Jed

I know, KitKat, and there is a difference. If it was one of those foods, or no food, I'd choose a) but reluctantly.

cinniespider She has given you the mince so he doesn't have a change of diet - and recommended adding things once he is settled in his new home. Quite normal and responsible. People underestimate the stress involved in leaving the place where he was born and moving into a whole new environment. Puppies do better if at least the food is the same. The fact that he wont eat anything means he is sick. Also if you continually change his diet, he is very likely to have diarrohea - tiny tummies have difficulty assimilating new foods. I do understand how difficult it is with a new puppy, particularly one which wont eat. I can't understand why people who have a problem wont call the breeder. A decent breeder will understand that pups do get sick, and certainly wont blame you - but she may be able to help you. And more importantly, the pup. Please do phone her. It is highly unlikely it is salmonella. If he had an obstruction, he would have been vomiting, and had diarrohea - and then he would have had no more diarrohea, had a temp, and been vomiting, probably bile. Some vets do fail to recognize obstructions, but the symptoms above are the usual ones. The dog will not eat, and generally will not drink after the first couple of days. However, I doubt that a pup with a full obstruction would still be alive now. He WANTS to eat, but he is not eating because he is sick. I hope your new vet does discover the cause of his problem, and he is returned to you, well and hearty. He looks like a great little boy, by the way.

I'd look further (a) Lamb meal and the next 3 ingredients are rice. No MEAT anywhere. Wouldn't do me (b) the first ingredient is cereals and corn, so I would presume that the food was mostly cereals and corn. What sort of cereals? Sorghum? Triticale? And after that, comes the meat. But, how much meat? A sliver per bag? Are the dogs likely to develop a reaction to the cereals, which might possibly change depending on price per tonne as the season progresses?

I' d definitely be taking him to another vet. If he is hardly eating, he is still sick, and needs more medication/attention to recover. The fact that he is uninterested in food indicates that all is not well. I wouldn't be changing his food too much at the moment, as the change could cause more problems with a digestive system which is already in trouble. If he wont eat at all, you are better force feeding him what the vet recommended, but do get another vet opinion. Cooked chicken and rice might do for the short term, if he will eat it. Pups do get salmonella, but it is not very common, and unless the vet has tested for this, I would be sceptical that salmonella is the cause of the problem, and perhaps further investigations need to be carried out. Once the cause is apparent, specific drugs for the cause can be given. And yes, do contact his breeder. There are plenty of nutrients in meat - the only problem is that the calcium: phosphorus ratio in a meat only diet is not terribly well balanced. However, in the short term the pup will not suffer from this diet. This is why the op should contact the breeder. To find out why chicken mince was the only food recommendation. Perhaps the pup would not eat anything else, which would indicate a problem before he was purchased.

You can safely feed all the egg. The enzymes in the yolk counteract what might otherwise be a biotin problem. You can feed the shells too. Lots of protein, and very good for dogs, in whelp girls and pups. My litters have a few eggs a week for breakfast, and I recommend new owners continue to do this.

This is the tricky bit. It depends on how much maternal immunity she passes to the pups. The same amount may not be passed to all pups. The maternal immunity may cancel the first vac! However, the pup may have received no maternal immunity, so the first vac. is then effective. Then, whether you give 1 or 2 more vaccinations depends on which vaccine you use.

It's quite difficult to get a C3. Vets always say "Have C4, it's the same price" - which is not the point. Often they don't want to get a lot of C3 in for a couple of injections. I would never have anything over C4 done, and object to that too - but there's not much to be done about it.

