soothie

No further surgery at this time. The vet said to keep a close eye and if a lump reoccurs then he will go in again and cut further. I have to watch his wait as he also had a torn ACL last year but he is hungry all the time. How long did you wait between surgeries? I found your post encouraging, thank you. I need my boy so I hope the long term prognosis is a good one,

Hi, Having done some research over the past few days, I need to focus on a kibble that is LOW in Fat due to Colitis/IBD. This has been and on/off issue for many years. I have recently ditched Holistic Select Anchovy etc for digestive after many years after finding out reports of high toxicity. to add to this turmoil, my boy has just had a 1st grade soft tissue sarcoma removed with minimal margins Kibble has to be low in carbs and sugar. It really means that I need to supplement his diet with some good foods with out high fat. I recently switched to Canidae Grain Free Pure Meadow with Chicken just a day before the tumour was removed. Thinking to also buy Omega 3 bottled after reading post cancer diet but am a little worried about the IBD Looking forward to any expert advise. Cheers

How did Spud's surgery go? I have a similiar issue and unsure what to do. Charlie, 8yo JR x so his is bigger (11kg). There has been a small improvement in the past few days. Tomorrow we go in for assessment and x-ray. I just don't know how to deal with caging him after surgery as he will be home alone 10 hours a day while I am at work. I can't take any time off at the moment. I am so torn what is best for my boy My older dog is also suffering from lack of exercise as the only form we get is a visit for 20 mins to the park daily with Charlie on lead sniffing around and usually only using 3 legs. Really don't know what is best here. The thought of caging him alone for 10 hours a day seems worse

I think we've come out very lucky with this one. He's been fine since the event but I took him to the vet this morning. All good, nothing wrong with the knee cap or ligaments. May have just done a twist/sprain. The front foot toe is all good too but abit sore and swollen. Fortunately, not his weight bearing toe. The vet indicated it was a dislocation and didn't say I did the wrong thing putting it back in so I suppose what I did was fine. A week of short walks on a leash has been prescribed so hopefully by next weekend, we will be roaming the parks again. Thanks for the advice. :)

Back leg apears all good now. He does pull up funny on the back leg sometimes after a hard run at the ball. He doesn't know how to go at half pace. It's all full on for him. JR x Staffy I will try to keep him away from running for the next few days. Fingers crossed all will be good. He is a super active boy. It will be very difficult to keep him at walking pace for a few days.

Hi This may seem like a silly question but something odd happened in the park this evening. My furboy was running after the ball and came to a twisting halt and limped badly back to me. I thought that he had done something bad to his back leg as he was jogging back with the leg lifted. He has done this a few times over the years. I was shocked to see the front foot though causing him a problem as well. It appeared the outside toe was twisted/bent out or dislocated. Out of instinct (I don't know what i was thinking), I reached down and clicked it back into position without any sense of pain from my boy. He was keep to go play again but I thought better and put his lead back on and brought him home. I have to work tomorrow but can take him to the vet Saturday if needed. I am keeping him contained inside the room for now to make sure he rests. I am curious to find out whether this sounds like a dislocation or simply a sprain? He is a very active boy and has on many times torn his dew claw away when playing. Calling the vet for information isn't an option at the moment as they always insist that I bring him in. He is all good for the moment and will be monitored. Cheers :)

How did you go with the new vet? I've heard wonderful things about the Maroondah Vets and their pricing (http://mvol.com.au/maroondahvet.aspx). I haven't gone there myself as I had just moved to a new vet (Croydon Vet Clinic) when everyone else moved to Maroondah Vet due to their reasonable costs. I am very happy at Croydon Vet Clinic, especially with the female vets but may move on when I have to for financial reasons.

The best options that i have come across for my sensitive tummy boy is Grain-Free fish based kibble - Holisitic Select, Earthborn and Canidea are the three best ones. Recently, I have started to add cooked brown rice to his evening meal as I found that he went the other way with the grain-free dry food and gets constipated. Adding probiotics powder to his food has made a great difference as well.

