poodlefan

I ain't ever grooming dogs other than mine and those of friends. I can live without the angst. Hard hard work, hard on your back, all that hair is irritating to eyes and nose and the pay is ordinary. I commend anyone who does it for a living - it has to be partly a labour of love.

Do you have any dog training experience KB? If not, then getting involved will assist you to learn more about dog behaviour. Many dogs a groomer sees can be quite "challenging" to handle.

There you go Eddy Anne - until today I'd never heard of a mini or toy with HD. I can't find anything on a breed average for this country. UK has the mini at 16 (highest score is 109 on their scale) which is the same as the CKCS. No listing at all for the toys.

I hope you got a reasonable response Tracey. Yours is the first mini I've ever heard of with HD. Very sad for you and her. :rolleyes:

EddyAnne, I know a fair number of Toy and Miniature Poodle breeders and I don't know a single one who tests for HD. It simply hasn't been an issue in those sizes in Australia to date. I doubt there'd even be a 'breed average' for Toys and Minis. HD in standards is another matter.

Crikey Tracey - HD in a mini poodle. That's not good. :rolleyes: Have you told her breeder? HD isn't something routinely tested for in minis. I would want Rupert checked for Legg Perthes too - that's a problem in smaller breeds of dogs where the hip socket erodes. It is operable - they basically take the top off the socket. Personally, I'd be seeking a vet who is more knowledgeable on such issues.. HD is by no means the only cause of hip soreness.

Its not how much a dog weighs but how if feels that's the most important IMHO. You may find the article below useful. Do the flab test and see how she rates. Most people expect pretty hefty labs - you'd be amazed how many don't recognise a lab in true 'working condition' as the breed of dog it is. Friend of mine with a chocolate lab is constantly told he has a nice GSP. http://www.caninesports.com/fatdogs.html

Eeeuuuu. Cost alone has put me off trying them.

Folks it was Espinay, not me who suggested the email group. A search on BARF or raw feeding on Yahoo should reveal plenty. I think there's an Oz BARFers list that's probably your best bet.

Hey Espinay - I know a toy poodle that wants to move to your house.. can she have the same size meals as your guys? :rolleyes: I do two days RMBs, one day veggie mix. They get the odd tin of mackeral (eeuuu) and 4 legs if they're travelling.

Miranda: Miranda ALL my big dog owning friends who feed raw use chicken frames as the basis of their dogs' diets. They are a bit big for my guys but very economical for the big dogs. No problems reported with them - apart from happy crunching sounds. :cool: My vet has recommended that I change from feeding chicken wings to drumsticks as they are a better work out for my guy's teeth... always a challenge to keep the canines clean in the littlies. :rolleyes: I feed lamb necks - but only a quarter of one for each dog. They are quite fatty but good for keeping weight on the the bones are a good workout.

Missymoo: Realistically? None. :rolleyes: IF you feed a balance of food over time and vary the meats and veggies, you could afford not to use any. An Omega oil is a 'nice to have'. Billinghurst himself is very relaxed about additives but does recommend eggs. No offence to our American brethren but is mainly in the USA that many additives are used, in Oz people are more relaxed. I use missing link because its a general conditioner. I've also used kelp, brewers yeast, wheat and barley grass powders before but I don't try to get a balance in every meal.

Someone stole the mother? Yikes, an entire female poodle, blind or not would make some low life puppy farmer very happy as a breeding machine. :rolleyes:

Someone bred an 8 year old blind bitch. :rolleyes: Poor bloody dog. This wasn't a registered breeder was it.... She was "allowed" to become pregnant, Suzi. No offence to you and your pup but the breeding of a blind dog is not a practice I can agree with. It explains why the pup had to be hand raised - poor Mum wouldn't have been able to. :cool: Did she reject the pups?

Frozen veggies are OK LP but you certainly won't get the same range as you can buy fresh. Also most frozen veggies (eg. peas, corn) are pretty starchy. I'd use them if I was desperate but fresh is always better! You're going to pay a mint for the frozen ones too. :rolleyes:

For you Allerzeit, replace "cat" with "bench surfing Rotty". I vary the veggies and fruit as much as possible but tend to have apples and carrots in most mixes. I cheat and juice some of those first so I can have some fresh juice (no offal) while I make the mix. I do not include cruciferous veggies in every mix - it can interfere with thyroid function. :cool: Try juicing fresh beetroot for the mix for fun - the mix ends up bright purple and the results in the back yard are... interesting. :rolleyes:

