StaceyB

Most puppy dry food will have extra calcium (and all the other extras growing pups need). Bully breeds can be more prone to skin irritations and contact allergies. My girl gets really itchy and a rash during summer when the grass is really dry, but I find that Advance biscuits help with the symptoms. I also feed minced chicken carcass, sardines and a nice big bone once or twice a week. Keep in mind also, that all dogs are different and some foods may be really good for one dog, but not so great for another. I found it was mostly trial & error with Gypsy to find a food that she liked and did well with. Another DOLer (can't remember who, sorry) said in a post ages ago, "The best food for your dog is the food your dog does the best on"

I'm sorry to hear this RockyLover! At least he got to be loved and be part of a family before he passed over the bridge.

Excellent, thanks Miranda!

Hi Guys, I save all my reminders for Gypsy's flea treatment and worming in my mobile phone, but it broke so I had to get a new one and I can't remember when I last wormed her. She is either due this week or next month. Does anyone know if there will be any adverse affects if I just worm her now and it turns out to be early? We are moving on the weekend so I want to make sure she is up to date with everything before putting her in a new environment. Cheers Stacey

I got a Sporn Training Harness for Gypsy and it worked quiet well, I would definitely recommend it.

It's sounds a bit like he's hit his teenage years. A friend once told me that this sort of thing was the dog equivalent of giving us the finger, but I doubt there is much truth to this, it sounds more like an old wives tale type story to me. I'm with the others though, get your mum to contact a behaviorist and they will be able to help your mum assess his behavior and sort it out.

I feel your pain Frenchie. Gypsy has some health problems because I had her desexed at 6 months and the vet didn't tell me that her problem could be a possibility (she has spey incontinence). Had I known I would have waited until Gypsy was mature. Now she has to be medicated just so she can control her bladder. I know these a different problems, but I just wanted to let you know that you and your girl are not alone in your suffering due to some vets inability to recognize and inform owners of potential problems that desexing can cause if done as a pup.

When she nips/bites make a loud yelping noise and stop play for a minute or so, if she does it again yelp and stop play for a bit longer. If she does it a third time make the yelping noise and stop play completely and put her in time out. The yelping noise is so she will recognize that she has hurt you (even if it didn't really hurt). She will eventually put two and two together and realise that biting = no play/time out. I'm sure other members will have other suggestions for you that may or may not work better depending on your girl, but this method worked very well for me and 12 months on Gypsy never touches people with her teeth - tongue is a different matter all together though ETA - forgot to mention it only took about 2 weeks to stop Gypsy from mouthing people completely.

As others here on DOL have said to me in the past, no dog will starve itself if there is food available. As long as you are making the food available to him, he will eat if he needs to. Maybe you could just half what you are giving him and feed an extra meal in the course of the day? Or maybe he's just had enough, my girl was going off her food for a little while and someone here suggested I was feeding her too much on each sitting so I cut her meals in half and she started eating again. Turns out she was just still full from the last meal.

Oooh, I am so there!!!!

not true mirawee. southern river dog obedience at carine open space run puppy classes from 8 weeks though they do run puppies together it is very well supervised. puppy area is away from adult area. The Rockingham Dog Club runs puppy pre-school for pups under 16 weeks too, but they run it inside the club rooms where the others dogs aren't allowed.

I use Aloveen shampoo and conditioner. I also need about 1 tablespoon of peanut butter smeared on the side of the bath to keep him occupied. Plus a handful of chicken treats. Followed by a blow-dry and a brush and comb...he's so much nicer when he's nice :rolleyes: ps - don't use people shampoo - it's too harsh for dogs. I used Aloveen for Gypsy when she was little too. The peanut butter is a great suggestion Luke! I wish I had though of that :rolleyes: I normally just pull Gyps into the bath with me!

I'm sorry you are having to contemplate this with your girl. I think you just know in your heart when it is time to let them go.

Some of the obedience clubs would probably do a puppy pre-school class, most of them train at the CAWA grounds in Canning Vale. The CAWA website has a list of all the obedience clubs in WA.

Mine dont play with theirs! Ats dd does, he LOVES it, he puts a ball in his mouth and runs around headbutting the Staffy Ball - BUT he NEVER stops, and ended cutting his nose :p So i had to take it off him. It is now here being unused I am saving for a home alone, At plays with them at work (paws and headbutts them, he doesnt know you can use your mouth for it as well!!) Hey TB, I'll swap ya! Gyps has never even looked twice at her home alone toy!

Can you put him in another room or outside while you are eating?

Have you tired a Staffy Ball? It's not exactly a squeeky toy, but they have a marble or something inside to make them rattle... they also have a lifetime warranty for non bully breeds.

- She is a Staffy x APBT rescue pup, around 10 weeks old. :D Yes, thank you! he was saying it could possibly be a growth plate injury :rolleyes: & yes please StaceyB I'd love the number for Murdoch uni If she needs surgery I'd rather have it done sooner rather than later, however the vet I went to see said she's too young to say as of yet.. Anyway thanks guys for the great advice, I'm hoping things turn out okay. I've PM'd you tash!

Maybe you should see another vet to get a second opinion, or request that Xrays be done to see if it is a problem in the bones. The Murdoch Uni vets are really good and thorough with problems that don't have an obvious answer. ETA - Let me know if you want the number, I work @ Murdoch Uni so I have it on hand here!

My grandma had a silky terrier she let get in that condition and Sally was an indoor dog. Mum and Grandma had a fight and didn't talk for about 6 months, the next time mum went over there the poor dog was so bad mum was gagging! She took pitty on little Sally and took her to the vets where she had to be sedated so the groomers could shave her to the skin, her nails had almost started growing into her pads, she had to have grass seeds surgically removed and go onto antibiotics for urine and anus infections. Sally was also grossly obese. I think it cost mum about $600 to get her into a decent condition, and then she made sure the dog was groomed properly every 2 months after that. Grandma was just so used to it that she couldn't smell it. I don't know how she managed to let it get that bad in the first place because she did love the dog, she used to get her groomed regularly before that.

I called them up and asked about the selected breed thing, the girl said that apart from the age limit there were no other restrictions or excesses on the insurance as long as vaccinations are kept up to date. The vaccine my vet uses last for 3 years and they said that was fine too.

Thats really sad! I'm so glad I don't have to get Gypsy groomed! She gets a bath with me at least once a fortnight (usually weekly due to skin irritation), a quick brush once a week and I clean her ears when I remember - they get a bit dirty from playing in the sand, but the longest she would go without getting them cleaned is 4 -5 weeks, I try to do everything in one hit! I can't believe the sh!t you guys cop! It's not that hard to look after your dog's coat really. My friend has a little maltese X, he gets groomed every 8 - 10 weeks and they brush him once a week in between. He stays relativley clean, matt free, happy and all it takes is 10 mins a week (obviously bigger dogs take longer, but the point remains the same, tiny effort = big difference)

I've been having a look at them all, and I think Pet Plan looks pretty good. $14000 per year (and thats the standard cover) fro accident & illness for $34.90 per month plus they pay out a few other things as well, I read their PDS and there really isn't much they don't cover - they will even pay rewards for lost dogs!

You feel so sorry for them, but you can't help but laugh at them - they just look so silly!

She is looking heaps better today! She is much less bloodshot and not sensitive to light anymore, there is still a bit of discharge. I would say she's about 60% better than yesterday!