Her Majesty Dogmad

Did the back yard "breeder" (I have another word for them which cannot be written here) microchip the puppies? If you are in NSW, and the "breeder" didn't, then the law has been broken and you can report them to the authorities.

I paid about $500 to have a pea sized lump removed from my 6kg dog's spine at the end of 2007. Was thought to be cancer but turned out to be a cyst. There are some very good and reasonably priced vet's around. Mine appears to be one of the more expensive. Not sure where you are located?

The one answer that I'm waiting for but haven't found on skimming through the posts that have provided some excellent advice is: For what reason haven't you desexed your dog? I've had over 50 foster dogs, many have come to me in very poor condition. What flea treatment are you using? I'm happy to provide some advice but wonder about the desexing issue.

I've now had 3 dogs with dementia, slightly different symptoms from dog to dog but one of them definitely acted in a similar way to yours. She'd always been a very confident little dog and suddenly had fears of things. My other old dementia girl would get stuck in a corner in the middle of the night, I didn't get much sleep for the last year of her life. It was very hard to cope with.

I love Advocate and have used it for the last few years. Never had a flea problem even when others have complained of it. I give them a tapeworm tablet on the 1st of every quarter! I'll never use a heartworm injection. I buy everything on www.pricelesspets.com.au.

I'm so sorry for you and dear little Jessie, what a beautiful girl. Hugs to you.

I had a dog with epilepsy, once he went on the medication he drank an awful lot and needed to go out in the night. He stopped sleeping in my room and stayed near the water bowl and the back door. He went to a new home where he could get in and out a dog door as he needed to, slept in their internal laundry so if there was an accident, it was on tiles. It's upsetting for the dog, if they are housetrained, to be having accidents, they know it isn't right but just can't help it under certain circumstances such as health issues. Re the carpet smells, there are things you can do without spending a fortune on commercial items. I have fostered over 50 dogs and housetrained most of them. You need something with enzymes in to remove the smell. For tiles I use either white vinegar and water, or bicarb of soda and water. For carpet, I use a mixture of Napisan and water, pour/pat it in generously on and around the stain. THen I get an old towel and soak it up. You can buy puppy pads and put them near the door (I'm just guessing this is where she'd be going). Best of luck, it's always more difficult to cope with some medical conditions and their side effects.

A terrible tragedy, what a beauty.

NEVER buy a dog from a petshop or a backyard breeder. My advice is that you get out what you put in. If you want to get a puppy, particularly a large or active breed, you must be prepared to train the dog properly and that doesn't mean going to puppy classes for a few weeks. It's a big commitment. Don't buy a dog because you like how it looks! That's how most people get a dog and I can understand why but you need to really understand dog's coats (a big area of unhappiness following adoption), dog's temperaments and exercise levels. It's really important to know if you are worried about shedding - most people don't realise that a short coated dog can shed a phenomenal amount of hair. However, many people don't want the work, maintenance and cost that goes with a non-shedding breed. Do you want a lap-sitter or an independent type? Much to consider and if there is a family involved, possibly different likes/wants to contend with. Someone I work with spent months doing research on various breeds. She also looked at rescuing a dog (I work for a rescue group) but was so worried about her requirements/lifestyle being compromised that she decided to go with the greater certainty of a breed. She is very much over the moon with the breed chosen and is going to training classes etc. This was a very sensible approach that I can't fault. It should ensure that the dog gets to stay with the family for the whole of its life which in Australia is rare - average length of ownership is around 2 years according to research and this is borne out by many conversations I have with people in my line of work. I have also heard that it isn't so good to have 2 puppies together, I'd agree with that for practical reasons. Nice for them to have company but hard to train 2 puppies at once esp if you are not experienced. Double trouble.

I don't agree with a totally dry biscuit diet, I wouldn't want to eat dried biscuits all day every day. I had one VERY miserable dog for several years, forced onto a special Hills Science Diet with a life=threatening illness. Every day was a major drama as he hated the only food he could eat! I read on the web information posted by another dog owner coping with IBD and decided to follow her successful example of adding sweet potato from time to time. IBD is all about meat proteins so very occasionally, I'd add a bit of sardine or tuna and stir it round. It was not an every day treat but it made his life more bearable. No matter what, I will never feed just dried food to any dog 100% of the time.

Great news Merna!

Never hesitate to take a dog to the vet with a suspected ear problem. I had a neglected foster dog with severe ear infections that had already burst her eardrums when I got her - horrific and required 3 surgeries. Hairy breeds are quite susceptible as their ears need attention from the owners and/or groomers. My foster was a maltese/westie cross. Just had the shaking head problem with my Tenterfield terrier and the vet diagnosed an ear problem requiring ear drops for 10 days - not for the faint-hearted, she has to be muzzled and puts on a performance worthy of an Oscar nomination. She literally screams and screams BEFORE the drops go in. And unlike my foster dog whose ears were filthy on inspection, you couldn't see anything in the Tenterfield's ears.

I've had some great results - rescued an old dog from a pound and she was found to have kidney probs, my vets gave her just a few weeks to live so I took her to the All Natural Vet at Russell Lea with her test results. They prescribed Chinese herbs and she lived in fantastic health for 12 months before getting a gastric bug which my other dogs recovered from but she died within the fortnight. Last year, my old Italian Greyhound was getting dementia and he was keeping me up a lot in the night. Back to the All Natural Vets and they prescribed Chinese herbs and he started sleeping all through the night! My older cattle cross had a total collapse last year and could not move for a month. Took her 3 time a week for chiro and accupuncture and the vet gave her Chinese herbs. This time, the Chinese herbs didn't work so well as she wouldn't actually eat anythign with even a hint of them in there! After 3 months she was back to relative normality with the chiro/accupuncture though. Even after x-rays etc, there was nothing to explain the cause of the collapse so I monitor her exercise etc to be on the safe side.

