Akay

My dog just passed from osteosarcoma. I read the posts saying amputation is traumatic and takes months of confinement. This was NOT my experience. The day after amputation my dog was up and hopping around, second day he was powering along, 3rd day he came home and on lead led me quickly to the backyard. He used the ramp that was built for a few days then resumed using the steps, by choice. He was so happy to have the painful leg gone and within a week resumed normal activity. At his peak I could walk him 1km on 3 legs. He adjusted to 3 legs so well and I would amputate again. I got 4.5mths extra with him before the osteosarcoma took hold of his lungs. He was still wanting to go for drives and very short walks up until 4 days before putting him to sleep. Orthopaedic surgeons suggested to amputateand I believe this was good advice. He was only 7 and a strong dog with a strong front end and his remaining rear leg was pretty good. He was 39kgs and exceeded expectations with how well he did. I know this post is from2019, but I case anyone was looking through the archives like I just was, I wanted to provide another side to the discussion from my experience.

Cushings usually results in the dog drinking more, so this would cause the dog to want to urinate more. My 13 year old dog that had cushings started peeing in the house when he hadn't peed in the house since a puppy. He just couldn't hold on because he was drinking more.

Dog's enter into fear phases... at 6 months she could be experiencing the situation where something that she was once very comfortable with is now causing her some anxiety. Essentially, for one reason or another the dog is making a choice not to play with the Frisbee - please be ok with that. Looking away is most likely a calming signal, it's causing stress for her to have the Frisbee around. Just let it be and maybe one day she'll choose to play with the Frisbee again - but let her choose, dog's make good choices if we let them :-)

If I was in Melbourne I'd definitely go to Dr Syme, no matter how far I had to travel!

I went through the same issue some time ago. I had a dog with a grade 4/5 heart murmur and I went through with the dental and it turned out fine. If you do go ahead with the dental make sure the vet is very experienced in anaesthetising older dogs and is very careful. There are obvious risks. It depends how long you think the dog has left - if it's a slow progressing heart murmur the dog could have another 2-3 years left and would benefit from having their teeth done. Also be aware that the bacteria from bad teeth can make heart conditions worse. It's a tough choice and I thought about it intensely for a while. In the end I considered what was better for the dog and it was to remove the teeth as I wouldn't think having rotting teeth would be very pleasant.

Nope, you got that wrong. I've seen plenty of problems with dogs eating raw "digestible" bones. Would you care to elaborate on what raw bones aren't "digestible"? I do understand cooked bones aren't digestible, but your choice of the word "or" in the sentence above appears to indicate that there are raw bones that are unable to be digested.

Precisely. The firm faeces apply pressure to the anal gland, helping them express naturally. Fibre can help, but nothing works quite like bone in hardening faeces. I cured my dog's anal gland issues (upon Vet advice)firming with bone, after trying unsuccessfully with increased fibre. A simple search, such as "can feeding bones help with anal gland expression" provides a wealth of information on the topic.

Bones are not fibre and do NOT assist in dealing with anal glands. You are quite simply wrong. Bones firm the faeces up MORE than fibre. I prefer to listen to numerous Vets who have more knowledge than yourself in this area. Do a 6 year degree and then come back to me with knowledge rather than an opinion.

I am pretty sure you would need to ask your vet for a prescription which maybe ok if you visit irregularly but if your vet has diagnosed, treated and saved the lives of your dog(s) for years maybe continue with your own trusted vet and pay the extra. I thought the opposite actually... if you go to the Vet regularly and had built up a relationship that they would be more inclined to write you a script for on-going medication so you could save some money. I don't think a Vet would take be overly enthused if someone they hadn't seen before and asked for a script.

I've learnt a lot about the bone feeding process over the years. Firstly, no weight bearing bones (as someone mentioned above). I used to give my dog turkey legs. He used to get through them, but now in old age, his teeth look good on the surface but are actually just falling out - the vet was really surprised at this. I do think that maybe the size and strength of the bones I gave him caused issues with the roots of the teeth/jaw. Not sure on the mechanics of it but that's my thinking on the matter. Secondly, don't feed too many bones because it can lead to constipation (again I learnt this the hard way) Thirdly, for some reason I've always had bad experience with lamb flaps with the dogs trying to swallow them too early and getting stuck. I have also had issues with chicken carcasses. So it's just being aware of the bones that suit your dog best. Fourthly, always supervise with bones (that they're going to be eating), always. Bones actually scare me a lot because I am aware of the potential problems, from experience and other people's experience. BUT in saying that, I do understand that they are necessary to keep the faeces firm, which particularly helps express anal glands. Now my dog is old with few teeth left (due to them falling out from the jaw rather than rotting), I just feed him chicken necks and I also buy mince that has ground bone in it so he gets the benefits of the firm faeces. If I had my time over again I would feed more appropriate bones to my dog (ie.non weight-bearing bones that are appropriate to his size).

Thanks for that, I just sent them a message. Thank you :-)

I'd love to hear from them. If they want to contact me through here, or pop me an email to [email protected] that would be great! I'm open to any questions that anyone might have.

What dates are you looking at? hi Aussielover, I'm looking at any time from the beginning of next week, for any period.

Thank you, I'll give that a try!

Hi everyone I'm moving to Canberra next week to take up a position with the public service and I was wondering whether anyone needs a house/dog sitter in the near future. I have some short-term accommodation booked for when I arrive, however, I thought it'd be a good opportunity to find a house sit as I'm looking to buy in Canberra and would prefer not to rent as it would only be for a short time and it would be difficult to find a short-term rental. I am neat, tidy, clean, honest and I am a doting dog-lover. I can do walks, give medication, do exercises, take to appointments and be overall very attentive. I have a Cavalier of my own that I would have with me, he's an elderly gentleman.