Monchichi

hiding her piggy might be a good idea, though I will feel sorry for her if she misses it. Even last night, she laid down relaxing after playing with her piggy, she hold the piggy on her paws then she tried soooooooooo hard to stay awake so she still could play. First time ever, I saw her like that...she hardly could stay awake. Her eyes kept shutting like 1Watt light and her head hardly could stand hahahaha husband ended up telling her to go to her "bed" (crate) and she just followed him with no complaint. She had a big day yesterday, meeting some her friends (the same breed) at the beach and whole day went with us. I probably can start teaching her to put her toys back to her toys corner. Can you send me the link from youtube how to do this Persephone? no dropped socks, keys or undies here...else it got chewed up..hehehe. only her toys everywhere in the house. the only time she gets to chew the socks, either old socks with tiny holes or new one (which I bought purposely for her to play)...which I stuffed with toilet roll (stuffed with treat) so it's like a "hidden" toys for her, hope you understand what I meant :D empty soft drink bottles with lid and cap ring removed and stuffed or sometimes unstuffed with treats also in her toy corner. she likes to tossing it up and crunching it. However, nothing of these can beat her piggy...

thanks everyone for the suggestions! On Saturday morning, I took her to the beach again, it was low tide and thinking all your suggestions of swimming is ok to shed weight not so good on strengthen her joint. So I walked in the shallow part of the beach with her following me from behind and walked on the sand, water up to her chest. With the waves bumping and she had to walk..so I guess this kind of her "underwater treadmill" for now. if we went a bit on deeper part, then yes she paddled up. I think both of us had exercise to strengthen our joints regarding walking her in water at home, I had filled up my bathtub with water nearly full and let her walked up and down, but hey....it's not so much fun she thought. she just stand there as she thought it's shower time for her.. :laugh: I will put underwater treadmill in Moorabbin next on my agenda. Will save some money first for now. In terms of giving Glucosamine, stupid question here :D clearly hasn't done my research yet, will it be ok to give it to her from such a young age? any side impact? Fish oil...I haven't gave her fish oil. As I saw a doco on making fish oil or salmon farming (forgot exactly which one) in SBS while back, it says fish oil these days generated from the salmon and salmon these days are lacking of the oil themselves which the company has been feeding them with fish oil as well. so, I gather...I better give her straight fish itself, being small medium breed the feeding still reasonable on my pocket. Every now and then, I will buy the salmon from Tassal salmon shop directly (bit cheaper than supermarkets). Also she gets fresh sardines 3 times a week. And also Natural animal solutions Omega 3,6,9 oils small squirt on her meals too. I feed her raw meals (yes, thank to you all for the posts on raw feeding, I learnt a lot! ) regarding her play time, she is not really interested on running chasing a ball or Frisbees. All she loves are zooming in the garden (which less happening as I try as soon as she starts zooming, I turned my back and went inside the house, then she follows and stops...but sometimes not the case! she will zoom in my lounge room )and chasing her piggy oinker...this is a must every night for her...she will push her piggy on my laps or hands to encourage me to play...hard to say no... She gets walk 2x daily since she came to our life. Gradually adding the timing until now, morning she walks with me for 30mins and afternoon with my husband for another 30mins. and yet she still has bundled of energy. Dogrobics, sit-drop-sit-drop near her meals time is a must before her dinner. And I practise her Sit- stay- wait- drop commands too in between while I cook dinner. I was given some dog toys eg something like bob-a-lot and dog toy similar to nina ottoson to hide the treats and she to find. She mastered these in one day. Stuffed kongs...she had 2...these will occupy her a while if I push the treat really deep inside. Anything else I can do to challenge her so I can release her energy level at night during weekdays which not going to further damager her joint? Weekend is no issue, as she goes to school on Sunday which tire her already in some extend...Saturday we bring her to park or beach etc.

Thanks Ness, how often do you do the underwater treatmill? And how long have you been doing it? Improvement, in what sort? If i may know...

Chi? You mean chihuahua, VizslaMomma? My dog not a chihuahua breed though..

Oops....swimming not a good option?

