Nekhbet

i said high protein diet laffi - its not only the Ca/P ratio that does it as a high protein diet stimulates growth as well - giant breeds need to grow slowly not bulk up quickly. I have seen pups grown too fast and they have trouble getting around. As I said different dogs do well on different diets - RC is the only dry food I am able to feed my dogs and no one has farts, burps, or health problems. an all Raw diet created horrible farts :rolleyes: I dont mind rice and corn, wheat and its relatives cause problems in my dogs, plus they are fuller for longer on a dry food/carcass diet then an all raw (which is why it got expensive they just burned through the food) I could easily be feeding them 5+kg of raw food a day compared to a few cups of dry each and a carcass for their teeth. once again horses for courses. I dont see the issue if a dog can eat the food, be healthy then let that dictate more then a website. That and not everyone can get a raw diet right especially for growing dogs. Remember many breeds are not 'wolf' shaped anymore and hence cannot be parallel to requiring the exact same diet, ratios and ingredients.

exactly - if they work. If they didnt work we would have put Diesel out of his mysery but nothing ventured nothing gained. As I said, nothing wrong with giving it a go before diving straight into major surgery it can take a little while but you have to be strong and not let them lapse back into their 'oh it hurts a bit I'm going to lie down today' as well as you wean them off the meds. I realised how dependant dogs can become on the pain killers my Diesel is like an addict - he had a couple recently and he went combing for the rest, then harassed for another when I stopped them. He's not in that much pain but he also needed enough pain to tell him enough running about you have a sore leg.

I really dont see why that website has put RC down to one star. not every breed needs high protein diets and frankly this fashion of 'more meat more meat' for large/giant breed puppies is creating problems in some - growth defects being the main one. Having had 6 different dogs all on RC and seeing how its the only food that has benefitted all of them I dont see an issue with it. They look great, I still give them carcasses but they dont hold the weight on a BARF diet and it costs me a small fortune to feed them on raw. RC is a bit of a budget stretch for me even with a discount, but considering every other diet sends my 2 boys into bad skin territory I'm not budging. the best diet is the one your dog does well on - dont force a diet on a dog if its doing well on what its already on. I know a dobermann on supercoat and her fur is so shiny!

Zydax is pentosan polysulphate which is also the active ingredient in Cartrophen. same drug different label name. You can also get it labeled 'Pentosan' as well, again exactly the same. Promotion could come from a lower price per bottle (hence greater profit margin per injection) unless there is another ingredient in there as well but not that I can find. Nature Vet also make it : http://www.naturevet.com.au/prodetails.php?pid=178#nd

dog expert :rolleyes: love it ... can I come with you next time ahhh gotta love em. Yeah great habit let the dog shit in its own crate and lay in it until he can be bothered cleaning it if there is a huge difference go with a divider, most brands come with them. If not then just knock something up yourself (like plywood section with holes drilled in the edges and some cable ties)

who said it was a little smack one lady thought that since Skoota sat on her foot she would stand on his leg while he was lying down *sigh* He has copped some rough treatment (I dont encourage it can happen in an instant) and the reason I chose him was the fact you could pretty much hit him with a car and he just lolls his head over like 'eh? what? oh whatever' irrespective of the fact they live with them or not the dog should have a space of its own and an escape as well. The odd visit can be more difficult for a dog actually since they do NOT live with it and learn to read the body language and understand the disabled. pitbull575 Great you are speaking to Ataraxia - if anyone knows it would be then definately stick with Craig and Deb if you are after a mastiff. They are very genuine and honest people that put your interests at heart when dealing with choosing a dog

Tims mum no everyone has the money - I am looking at about $20000 to fix my rottweiler (well POTENTIALLY they cannot guarentee) as all 4 legs need doing. Then there is the daily physical therapy, the medications, the multiple vet visit etc and i am not putting my dog through that. ALso what most people do not realise is that femoral head excisions etc are not always guarenteed for dogs over 15kg. My rottweiler is 45 and thin as a rake (he could easily grow to 55 + if he didnt have HD) so what if it makes him worst? Or he cannot get up at all? He went from being carried out to pee to running about by himself with natural therapies. He's not on any veterinary products at all he's on human supplements as they're easier for me to afford. Surgery I dont think should be the immediate first step if it is managable without.

