Dagmar

Is he drinking and urinating more than usual? Can come together with an increased appetite and weight loss. Sometimes one notices a sweet smell to the breath. If so, have him checked out for Keto-acidosis. It is important that this is detected early.

It depends on the body weight and of course the condition it is for (in cancer you can increase the dose considerably). A general dose for Vit C is 100 mg per 10 lbs of body weight once daily.

Could it be that she got incontinent? Just a little bit dripping out at times and she tries to lick it away? My dog did that as she got incontinent and it took me a while to figure out what that licking was about.

If he was my dog, I would try a combination of acupuncture/acupressure and Australian Bush Flower Essences (ABFE). I used the ABFE in one of my dogs as she got incontinent instead of the hormones and her incontinence stopped.

Could just be a bladder infection. Both dogs? Do they wee normally or are they straining? If straining, go to the vet asap, could be stones. If not, you can collect some urine in a sterile container and either check it yourself (indicator sticks from the pharmacy, ask the pharmacist which ones you would need for detecting bladder infection, they know) or hand it over to the vet's office. This way you save the money for a consultation. Of course as always, if you are concerned, please go to the vet and have them checked through. Dagmar

My boy had 2 x C5's as a pup and got it bad under 5 months of age, the old renbury KC the people that have rescued dogs and pups will know what I am talking about. I visited a breeder 2 weeks ago and haven't been around any other dogs, now he has green snot and a hack... I must have bought it home on clothes. This is the 3rd time he has had it, and he is 3 years old. Has also had C5's yearly. So no vac this year, because he is going to get it regardless of vaccination. The C5 doesn't work and is a total waste of money. It is a waste of money IMO and KC just runs its course.

Hi Rat, I haven't found any good websites for dogs yet, a very good book which also mentions the thermal qualities of food would be "Four Paws Five Directions" by Cheryl Schwartz. Hope that helps! Dagmar

Good idea to take her to the vet. Hopefully it is nothing bad. If you can, take a stool sample with you, then the vet can check it out. Sometimes worms get resistant to conventional wormers, that is the reason I am only using food grade diatomaceous earth for worming. All the best! Dagmar PS: keep us updated!

Great reply! I couldn't agree more. I even assume the Manuka Honey will take care of any bacterial infection, if there was one. Dagmar

A very good idea to make the switch and prepare your own dog food! This is IMO the only way to know what you are feeding. As for any food changes, do it gradually. Adding a bit raw to his normal food for a few days, then increase the amount of raw and reduce the amount of his usual food until you can feed him completely raw (or maybe cooked). Remember that all veggies need to be pulped, the digestive system of a dog cannot break open the cells otherwise. Regarding allergies, what else has been done, when did they start, is there a time of the day or year when it is worse, what are the symptoms? If he was my dog, I would NOT start with chicken, better choose another meat protein to start with. Cheers, Dagmar Yeah I dont like feeding him much chicken, as a pup chicken necks made his tummy run and he threw up loads so I try stick to beef and roo, roo bones seem to really agree with him, he has never been sick on them. Lamb makes him fart heaps :D With his allergies they are worse morning and evening and at certain parks/places you can seem them starting, the area around his eyes will swell a bit and he will scratch and lick his body. Change of seasons are the worst time for his allergies and if its raining he hardly scratches at all! When I took him to the vet he got shampoo's, conditioners, anti-histamines and cortisone, I am giving him the anti-histamine only at the moment. I add fish oil to his diet, around 4 or 5 caps a day. He was on Braur Hayfever relief instead of the anti-histamine but they did not stop him scratching. I assume you checked him for fleas? I have to ask as they are the main cause for allergies. Personally I am not a friend of anti-histamines and cortisone. Was that Allergy Relief from Brauer? Good that he gets fish oil. Is he allergic to dairy, do you know? The reason I was a bit uneasy with chicken is that chicken is according to TCM a warming food and it seems your dog is suffering from a heat condition, so you want to give him cooling or neutral food. Good that he is doing well on roo, definitely free range and a very lean meat. Can he have beef? Beef, beef liver (once a week), rabbit and sardines are neutral. Duck and pork (thoroughly cooked) are cooling animal proteins. Together with veggies like broccoli, spinach and/or carrots he should feel already a bit better soon. Avoid foods like lamb, chicken and salmon as they also are warming foods and can cause flatulence in his case. A good idea would probably, to add vitamin C + E to his diet as well as probiotics and digestive enzymes. I am sure, he would benefit from acupressure. To clean all toxins out of his system I would detox him with a special combo of Australian Bush Flower Essences. All the best! Dagmar Hi Dagmar, yes he has been thoroughly checked for flea's by the vet and by us, but I must say here in WA I have never ever seen a flea. I hate giving my dog any drugs, I am not a fan of them at all, if I could get his itching and licking under control without the anti-histamines I would stop them for sure! The Brauer tablets were the Hayfever relief, these are the ones I was told to get by the naturopath I saw awhile back. I have the name of a vet who does acupuncture ( i know you mentioned acupressure) and I am going to try get him to her for some treatment. I could also ask the naturopaths at our local store for the Bush flower essences to detox him? Edited to say that i am not sure if he is allergic to diary, I used to give him yoghurt and thats all the dairy he has had. He is also on probiotics and seems fine with beef. I am the same, I only use drugs, if absolutely necessary. I deal a lot with dogs and allergies with good results (and no anti-histamines). Acupuncture is the same as acupressure, just with needles, the results are the same. Can the naturopath mix you a certain combo? You could try the Purifying Essence, but if that is detoxing too fast (can happen in some dogs and I did not do a full assessment for your dog) I would use a different mix. If he is fine with yoghurt, he should not have an allergy to dairy. If he was my dog, I would also try the Budwig diet and see, if he gets better: http://animalconnection.com.au/index.php/t...udwig-diet.html Please remember that it is quite often a combination of many things, which helps getting rid of allergies. E.g. supplements, vitamins, nutrition, filtered (!) water, emotional, stress-reduction, acupressure/acupuncture, Kinesiology, Australian Bush Flower Essences, etc. Dagmar