Thank you everyone for your opinions, much appreciated. Since i was researching the breed, i know LP is one of the issue with the breed, however chosing a reputable registered breeder will help on having sound and healthy dog, which i have until now. Unfortunately, accident does happen, as much as i want to blame myself not carefully looking after her, i cannot undo the time. And i don't think there is dog not liking doing zoomies. Anyhow, since the seconds i got told of vet's diagnose, my brain scramblings on preventative treatments on at least prolong her surgery time or strengthen her join muscle. So came up with bringing her to do swimming at Dog's pool....oh how i love the banner here in DOL ???? i brought her to Aquapaws swimming pool. I will bring her once a month, took 2 hours return driving from home to there...wish they are closer. In the between, if possible i bring her to Brighton dog beach and encouraged her to swim there....at least paddle up on the water. Joint supplements are on my list, rose-hip vital canine is on its way, got sample from the company...yeaaayyy I am tossing up between Sasha's blend and pernease powder too. Also bone broth is added on her meal too! I think she has faaaarrr healthy meals than me! Reduce weight also in my agenda, the past month by reducing 15gram out of her meal and limited her treats, she has shed 100gram. She is not overweight at the beginning either, just a bit over than her ideal weight...so but overweight?? ???? Insurance, yes i had her insured since the minute she left her breeder. I chose top level cover too, doh! She is not spoilt much.... I had read the fine print, but i will double check with friend of mine who is solicitor, he can transkate it into 'human' sentences for me maybe hahaha Thanks once again everyone! Though if you have any other suggestion on how to further prevent her LP episodes, much appeeciated. Even if you have other treatments...please share ir pm me. Oh, chiro....Rascalmyshadow, did you go to dog chiro ir human chiro. My chiro is more than happy to see my dog, but i haven't brought my dog to see him yet...just not 100% sure human chiro can help with dog chiro??

Powerlegs, can radiograph show if there is an issue with luxating patella? apart from vet's hand diagnosis?

Dame Danny's Darling, thank you for putting me as not a bad mum, it helps! I still consider myself lucky with this diagnose instead of straight broken legs etc. :) With number three: yes, now I learnt the hard way. Even my husband said nothing is free in this world! hahahaha :laugh: cavNrott, thank you for your suggestion. I did read your posting while back regarding Dr Wing Tip Wong, and I searched through Melb Uni Vet and probably I skipped it by accident, as I couldn't find his name. Few of people in my breed had patella surgeries done for their dogs, either hereditary or accidents, and I had talked to them too and all of them said no for surgery yet unless bad episodes keep happening. Honestly, I had probably reading and researching about this from forum here (old postings) and it backed up a bit of my confidence with this issue. I respect all vets opinions, except that vet who jumped straight saying grade 4 (unfortunately, this vet or the clinic is where my dog's sister went for puppy school...I sincerely hope she is ok and not being told by the vet to do surgery too). In conclusion, I think I have to go by my gut feeling of my dog...no surgery for now unless it's critical and she is in pain. For arthritis issue, I guess if I feed her some join supplements hope this will ease the issue later on. And I read most older dogs will get arthritis in some points regardless? The only worry is about the insurance. What's the best option to approach the insurance company? Do I tell them my policy number and explain my case, or just closer to surgery?

Morning....I just need to pick up some of your Dolers knowledge if I can.. Just recently my dog had been diagnosed with Grade 1 luxating patella on one of her leg by her normal vet (whom pointing surgery need to be done ASAP as my dog still young ad to prevent arthritis in early age)while she had her vaccine and general check-up. I was in disbelief hearing the news, not sounded arrogant, but she came from reputable registered breeder and health check the next day she arrived all clear. And I had not seen her limping or holding up her leg prior to this general check-up. So I asked 2more vets not long after. One said not even close to grade 1 then another (which I met in Dog Expo, free check up) said she is in serious “very bad” patella issue and required surgery ASAP and to this vet sound like grade 3 or 4. SHOCKED horror on my end. And this vet said my dog must be in pain and limping, I said no, I not seen her once in bad shape and the vet replied “oh, probably when you didn’t see her then she did that” really??? I dismissed this vet immediately! The vet even suggested 10% discount if I book it NOW. It had passed a month since 1st diagnosis, and I finally saw her 1st episode on her holding up her leg last week, as she did zoomies around the garden and kind of skidded on one side. All the sudden she hold up her leg and looked at me puzzling, so I touched the leg and somehow pushed back her patella. By now, I realised she had this issue. Though I had been thinking how she got this issue at the first place, then I remembered few weeks before her general check up and vaccine, she was playing with a puppy in off leash park and I saw she slipped and just stand there for 5secs then zoomies again. I feel like I’m a bad Mum to her and let down the breeder in some point. However, my dog is just so energetic, though she is now 1 year old not as crazy doing zoomies daily as she used to in my garden. Just to make sure again, i brought her to a specialist and was told she has grade 2 now, OMG…surgery is recommended again. So my questions are: - Shall I wait until I see her having more episodes of limping or holding up her leg, before proceeding to surgery? Her breeder suggested this. - She is insured. If I opt to choose surgery later down the track eg next year or whenever I feel it’s the time, will the insurance cover it, as the condition just diagnosed now? - I tried to ring the insurance company, randomly asking if they cover the surgery, but the lady on the phone kind like pushing me to reveal my name etc so she can find in her database. So what should I do with the insurance?

so sorry for your loss...run free Micha!