My vet told me that 99% of dogs licking or worrying their stitches is because they are too tight. Although I have had dogs lick and worry (and pulled them out 3 times), dogs never worry stitches done by this particular vet. Go figure!! Putting Vicks on them sometimes helps, dogs don't like the taste

The problem with annual vaccinations is high enough to be of concern. Some pups die, and quite a few older dogs develop problems following vaccinations. There have been several posters who believed their dogs contracting lymphoma was the result of the vaccinations. You may find the threads in the archives. The AVA protocol, released about 3 years ago, advises that dogs only be vac. every 3 years. There is a fair bit of opinion that puppy vaccinations, combined with a booster at 12 months is sufficient to provide lifetime immunity. Personally, once my dog is over 4 I don't vaccinate annually. My dogs are out and about a bit, and would probably be in contact with parvo, so their resistance would be high. If I vaccinated after this age, I would never have a dog over 6 done. Chances of parvo are reduced in adult dogs anyhow, except for the susceptible breeds (rotties, chihuahuas etc) It is possible to have a titre test done for antibodies (by the vet) and this will indicate what level of protection the dog has. Costs about the same as a vaccination. I also feel that a C3 is probably sufficient, or a C4 at most. C7 provices protection against corona virus, and lepto. Corona should not be a problem in an adult dog - even if he did contract it, he will probably recover. Lepto is basically absent from most places in Aus - from Mackay north it might be a problem. Lepto is only present in moist humid places with high temperatures. Vets have different opinions, and it might be worth asking yours. Well worth it, if you are concerned about vaccinations, reactions, and immunity. Edited for shocking sp

OK from the photo, she is not old enough to be in season. If you lift up her tail - the round ring with the tight hole in the middle is her anus (she does No. 2 from there) If you go from her anus towards her tummy, between her back legs, there is a little pointy bit. She goes No. 1 from there. She bleeds from there is she is in season, or has a problem. Get a tissue and wipe it on the pointy bit. What's on the tissue should be clear or yellow. It may also be possible that she is passing - from her anus - a bit of dark mucousy droppings, which are blood stained, because of worms. If some of this is stuck to her, you might be confused about what and where it is. If she is eating, playing, drinking normally, there is probably not much to worry about.

Bonbon, I think they are telling you they aren't ready for 2 meals a day. At 4 months, I would have them on 3 meals, as Curlyking suggests. Their tummies obviously can't hold enough to get them through. emaas Depending on what you are feeding - give him breakfast - and leave him enough premium dry food for lunch. Then give him dinner when you arrive home. I don't feed much dry food, but when I have a litter of pups, and I have to go to work, I leave dry food in their bowl. They get hungry around lunch time, and eat it. If you leave meat, milk etc. the flies will get into it. Even if you don't mean to feed dry food forever, it's great for lunch if you aren't there.

Hmm, Kitkat, must try the murky stuff - never seen it. Just grab some as I go through the supermarket, on my 5 minute dash!! Thanks for that.

I get it from the supermarket - seems to work ok. Probably a country one would stock it, and perhaps,if not , would order it for you.

Whether the pup has 2 or 3 vaccinations depends on the brand of vaccine used. One manufacturer recommends 3, and the other, 2. I personally think 2 is sufficient. The first one, given at 6 weeks, is given to provide protection in case there was no maternal immunity transferred to the pups. If there is maternal immunity, it overrides the vaccine. There is no easy way of knowing whether the pup has received immunity from the mother. So, the second vac. is given at 10 -12 weeks to provide permanent protection. On the premise that no matter whether there was maternal immunity or not, the second vac. will provide further antibodies, which will then give full protection. And, a third may be given at about 16 weeks. I don't think vac. the pup a few days early will hurt. I've had mine done a week early, or a week late, for convenience, without problems. I also notice that the vac. cert for the pup I had vaccinated recently gives a 4 week date for the next vac. Ie, vaccination at 6 and 10 weeks. Pups which are high risk to contract parvo are often vaccinated at 2 weekly intervals.

ALL pups have worms. That's why they should be wormed every 2 weeks - that helps to break the tycle. Anything stressful - such as a change of home - new sights, smells, can cause them to either pass or vomit worms. I would worm the pup again in a week, and then commence fortnightly worming -- unless the pup looks wormy, which would be ribs showing, big tummy, maybe some diarrohea, gunk in the corners of the eyed.