I was wondering if you might have any Wandering Jew in your yard, many people don't know that it causes contact sores for many dogs and they are attracted to the plant unfortunately. Even 1 sprig can cause a reaction.

I'm not an expert on heart problems either but perhaps fish might be a healthy alternative? I did have a foster dog with severe heart problems, Barney spent 2 weeks with DR's vet and then I brought him home. He was a severe case and I only had him for 6 weeks, during which time we were in the vets a couple of times and of course he was on medication. Then one day, he just wouldn't eat, the vet told me that if he didn't pick up his outlook was bleak. Two days later it was his time because his lungs would have started filling with fluid at any time and I didn't want that to happen. It really broke my heart as I had a special bond with him. I did what his owners should have done. I wouldn't swap my time with him as he holds a special place in my heart but it is a tough road to take for a dog and those that care about the dog.

Excellent post STITCH, you are spot on with all this advice. Please start proper training asap, I see a lot of dogs who've been through puppy preschool and it simply wasn't enough.

I've had a dog with this issue - almost inhale the food and then either have a close to choking fit and/or vomit the whole lot up. For me what worked was just giving him a small amount every few minutes!

My dear little Dixie was diagnosed in 2004 with Cushings and she had a pituitary tumour. She also had little turns. She lasted in reasonable health until July last year when she started having hallucinations and was very distressed. She was about 16 and had only been running round the oval a couple of days before, it was quite a shock. She was a wonderful little dog but it was hell getting the diagnosis and very expensive and lengthy. She was on Lysodren over the 4 years with regular blood tests. She lived longer than anticipated but if I had my time over, I would not put another old dog through what she went through. I had just gotten some new tablets before she died. If you would like them, please send me your details and I'll happily post them to you. I wish you good luck with the treatment, I'm sure that things are more advanced now that a few years have gone by.

Am prepared to sell mine for $300 if anyone is interested! I'm in Sydney's north.

Well surely a professional kennels, if instructed, would separate two food aggressive dogs at feeding time? I kennel my dogs as well and have to give the same instructions, it has not been a problem and if it was, I'd find a new kennel.

I was going to recommend the All Natural Vet at Russell Lea and Joanne Righetti is actually based there. They are excellent there and have made all the difference to my dogs' health in certain circumstances. They are on Lyons Road at Russell Lea which isn't a very big strip of shops. Don't think they are open on Sunday but you could check. Saturdays are popular so if (like me) that is your chosen day, you may have to wait a week or so. I work for Doggie Rescue and I deal with some behavioural problems if it is fairly obvious what the problem is. Yesterday, I was forwarded an email from someone who had adopted from us 3 weeks and was saying they'd have to return the dog because she was fighting with their existing dog. I rang last night to see if I could help. Turned out that it seems to be mainly over the food. These people were leaving food out all day plus giving them their dinner together and feeding them bones. One would bury the bone and then come after the other's bone which of course, turned into a fight. Food aggression is extremely common. What I have suggested to them (and this is what I do myself to prevent my dogs scrapping) is to feed the dogs separately, don't allow them to come together until both have finished and/or you've removed the bowls and all traces of food ie stray biscuits. Don't ever leave food bowls down during the day, don't ever leave bones (or toys) lying around. Re the burying of the bone and coming back for the other's bone, my suggestion was to put the one that eats the bone outside, keep the one that licks the bone then buries it inside. Let the dog lick the bone for a while but when they lose interest, take the bone away. Don't let the dogs get together until the other dog has finished their bone. Dogs can be 6ft away from their food resource but still be guarding it, this behaviour is not necessarily understood by dog owners. I recommended a fantastic website for behavioural issues - www.canineconcepts.co.uk - then click on the upper tab "Behaviour" and then perhaps on "Guarding", all the problems are listed there. It is a really good website! If it is a simple problem, there may be a simple solution without spending $100s of dollars but there really are times where you need the professional help.

I had a dog diagnosed with IBD 8 years ago. He passed away in Feb aged about 16. He was on Hills Ultra ZD biscuits for years, it was a terrible stress as he didn't like them. We tried the steroids and he was unbearable, keeping me up all night for food. I saw a new vet who said there were 2 other drugs we could try, the first didn't work and for the last 5 years, he was on Salazapyrin 3 x daily. I'd just bought a new prescription before he died so if they are of any use, please let me know. He was much easier to live with on that medication. About a year ago we discovered Ultra ZD in canned form, he loved it at first but then became difficult with that, that was what he was like. For some relief from his diet, I added odd things occasionally like low fat cottage cheese, parmesan sprinkled throughout, a little tuna or sardines, sweet potato and some other veggies. It helped to get him to eat his biscuits/canned food. He had some relapses throughout the 8 years and ended up in the vets on a drip for a week but it was usually after he'd found something he shouldn't have like chicken bones thrown on the grass verge.

Are both of your dogs desexed?

Dogs are amazing, they do adapt. the above advice is spot on, I would not take him into the house until everything is sorted or maybe keep boxes in one room if you are unpacking slowing? I would use some herbal remedies to support him as well, such as Rescue Remedy - available from the chemist. Buy the drop form and you can put it in his water, on his neck, in his mouth (if he can cope). Don't know if you are in Sydney but Chinese herbs are also fantastic and available at the All Natural Vet in Russell Lea. Best of luck!

I have one just sitting in the garage, tried it and couldn't get on with it. Got given the wrong information at the pet place selling it and it just doesn't work here, my dogs hated it.