Jenifer, Are you 100% sure, it is SRM? I am asking as this usually occurs in puppies. It is very hard to diagnose, usually with a CSF analysis. Does your dog have a fever? What are his symptoms? Dagmar

A very good idea to make the switch and prepare your own dog food! This is IMO the only way to know what you are feeding. As for any food changes, do it gradually. Adding a bit raw to his normal food for a few days, then increase the amount of raw and reduce the amount of his usual food until you can feed him completely raw (or maybe cooked). Remember that all veggies need to be pulped, the digestive system of a dog cannot break open the cells otherwise. Regarding allergies, what else has been done, when did they start, is there a time of the day or year when it is worse, what are the symptoms? If he was my dog, I would NOT start with chicken, better choose another meat protein to start with. Cheers, Dagmar Yeah I dont like feeding him much chicken, as a pup chicken necks made his tummy run and he threw up loads so I try stick to beef and roo, roo bones seem to really agree with him, he has never been sick on them. Lamb makes him fart heaps :D With his allergies they are worse morning and evening and at certain parks/places you can seem them starting, the area around his eyes will swell a bit and he will scratch and lick his body. Change of seasons are the worst time for his allergies and if its raining he hardly scratches at all! When I took him to the vet he got shampoo's, conditioners, anti-histamines and cortisone, I am giving him the anti-histamine only at the moment. I add fish oil to his diet, around 4 or 5 caps a day. He was on Braur Hayfever relief instead of the anti-histamine but they did not stop him scratching. I assume you checked him for fleas? I have to ask as they are the main cause for allergies. Personally I am not a friend of anti-histamines and cortisone. Was that Allergy Relief from Brauer? Good that he gets fish oil. Is he allergic to dairy, do you know? The reason I was a bit uneasy with chicken is that chicken is according to TCM a warming food and it seems your dog is suffering from a heat condition, so you want to give him cooling or neutral food. Good that he is doing well on roo, definitely free range and a very lean meat. Can he have beef? Beef, beef liver (once a week), rabbit and sardines are neutral. Duck and pork (thoroughly cooked) are cooling animal proteins. Together with veggies like broccoli, spinach and/or carrots he should feel already a bit better soon. Avoid foods like lamb, chicken and salmon as they also are warming foods and can cause flatulence in his case. A good idea would probably, to add vitamin C + E to his diet as well as probiotics and digestive enzymes. I am sure, he would benefit from acupressure. To clean all toxins out of his system I would detox him with a special combo of Australian Bush Flower Essences. All the best! Dagmar

A very good idea to make the switch and prepare your own dog food! This is IMO the only way to know what you are feeding. As for any food changes, do it gradually. Adding a bit raw to his normal food for a few days, then increase the amount of raw and reduce the amount of his usual food until you can feed him completely raw (or maybe cooked). Remember that all veggies need to be pulped, the digestive system of a dog cannot break open the cells otherwise. Regarding allergies, what else has been done, when did they start, is there a time of the day or year when it is worse, what are the symptoms? If he was my dog, I would NOT start with chicken, better choose another meat protein to start with. Cheers, Dagmar

Dagmar to answer your question I guess that was what I thought would be the best way to give them everything they need in the way of nutrition. I would consider not feeding dry food however my lifestyle is very busy with long hours at work & would not have the time to create anything, what do your do that is not dry food? Does wet food control the amount of dog wast like dry food can do?It doesn't take me too long to prepare my dogs' food and I do not feed dry food at all. I buy meat (bulk) and veggies, cut the meat, pulp the veggies and freeze everything in portions. Every day I thaw something, add the supplements my dogs need and feed. Very simple, no preservatives, by-products, etc. and my dogs love it! Dagmar

Thanks Dagmar. Something still puzzles me though, and it's making me think that perhaps I'm not imagining this 'tick removing technique' as it should be. And perhaps I'm taking your "dizzy" comment too literally when it is not meant to be. I'm picturing a tick which obviously has its head/mouth buried into the dog. With the technique, how would the tick get "dizzy"? What I mean is, regardless of whether the tick really does get dizzy or not, it's making me think that the technique twirls the tick right around (over and over), yet from the earlier description, I was thinking it is more like drawing circles on the ticks body with your finger. Hope I'm making sense. Need a YouTube example . I really should record it and place on YouTube! Sorry, my dogs do not have a tick at the moment. I think I should not have mentioned the 'dizzy' part, I just had to laugh about your comment about the tick having gone into ecstasy! You were absolutely right, it is more like the earlier description, drawing circles on the ticks body with the finger. Sorry for the confusion.

