stormie

Damn - our wholesaler doesn't have it and can't get it either as it doesn't appear to be currently available in Australia. Looks like I'm ordering online!

Murdoch have been using it for the past 6 months - so no she didn't just bring it back from the US with her. She arrived back home on Tuesday from the US to find that they had run out of the pipettes so is awaiting the next delivery which is 2-3 weeks. Excellent - thanks! Will see if our supplier can access it, otherwise I'm going on an international shopping spree!

I'm suss on the gurgling tummy and foul gas/poo. I know my dog goes nuts for grass when he has the slightest upset tummy. Firstly, I have him given a once over by a vet, with a fecal analysis done just to make sure there's no worms in there. Then I'd be looking at a change of diet to something a bit simpler.

I've been looking at the Sogeval range of shampoos as well as their top spot and I must say I'm a bit excited by their range. We struggle with many shampoos because of Orbits allergy to oatmeal, we can't use many of the shampoos designed for allergic dogs. I can't find anything about it from Australia though, but I really hope your Derm sourced it from Aus and didn't just bring it all back with her from USA. I really want to try it all!!! But check out their range of stuff! WEBSITE

Thanks for the information on the spot-on, Ptolomy! Going to find out more about that one for sure. We trialled the Essential 6 Spot-on which is designed to replenish the skins natural moisture/barrier, however there are so many plant oils in there and after 3 weeks I had to stop because it was giving Orbit terrible hives/itching. His coat was otherwise great, though.

Oh Horus I'm so sorry Run free beautiful Ellie

How awful. I'm so sorry for you, your friend and your friends dog. Shame on that vet, too.

Good on you for reporting them. Did you tell them you'd be reporting them? Hopefully they don't do as Mother Moocher suggested and pop the kittens into hiding fearing an inspection...

I'm at home so I can't be 100%, but I'm pretty sure our most expensive bitch spey is under $350, if that helps. Probably not the cheapest around, but they really get great care/drugs etc and are on a pretty awesome (expensive!!) monitoring machine too.

I'm quite suss about these latest 'parvo outbreak' reports that seem to be coming about lately. I'm suss that the Disease Watchdog site that was started by a vacc company, is working for them in the way they had hoped. That is, to make data readily available regarding parvo cases with the idea it will be spread to the public who in turn will be scared into annual vacc's. I'm sure there were always parvo in these areas, but now the case numbers are being made available to vets and others who have registered, making it all seems worse than what it really is.

I agree with you, but disagree with my bolded part. It should not be 'offered'. If it's important, it should be done full stop, not because the owner requested it. When humans go in for surgery, we are not offered 'extras' like that - we put our trust in the surgeons that we will receive everything we need. I think it should be exactly the same for animals. Owners shouldn't be made to decide IMO, it's not fair to ask if they want extras and have to pay for it and not fair to tell an owner there were 'complications' because they elected no fluids etc. It's something that will absolutely never happen in our clinic.

It's not all that heavy - I would say its about the same as his polar fleece weatherbeeta, possibly a little bit thicker.

FTPO - have a look at THESE It's what I have for Orbit now. I got it for the cooler months mostly but its great for his skin too because it covers his back and also his tummy. Twosmallpuppies brings them into Aus for us too ;)

Is there any reason you want it done that young? We don't do it, not unless there's a significant reason and I think most clinics would probably be the same. It's not that they're not confident in their abilities, but just that I think a lot of vets aren't that happy about anaesthetising and doing what we would consider big surgery on such a young animal. The younger and smaller they are, the higher the risks involved.

Yeah I agree its ridiculous. We don't really agree with all the 'optional extra's that people can choose anyway. It's the vets job to decide if a patient needs those things, and most owners aren't really in a position to say whether their animal should be on fluids etc. All surgeries should receive pain relief and if they need fluids then they should get them - it shouldn't be an 'optional extra' that people get guilted into paying more for.

FTPO - Orbits is mostly going to be to protect from pollens and the grass, as when he's wearing coats his itching is much better, so I'm hoping to make something he can wear in the summer too and even when we go to school, as he gets itchy after doing down's in the grass etc. I put alpha kerri on him occasionally and now that's its cooler I put his Chilly Dog Sweater on to protect the furniture cause he loves to roll all over the place if he has something remotely smelly on him. I don't put much on though, I usually dilute it with water and use it as a final rinse, so he's not overly oily and after a couple of hours its mostly gone.

Our old clinic on Sydney's North Shore was over $400 for a large size spey. That was average price for that area too and was just for the operation, no bloods, fluids etc. Here (Hills District) our most expensive spey is just over $300. I get that people think it should be cheaper because it's routine, but it's still a pretty big operation. We don't treat speys as 'routines' - to us, it's the same as if we were taking out a mass in the abdomen (essentially that's what it is) which would otherwise cost a fair bit more than $300. Some speys are quite simple and are over in 20mins, where as others can be much more fiddly and can take a lot longer, yet people still pay the same. I think people often forget that speying a female is still pretty big surgery, even if it is done all the time. As for the price for Centitouts puppy, you'd hope it was done by a specialist for that price. Have you called the number on the invoice to check that is the correct price and you're not being scammed for other services/fees?

FTPO I'm in the planning stages of one for Orbit actually. I have a fair idea of the style I'm going to make but haven't chosen a fabric yet. I will be venturing to Spotlight this weekend to hopefully buy something and get sewing. Mostly it's just going to cover the torso - he has pyjamas which help, but the legs are just too complicated and he gets out of them too easily. So basically I want it to cover his neck, down his body and also under his belly and be light enough to be able to wear in summer too. Depending how we go, I put some sort of short hind legs on it, but that will depend on how good I am with the sewing machine!! Will keep you updated with how I go! eta: ok so I just realised yours is to keep the oil in, where as mine is just for general coverage purposes to avoid contact with airborne allergens, grasses etc. Overall though, it may fit the same purpose depending on what material I choose. Have a look at the Chilly Dog coats - I have a sweater coat which you could really only use in cooler weather, but it wouldnt absorb the oil. I use it on Orbit after a bath and have put it on after applying the alpha kerri oil too.

I can second that. Our Rep is really lovely and always goes out of her way to help us out. Our puppy packs usually arrive the day after ordering and that is with them being sent up from Melbourne. We did have some issues last year with supplies, but so far this year everything has gone well and our Rep has always sourced for us what we were unable to get anyway. She is also very pro pure breeds and seems pretty on the ball with current happenings in the dog world.

If your dog is going well on the Euk, why change? I know lots of people say its crap, but I know a lot of Dane folk raise their pups on it because its great for slow growth etc. IMO, offering the dog something different everytime it turns its nose up at it, is asking for a fussy dog. I would try making up a gravy yourself with some watery mince and tossing that through the food.

why's that? 4, 8 and 10 I think.

This is great!!!!!!

Haha can you believe I didnt take my camera either! I've been calling him Rupert cause I think it suits him and I think it might be catching on!!! Thanks for all the name ideas, will let you know what it is eventually!

What I mean Rappie, is that if a dog has skin problems DUE to a thyroid problem, it is because the level of T4 being produced is too low, hence why you're seeing clinical symptoms. So if a dog comes in with bad skin and you do the standard aussie test and all are normal, it's very unlikely then that the cause of the bad skin could still be the thyroid?

Maybe all the preservatives in the tinned foods was what kept them all going so long!