Hi Malakita, how did you go with the patella surgery? Which vet/specialist did you use? can you share some info with me? thank you.

hi Igbran, I found buying minces straight from Coles are cheaper. I buy human grade minces for mine. roo mince, again I buy at Coles when they are on special $7,49 for 1kg pack. you can buy also here: http://highfour.com.au/id64.html

Asian butchers sell plenty of beef, pork offals and also chicken feets. Go to Springvale, Box Hill, plenty there. I love going to Dandenong Market, the beef heart only $2.5 ea, beef lung $2.00 each! If you are after Duck products in bigger quantities, then buy it straight from Luv A Duck showroom in Port Melbourne. They sell frozen duck livers per 2kg bag (i think) and duck's neck in 10kg bag. cheaper then anywhere else.

I use the below for my Japanese Spitz: https://www.petstock.com.au/products/122221000082 <-- slicker brush http://www.vetnpetdirect.com.au/GRIPRAKEL?gclid=CIH_mMCo28MCFUNxvAodlWwAbg&gdftrk=gdfV25674_a_7c2113_a_7c7895_a_7c673 <-- rake and last: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Hot-New-Pet-Cat-Trimmer-Grooming-Comb-Brush-Comb-Rake-Hair-Shedding-Flea-/221546638465?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3395356c81 <-- Daiso brand comb..just perfect size in between the comb..

I have been advised and made myself bone broth for my dog using slow cooker. It's more in safer side using slow cooker, as I don't need to tend to check the simmering pots and slow cooker normally using ceramic ramekin/bowl, which Chinese people prefer to use this material when cooking something over longer period... I think decades ago (and probably still now) Chinese are using terracotta pots when simmering their traditional herbs medicine. There is something in metal/stainless stell that Chinese think will ruin the product when cooking over period of time. You can use ox tail, pig trotters, beef tendons, chicken feet to use as your bone broth base. I prefer to use any of these meat cuts as the cartilage in these bones is the beneficial value for the dogs, and us human too for join support etc. and after cooking for that long, i normally strain the liquid from the solid. the liquid when left to cool will be gelatineous in texture, so kind of jelly treats fro my dog. I chuck the bones after taking all the meat off it. as for how long...with slow cooker 24hours is good, just enough to melt the cartilages. When simmering on the pots i think 10hours is more than enough.

thanks everyone. i ended up with freezing water with goodies in 2ltr ice cream container...which after 10hours in freezer only 1/2 frozen! doh!!!! 1 small dirnking bottle with mix coconut water & water. another bottle just pure water. came back home, the bottle with coconut water emptied...while the 2 still has water in it. with the soft drink bottles/ small drinking bottles....she will lick the mouth of the bottles, she has done this many times at night time if it's hot day. i normally mix up the water with 1 teaspoon or less of honey. imagine baby sucking milk bottles, that's how she does it too...so it occupies her a while. i was thinking of freezing watermelon too, but my freezer space so limited (thanks to her raw meals occupied 3/4 my freezer...and it's brand new and bigger fridge too!) and bit of too much sugar in watermelon for small dog like her. anyway, when i googled the husk for dog...some even say it's good for brushing the dog's teeth..naturally..hahaha i remember, grew up in Indonesia, some dogs play with fallen cooconut and they were fine, but with my little monster here..i'm not sure yet. i'll give one under supervision next time first. Normally i buy it for myself, we share some of the coconut juice and she eats some of the coconut flesh too after i scoop it out. Lisa, i'll be reading your blog too!

yes, i had thought of freezing the water like ice block thing...but it might melt within 1 hour? hence, thinking frozen coconut might take longer to melt. probably i make a bigger one and some smaller one in soft drink bottles. thanks persephone!

