karly101

If the nail has ripped it will most likely require a vet visit so they can trim it - most vets I've seen do give antibiotics as well as its a site that can easily get infected.

You can buy Drontal chews and split them... personally I've split interceptor chews as well... they say the ingredient is not evenly distributed but the weight ranges are so big anyway and I'm not sure how much truth is in that.

The argument I hear is that you shouldn't because it throws the nutritional balance off....I've heard that the dry food needs to be 90% of the diet but again this is from companies selling the food! I don't with the dog he just gets the same brand and has a little bit of a sensitive stomach so I haven't made any changes. I am considering a diet change as he appears to have allergies and the dermatologist wants me to do a food trial. I always mix dry foods with the ferrets as they imprint on food and I wanted them to recognize a wide range in tastes especially since manufacturers like to change formulas often and I have heard stories of ferrets refusing to eat their dry food when that happens. I mix 'premium' with 'super premium' never supermarket brands as I don't get the point of doing that. The oldest is 6 years old and I've never had any health issues with them so it seems to work but they are also fed fresh meat, bones, egg, sardines etc.

Eyes can get nasty very quickly and best to get a vet to check that out and make sure there are no tiny scratches on the eye. You could also then get the vets opinion on the stomach upset but general rule is no food for a day to rest the gut and then a bland chicken + rice diet.

My previous boss used to make up his own eye drop formula using Atopica gel capsules, apparently there was a time when Optimmune was unavailable which is when he started doing it. A compounding pharmacy may also be able to make cyclosporine drops for you. Not sure if that would be a cheaper option but I do remember the vets drops did work out to be much cheaper and we had many clients who had success with it.

From working as a vet nurse we routinely do dentals on very old dogs (14+), I can only recall one instance where we stopped anaesthetic due to the dogs health issues. The anaesthetics we use are quite amazing in how quick the dog can recover especially with coupled with IV fluids. In all cases, the owner commented how they had a different dog after the procedure. Yes there are risks but if her teeth are causing issues a dental is the best option and will give immediate relief. She most likely needs extractions and there are no products on the market that will help with that.. once you have done the dental then the gels/diets can help you maintain the teeth.

Don't waste anymore time or money (where you may even have a wrong diagnosis) seek a specialist opinion. As mentioned we have a few in VIC and they are good and deal with this stuff every day. They have much more diagnostic equipment and should be able to provide you with some answers. After 6 months of treatment I hope your vet would have suggested this, eyes do need prompt treatment.

Malacetic otic is $40 for 450ml ...I'm told dermcare is working on an ear cleaner...you can use malaseb diluted but I wouldn't use too often...

ask the vet to do a skin scraping and check for demodex mites. Otherwise allergies is possibility.

I've found them a bit inconsistent, sometimes dry sometimes full of blood. I only feed the chicken or the beef. I swapped from Dr Bs to Big Dog as I had quite a few patties that were off once defrosted... once switching I haven't had that issue.

Its good fun, I think I shall see you there don't be nervous! The first time you will just be in a small undercover area and its just to see how much interest your dog has in sheep. Don't be worried if they show no interest first go as you will get a couple tries and even then sometimes it takes some a bit longer apparently!

Thanks for information everyone, I have a 9 month old who had brilliant recalls but has now started the 'I can't hear you' routine so will definitely try some of these techniques.

I use white vinegar, or... as much as I don't like it but for really smelly things fabric softener does always take care of it and they do smell nice for some time afterwards.

Call clinics and ask if you can get a C2i vaccination only. (Canine Cough) It should be possible for them to just vaccinate her with that component as it comes in a separate vial than a C3. You could also get the intranasal vaccine for canine cough which will give her protection faster.

You are all enablers... lol Scout is getting some fantastic Christmas presents this year... I can't believe the prices I've been paying for toys when I could have got them from Clean Run! Looking forward to some DVDs and books as well.

At the clinic I'm at we generally leave the front ones unless they are very floppy... when done as an older dog the recovery time can be lengthy and it is painful. Rear dew claws we do commonly. In practice we see more injuries with the rears than the fronts.

You can ask or a case number if you want to keep following it up they are generally happy to give you updates but best to call if you want one! I've only reported a couple of times and both cases resulted in ongoing investigation/monitoring. I'm glad that these dogs will hopefully be clipped and feel much more comfortable!

Noses can take awhile to heal.. not much point putting anything on it cause he'll just lick it off!

Yup we see bone injuries fairly reguarly at work....also bones wedged between both jaws and a couple of dogs who have died from chicken frames. Why many vets dont recommend raw bones....we say only feed them under supervision

There's a few things...he may be allergic to sutures or may need additional pain relief....another vet may be a good idea.

Yep. Basically vets contact NDN themselves and agree to provide services for those prices. The client contacts NDN provides them their details and receive a voucher which they can then use to look up a vet near them that is with the NDN. We have referred a lot of clients to NDN and haven't heard of any who have been rejected - most low income clients of ours do have either a pension or healthcare card.

National Desexing Network prices- Cats: Female $90 Male $ 65 Dogs: Female $170 Male $125 Pension or healthcare card needed - vets do not receive any funding through NDN they are just discounting to enable these clients to desex their pets. Keysborough shelter also offers cheap desexing - http://www.aaps.org.au/vetclinic/vetclinic.html Also a point is.... cheaper desexing is generally cheaper for a reason. They don't include fluids, they are done on a large scale, cheaper materials may be used, less monitoring (just simply due to the larger number of animals).

I would wait until you get the results from autopsy...if it is parvo then you will need to go through a lot of cleaning - you will need to invest in some veterinary disinfectant and go over everything! Your yard won't be safe for your puppies either. Importantly, read up on parvovirus. Never underestimate the importance of quarantine of a new pup if you are interested in breeding. It could be a number of other things - even a few vomits over a 12 hour period can kill a pup especially once its coupled with diarrhea, they can't handle that level of dehydration. The worm burden, a bacterial infection, giardia - there are a lot of possibilities. A respiratory infection would not cause vomiting or diarrhea.

Poor little guy! From the sounds I think ultrasound would be the best option for you... there is risk that the testicle (if it is in there) is not functioning and then a blood test may not be altogether reliable either. You would need someone who is very experienced at ultrasound so I would think it would be worthwhile to speak to a specialist. I can understand them stopping - we had one that took an hour to find and fortunately he was stable under GA... there is a point where you have to stop!

^ Yep vets use all sorts of different methods from prevent the dead space from filling up again. Current clinic I'm at uses buttons We've only had a couple cases in the time I've been there that healed okay without surgery but in both cases the ear was deformed.