tdierikx

I managed to build this pen that keeps my pet foxes securely contained... and it's been inspected and passed as secure... not really that hard... took me about 4 days on my own... ... and foxes are MUCH better escape artists than dogs! T.

Poor boys... fun spoiled by smarty pants ducks! T.

If she was indeed a declared dangerous dog, he would have had to have an escape-proof run for her to be in... problem solved... Rangers are pretty hand-tied with catching unrestrained dogs... apparently the OHS crap is so crippling that they won't actually catch a dog up unless it's completely unavoidable. My council rangers won't come out unless the member of public calling has already contained the dog for them... go figure! T.

Getting personal isn't going to sway anyone to your point of view Willem... we've been here before, remember? Personally, I'd only feed roadkill if I managed to get a very fresh one, and then froze it for a good 2 months prior to feeding out... and I have pet foxes whose digestive systems are designed to eat manky things... *grin*... but they get nice fresh meat that I drive a fair distance to get especially for them... spoiled buggers they are! T.

The dog's owners sound completely clueless... but at least they may be able to pay up if the stupid dog does bite someone... *evil grin* Seriously... who lets their dog run loose with tradies coming and going? I will contain mine even when I have visitors that aren't completely dog mad... T.

He's a white wombat... but a very handsome wombat... *grin* T.

Roos and wallabies can have coccidia... not a pleasant thing for your dog to get... I'd freeze it longer... T.

I'd just be a little leery of what parasites the roadkill may be carrying... I hope you are freezing for an extended period before feeding to your dog - to kill off any parasites. One of my workplaces breeds mice and rats for feeding reptiles and birds of prey, and we have to freeze them for at least 42 days before they can be thawed and fed out... and we know our rodents are parasite free! T.

Humping and nipping is dominant behaviour... make no mistake about it. The poor kid needs the dog to look at him as a friend, not as a victim to bully... and as it's not his dog, his options are pretty bloody limited. He needs to either ask for the dog to be kept somewhere where it's not being a PIA, or he has to make himself a less interesting bullying target... simple as that. T.

Seriously... do none of the other workers see what's happening here? Surely they could back the poor kid up and let the boss know that the dog is being a nuisance. It's an accident waiting to happen. I like the idea of befriending the dog if there is no way to keep it away from the workers... a nice pigs ear would keep it busy for a short while, and maybe the dog would then look at your son as a source of good things, rather than someone to dominate and potentially bite... T.

All Zeddy had was Meloxicam of an evening before bedtime so that she had less trouble getting up in the mornings... and it was only needed if the overnight temperature was going to drop below 8 degrees... seems that was the magic number that made her stiff... *grin* T.

I actually had a discussion with a vet that does our rescue desexing... he's of the opinion that the new vets coming through seem to only go for the easy options when it comes to the job... and if they can overservice, they are encouraged to do so by the franchises that now seem to own every other vet clinic nowadays... *sigh* T.

OMG... he's a very pretty boy, isn't he? And I think Henry is an awesome name! T.

Awesome outcome... glad to hear she's acting like a normal little ratbag again... lol! T.

Desexing at this stage probably won't stop him peeing on things... he's already learned the habit. You could try putting a belly band on him until he settles in and stops needing to make everything "his"... If you want to desex him for non-behavioural reasons, I'd say that's a good thing... he doesn't need them any more, right? *grin* As for his ear, I'd probably get a vet to have a look and find out exactly what you are dealing with before using anything to try to clear it up... there are different treatments for different issues, remember... I'd probably give it a good clean with a cleaning solution like Oticlean for starters, then go with whatever the vet recommends, depending on whether it's fungal or not. Oh... and we need PICS! T.

that's interesting...the Illawarra is also infested with foxes (more dead foxes on the princess highway than any other wild animal), and considering that the virus is spread by faeces and urine and can survive for months I wonder why there are no cases of infected dogs recorded for the last 10 years. There are quite some farms with working dogs around where the working dogs never see a booster shot... ...would it make sense to collect the fox carcasses and test them for the virus to get a better picture about how the disease is spread over the area / NSW? I'd say that the reason that there aren't any recorded cases would be a combination of mistaken diagnoses (symptoms can be similar to other diseases), and lax reporting by clinics... I know of vet practices that haven't seen Parvo in years... but we know that it is definitely still very active out there... That said, I had a vet misdiagnose a pup with vaccinosis as having Parvo, as his test came back a mild positive - however the pup had been vaccinated only 2 days prior, so of course he would have tested as mild positive for the bloody disease we injected into him... duhh! 2 days on a drip sorted the vaccinosis, and I can tell you now, had it actually been Parvo, he would have been on the drip a lot longer, and been a hell of a lot sicker. I've seen Parvo up close and personal, and it's an ugly disease with usually fatal results in pups. It would possibly make sense to collect at least specimens from fresh fox carcases to see what diseases they may be carrying. I don't know of any such studies though. T.