My puppy is still young and I am not sure how to make a perfect home-made BARF. When he is all grown and missing a bit of nutrition here and there does not matter that much, BARF will be my choice because I heard many good things about it. Ok, I understand. You could also use dry and wet food. Alternatively you could ask an experienced pet nutritionist for a balanced puppy home made diet.

LOL - I remember well from my last visit in Tassie!

Thanks for that. My question was actually more, if you would consider feeding anything else than dry food?

Just a quick question - why do you want to feed your dogs dry food at all?

I do NOT hold the tick between my fingers and rotate it, I just put my index finger down on the ticks body and apply very gentle pressure, no squeezing, only as much pressure as necessary to move the ticks body. Then I move my finger in a clockwise or anti-clockwise direction (you can choose) and keep moving, just making little circles. After a while the tick just pops out and tries to walk away. Have to check, if it is walking in a straight line next time... I recommended this technique to many of my clients and one lady recently had to use it as she found a fully engorged tick on her dog in the middle of nowhere. She was so glad to know about that simple technique as she did not have any tools with her. It worked perfectly well and the dog was fine afterwards.

That's interesting, Dagmar. Although we don't suffer the tick problem as others in warmer/tropical climates than ours, stuff like this is good to know. I just would like to clarify by asking a couple of questions on the 'tick removing technique' if you happen to know? How much pressure do you need to apply when rubbing your finger in a circular motion against the tick's body? What is it that causes the tick to fall off as a result of this technique? I'm imagining a very relaxed and happy tick who has gone into ecstasy for the massage it has just received . Not being smart here, just interested. Also, for those who do need to perform the daily "tick check" ritual - how much time would you spend checking before you'd be satisfied that you've properly looked and checked all over - for example on a medium size dog (labrador or some such) ? Very good questions! Ok, even if I also do animal massage I am not very much into tick massage I found out by accident and it works every time as long as the tick is big enough, does not work very well with tiny nymphs, probably because one cannot move them enough. Regarding the pressure, I am using only as much pressure as is necessary to move the ticks body, I do not want to press down too hard and squeeze the tick, otherwise the tick might have to release its toxin. Why the ticks eventually just let go, I do not know. I assume they get a bit dizzy? Or they might think that is not such a good spot, better lets have a look for a quieter location. The ritual of checking my dogs takes me maybe 3-5 minutes in total for 2 boxers, my dogs just drop down and roll on their back when I need to check their undersides. Being short haired dogs, it is probably a bit quicker than for long haired dogs. Once they are used to it, it should really not take too long. I would reckon probably max 5 minutes for a large long haired dog? I am using a head torch to look into their ears, this way I have my hands free.

I am so relieved! Wow - that was really a very strange looking haematoma, never heard of such one. Thank god all is good! Dagmar

Well, flax seeds should be stored in a cool, dark, dry place. Many people choose to store them in the fridge to be on the safe side. Especially here in Australia I believe it is a good idea. Dagmar

Here is what I got from Prof Budwigs studies: http://animalconnection.com.au/index.php/t...udwig-diet.html It is good, isn't it? I always prepare some for myself as well I buy a 250 mg container and prepare the whole lot, the dogs get their share and I will have all the rest! It is tricky with the seeds, you won't know when they are off, better buy from your local health food store, they should have them in the fridge. With the oil it is easier, the taste will be bitter when rancid. Let me know how you are going with the Budwig mix, I think you should see improvement in the fur within about 10 days (nice side effect) Dagmar

Brigitte, Yes, unfortunately here are many ticks and every year lots of dogs unfortunately die due to tick bites. I personally do not like to use the conventional tick prevention and they say they are not 100% safe anyway and I know many people who used it and their dogs still got ticks, you still have to search your dog. I have a ritual, every day before my dogs get their dinner, it is tick searching time. Believe me, they are very co-operative as they know the faster I can check them, the sooner they get their food! :-) Important is to check the whole body, including inside of the ears, in between the toes, etc. I discover more ticks by touch than by seeing them. Usually a paralysis tick has to be attached to the body for at least 24 hours before it is said to release its toxin (some say 48 hours, I just play it safe here). So a daily routine should be sufficient. There is an easy way to remove ticks, even if you do not have any tools (when hiking, etc.), it removes the whole tick still alive: http://animalconnection.com.au/index.php/t...ove-a-tick.html Dagmar