I think he has already gone to another home, so he wont catch it from the 2 still with Nicole. I don't think parvo recoverees do carry it all their life. Or if they do, they are not contagious. They would show high on a titre test. Vet opinion is that they shed the virus for 2 weeks following recovery, and this has been my experience. In that 2 week period, they can give parvo to others, afterwards, they don't. Nicole, I would worm them both, and put them onto a supplement, depending on what you are feeing them. I personally wouldn't vaccinate them too soon either. They should have huge antibodies to parvo - but if they are not well, you risk them becoming ill from the other viruses they will be injected with. Parvo is the biggest problem - hepatitis and distemper are almost extinct now, so their chances of getting those are minimal. The boy may be off colour because he has worms. Were they wormed regularly prior to contracting parvo? If so, it is less likely they will have worms In theory, the amount of live virus in a vac. is minute, and supposed not to cause problems, but in fact, too many pups have become ill following vaccination for it to be as safe as touted by the manufacturers.

Nicole 76 Depends on her age, and her condition. I would personally not do it for a month or two - just to be sure she was 100% well. I wouldn't have any operations done on any dog which was recovering from a major illness, accident etc. I allow the rescues to settle in, and not be stressed before desexing - I realise that pounds, rescues etc. need to do it immediately, but I don't, so I do it when the dog feels at home. Following recovery, they shed the virus for 2 weeks. I presume both have had parvo? If not, the one who hasn't had it is going to get it!! Try to keep them confined, so the droppings don't spread parvo all over your yard and house. Vet. opinion varies from 2 - 10 years life of parvo virus in the ground. I'd be worried about the poo eating. They may need a general vitamin/mineral supplement, as they may have a deficiency. Did you save them all?

The problem with some diets is that the phosphorous / calcium ratio is unbalanced. Dogs, being omnivores, and pretty tough, will get by for a while, but often problems appear from middle age onwards. Meat only is not a balanced ration. There is a lot of information out there - some of it conflicting, and you really need to do some serious research if you mean to feed a raw diet (whether BARF or not) - if you find something you like, check out the author, check out any other information you can find, and go from there. And, as Hazz says, it is better to read books than go on internet sites. Some of the stuff on net sites isn't worth a pinch of snuff, but it LOOKS ok - specially if you aren't an expert on the subject. If you are getting it wrong, it will probably look right for years! Fruit and vegs need to be put through the processor/juicer to break down the cellulose to allow the dog's digestive system to attack them and get the nutrients from them. If you feed too much fruit/veges, or too much rice or grains, it will become apparent over a period of months, as the dog loses condition. The diets Ian Billinghurst recommends have been tried and tested for years, without any major problems apprearing - so BARF should be pretty safe. But, stick to what he recommends, if you aren't sure.

Mickatie Mine have a raw diet - as in chicken/beef/veges/fruit/eggs/fish/offal/bones, etc. They occasionally have milk - particularly in whelp bitches, and lactating bitches. However, if I am home late, which does happen occasionally, they have dry food, but that would be less than once a week.

The BETTER dry foods are promoted as COMPLETE and BALANCED and they are. I am not talking supermarket food, I am talking the premium dry foods. Feeding a dog a complete and balanced diet when you have to figure out how much of this and how much of that can be difficult. It is too tedious, or too hard. Some people don't have the time or the lifestyle to do it. However, if you buy a good dry food, it comes already complete and balanced, and really, the dog doesn't need anything else. Indeed, if you begin adding a bit of this, and some of that, you run the risk of unbalancing his diet. If you want to, you can give him a bone sometimes, for his teeth and enjoyment. I don't personally feed dry food, I feed raw, and my dogs do very well on it. However, there are tens of thousands of dogs who eat only dry food, and seem to do well. Pet food companies have put a lot of $$ into research, and if it says "complete and balanced" it is. Eagle Pack, Nutro, Nutrience, Innova, Eukanuba, Hills - they, and their competition at the higher end of the market are the ones I mean, not Pedigree or Chum!! Cans are about 78% water, and he doesn't really need it. If he likes it, and you want to give him one now and again, that's ok. Incidentally, if I was feeding just dry food, I would be inclined to change brands occasionally - to give him a different taste for one thing. When you choose, expect to pay premium price - this is one product where you get what you pay for. Check the ingredient list - the first two or three ingredients ought to be a protein source - ie, meat, or chicken or pork - and there should not be a lot of grain in it, or tallow. Make sure the pack says "Complete and Balanced" too. And before some ninny flames me for not recommending BARF - the poster didn't ask about changing the food, she (he?) asked about adding to the food. So I am answering the question.