The dewclaw was able to be removed with a local today The vet doesn't think he has an infection but some form of allergy flare up in the area as well. He has had an antibiotic injection as a precaution. He had lots of bleeding after the nail removal so is all bandaged up for a few hours. Sadly, he has to wear the Elizabethan collar for a couple of days to stop the licking. Not sure how that will work tomorrow but at least I am home today so can keep an eye on him. He is really feeling sorry for himself now. Thanks for all the advice to everyone :)

I've noticed this morning that his paw beds on that foot have become quite swollen so I'm not sure if this is a sign of infection. He was licking at it a few times overnight which until now it hasn't disturbed his sleep. I will goto the vet first appointment available to be sure but it may come down to having this removed by GA but they may not be able to fit that in today

I don't think it would be possible to trim the nail now as touching and pressure would likely cause pain otherwise he is happy to run until it snags on something. The vet definately said it would only take 3 mins under GA so its only to remove the nail and advised the local wouldn't be enough this time as its still hanging in tough. I am still torn, not sure what to do. I have my other boy going in later this month for his first Teeth cleaning and he is a big boy so will cost a bit. Its been 5 days, can I hold on for another week and see if it goes on its own or to the point it only requires a local?

The nail isn't going anywhere It is longer that the one pictured. I can't clip myself so take them up every few months. I'll have to do it more often with this boy. He was happy to run and play last night and this morning for a few minutes in the park and must have hurt it again as he stopped wanting to run. I've soaked the foot in warm water and salt to clean the area daily. Decision day today, either he goes in first thing tomorrow or I wait it out another week until the following weekend which would be my next chance to take him to the vet for GA (Finally worked out what GA means!). This happened last Tuesday. He has only started to lick the area the past 2 days. The vet said once he starts licking it should fall away pretty soon after that. He is happy to walk, trot and happy otherwise.

I only know it is bent/twisted and this is the same spot dew claw that was removed a few months ago. There was a tiny bit of blood. Last time it was easily removed with a local and this time it isn't He has just had his annual check up and all is good, including teeth so nothing needs to be done. I have thought about letting him chase balls and see what happens but he started to limp abit on a back leg that plays up sometimes. I think this is because he may be shifting his weight compensating for the front foot. I might keep his walks on the low side for another day or two and then start with the balls again and see what happens. I worry this will not sort itself naturally I will wait a few more days and hope it sorts itself. Thanks for the info :)

Hi, My 8yo JR X Staffy has twisted his dew claw on the front foot. Vet says it can't be removed easily and requires surgery but it may also just fall off in a few days. He advised it isn't serious so give it a few days. I'm torn about what is the best way to proceed for my boy. Do I unnecessarily put him through surgery or do I wait patiently for a week or two to resolve itself? He is starting to show some signs of discomfort now when he catches it but is still happy to walk and trot in the park and eat his favourite foods. Not running so much now though. Does anyone have experience with this situation and can advise? Cheers :)

I've been using Holistic Select Anchovy for 3 years on my skin and tummy sensitive boy and he has done very well on it but the poor boy is getting bored so I would like to get an alternate bag/brand to mix things up. I order from Pookinuk online with $5.00 delivery so much cheaper than dealing with Megapet Warehouse that never seem to stock the brands that I want I'm thinking of trying Earthborn Holistic Coastal Catch (grainfree) or Canidae Salmon (grainfree). I would like to hear from anyone that has tried these?

Thank you all for the replies! I feel better now that I am doing the right thing :) I spent alot of time researching each dogs needs 3 years ago and feel good about their diet. Next visit to the vet, I will note more about what foods they have. I don't always see the same vet (this one is my least favourite) at the practice but he is the only one that seems to push their food. All he said was that these foods are very expensive and not everthing from the US is good. I told him one of the brands I use is Australian (Natural Choise) :) He didn't respond to that.