Molly is busy learning how it's done, while Ash is trying to help by pointing out that there may be another entrance over his side... and poor Pudden gets a face full of dirt... lol! T.

I have seen cases of both, but not in dogs of late... but foxes can transmit them both, and foxes are everywhere... even in suburbia. I'll stick with the C3 thank you, as neither disease is pretty... That said, titre testing is a wise move, but in most cases it can be more expensive than just giving a prophylactic C3 shot... and most average people will go for the cheapest option. T.

I'm certainly not pro giving animals vaccinations every year just in case either... the main reason vets like to recommend it is that they at least see the animal once a year for a general checkup as well. Like I said, my own animals will get puppy C3's and then first adult C3 booster, and preferably nothing after that... unless I have to board anyone, and then I'm forced to go the C5 as the boarding kennels insist on proof of same within 12 months of the boarding dates... *sigh*.. I'd rather sign a waiver saying I'm fine with my dogs getting kennel cough... been there, done that, and it sounds a lot worse than it actually is if the dog is otherwise healthy. T.

I'm of the opinion that "growth" is a combination of factors - height and length and that sort of thing - and then there is filling out and maturing. I would expect this to be over a shorter timespan for the smaller breeds, and takes longer for the larger breeds. I would have thought that at 2 years 9 months, a Cocker would have been fully grown in all respects, but other factors can come into play if the upbringing of said dog is suspect in some way... and now is getting the proper care and maintenance she requires to mature properly. T.

OMG! Totes adorbs!!! T.

Oh - and never worm pups the same day as they get vaccinated... I've seen issues arise from that sort of overload before too... I always do them at least a week apart. T.

steppenwolfstaffords - Willem has a bit of a history of being vehemently anti vaccinations, and thusly has been scouring the internet for information that backs his stance. Some of the 'studies' cited in some of his fave sources are a little bit suspect to say the least... please take what he is saying (albeit rather eloquently for a change) with a grain of salt, OK? Professionally accepted studies do show that usually the C3 vaccination is sufficient to cover a dog for many years against the main 3 killer diseases, and that it should be relatively safe to give same in a course for young pups to ensure uptake during a specific period that the accepted studies have shown pups start to lose the maternal antibodies. Most reactions are seen with C5 and above vaccines given to younger pups/dogs, most likely due to the way they need to be formulated to combine the MLV components for delivery via the vaccination. Personally, I do the puppy schedule of vaccinations and then the first adult booster shot, then don't vaccinate my dogs at all after that - unless any of them need to be boarded, and the kennels instist on the C5 proof of vaccination. I only ever give C3 to pups, and prefer C3 for the adult booster also. The KC component of the C5 only gives coverage for around 6 months anyways, and only covers 2 strains... it seems a bit pointless to me, as an otherwise healthy dog doesn't actually suffer badly from a bout of KC (it sounds a lot worse than it is) - dog knows I've had enough rescue foster pups with KC to know exactly what it entails... *grin* Go with your heart on this issue with this pup, OK? You have years of background experience with the safty of the C3 vaccinations for your litters, so go with that, OK? I don't see why a boarding kennel shouldn't be able to accept a dog that has been vaccinated with C3 within the previous 12 months, and then added just the intra-nasal KC component 2 weeks before boarding - that would give said dog the active coverage that the kennel requires... T.

I think the vet may be right about a brain issue... and the only way to be completely sure is to do the tests. Shaking his head around all the time can't be comfortable for the little guy... get it sorted... and if he needs medication for the rest of his life, then that's what he needs... T.

I had a pup end up on a drip for 2 days after the C5 all-in-one at a young age... I only ever give my pups/dogs a C3 now. Boarding is a bugger because they insist on C5 proof of vaccination or they won't take your pets... grrr! T.