Salukifan

In my opinion? No. I raise my dogs on a combination of raw meaty bones and kibble and none seem to have digestive issues. How would food alter the PH of the stomach acid?? The stomach produces acid for each meal.

What's the fat content of the BARF patty? Do you always feed the same kind of patty or do you mix them around? One of my dogs will throw up after fatty foods like lamb. Sounds to me like an all raw diet doesn't suit one of your dogs. I'd be listening to what he's telling you and sticking to the diet with kibble added. No point in feeding a diet that your dog doesn't do well on.

Ok in moderation but I don't feed it. Who really knows what "moderation" is and its hardly necessary.

I am a Dremmel convert. I use the sandpaper sanding belts to do my dogs' nails. They are quite cheap and easy to change over.

Yeah? He'd have to catch him first :laugh: Had a very dominant SBT rush up to my dogs when I was out walking them. I let Howard offlead (we were on an oval). He ran the SBT ragged. :)

This. I also ask breeders within the particular group if I don't know someone who breeds that breed personally. I started a thread some time back about how to find the right pup. I see if I can find it. ETA: Here it is

Tralee, forgive me for sounding harsh but... "adequate care"... "not my dog". You can do better than that. If the dog is in your care, then it deserves the best you can give it and that means as good or better than your own dogs. At the risk of sounding impolite, I think the secret to really good veterinary care is often an informed and assertive owner. I suggest that you probably need to be a bit more demanding of vets and have a clear idea when you walk in of the outcome you want. Get it sorted today and start over with a new vet. I really don't understand why you'd darken the doorstep of any vet you have no confidence in if there are alternatives.

Stop making excuses for his behaviour and get tough. Now!! He's been biting for 2 months? It's now ingrained behaviour and you'll need to give him some aversives to break the habit. He needs to learn some self control. If he bites use the 'press on the mouth' technique or grab the muzzle and apply pressure. What formal training have you done with him? He needs to learn that he cannot behave like a pork chop when he's offlead around people. Get a trainer in or take yourself off to training before he becomes any bigger. Sorry if I sound a bit harsh but you need to get on top of this. GSP's can be hard headed buggers - he needs to learn that no means no and a water spray isn't cutting it.

How far did they walk her? Most breeders of pups would recommend no onlead walking for quite some months yet. ETA: All you'd need to do to break a pup's leg is tread on it.

That was the cost for the initial anaesthetic, X-rays, recovery injection and consultation. Well, you WON'T be doubling up on most of that then. Seriously, spend the cash and get the dog some pain relief ASAP.

I tried to get some pain killers from another Vet. They consulted the original Vet surgery by phone and would not administer a prescription drug without seeing the dog themselves. I was a bit reluctant to double up on the $360 consult. No vet in their right mind would prescribe for a dog without seeing it. Why on earth would it cost $360 for an ordinary consult??

Yep, unfortunately. I think they've had a fair go. We have a number of Vets here. The trick is going to be finding one who is not too close and personal with this current 'monster' I think the priority needs to be on getting some medication for this dog. Issues relating to association with your current vet can be put aside for the time being.

A 'mongrel' is a randomly bred dog. There is nothing random about breeding good working dogs. It involves careful selection, knowledge of pedigree and line breeding to establish type. That's precisely the process that gave us dog breeds in the first place. I'd say there's a snowballs chance in hell of identifying the genes that make a good working dog. And that's because genes don't account for environment and training.

Agree. Let something else become flavour of the month! A very experienced mentor of mine told me that is is the popularity of the breed that has contributed to it's detriment. Cockers, Poodles, Afghans, Irish Setters, Dalmations... they've all been through the popularity curse and survived.

Oh well, no one's holding a gun to anyone's head to buy one. If they fall from favour as pets, and return to being a fancier's dog, it can only be for the betterment of the breed. The profit breeders will desert it in droves. My friend has a CKCS with his ET.. difficult to imagine how such a walking congenital disaster area could trot 20km and pass four vet checks, but there you go. :)

Jumabaar: Such is the nature of carnivores - they move or they die. Cats hide pain even better than dogs. Pain in an animal like a horse (a herbivore) is far more obvious - they becme depressed. They know how vulnerable they are.

Liar liar pants on fire. :laugh: The manner in which litters are acquired before they are vaccinated and split across several stores in a franchise, then allowed to be handled by the public contributes to the problem.

Popularity is the curse of ANY breed. You'll never see worse specimens of dogs that when the 'breed for profit' brigade latch onto a new fad. The SBT is the latest example. It's hard to reconcile what you can buy from the Trading Post as the same breed as a decently bred dog. They're shite, they have temperament, health and conformation issues and a lot of buyers are getting gipped and/or not doing right by the breed and its reputation is suffering as a result. Many breeds have survived the process and I'm sure the CKCS will be no different.

I think what needs to be remembered is that CKCS are an immensely popular breed. You can buy them in pet shops, from the Trading Post, from 'breeders' who'll mate any male to any female and won't health test a single animal. Then they are over fed and under exercised by a lot of owners. I think it's a tragedy that such a clever, active little spaniel gets turned into an obese couch potato by so many people. You want to see a good CKCS? Go to an agility trial. I know CKCS competitors who get told constantly their dogs "are nothing like my nanna's Cav". There is a local breeder/agility competitor of CKCS here and I'd have one of her dogs like a shot. She also puts show titles on them.

The Vet said nothing other than discussing the X-ray. At this stage I would have thought there is some atrophy of the muscle. That should not be a concern, as he will be immobilised for 12 weeks after surgery. Apparently the injury is a common occurrence in working dogs, according to the specialist, and Zuess sustained the injury jumping. (ouch) I'd leave the sling off. You're restricting the movement of more than the leg if you have it tied around his body. If the injury was created by trauma, then a chiropractic visit might be worthwhile after the surgery.

What did the vet say about leaving the leg unsupported? I'd be worried about creating muscle wastage by immobilising the leg. How was the injury caused?

Thanks How should I proceed then? The dislocation doesn't appear to be painful unless he walks on it. I keep it in a sling during his rare walks. Would it be necessary to have a Vet examination for something else before or after the surgery to his right front leg? Have you ever had a dislocation? They hurt like buggery ALL the time until its fixed. Muscles and ligaments are stretched and torn. Dogs are stoic buggers but my guess is that he is experiencing residual pain. What would be interesting is to see if pain killers changed his demeanour. He sounds depressed and pain can do that. Thanks Haredown Whippets :) Dogs are indeed stoic. I didn't decide on painkillers as I elected to keep him off his foot by restricting it in a sling. His morale is quite good. If he is suffering in silence, as you suggest, it might explain his very docile temperament. I might get him some pain killers, and watch him on those. Thanks again. If the foot is hurting him, he'll get about on 3 legs. What happens when you take the sling off?

I know quite a few CKCS without health issues. Where did you get the impression the breed might be "too far gone"?

How sad... they only kill knees. :laugh:

Thanks How should I proceed then? The dislocation doesn't appear to be painful unless he walks on it. I keep it in a sling during his rare walks. Would it be necessary to have a Vet examination for something else before or after the surgery to his right front leg? Have you ever had a dislocation? They hurt like buggery ALL the time until its fixed. Muscles and ligaments are stretched and torn. Dogs are stoic buggers but my guess is that he is experiencing residual pain. What would be interesting is to see if pain killers changed his demeanour. He sounds depressed and pain can do that.