he's most definitely not!!). In any case, just feed her a good quality food. Don't try to pack weight on her too quickly or you could make her sick. Let her weight increase slowly.

Orbit can bark. But he also sometimes gets excited after and wants to dance. I'm not sure that would be appropriate

Ah, see. I struggle with this statement. Whilst I would agree to a certain extent. ie. you couldn't afford it when you got it. Circumstances can and do change. I'm also reminded of the many people out there, who if it weren't for their pets would have nothing or no one, or no reason to live even. Thanks to everyone for input! Any other experiences with charity orgs that offer assistance for vet treatment? Or even how to start a charitable organisation? There's already the MDBA - I'm pretty sure their help extends to people struggling with vet bills in certain circumstances?

Totally agree and to an extent it's also a requirement of a vet to provide first aid/relieve pain, suffering etc to any thing that walks through their doors. For example if people rush a dog in to us with a smashed up leg after being HBC but cannot locate the owners, by law we have to treat the dog. We don't have to repair the leg, but we would clean and bandage the wounds, stabilize the leg and provide pain relief.

Crispy I'm so sorry for your loss. Don't blame yourself. It may be that it wasn't the actual vaccine, but that Smudge had an underlying problem that may have been worsened by the excitment of the trip to the vet. Did they rule out bloat as a possible cause too? I agree with others though, perhaps talk to your vet about completing the form. Again I'm very sorry. RIP Smudge

The thing is, you couldnt really do it at most businesses so I'm not sure why Vets should be different? For example, if my car broke down, my mechanic wouldn't fix it for me out of his own pocket, even though he loves cars. And if I was hungry, I don't think Coles would let me take home a trolley full of groceries either. I probably sound harsh but I don't mean to be. The Vets have to make their livelihood too, so they can pay their own bills/expenses. Surely it's on the onus of the owner to be able to afford vet bills rather than expecting the Vet/Business Owner to pay for the owner? Also, as has already been mentioned, it's people who don't end up paying that ruin it for others. We've had clients rack up thousands and then do a runner. Or they board their animal and never come back. In the end, there's nothing you can really do to get the money back. The previous owner of our clinic ended up getting assaulted and his wife threatened simply because he tried to demand payment from a non payer. Regular people - well that's a different story, but if someone just came off the street? I wouldn't expect any clinic to do run up an account.

Same as most of the other posters - Orbit has a variety of dog coats/pyjamas for winter and I was actually just looking for a fly mesh one for summer. I have put him in an outfit or two here and there, most recently for the Great Dane Fun Day for Dane Rescue, mind you that was only underpants and a cape. My clothes don't fit Orbit so he's pretty safe!

awesome pics, Raineth!!! especially the pashing one

I've spoken with Royal Canin in my search for another supplier. They are aware he is selling their products but he doens't buy from them so they have no control over his operations. I imagine that Eagle Pack would be the same. True, but they might want to take his listing off their website

We're in Pennant Hills. I don't have any where near the fly problem at my house (Riverstone) that we have here in PH at the moment. I think there was a topic started recently about how bad the flies have been in this area this summer. What sucks is Orbit seems to react to the repellents so far