Muttaburra

Not much to add to all of that has been written. If he is dragging his belly across kikyu then that will aggravate the rash and cause allergies of its own. I have had good results with 1% cortisone creme, available from chemists, you have to ask because it is kept behind the counter, Ego brand is the most gentle. Apply it to the rash, gently massaging it into the skin. Do this for 3 days then stop. After that use when the rash appears, but for no longer than 3 days at a time. It's good because it stops the "cycle" of itching. He also might have a flea allergy, with affected dogs, it only takes one bite, then it sets off the whole generalised allergy thing again. Definitely no wool or lanolin base cremes. Another one to watch for is Plumbago, that pretty hedge with sky blue flowers, extremely allergenic. Another nice one to use is Paw Paw ointment, but since it is plant based, use on a trial skin patch first, its good for the "underarms".

Dogsong, you won't believe this!!! Here is my work from last night, I wasn't going to put it up because there are a couple of unresolved areas in it, but it's so similar to yours! :D amazing! Hesapandabear, he looks great against that green grass background! It was hard to find grass like that during the drought. Dragondrums, looking forward to seeing your version.

Oops, my bad He's stunning. Actually I love Shelites they are on my list of dogs to own one day. :D Gaylek's suggestion was also very good, and yet another approach would be to select the dog with the magnetic "lassoo" tool, Invert that selection then apply various filters to neutralize the background by darkening or blurring. Always a hassel with high contrast subjects like a black and white dog! I have big problems with Maxi's face, him being a Tri-colour, and even more so now he is going grey in the muzzle. Whenever possible you can save yourself a lot of grief by trying to get portrait subjects against a good background whenever possible. For a black and white dog that would be something in the mid-tones like a mid-grey or mid-blue. In order to get a camera to take a portrait photo of a subject in focus and background blurred, (shallow "depth of field) providing you have good lighting etc, you set Aperture (f stop) fairly wide, something below 4 is good, allow the speed to go on automatic (it should anyway, see your manual). This is provided the subject is keeping fairly still and roughly the same distance from the camera if there is movement.

Just added a finishing touch, used the Dodge tool to bring a highlight out in the R eye of the right hand dog!

If you google "free photoshop plugins" frames you will find plenty. I have a quick way of doing borders, very lazy. I just use the square "select" tool and make a square roughly inside the width of the border I want then I "Invert Selection" and use the brightness/contrast filter to make it dark. But you could experiment with some of the filters and try emboss, smudge, plastic wrap or charcoal etc.

Okay, it took me about 1 minute to do the following. Using the Magic Wand tool "Shift Select" - hold down the shift key on the keyboard. I selected as much of the Red Jack and the handler as I could without accidentally catching the collies body. I then used the Clone tool, took my sample holding down the Alt Tab from the blue sheet background and cloned across to the selected area. The reason for selecting an area first is that it helps to confine the cloning action in hard to negotiate areas. Here is your picture back, maybe you could try to finish the rest.

Prophylaxis There are several strategies to prevent echinococcosis, most of which involve disruption of the parasite's life cycle. For instance, feeding raw offal to work dogs is a key point of infection in a farm environment and is strongly discouraged. Also, basic hygiene practices such as thoroughly cooking food and vigorous hand washing before meals can prevent the eggs entering the human digestive tract. Regular "worming" of farm dogs with the drug praziquantel also helps kill the tapeworm. By employing such simple practices, hydatids have been virtually eliminated in New Zealand, where it was once very common. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydatid_cyst

Athena GSD Does that mean the presence of microfilae would not be detected by this method? I thought the problem was with adminsitering heartworm prevention to a dog that had microfilae was that it caused the microfilae to migrate to the lungs or heart? Can anyone clarify further please?

What about Plumbago (hedges)? Certainly prednil in the short term will calm the reaction down. You can also buy 1% cortisone creme at the chemist and try that (you have to ask for it), if you put it on for a couple of days, as soon as the rash appears this can make a big difference. Also check between the toes for Fungal infections, there will be a black sooty appearance and redness. You could try Listerine if there is fungal infections between the toes, (as long as there is not too much broken skin.) Make sure his feet are dried before bedtime. Fungal infections can transfer from the feet to the dogs ears, gums and mouth. You also need to watch out for secondary staphlococcus infections, if you are getting the blistering and pustules then the scabbing. Can you show some close-up photos of the affected areas?

