littlesquashyguys

Hi everyone, My puppy hasn't even been born yet - she's due in two weeks. She will be a black Labrador (blacks are my favourite). Does anyone know of any good dog name websites? I love Texan cowgirl and southern belle names like Emmylou, Scarlet and Clementine...are three syllable names too long?

Wow! That is clever! I'm going to take this on. What a great way to live life - peacefully. Thanks very much!

I had a vet nurse tell me one of my dogs was the ugliest dog she had ever seen.....in hind sight I wish I had of said something nasty back. My dog was a Pug and I thought she was gorgeous. I never went back, but I wish I had of made a formal complaint she was just so horrible to people, and wasn't much better with animals. BF What a shocking and horrible thing to say about your beloved baby. How dare she. Some people are so twisted and nasty. I would have been devastated if someone had said that about my Pug. Don't be too hard on yourself for not saying anything. You were probably in a state of shock. It has happened to me many times.

Ugh! One of my pet peeves! I go to a groomer who is like that and she is sooo patronising. I'm going to start looking for someone else. She has airs about herself because she's also a vet nurse - you know, the kind who see themselves as on a par with a vet? I wouldn't go to most vets for advice about my dog. She told me recently that my Pug has a "domineering personality". How ridiculous! He is supposed to have a strong, determined personality because he is a Pug...and at the groomer's/vet's he is a polite, submissive little flea! I'm glad you told her where to go. ETA: my Pug has a strong personality as in vivacious, larger than life, multum en parvo (or however you say it). Hope that makes sense.

I think some people aren't psychologically suitable as Pit breed owners...just like some people shouldn't join the armed forces or own a gun. I think there are three types of people who are attracted to Pit breeds: 1. People with an inferiority complex who feel the need to dominate other people. 2. People who are genuinely naive and aren't aware of the immense power behind the breed, ie. they think their American Staffordshire Terrier is a Staffordshire Bull Terrier. "Snuffles, why are you taking off that man's leg?" 3. People who admire and respect a Pit breeds' awesome power, see it as a thing of beauty, are psychologically balanced people, and are highly experienced dog owners who know how to handle their dog...and, most importantly, are committed to improving the breed. ETA: some people shouldn't own a pet at all!

I have received an email response from David Jack, President of Diamond Pet Foods (who make Taste of the Wild). He said that Taste of the Wild will be available in Australia in early 2012. Yay!

Here's a link to a website called Dog Food Scoop.com. It contains a list of low protein dog food brands. http://www.dogfoodscoop.com

You could ring the manufacturer and ask them what's in it. LOL typical Lab! How hilarious! Seriously though, I hope he's okay. You could also give him some Vitamin C powder, dissolved in water, to flush it out of his system.

My Pug is great with other dogs, he comes when called, and walks close by me off-lead. My vet said he will be able to exercise normally once he has recovered from his surgery. I can ask the vet (and the surgeon) about Agility in particular. I don't exercise him in weather above 19 C, which could limit us. At the moment, he is 500g overweight but he is now on a diet and that will soon change. Also, I should have mentioned earlier - I'm looking at buying a Schipperke early next year. If Grover isn't suitable for Agility, I could always try it out with my Schipperke. I would prefer a black Schip. I'm wondering if they are sensitive to heat. They seem to have such dense coats. Perhaps, I should consider a cream one for Agility?

Hi, I have some questions about Agility for my Pug who is four-and-a-half. I'm taking him to obedience classes soon...once he has recovered from surgery to shorten his palate. He has only been to puppy classes. How long does it usually take to reach the level where you can do Agility? Is it possible to do Agility 'just for fun', without being competitive or serious? And is the Agility scene bitchy like the show scene? I think he would get a real kick out of it. He loves to zoom around like Speedy Gonzales and he is superfast!

For those of you who are interested, here's a link to Proctor & Gamble's statement on Animal Testing. Proctor & Gamble own Innova, Evo, Iams and Eukanuba (I'm not sure what else). http://www.pg.com/en_US/sustainability/point_of_view/animal_welfare.shtml Or just type in PG.com Animal Welfare & Alternatives. It sounds like P&G are saying "only 1% of our research is done by testing on animals, and we are thinking about stopping it one day, so that makes it all okay".

