ness

:laugh:

Relax I offered an exchange with a friend in the US who was complaining about the ice age - the inferno is on route to them . <wishful thinking>

LOL piper - I sent PME the link to the original thread which you posted the instructions in .

My oldie had me in fits of laughter this morning - she was busy acting like she was 3 not 13 and a bit and I was busy telling her to tone it down as I don't want her surgery leg to fail. That would not be the phone call I want to make to my parents.

Good news - everything is always a bit of a worry when they have had surgery. It normally turns out to be perfectly normal and something the vets have seen before but also better to be safe then sorry.

Did you not get an after hours contact for the person who did the surgery. I know with both of mine when they had surgery we had contact details (after hours phone contact and email contact) for the vet and they said if you were worried at any stage don't hesitate. Especially in the first few days after surgery. I remember sending an email one Sunday night about 10 days post-op and having a response back in 5 min. I know though if you call the clinic and your a current client you can get through to somebody. Maybe worth calling the clinic and seeing what the message service says.

My old girl Ness is now 13 years 4 months. Had a rough few weeks with her and nearly thought we were going to lose her a fortnight ago but she has bounced back ok and so far she is still out walking my young girl :laugh:. I just got her back tonight after nearly 5 months living with my parents. She had cruciate surgery just on 15 weeks ago. Not sure if its a temporary return or she is back for good yet.

I know where the first specialist has moved to and do still have a current email address for them. Its not the first bit of information they told me which was later determined to be incorrect I am just struggling to come to terms with everything. The two of them worked at the same clinic and in fact the second one took over running the clinic from the first one. The neurologist yesterday was super sympathetic to the cause when she saw the size of Kenz's file. I can't fault her yesterday she gave me some ideas to use to try and help with the BCC issue and said if she came across anything else she would send the information on. Hoping the second ortho finds some record of the x-rays and the email was correct and then we will redo them but I won't be out of pocket the full amount. Still frustrated but a little less frustrated then having to deal with so much miscommunication. I then have to hope they don't actually show something else which should have been picked up the first time before committing to surgery. As a lawyer by training if I had told a client I had done something and it hadn't been done you would have been culpable. Seemingly in the veterinary profession that might not be the case.

Hmmm so now the truth is starting to emerge - had an appointment with a new neurologist today regarding the BC collapse issue and funnily enough when they went searching for her x-rays there were none on file . Now where does the specialist get off with saying that xrays were taken at the time of surgery and I have email to prove he said they were yet when two other specialists went through Kenz's file to locate them there were none . Not helped that her first specialist has now disappeared interstate either so can't even answer the question as to where they might have got to. NOT HAPPY. Seems to be bugger all accountability in the veterinary profession. Sounds like I will be up for more x-rays if there is no trace of the first lot .

Could she fly there - meet the breeder/parents and then fly back with the puppy - if she is set on meeting the parents and breeder.

There is a video on youtube for setting BC puppy ears Also one if you wish to have them prick

The last few nights I have found Kenz quite happily sleeping on a Snooza cuddler. Can't be to unpleasant given the temps have been in the 40+ region all week.

SaltyDog - not amputation and possibly slightly different but just 14 weeks ago put an old BC girl (13 years) through a cruciate repair surgery. She bounced back fine. Dogs don't dwell on the past and if the dog is otherwise mentally and physically good I would probably go for it. Tough call though and I don't envy your decision.

Yep to tape stop them from pricking. Although in the US some breeders tape them to prick. I guess it all depends.

Having a clinically affected BC collapse dog I would definitely classify the condition as serious in its nature. An active breed who can manage barely 2-3 min of physical activity is totally soul destroying for dog and human. Just because some individuals manage to live there entire lives without any clinical signs doesn't mean the condition shouldn't still be bred out of the breed if a genetic test can allow for it to happen. Its certainly about making information available so that prospective purchasers can make informed decisions. A dog is a significant commitment when everything is fine never mind the commitment if a problem arises and your living with it on a daily basis. Its interesting I know of a number of cases of BC collapse from speaking with people and yet if you weren't in the know you wouldn't know its a condition that exists in the breed. Its not spoken about nor is it listed as a BC condition just because for the moment they can't actually test for it.

I agree there should be mandatory testing required when there are known problems in the breed. I would like it taken one step further though and have provision made for any other potentially hereditary condition to be noted in some sort of "official" capacity. Having been on the receiving end of some very unfortunate bad luck with regards to conditions which are only likely to be genetic (and have cost me significantly emotionally and financially) its not about blaming the breeder in so much as educating and keeping record if something should start to become more of a breed issue. Its interesting when you start talking to breeders once you have a dog with an emerging genetic condition for which there is no test and the will say yes I have heard of something similar that just happened to be in a pet home. Its only because I have a dog with the condition that you find out others and do start to wonder if its a bigger breed issue and just been brushed off to one side because they have ended up in pet homes. I do love my little girl but I really wouldn't wish the heartache I have been through on anybody else especially when some of it is particularly frightening to witness.

Hmmm Kenz says why stop the games just because its hot. Thankfully we have a back yard in pretty deep shade all day and with the sprinkler running it was nice and cool for her to play under. When I got sick of tossing the toy I sprinkled kibble for her to go find underneath it :laugh:. She doesn't "do" playing with the sprinkler but why let it stop her playing her games so is happy to go underneath and end up soaking wet.

Rumour - I mixed Kenz's in with yoghurt on some days, raw mince on some days, sardines on some days, tuna on some days, even melted ice cream :laugh:.

Staffyluv did you try mixing in a small amount rather than the full amount and then gradually increasing it or did you just try adding the loading dose. i had to start Kenz off with less and gradually add it to her meals until she was back to the loading dose for her size. You can also split the dose across 2 meals if you feed twice a day.

No problems - run by somebody from the dog club :laugh:.

These guys have some Cool Mats which are shop soiled and half price - http://www.petextras.com.au/dog-cooling-mats They are based in Adelaide and from the website they do allow pick ups by appointment.

Could you also take them all out for a short walk so that Mac thinks he is still getting a walk with the others then come home and leave him with a treat or something and take the others back out for a walk. Susan Garret has an ebook on older dogs and suggested making sure the oldies have a BAT (or Big Adventure Time) each day which is special time just for them as well. http://susangarrettdogagility.com/2014/01/anti-aging-tips-for-dogs-susan-garretts-ebook-free-for-the-next-5-days/

I spent a week with Ness over Christmas (who at the time was 11 weeks post her CCL repair). Each morning we would drive to the local oval - Kenz would get a run then we would go for a stroll around the backroads to give Ness a bit of an explore. During Kenz's post surgery recovery and on her bad days we would drive to different parks and she would remain on-lead while Ness got to explore. Certainly became a master of juggling exercise.

Westiemum - opposite scenario kinda but I tend to opt for driving to parks when managing different exercise needs. That way whichever one is only suppose to be not doing very much can still have an outing but the more active one gets their need for exercise. Would only work if the younger ones are happy to run around/explore while Mac can explore at his own speed.

I will say my fussypot Kenz wasn't so keen on eating the RHV - but she does mixed in with sardines or tuna for tea now. Hopefully you see results with your dog to .