if you are looking at Boerboels speak to Deb at Ataraxia Kennels in NSW and CAO lilli here on this forum (http://www.takasvolkodav.com/) Debbie also has DDBs which I think are great, tolerant dogs for disabled people. Mine is a therapy dog for disabled people and tolerated rough handling, loud noise, outbursts and even the odd smack from them. The mastiff breeds are not as reactive and driven BUT can be dominant, pushy and stubborn if you do not know what you are doing. Personally I wouldnt go with Delta some of them seem to have a rather interesting view and you are getting a large, independant dominant breed. The softly softly i'm your bet buddy approach can backfire on you bigtime with the dogs you are looking at so speak to these breeders for advice FIRST. I've dealt with Delta people before and frankly your kids safety needs to be priority and hence the dogs need to be under strict control and their training accordingly. You are looking at dogs 50kg-80kg+

some vets find puppy and kitten desexes daunting - I know I've been a nurse to a couple of vets who needed me to hold their hand throughout. Hence the 'wait until its older' routine.

close the door when you are not home is she getting a run inside or outside? bit nippy for a little cocker outside. How much time does she spend with you when you are home about the house?

remember with adult peis you should have photos of them pre any tacking or surgical prcedures to get a more honest look at the dogs phenotype ('looks' that is) a dog might look OK, but you dont notice the nip n tuck scars! Frankly any dog that is over exaggerated is asking for trouble when it comes to breeding. There are some terribly over wrinkled peis that just suffer, and some neopolitan mastiffs too. Remember what your breed is about and what you want to do with them, also investigating different lines will help you a lot too

havnt read most of this but just to say - dont become preoccupied with 'I might frighten my dogs'. You should be able to do what you want when you want and the dogs cope, follow etc. If they do something wrong they SHOULD be corrected and shown the alternative. What method you use is up to what works for the dog. Your dogs will trust you more if you guide them and lead them, not if you let them wallow in what they consider a comfort zone. Dogs will play you, they will even pull out behaviors that make you think you scare them because it made you stop last time - the dog trains you how to behave around them. Most dogs are tougher then we give them credit for. I'm not advocating going whomping them with a stick any time soon but at the same time a little instabilty or fear is not a bad thing in dog training the problem is when handlers dont take the opportunity to use it to their advantage. Instead the dog goes off on a tangent or develops a whole other rediculous behavior.

that though shouldnt even exist - a dog with such a considerable health problem should never be considered for breeding as the risk of passing on the condition is very high. Desexing can happen any time from 8 weeks of age. As this is your first pei I would be doing it sooner rather then later especially if you want another male. I have 2 males in my household - one entire and one desexed - now they live separately as they just dont get along anymore personality wise. Dogs go through their 'teenage' periods about now, then at about 6-8 months, 12-14 months and for most breeds 18-21 months (giants then have another again) Less hormones can mean less developmental (ie mating type behaviors, territoriality and male to male challenging) behaviors rearing their heads and make your introduction into the world of shar peis a little easier. Wont fix or remove the behaviors just not have them to the same level as an entire breeding male. If you want to breed i would personally build runs for your dogs. Everyone has their own space and remember when the hormones fly it can be rather scary. You have now learned what happens when you have little knowledge in a breed - remember the road to disaster is paved with good intentions. I would get under the wing of a couple of good registered breeders, learn pei genetics and prove with your boy that you can successfully socialise, manage and train an shar pei. Only then should you consider breeding - remember YOU will be responsible for the early and lifelong lessons your pei babies learn and I'm sure enough rescuers will tell you there are many ill tempered and aggressive shar peis out there from people who just dont know them well enough. You should be aiming for puppies that dont have this problem - its costly to the owner and frankly as a breeder you should be working towards minimising the chance of your peis having to need surgery not 'oh well its your puppy now what happens is your tough luck'. Its about your work towards creating a healthy dog.

go to a good chiropractor and knock that weight off asap I use Glucosamine/chondroiten/msm and fish oil caps I also put my dogs on the food that agrees with them the best to prevent systemic inflammations you can also consider Pentosan if it gets worst or if x-rays are not too good the odd one monthly.

