**Super_Dogs**

That is a great idea. I am hesitant with the nail clippers, as there are still so little. I tried with a nail file and it was not very succesful.

Pretty sure they are called nail clippers - I know what you mean though!!

I also have 3 dogs, 2 labs and a rotty, and pay $82 per months with Medibank (this is after my discount as I have my health insurance with them). I have the silver cover, which is claims up to $12K per year. I pay a $200 excess then get 100% refund. So when they pay me they just take the $200 off. This $200 is per accident or illness - not per treatment. This is good if you need mutiple treatments or vet visits. I would say an excess works better, especially for the large vet bills like yours.

That is a awesome picture :D She is very cute.

Thanks :D

The clippers?

My puppies are now 10 days old and there nails are getting very scratchy. I have read the best way to trim them is to use a nail file. Is using a nail file best? Any technique suggestions?

This has sparked me to review my policy, so I have just done some homework you may be interested in. Bow Wow Meow, Medibank and PIA are all cost about the same per dog and the plans are also almost identical. For illness and accident cover PIA annual benefit limit is 15K instead of 12K with Mebibank and Bow Wow (Bow Wow also have a 8K option for cheaper monthly fees). If you are already a Medibank Health insurance customer you get a further 10% discount- so this makes it the cheapest option for me. They do all have different multi dog discounts (which makes a difference to me with 4 dogs). Medibank is 5% discount per additional pet, Bow Wow is 10% and PIA starts at 5% per pet up to 15%. One thing I like about medibank is you pay the excess per accident or injury - not per treatment. So if you have to go to the vet multiple times for the same accident or injury, you only pay the excess once. I am not sure if the other are the same. I also checked Pet Plan and it is more expensive. However there policies have public liability where the others do not so I am guessing you are paying extra for this.

I am definetly for pet insurance. I took it out as I never want to be faced with a decision about vet care based on money. We have had great value with my youngest dog - a lab. The most recent incident was getting into a large amount of chocolate! I am with Medibank. As I have my health insurance with them I get a discount - which made the policy cheaper than others. I also like that you can choose your excess and 100% refund (just minus excess). I have had no problems with there service.

Hi, I can speak from experience. I have a Rotty, who when she was young was also very protective and would not let other dogs near me. She is now 8 and I have another 2 dogs which I have raised and trained since them. When I look back - alot of this behaviour was my fault. I was not firm enough with her - she thought she was my leader. GSD like Rotty's need a strong leader. I have to agree with the others - do not sit on the ground in the dog park. Your dog will feel she has to protect you. Another suggestion which is what I did with my girl is to make her work for any attention. There are a few simply things you can do. Make her come to you for a pat, don't ever go to her. Before you pat her make work, for example my girl always has to be sitting calmly before he gets any attention. The other thing I do is punish her when she is too aggressive. So at home, if she is too aggressive with one of my other dogs she get put outside on her own. If I was at the dogs park I would pack up and leave as soon as she is aggressive with other dogs. Remember when you let them get away with it you are reinforcing the behaviour. I hope this helps.

About time! I cannot believe it has taken this long and so many complaints My mum also ordered something early January and is still waiting. Looks like she should give up waiting. Lucky her order was only about $80.

Floor tiles is a great idea

Thanks everyone for your advice. Unfortunetley it was cleft palate and the little baby was PTS Friday. Was very sad but I know for the best.

Thanks so much for your ideas. The babies will be very grateful tomorrow. I love the sox idea!

In Brisbane tomorrow it is going to be a hot one. I have 8 Labrador puppies that are 6 days old and no air conditioning. I have a ceiling fan on and a pedestal fan on going over the top of the whelping box (not directly on the puppies). I have also been putting a damp towel down. This has been enough for the last few days but I don't think this will be enough it any hotter. Any other suggestions?

I am not sure why this was not picked up. I am very glad I picked this up before she kep loosing more weight and was rejected and isolated. Mum is doing great and so are the rest of the pups. I did not have one puppy that was not gaining much weight for the first 48 hours (not loosing though) and he has gained 50g in the last 12 hours and is now feeding great and holding his own with th bigger pups. He was the last puppy, so is just catching up. I have checked the rest of the puppies for cleft palate and no signs. They are all gaining weight consistently so luckily it seems it is just the one.

She is very little. So that makes sense.

I just spoke to vet and I am taking her in for a check in a few hours. He recommends if she has it not to persist. However he was telling me that usually they have the split in roof of mount (I know this is not the technical term) and also a lip/gum defect. However I can not see any problems with her lips or gums. The vet said he has not seen one without the other before. Has anyone had this before?

I just checked myself - I am pretty sure she has cleft palate. I am sure there are levels of severity and I don't know if this makes any difference. I would love to save her, but it will be hard to do 2 hourly feeds and maintain my day job. Also I could not go through loosing her after a trying longer. I have called the vet so will see what he says.

Thanks for your advice. I am supplementing her with Boilac. I am alittle concerned as I just weighed her and she has lost a few grams. I know it is only a few grams but I have given her 4 feeds in the last 15 hours. In addition to this she is feeding from mum (not sure how succesfully though). I would have thought she would have at least have remained stable. All the other puppies look plump, especially after feeding - she does not. The vet is calling me back, so I will see what he says.

Tuesday afternoon we welcomed 9 babies labradors. It was very exciting. The puppies are now about 2.5 days old. There was 2 puppies alittle smaller than the rest - about 100g from the biggest few and 50g from the rest - so not a massive weight different. However one of these puppies is not gaining weight. The first 24 hours she dropped weight and by 36 hours she dropped more. I contacted me vet and he suggested I start supplementing which I started last night. Last night when I weighed the puppies the smallest (the one who has lost weight) was 344g, the next smalled (the other small puppy) is 440g. Most puppies are 530g and the the biggest is 610g. I don't think the puppy loosing weight is sick as she does move to mum and feed. But she is not as vigorous as the others feeding - she is still feeding like she is just born - and she falls to sleep on the job. Do you have any other suggestions I can try in addition to supplement feeding? How long before I should see a weight gain? Do these pups normally come good and catch up to the others? Thanks for your advice!