Sorry if I appear amazingly thick, but is aspergillus fungus listed as one of the ingredients? Or have you discovered it in the food? I don't think it's very good for dogs either.

Hope one of the above is suitable. Otherwise, it may be worth checking out Farrells Kibble - used by lots of greyhound breeders, and I don't think it has any chicken. I don't feed it, so don't know. If you can't find one, have you thought about giving him a carrot to chew? Don't laugh!! They often like them, and with meaty bones (if they are ok), do fulfill the need to "crunch"

Hope you will try it Stitch! Took a while for me to get annoyed enough. Agree with you Poodlefan - people are better feeding a quality dry food than some diet a friend of a friend of an uncle of a mate who had a showdog once!! Which is supposed to be "barf" - containing 50% rice and/or pasta. There are lots of dogs looking great on all sorts of things - which is the bottom line. You even hear of dogs reaching 15 years on Pal. If people buy a pup, and are struggling feeding raw food - and some are - I suggest one of the IMO "better" dry foods. My point of view is why bother taking raw food, processing it, turning it into pellets and then feeding it? You can't see what is in it - and whilst most are terrific, some are not. It's just a personal thing. I never fed my horses pellets either, or any processed food, on the same basis.

Sags. the BCSITW has been sooooooo naughty lately, once I find your address, he will be in your letterbox one morning in a plain brown wrapper!! I feed my dogs raw, but if I'm home late, they have dry. I think raw is better, but I'm not about to push it onto someone who likes dry. However, it really really really ticks me off when I send a puppy home with a diet sheet, the new owners feed what's on the diet sheet with no problems - UNTIL - they visit their friendly vet - who immediately flogs them the super size bag of premium dog food he is pushing this month, at huge expense, and basically convinces them that unless they feed this food, the pup will probably fall down dead at their feet without delay!! And also tells them I am a baaaaaaaaad breeder for recommending that raw rubbish!! It is this latter bit which makes me see red!! And smoke to emit from my ears!! I used to let it pass. No longer. Now I ring the vet up and give him the in-terror-gation as to why he is recommending the dry food he sells, and what is his basis for recommending it, and why it is better than fresh? Most of the little tossers don't flamin well know, and sprout the spiel the dog food rep gave them. Boy, do they get an earful. Then I ring up the pup's owner, and tell them the vet sold them the food because he makes a profit out of it, and he couldn't give me one good reason why it was better, but - the food is their choice. I also ask them if the vet found ANY fault with their pup - either condition or health wise. The answer is always "no". I then ask them why they would want to change the food. They can believe someone who spent a lot of time breeding their lovely pup, and who makes NO profit from what they feed him, or they can believe someone who is making a profit from their purchases, never reared a puppy in their life, keeps 1 cross bred dog, and has done NO research into dog food, apart from receiving information from the rep who sold him the dog food. And whose training is to do with health not nutrition. I used to cop it, but no more!!

Just curious, Lillysmum - I see you think registered breeders give out a "standard" puppy pack. Do you mean "standard", as in all the same? Or was that just an expression? Interested to see if people think reg. breeders do have a standard puppy pack (maybe approved by the state CC's?). I suppose, though, when someone asks here what breeders put in their puppy packs, we usually say more or less the same things...and most of us have picked up a couple of things to add to ours. So, maybe you would think "standard" And - Nivia - I'm always astounded that breeders' don't at least give buyers a diet sheet and worming and vaccination dates, particularly as non registered pups cost as much as registered ones now, and usually without all the tests done on the parents.