you have a mix of breeds that can be sensitive to grains - avoid anything with wheat in it. Also looks a little small for 11 weeks old and if the teeth are so tiny be aware it could be younger then you were told (as is often the case) I recommend royal canin or eagle pack and thats about it. I would be getting large breed puppy food and mixing it with raw meaty bones - no such thing as too young. I dont bother with cottage cheese, tinned fish is good occasionally (remember in small doses for now otherwise you can upset the dogs tummy) and some scrambled egg if you're already having some. Dont be afraid of a few table scraps in the odd dinner bowl as long as their dog safe and cooked bone/onion/spice free. dont grow your puppy fast and keep the weight down to prevent bone problems during the growth phase.

actually was a bit of both, getting a tighter performance from what you have or starting things like the dumbell from scratch She does a lot of shaping but the click always means end of exercise. She also chains a lot and wont NRM - move on, as soon as the dog makes a mistake she stops and starts the whole thing again from the start. She pretty much drills the dog they only get any type of reward when the sequence is correct (in a trained dog) Also big on NO offlead work and minimising error in your training. Also not using anything but food/tug as reward never using say a dumbell as a prey item. LL I find everything interesting particularly what you do with your dogs I think its amazing!

ahaaaaaaaaaaaaa gotcha on that one ... hmmm maybe the clicker is simply helping him channel his inner retriever? Enhance his inner peace? meanwhile my mastiff's eyes are popping out of his head and he's behaving like an over grown staffy to get a click for something *sigh* stay tuned for another episode of the mad house

sounds like it - remember too dogs can pick up on your hormones and if you never had 110% control in the first place he now has an additional thing to look after and assert himself as a big man. Get it done ASAP before the baby arrives too

so how do they get the stress out LL? or is there no toys so they dont scuffle?

welcome to the world of multi dogs hehehehe sounds like you need to do some one on one work with Soap as now he is coming into a stage of maturity where he will feel the need to assert himself, especially over other dogs that touch 'his' female. You need to show you are the boss and that can only be achieved through walking him alone and then gradually introducing her back into the picture. A good trainer would be a great help with this too.

you mean picking up random items? I think I have a video of that! she said it was fine to play with the dogs if you bring them random items BUT the actual items you will use in the trial you never play with ie - she attaches no drive to them. she will do specific work with dumbels etc but random items, toys you just play as you would with a pup. She also would never allow the dog to HAVE the competition items in the first place unless you are training.

which one Ed or Molly (Sundy or Satdy ) Ed is such a DUDE! I'm in love ... Anita did you drive or plane? wow I found it hard enough back to Geelong

ok my post disappeared O_o no insult LL I think its the size of his nuts that slow his sit down I know he can do a bit better I dont think he will reach Malinois status though I'm going to feed 90% of their meals through some sort of work, most through what we're aiming for a BH for all 3 of them so there is a real incentive to work The only other clicker i have done is through NDTF but I'm finding working like Uta they are really more excited about getting their food - it has more value to them then any articles I may be using

I dont have this problem linger with any dog I've had ... I think everyone tried it once or twice and got the above treatment. I have seen a 12 week old beagle completely terrorise its owner and took two of us to pin down to simply vaccinate. The vet had a bleeding hand as well. Puppies are give an inch take a mile - dont be mean, never smack your dog but dont be afraid to show them who is the boss in no uncertain terms.

cartrophen is Pentosan - one and the same thing different label. I found it useless with my rott but if it works for your dog stick to it. I have to be careful what I feed my boy as parvo as a pup made his system really sensitive. Royal Canin large or giant breed is the only diet he can be on long term and not suffer, along with chicken carcasses. I got him acupuncture, electro stim therapy, chiro, at home massages, and fish oil caps/glucosamine tabs it can vary from dog to dog, you just have to do whats right for them but holistic is something I would try first. This took my dog from being a cripple at around 8-10 months to running about now at nearly 20 months. The one thing I do refuse to do is give him the occasional med. He tends to go and then overwork himself - supplements are fine, meds are a no no. If he is sore then he should rest but he has an opportunity to be on a soft bed with a heater now in the winter and not too much soreness. Just because a dog has bad hips means he is a cripple. Keep the body fat down, the muscle tone up and definately put a jacket on them in the cooler weather irrespective of the coat type.