Nekhbet

we're finally able to go after all this time forget the toller screaming you ready to watch a working Malinois' head explode and my bordeaux will be running as well ... bring the cameras and the camp chairs people it will be a day to remember

another thing to think about - did she start with one leather item or did you mix it up? If she is now on different items her confusion may be coming from the fact the scent changes, or the article changes absorbed smells so often due to its organic nature. It smells familiar but she is not 100% if it is the right article. work on the leather article by itself and work on sight as well as smell. Do not let her doubt herself, if you use the clicker as soon as she heads over to the article *click* so she doesnt have a chance to double guess herself. If she smells leather then make it an automatic reaction. If you touch the article as well are you sure it is not your smell she was originally trained to and not the leather? You would have to really be soaking in your smells in order to over-ride the leather smell for a dog. But it could have been enough originally for her to be picking up in the first place and now its petering off she's confused. Have someone else touch it only and see what happens

I just buy old heavy blankets from the op shop when going to bed have a special 'bed time' chew toy that only comes out then, make it super special even rub it with some kabana/ham to get it nice and smelly for the pup. Also wearing them out before bed time and the wont have the energy to chew

decrease the undigestable portion of his diet to make the poo unpalatable. either add a little pinapple juice to his food or decrease the bulky dry and add raw meaty bones/offal+carcass+scraps mince there wont be much left to eat if it is digested properly

spotlight has different coloured elastic you can tie to your own lengths

if in doubt make the dog vomit Diesel ate more then that in one sitting once, pure chocolate ... nothing. Not even a fart.

leather can also have a distinctive smell as it is porous and tends to absorb a mixture of smells especially if treated. grab some beeswax and rub it into your leash to make it distinctive. Sounds like your dog is not 100% on the leather article more then confusing it with your leash and hence just goes for what she does know to get her reward.

I just want to understand it when people say allergies are not genetic, breed the dog even though it has A, B, C problem and then 'oh it's common in the breed but it's not something that is passed on through genetics'. Isn't that oxymoronic .... or am I just moronic there must be a hell of a lot of spontaneous mutations around

OK I will ask a question if a problem is not genetic then why are breeds 'known' to suffer from certain allergies and immune/skin problems.

like I said it was only my opinion. But for me a dog that had demodex now has allergy to chicken I wouldnt breed from it at all. There are plenty of dogs all around the world that can be a little hardier when it comes to diet why perpetuate and accept it. Dogs and humans are two separate things and hence not go into it. I agree with the blood tests, but like I said its just my opinions.

have you tried a check chain? simple. Nothing in life is free. You want something you work for it. You mess up, you get a consequence. Keep him hungry as well to make food a reward for good behavior not just something he gets for existing. Dont be afraid that if he's really pushing the point not to give him his dinner and make him wait until he's better behaved. When he wants to pull simply walk in the opposite direction and give little sharp pops on the lead (you can do this with any collar) and loudly call in a super happy voice 'come on come come come GOOD DOG' when he follows. Make yourself fun. YOu have to GAIN the dogs attention instead of just walking all over him. They really learn nothing except mum and dad walk in a silly way and I get trod on and in trouble You have to make him WANT to follow and praise every time he does something right, especially just looking at you, and jackpot with food when he's really really good. I dont pull the dog as they just lean back and dig the heels in. Also if he passes without reacting - more praise.

mm bad skin in the family and demodex ... I wouldn't breed. Skin allergies are an immune problem, as is demodex and other allergies.

speak to her breeder - if she was purchased as a breeding bitch then you should HAVE a breedable bitch not one allergic to chicken of all things. if it were up to me no way would a dog with a food allergy like that be bred from. But that is just my opinion. THe unfortunate thing with cheap dry foods is they use whatever protein source is available at the time at a good price - hence the low cost. Have you looked into a home made diet for your girl? Buy meat offcuts from wholesale butchers and cheap pet mince and DIY if cost is a factor.

if you want to avoid stinky poos in the long run dont feed pal, especially canned *urgh* slowly change the diet to a dry food that is not too packed with grains as well. remember with pups a bland diet for diahrrea, low fat chicken and some rice as well as plenty of fluids, then gradually reintroduce food. If that fails after a couple of days straight to the vet as they can dehydrate very quickly.

think of it this way if you have trouble now in his teenage stage how will you handle a testosterone fueled breeding male? desexing may or may not make a difference. In all probability it can take the edge off it but his habits, behaviors and what he gets away with are all dictated by YOU not testosterone. If his behaviors were extreme then I would say cut them out and dont breed him, but he's just being a teenager. Yes it's a pain in the butt but it will pass and it's up to you to ride it out. partially dominance and mostly having gotten away with blue murder so far with you guys if he tries to get on the couch push him off if he doesnt listen MAKE him listen. Feed him only out of your hand, give him a correction etc Hormones a not driving this behavior as I see the same in desexed dogs and bitches. He's just trying to rule the roost and needs to be taken down a couple of pegs. I have a 60kg entire male and he listens. He can even leave and ignore an entire bitch if I say so, it comes down to consistancy in training and persistance. Dont let the dog win ;)

small fluffy breeds NEED to have their bottoms trimmed - it was a common thing with puppy owners that a poo was stuck to the anus and the poor dog could not go toilet. check it regularly and keep it trimmed

actually too much fat is a bad thing in dogs. Apart from pancreatitis which can pop up in some breeds, my malinois developed a fatty deposit on her eyeball and threatened her sight. She had to be on a low fat diet (which is hard on such an active dog) and it disappeared. everything in moderation. They need fat, but huge hunks of thick white fat on raw bones and lamb flaps, trim off most and discard or chop up and feed sparingly especially to thin or very active dogs.

they make more money on the injections there SBT123 I agree quite a lot of medication for a small spot particularly when underlying problems with skin are not being addressed already by the vet.

errrrr because it is abuse? plain and simple? the only time I've hit a dog was because it was intent on tearing my face off and it was literally life or death with that animal. Didnt make me feel like a hero but saved me a trip to the emergency room.

The poor diet comment was for a few dogs that came through the clinic. The best my boss offered was z/d which I just see as useless in most animals and crammed with rubbish. Most vets do not know or wont recommend diet changes for skin problems - meds first, if that fails try z/d, if that fails pack you off to the specialist. It ends up being a merry-go-round of drugs and doctors. I'd take her off majority dry food or at least dry food that has so much grain in it - euk puppy has rice, barley, sorghum, beet pulp and corn. They also use chicken by product meal as the second ingredient which is far from having much more then the 'useless' parts of the chook like heads, feet, intestines, innerds etc especially if your dog has already shown signs of a skin condition I would decrease the amount of grains going in. The furthest with dry food to go would probably be the RC german shepherd puppy but that contains rice and beet pulp, at least better then multiple grains. If you are game why not try a completely raw diet? There is a great thread and many breeders on here have raised their pups on raw diets before. my bordeaux came with a great case of folliculitis and it flares up with wheat/high grain foods. I've found that less is more with grains, the less that goes in and a more natural diet you can provide the better the skin and the less outbreaks you get. as for immune supplements I use an immune booster made my the Melaluca company (on dogs AND OH) and boy do the allergies and skin infections settle after use. I'll have to find the bottle for you later

it is an ivomectin based product hence the warning - again coming down to the genetic allergy in some breeds. I have seen a lot of dogs get the injections at the clinics I worked at and they were all fine. Unfortunately on the same poor diets the demodex remained. she could have a hormonal period, but it is still immune mediated. Her immune system is not fighting off the mite that all dogs carry, look into some supplements to help her through it

so they have no idea WHAT it is lets call it a pit bull FFS people are stupid. poor child and stupid stupid owner.

it is commonly used off label by veterinarians. It is fatal to dogs who show a genetic sensitivity to the active ingredient, commonly collies etc if you do a search on demodex here on DOL there are severe threads on it and the different treatments/diets. Since it is linked with a poor immune system you should also be looking into a better diet, supplements etc

ahh if it was just minced meat then no. Buy cheaper cuts of meat that have bone, connective tissue etc not human grade mince better on the wallet too.

ahhh you see I thought you meant the prey drive was the undesirable trait I was so thinking, what the?