The Airedale and Wire Haired Fox Terrier are also stripped for show so you might find the technique much the same. Is there a groomer in the area that knows how to do it?

The warning is given because of the possibility of the dog ingesting Hydatid Tapeworm cysts, the Hydatid completes part of it's lifecycle in the dog then the eggs are excreted in the dogs stools and can get in the dogs fur, so when humans pat the dog then ingest the eggs, they can go on to form cysts in the human. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydatid_cyst Here you can see a diagram of the life cycle of the Hydatid. They have been known to lodge in vital organs of humans including the brain. Here is an Hydatid cyst taken from a human.

It looks more than impacted, it seems to be too far back and it's base area intruding into the root areas of the other teeth, the canine tooth part does look like it has "developed" quite well. There is possibly an abcess above the point of the canine, or at least some inflammation. My advice would be to see a canine dental specialist, since some of the nearby teeth may need to be removed too.

That sounds excellent, do they fall off dead and stay dead?

'Livatone Liver Tonic Powder' by Dr Sandra Cabot Think I might get some of that for meself! Good luck with your doggie HeartandSoul!

Before considering surgery try adding some pumpkin to the diet (gentle roughage) and some olive oil (1 teaspoon per kilogram of dogs weight) or similar 3 times per week. Also add some fish oil caps. Does your dog get chicken necks or other raw meaty bones? - these would be beneficial provided they get the oils and the roughage as well. I really think diet plays a big part, some diets can block them up, and others not allow enough pressure for them to release naturally. Also I have heard there can be negative effects from continually expressing them (although I understand if there is an existing problem this may be the only remedy at the time). Hopefully a try of a different diet might help.

I think the key here is complete removal of every trace of scent of urine. On TV shows I have seen them use a hand-held Ultra Violet lamp to locate where the marks are. Some commercial products are available to help eradicate all scent, also you can sprinkle with bicarb soda, then pour on vinegar and it fizzes the matter to the surface, this can be repeated.

My biggest goof is to not take the lens cap off, this happens with my Nikon Coolpix 4500 because a lot of the time I don't use the screen, it's a bit small and dark, so if you look through the viewfinder, it doesn't tell you the lens cap is on? In the olden days, my biggest goof was forgetting to advance the film (with box cameras and some other early styles) and I would end up with double exposures. Another goof was to set the film ISO to the wrong setting or leave it on the previous setting. :D

We always had fresh squishy white bread with our fish and were told the reason was that if you ever swallowed fish bone then eating plenty of doughy bread would wrap around the fish bone.

Yes, being inland it might not be such a hot spot for ticks. But with all the recent rains and a mild summer, Paralysis ticks love humidity and mild weather, best to err on the side of caution. Also with people and animals traveling into the site, ticks can be carried in with them. Even with treatment, the most important thing is to check daily for the presence of ticks that can start pit the size of a sesame seed or up to and over the size of yellow split pea. Check the entire dog, every nook and cranny and between the toes, especially around ears, neck, shoulder and under the tail.

You could also try baked pumpkin, it has a bit of sweetness to it and lots of fibre.

One thing to be very careful about is that toothpaste products, designed for human use, can contain Xlylitol which is pretty toxic to dogs. Hortfurball, doesn't seem like you have too many options, would be good to find a vet that focuses on dental work. One thing I have tried with Gracie - her teeth were full of tartar when I got her at 3yo, - bones cured nearly all of it except for the canines which she just doesn't use enough. I got a calcium tablet and used that to rub on any coated area of the tooth (not the healthy area), but I don't think that would remove tartar. Have you tried a paste made with baking soda (bicarbonate of soda)?

So sorry for your loss. RIP Choppa Chop

Hopenfix Could that stuff be getting in there from the outside when (if) he does those hard white poos that dogs do after eating bones.If so I would still recommend increasing the oil in his diet.

You could try increasing the oil content of the dog's diet, try him with some oily sardines or makerel (tinned). Do this after he has had his meal. Also not sure what type is recommended but there may some oils you can give him a couple of dessertspoons full regularly.

Sas, I read somewhere that Zinc toxicity can build up in dogs? http://www.dogicuts.com/index_files/toxic.htm