Hi All, As tomorrow in Melbourne we will be having 38 degrees weather. I normally leave my puppy (1 year old Japanese Spitz) outside house during daytime while i am at work. She has access to the garden and deck (which attached to the house) so plenty of shades for her. She spents her day sitting or sleeping either inside her kennel in the deck or just on the deck itself. However, the past week when we had hot weathers, i was off on holidays, so she spent most of her time inside with me with the AC. I have been thinking to do some big ice block for her tomorrow, however it might melt within 1 hour? so i have been thinking alternative way, freezing young coconut (with the top off, so when it melts she can lick the coconut juice out of it). Have any of you ever done this before? Will it be safe for her to chew the coconut husk? i know she loves drinking coconut juice and eating coconut flesh (when i scoop it out for her) and she has coconut oil everyday in her raw meal too. She has 3 clam shells fill with water already, 1 clam shell with her sand to dig. However, i think she hardly use any of these when she is home alone. Oh by the way, as soon as I'm back home normally 5pm, she stays inside with me until the next day when i'm at work again.

thanks Tassie!

Thanks everyone for the input. I will look towards Scalibor collar in the future, if we ever going North again. My puppy is Japanese Spitz, so collar on her 2hrs might not "pretty" on her coat, but better than getting ticks. And many Japanese Spitz owners recommend Advantix for prevention. Rebanne, at the beginning I was a bit reluctant to add chemicals to her, however before she is staying in the breeder, we are meeting some friends in tick prone area and i don't want to take chances for not protecting her. And in case the breeder is going to the beach and take her or meeting her original breeder in show ring around tick prone area. Many possibilities. And no cat, I don't have cat. But on our morning walk, we normally meet the neighbour cat (1 block from home) and both of them like to say "Hello" by sniffing each other and tails wagging. After using Advantix this Friday, i will try not to get them close by. thank you!

Hi All, just wonder if you can give me any suggestions. I live in Melbourne, therefore no ticks around us. In 2 weeks time (1st Nov) we are planning to drive up to Sydney. My puppy will stay with a breeder for around 1month time, as when we are back we will be doing home renovation. Breeder's place or around in NSW has no ticks apparently (Rouse Hill). The breeder is not my puppy breeder, but good of friend's of my puppy breeder. But i heard and read some area in NSW are high tick area. Friend of mine suggested to use Advantix to my puppy (10months old) this week, and one day before we depart another application and every 2 weeks while staying with the breeder. so my puppy is covered while we are driving and stopping on the way to Sydney and while in Sydney itself if the breeder ever takes her outside the house. Is that ok to use Advantix on my puppy while she is also on Sentinel Spectrum? I know Sentinel Spectrum only cover fleas and worms. Please advise if there is do's or don'ts if these 2 applications given? She had her sentinel spectrum 3 days ago for this month cover. Thank you

hi newfsie, contact Maree from BM Pet Snack http://www.bmanimals.com.au/healthy%20foods-%20treats BM Pet Snax & BM Animal Wellbeing Address: Factory 9 / 50-52 Malvern Street, BAYSWATER, Vic 3153 Email: [email protected] Phone:0488144675 Factory Direct Store: Wed to Friday 9am to 5pm - outside these times please phone first - All Welcome!

great recipe and looks so tasty! do you mind if i try your recipe as well Roova? thank you! :)

The ads now gone...not sure why. Oh well...at least it's better. I had tried to PM you Steve, but no luck.. it says you cannot received new message?

I am under the impression registered breeders mean the breeder is registered under state body under the ANKC and owns prefix name. As far as I know this breeder has no prefix name (however will investigate more). The puppy my friend bought has no major issue yet (hope never) . However, the puppy is not really up to the breed standard from seeing how the coat, ears, eyes etc. When my friend purchased the puppy, the breeder told her 3 different birth dates of this puppy. And of course my friend never have the limited register paper from this breeder. In fact, the puppy never got wormed when the puppy was with the breeder, as when the puppy picked up from the breeder's house, the puppy weight only 1.8kg at 9weeks old. in 4weeks after the puppy lived with my friend and between her rist and 2nd vaccine, the puppy weight almost doubled and vet said it was probably worms and poor diet when living with the breeder. The breeder stated on her ad that she has wormed the puppy, but when my friend rang her and asked, the breeder admitely saying "no, the puppy hasn't been wormed". Not long after the puppies gone to their new home, this breeder advertised selling the puppy's dad...and changed the date of birth of the dog many times as well on the ad. My friend somehow found this out as she was searching this type of dog in that website. Anyhow, my friend's puppy is very well care now, even more that human baby :laugh: