abooody

Other than the dark coming on I don't really know. There aren't any bats around, there are always cats around but he doesn't bark non-stop at them during the day, he doesn't bark at humans...it's quite a mystery. It may be a matter of training him over the weekend when we are at home as darkness falls, and scold him when he barks and reward him when he is quite.

Yes, crate him indoors at night. Sorry - should have been clearer. He stops barking as soon as my wife or I get home from work. He only barks during the period from when it gets dark to when we get home (generally between 30mins-1 hour).

My wife and I own a 2 year old staffy called Buster. During the day when we are both at work, Buster has the backyard to play in and also a doggy door through which he can access the rear part of our house. Our neighbour mentioned tonight that once darkness falls, Buster stands in the backyard barking. He often stops when they pop their heads over the fence and have a chat to him, but otherwise he will bark. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what we can do to stop him barking at night? We usually get home from work around 6-6.30.

Looks like Buster will be home for good tonight! He's kept all his food down over the past 24 hours and is looking much improved. The vets are very happy wtih his progress. There's still no official diagnosis, but we are waiting for various test results to come in. Thanks for all of your support!

Poor litte man indeed! I can't offer any advice unfortunately but I'm sure the vets will be able to help you out. Lots of pats and treats required in my view!!!

Hi all, Unfortunately, this weekend has proven to be very challenging for poor little Buster. We ended up swapping vets on Friday night as we were not satisfied with the treatment Buster was receiving and he seemed to be going down hill rapidly. The final straw was when my partner rang up to find out if they were going to put him on a drip (as he had not kept anything down for 3 days) and was told that they had tried but "he didn't like it". An old friend is a vet and we immediately took him to see her. She was extremely worried and sent him straight off to the Animal Emergency Centre. He has now been there since Friday night. After many tests and continued vomiting they decided to operate yesterday. The good news is that there was no foreign object, the bad news is that they still have no idea what the problem is. Essentially, the stomach has not been emptying itself and there has been a build up of gas and acids causing the intestines and stomach to swell. They have taken biopsies of the stomach and a few other areas. We thought he was improving today, but we received a call tonight to advise that he had started vomiting again. Apparently the issue is that the main exit out of the stomach is thickening, preventing food to flow through. I am clearly not a vet, so this has a more technical name, but you get the drift. So, he is more comfortable and hydrated, but we are in no better position than before. They have suggested that we will need to see a gastro specialist for dogs. We are also now liaising with our new vet, who seems to be much better. Needless to say it has been a very stressful weekend, although we are happy with the care that he is receiving. Hopefully he has a night without vomiting and he can either come home tomorrow or at least go to our local vet for care. We are also thanking our lucky stars we took out vet insurance!!!! It is a mystery, any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for the well wishes

I literally just got off the phone to my partner (I'm still at work unfortunately) who has picked up Buster from the vets. At this stage: (a) X-rays have revealed that there appears to be a small piece of bone stuck near or in his stomach; (b) he is slightly constipated; and © there is inflamation of the wall of his stomach. They've given him various drugs and liquids to try and wash everything through and the vet is hopeful that this will work. He's going back in tomorrow for further x-rays to see whether the bone has been dislodged. If not, then we are going to have a look at other options. My partner said that the vet she spoke to at the clinic was very young and really had to be pushed to provide thorough information (i.e. could we attempt to feed him tonight etc) which does not fill me with confidence. Apparently the heaad vet will be in the clinic tomorrow though so hopefully he gets a look at Buster. I must say, the past couple of visits to the vet have left me thinking I might look at changing the clinic we attend. Apparently this one (which we've previously been happy with) is under new management so this could well be the problem. On a brighter note, Buster was EXTREMELY popular with the clinic staff and despite his ailments remained cheerful. He's a real bloody soldier is Buster. I couldn't recommend Staffys more highly to be honest. So I guess we again play the waiting game although at this stage, it sounds like some more serious ailments have been ruled out thankfully. Thanks for all your support/concern as well. My partner and I have become extremely attached to Buster in a short period of time and we've been extremely worried over the past few days.

Just out of interest, how long can dogs go for without food? From what I can tell Buster hasn't kept down any food for the past 24 hours, although he has drunk plenty of water without any adverse consequences, so he'll be sitting at the vet's clinic feeling very hungry at the moment. Still no word back from the vet at this stage.

His stock food is a dry food. I think the brand is Purina. But he also gets vegetables, rice, raw egg, big bones to chew on and scraps from the dinner table where appropriate. Over the past 10 days he's thrown up after eating any food. There is a possibility he could have swallowed a bit of plastic off one of his toys, or something else he has found playing in the back yard or house. He generally has free reign of both while my partner and I are at work. Haven't heard anything yet from the vet. Hopefully the little man is going well. He's such a cheerful dog that it's quite upsetting to see him unwell.

Hi, My 10 month old staffy has been vomiting on and off for the past ten days. The first time he vomited there was blood in the vomit. About fifteen minutes after he vomits he is back to his playful self again and full of energy. We took him to the vet about a week ago and they put him on a course of antibiotics and something to settle his stomach. It doesn't appear to have worked though as he is still vomiting after he eats (about an hour after generally). We took him to the vet again tonight and he's going back tomorrow for x-rays and blood tests if the x-rays are inconclusive. He's lost about 1 kilogram over the past week and he is looking a bit skinny, but all the other signs are good. He's got plenty of energy, his coat is shiny, he doesn't have a temperature and he wasn't demonstrating any signs of pain when the vet was poking and prodding him. I guess things should be a bit clearer tomorrow but in the mean time, does anyone have any ideas on what could be the matter? Thanks.