As requested: Poodlefan’s BARF Veggie Mix I based this on Dr B's recipe for veggie patties in GYPWB. Lets see if I can explain it like a cook book does! Ingredients 4 eggs 1 small container of yogurt 2 tablespoons of flax seed oil 4 tablespoons of Missing Link (optional) 2 kg of mixed fruit and veggies (I use some root veggies, some fruit and some green veggies in every mix) 1 kg full fat beef mince 1 large piece of liver or a few kidneys Method 1. Add eggs, yogurt, flax seed oil and Missing Link to huge bowl (I use the biggest saucepan I’ve got) and blend well 2. Add the mince and mix well . Remove cat from kitchen bench. 3. Juice a little of the fruit and veggies. Add some of the juice to a blender and blend the offal until smooth. Resist urge to smell mix – you will regret it. Try not to vomit at result’s appearance and add to main ingredients. 4. Run the rest of the fruit and veggies through the juicer or blender. Add all the pulp to the mix and enough juice to obtain a firm but not sloppy consistency. You should end up with about 30% mince mix and the rest is veggies. 6. Remove cat from bench again. 7. Cave in and give a little of fresh mince and mix to cat 8. Put into storage containers and freeze. I find this mix feeds 5 mini poodles for 5 meals. My mix is evolving over time. I’ve used other additives like Power Blend, Barley Grass Power, Brewers Yeast, Vitamin C – I just change them from time to time. My large dog owning friends do all the stages from 1 to 3 and then freeze the mix, juicing fresh veggies separately to add to it. This cuts down on freezer space and the time taken to make the mix. If you find your dog is not accepting the mix, add a little more fresh mince to their feed and slowly reduce the amount of mince they receive.

I use both a blender and a juicer to feed BARF as my guys don't like offal on its own so I blend it into veggies. Personally, I'd not worry about feeding veggies every day. If you feed raw meaty bones two days out of three then a mostly veggie mix would do for the third day. I could post my veggie mix recipie if you like.

You are going to have to tough it out... he will eat if he's hungry enough. Do not feed him titbits from your own meals - that way lies ruination. Try crushing the chicken neck... You can, of course simply choose to feed good puppy kibble which he already eats. It's not a fabulous teeth cleaner . Forget adult canned food (personally I'd forget it completely) it doesn't have the right contents for him.

If you're leaving dry food out all the time, this explains why he wouldn't be that interested in other meals. He ain't hungry. Personally, I don't let my dogs demand feed in this way but that's your choice. I suggest you try taking the dry food off the floor for a couple of days and reintroducing other food. Its more palatable if its at room temperature or slightly warmed so try that too. Another option is to try some chicken "pet" mince which includes bone. He hasn't really had to tackle anything "solid" - milk and mince is too easy so he may be putting it in the "too hard" basket. I'd then offer him a crushed neck or pet chicken mince at room temperature - just the tiniest bit and see what he makes of it. Don't fret if he misses a couple of meals (and believe me I know how easy it is to do that) Is he getting lots of playtime and running around - exercise also stimulates appetite.

Just out of interest - are you leaving milk down for him all the time?

OK - this is not a balanced diet for a pup. Furthemore, there is nothing here to work his teeth and jaws - VERY important for pups. The bottle feeding would not have assisted with weaning so you now have the challenge of introducing a proper diet. You either need to feed manufactured good quality puppy food (eg. kibble) with possibly extras OR read up and feed him a raw diet. Otherwise, he won't get the vitamins and minerals needed for proper growth and development. The RAW diet is my preference and frankly they I think they do better. I would suggest you buy a couple of chicken necks and give him one raw to see what he makes of it. Crush it with a mallet or hammer if he is a bit overwhelmed by it. Lose ALL the wheatbix and cereal - puppies can't digest it and it could be gumming him up a bit. Has the vet checked him out for any medical issues? If so, time to harden your heart. He IS eating but on his terms. Smart little devil. Give him his meal. Put it down for 10 minutes in his feeding area and WALK AWAY. Come back, pick up any left overs and get rid of them. Anorexia in dogs is very rare and I suspect that this pup is beginning to train you well. A bit of hunger may produce more motivation to eat. At this age, you should be offering 4 meals a day. When you say he's eating "a little" in the morning could you estimate how much food that is? Half a cup, more, less? Their stomachs are tiny at this age - little and often is the key.

What did the breeder tell you to feed him? What are you feeding him now? Do you stand over the top of him or hover anxiously around him at dinner time? Is there food left out for him all the time (eg. kibble)? Is he eating at all?

Your reaction isn't unusual VEHS. For some people the shock is a numbing thing - grief comes later when the thought processes start. Mind you, having had to enthanaise a horse - when he died the body simply wasn't "him" anymore. Maybe you just recognised that she's moved on and merely left her 'shell' behind. Sorry to hear of your loss. I'm glad my old cat shows no interest in the outside world - he never leaves the yard.

Any news yet?