Hi Panzer Attack!, I just found a website called Dog Food Scoop.com. Their reviews aren't guided by a preference for grain-free, like the Dog Food Analysis.com website, and they don't sound harsh. Here's the link: http://www.dogfoodscoop.com/best-dog-foods-ranked.html Interestingly, they rate Eagle Pack Holistic Select as a Top Ten food, but not Canidae (I'm going to take another look to check out why). Hope this helps : )

I think it's okay, in some situations, to use certain human medications on dogs. I flush my Pugs' eyes out with Bausch & Lomb Saline Solution, followed by Viscotears eye drops, every day. I used to do it 3 times a week...but now that we live near the beach (and we go every day), I do it every day. Viscotears was recommended to me by a Veterinary Opthalmologist. Was your dog diagnosed with Dry Eye? I don't mean to sound patronising, but how do you know? It could be a number of things. With my Pug, I don't muck about with eye stuff; I take him straight to the vet. The Saline and Viscotears are part of his daily grooming routine. I don't consider them a substitute for appropriate veterinary medication and advice.

Good thinking, poodlefan! Howard is a great name for a poodle. I don't even know him but he sounds hilarious already.

I love Retrievers, too. Black Labs are my favourite. So sweet and shrewd at the same time.

That is good news, Tilly : )

No worries, ruthless. Your doggies are gorgeous!

I give Grover a chicken wing on the weekends, and lean lamb bones (as well as dry food, of course) during the week. For more than 2 years I fed him completely raw. I think it gave him a great start to life, and it's the reason why he's so healthy. I'm not going to go in to the raw vs. kibble debate on here. I think you have to feed your dog what works best for the both of you. And right now I'm happy with kibble and raw meaty bones...and the occasional healthy titbits. I've stopped giving Grover supermarket treats because at one stage he was 12.5 kilos! 11 kilos is his ideal weight because he's a large Arnie Schwarzenegger type Pug LOL. He's now 11.5 kilos - just 500 grams to go : ) I'm sorry I didn't mean to sound judgmental , I just meant that yes I feed canidae but I don't have experience with using it as 100% of my dog's diet. By the way I love the name Grover for a Pug! Hi PennyGB, No, you didn't sound judgemental at all : ) I thought I'd let people know that I'm not interested in talking about the raw vs. kibble thing (but if other people want to then go for it). I'm sorry if I gave you the impression that I was directing that part of my post at you. It gets a bit confusing with all the quotes!

Thanks for offering to help : ) I've come to the conclusion that I'm not one of those people who subscribe (abscribe? What's the word?) to the theory behind a raw food diet, or believe that my dog SHOULD and MUST be fed raw...and I'm finding it quite freeing, actually! (I'm not at all implying that you're one of them) Some raw food supporters are so preachy and fanatical. They're like reformed ex-smokers or Born Again Christians. It's a real turn-off. I know just the kind you mean I was recently using a small quantity of cheese as a treat and someone told me (in a disgusted/shocked voice) 'You can't use cheese... a dog wouldn't find cheese in the forest' ... Luckily the person is a friend and I understand they are deeply committed to RAW or else I would have told them where to go! I am of the mentality unless I ask someone for advice or someone asks me for advice I keep my opinions to myself LOL cheese in the forest! What a pisser! I was at a dinner party recently and we were talking about our dogs. I told them how I had made scrambled eggs and salmon for Grover, for dinner, which I do occasionally as a special treat. One guy turned to me and said, real deadpan, "You can't feed a dog cooked eggs. That is incorrect".