Hi, I want to do the right thing by my dogs as much as I can with their diets. They seem to be thriving on their food which they have been on for 3 years. One is fed Artemis (teeny elderly fella), another is feed Holistic Select Salmon (active boy with digestive issues but thrives on this) and another Nutro plus Canidea (has been on a weightloss program for the past 2 years and doing great). So my vet is trying to convince me that all these foods are crap and super expensive and the only good foods are the ones the vet supplies, ie Science Diet and Advance. Who do I believe? A vet who is supposed to be an expert or all the research that I have accumlated on the net from forums such as these and web sites that rate the foods and contents? My reaseach indicates the dry food such as Science Diet is no better if not worse and even more pricey. Am I deluding myself that I am doing the right thing with my choices? I would really appreciate your feedback and your experience in this matter. Thanks in advance :)

Helping a friend, desperate to find their boy. If you live in the area please help if you can by talking to business and vets etc to help find Rocky. If I can obtain a flyer, I will add this so it can be printed. Rocky's theft has been reported to the police. HELP US BRING ROCKY HOME PLEASE STOLEN! Disappeared from Blindcreek Rd Cardigan/Windermere (Ballarat Vic) area on Sat 7th of Sept, pure bred male staffy 6yr old micro-chipped, extremely friendly if you have seen my devastated sons best mate or know of his whereabouts, please inbox Anne or contact 0400 093 364 REWARD OFFERED https://www.facebook.com/amj93

My 5yo Jack Russel/Staffy X has had very bad stomach issues too since I've had him from 2yo. He isn't perfect but his life changed amazingly when I switched him to Holistic Select Anchovy. I also add probiotic powder to his food at the same time so it maybe a combination. I sometimes add Fish Oil and Yoghurt to his food as generally this helps through problem periods. He isn't perfect, in fact he is struggling alittle this week, eating loads of grass and a nasty vomit but I find adding the Fish Oil and Yoghurt will help settle things down again. He also has a bad habit of wolfing his food down so I would like to get one of those special bowls.

I like the look of Cottage Kennels, but my old boy can't walk on tiles anymore so I've put carpet pieces throughout the house. Although cottage kennels looks interesting, it's all tiled He would have to go to the shared pavillion to keep the costs as low as possible for a 4-5 week period. My other active dog will be going with a friends dog to shared care at Animal Aid Boarding Kennels. I feel their extra excerise programs will be good for the active boy. I wasn't happy with the last time at Homestead. Good for a short stay but that's all. I will also be following up recommendations from the vet. It's so hard to leave them when they are at this age and not feel incredible guilt.

Thankyou everyone for your suggestions. I am still pondering .......... I May ask my vet for recommendations too. Jellyblush, if all goes well with your sitter, please PM details just incase I decide to proceed with this. I am still not keen on having a stranger in my home though Cheers :D

I hadn't considered that. It's a good suggestion. I wouldn't feel comfortable at all with a stranger in my home unfortunately. I would consider it though if the person was recommended by someone I trusted. cant see that happening though which is why I am in this dilemma.

Hi, I don't know that there is answer to my question but I have to ask. My little old teeny weeny mini jack russell/fox/ cross who weighs about 5.5kg and is about 12yo has very bad, wobbly back legs and can't do steps anymore. He has a ramp for the patio and a small doggie door to get in/out as needed although he struggles with that alittle as well. He also has alittle incontinence so not a pleasure to deal with, poor bub just can't get out fast enough. Other than that, he is a very happy and hungry little fella that sleeps most of the day and enjoys a 30 minute waddle to the park every day :D He still bosses the big dogs around too! My dilemma is that I am probably going away for 4 weeks in 12 months time, something very important for family reasons that can not be put off. I don't think that I can put him in his regular kennel with the other dogs. I feel that he needs to be cared for in someone's home that doesn't mind having to cleanup after him alittle but I doubt I can find a carer that does that and would also have a ramp for him to use. I am based around Wantirna, Victoria. Does anyone have any suggestions, recommendations for specialty care/carer while I am away?

So very sad for Lennox It's obvious that Belfast City Council have something big to hide. Denying the family to say goodbye to the pet, denying his body for burial, denying the collar and they may get some ashes in the mail speaks volumes! Poor Lennox died from mistreatment and abuse by the Belfast council some time ago and have already destroyed the body and the collar. I hope there will be an investigation and the truth will come out. They should be charged for cruelty having Lennox locked up for two years! There is so much to read out there, videos and pictures and now expert assessments showing how wrong and even worse, dishonest the Belfast City Council are. I hope this helps BSL to be changed here in Victoria too. There were was a promising story on The Project tonight with Dr Chris Brown that there is some movement towards changing the definitions of this law.

fantastic news!