Thanks very much for the info, Tilly : )

Great I have just started feeding Innova. I can't quite work out what the law suit is about - this is what I found: "unless the food is manufactured in a facility certified for human food manufacturing, it is illegal to make the human-grade/quality claim on a pet food package or collateral processed of a pet food manufactured in a pet food/animal feed plant. Unless the manufacturer is making the food in a human food facility, the claim human-grade is misleading, false and fraudulent. It’s not just a matter of the type of manufacturing facility, but that the laws governing human food manufacturing are vastly different from the laws pertaining to pet food and animal feed." I interpret that as meaning that the food may be OK but the facility where it was manufactured is the problem I know, how disappointing! I think, in these cases, the pet food companies are ordered by the court to: a) manufacture the pet food in a human grade plant or b) stop advertising the pet food as human grade. It sounds like Natura Pet (the company who own Innova and Evo) have done the latter. Perhaps, you could contact the Dog Food Analysis people about Innova? They have reviews of Innova and Evo on their website, but they were done before this lawsuit. How important is it to you, to buy a pet food that is human grade (and from an ethical company)? The idea of non human grade dog food sounds disgusting, like it's full of horses' lips and arseholes...but most dogs eat the stuff and they don't drop dead from it. I would be more concerned if the lawsuit was for poisoning. Apparently, Canidae had a lawsuit against them for poisoning 2 years ago. I'm going to ask my Canidae rep about it, very diplomatically! As the review was done before the lawsuit and the lawsuit does not allege that the food has changed or challenge the description of the ingredients I guess the review would stand - if that makes sense? I guess I would expect that the ingredients be human grade for the more expensive kibble and given the fact that I would not buy "pet grade" meat at the supermarket I agree. What you are saying makes sense.

I saw some dogs left in 4 different cars today, which prompted me to write this post... On the way home from the vet's the other day, I stopped at the butcher to buy Grover's meat and bones. Because it was cold and raining, I left him in the car (with 2 windows rolled down). I wasn't gone long but I still felt very guilty! While I'd never do it on even a mildly warm day...I think it's okay to leave them in the car for very short periods of time on freezing cold days. I've heard that it's now illegal to leave a dog in a car, for any length of time, under any circumstances. Is this true? I've been meaning to ask the RSPCA about it. Does anyone know?

Great I have just started feeding Innova. I can't quite work out what the law suit is about - this is what I found: "unless the food is manufactured in a facility certified for human food manufacturing, it is illegal to make the human-grade/quality claim on a pet food package or collateral processed of a pet food manufactured in a pet food/animal feed plant. Unless the manufacturer is making the food in a human food facility, the claim human-grade is misleading, false and fraudulent. It’s not just a matter of the type of manufacturing facility, but that the laws governing human food manufacturing are vastly different from the laws pertaining to pet food and animal feed." I interpret that as meaning that the food may be OK but the facility where it was manufactured is the problem I know, how disappointing! I think, in these cases, the pet food companies are ordered by the court to: a) manufacture the pet food in a human grade plant or b) stop advertising the pet food as human grade. It sounds like Natura Pet (the company who own Innova and Evo) have done the latter. Perhaps, you could contact the Dog Food Analysis people about Innova? They have reviews of Innova and Evo on their website, but they were done before this lawsuit. How important is it to you, to buy a pet food that is human grade (and from an ethical company)? The idea of non human grade dog food sounds disgusting, like it's full of horses' lips and arseholes...but most dogs eat the stuff and they don't drop dead from it. I would be more concerned if the lawsuit was for poisoning. Apparently, Canidae had a lawsuit against them for poisoning 2 years ago. I'm going to ask my Canidae rep about it, very diplomatically!

I've occasionally had people in the street walk up to me and ask me if my Pug is a Pitbull! A few weeks ago, while we were at the beach, a group of kids ran up to him, screaming and shouting Pitbull! Pitbull! What chance have the poor Pitbulls got, when most people don't even know what one looks like?

Thanks for offering to help : ) I've come to the conclusion that I'm not one of those people who subscribe (abscribe? What's the word?) to the theory behind a raw food diet, or believe that my dog SHOULD and MUST be fed raw...and I'm finding it quite freeing, actually! (I'm not at all implying that you're one of them) Some raw food supporters are so preachy and fanatical. They're like reformed ex-smokers or Born Again Christians. It's a real turn-off.