rubiton

When I got some from the vet they were only about $5 but was told in an emergency that human ones would have been fine. BUt this was for a bee or insect sting halfway down her throat. Allgeries would ask the guidance of a vet as it seems human ones would be ok but you'd want to get the dosage right.

Food ball - then she pretty much sleeps til the cars come home I should point out she gets very insistent if she thinks we should be going out (she will appear from sleeping and look all expectantly and is not happy if she is ignored because we arent going out).

Yes she has been taught to have her teeth cleaned. Bones worked for a while but then she just wanted to bury them not chew on them. Had her teeth cleaned as a 6yo and then this year at 11. Since the vet couldn't completely clean them (she had bleeding gums if you pressed them) and they are worn they have been cleaned as best as possible. Since then as we had the choice of bones (pointless), chew treat teeth cleaning things (not good for her kidneys) or cleaning teeth went with cleaning teeth. Vet also said the most important part was to get the outside brushed as the inside will be kept in better condition by the dogs tongue than the outside of them. So now twice a week she is due to have her teeth brushed and will sit there and have it done (dont think she actually minds it too much either- dont get the omg food reaction but dont get the oh I hate this reaction either). You end up with the same sound as human teeth cleaning when you push the brush up and down the back molars inside the lip!

As Tess has said - it could be exposing for the whiteish dog then exposing for the green grass. Use the light meter and set on M and it should hold the settings (though some of the later ones do change aperture etc slightly if the image will be under exposed according to what I read on a forum or manual somewhere and its something you can leave or switch off in the custom menus). I sometimes get that anyway with the 40D even on Manual but not often and one or two in a burst of 30 images is not a problem and doesn't happen all that often (didnt notice it in the 10,000 odd photos taken so far in Sep). To use the light meter in that situation point it at the grass to set the settings too and then take a test picture of the grass etc and compare (if you screen is set correctly it should look the same as the real thing)

re microchipping. KNow someone who had their puppy stolen at Glenelg last Nov (I did post on here about it they were visiting from Victoria). When they tried contacting vets, councils etc they found not being microchipped meant that even if the dog did turn up there was no way to confirm any ownership and therefore it was very limited on what could be done if a similar dog did turn up in the clinics especially. And the media wouldn't touch that story either apart from a single letter to the editor in the weekly free paper.

Wouldnt it be best to do it annually and that way ensuring that the dog has immunity? Not worth the risk to assume and risk exposure to parvo etc when the levels are low.

Wopuld also add teach your own dog to stand behind you on command - they should never be making the decision on what to do about an approaching dog YOU should be. If you break an approaching dogs gaze on your dog to look at you it makes a huge difference. I got to the stage with two uncontrolled dogs after the 3rd or 4th time they charged us that I charged them - shih tzus and they were going to get the 'boot' treatment if I got near them. Got within a metre and they spun and ran. BUt they were small and I meant business - owner thought it was funny that his little dogs bailed up big dogs so I wasnt worried about him. Think the ranger must have finally caught up with him and given him some advice on dogs being on leads and under control.

Exactly - it seems an accident if the owners were chasing. You just block them if you think your dog will not stand still and/or the other dog does not seem friendly. I usually just stop and stnad still and have my dog standing still if there is an owner frantically chasing the dog and the dog is not showing aggression.

ISO on 400, APerture on F8 and shutter speed on 1/1000th on the M setting Stand with your back to the sun pointing towards the dogs and have it on AI Servo for focus. Use the continuous shutter keep the centre rectangle in the viewfinder on the dog and your photos should be nice and clear.

There was a short spot on the news but it didnt look very crowded (had thought about going but too stuffed after royal week). Daresay due to the weather many waited until yesterday to go to the show and didnt want to go out for a second day straight if it really was as quiet as it looked on tv.

My parents left the choke chain on the Golden Retriever all the time - he never had a problem . No idea why but they did. However for our dog its only used when she goes out for walks or in the car etc. At the park it comes off while her harness stays on since its little too big and will probably fall off her head and Id have to go searching for the exact spot it dropped off. Why would you have to 'carry another collar' since the normal collar doesnt come off to use the choke chain - it stays on (since it has the council rego etc). Dogs can wear more than one thing.

There was someone standing at the end where the ball appears that had a Dover Gardens top on but does that mean that is the team or someone acting as an 'official'? I'll probably use img 3126 on the first page of the report as the look on its face was brilliant.

Does anyone know if they were from a particular club or a mixture? Certainly drew a fair crowd through the morning or at least when I called past (and you could hear the dogs over in the main arena at one stage)

Basically if you enjoy the graphic design/artistic nature of photography then taking photos in RAW allows you to do stuff afterwards (its a little more than 'fixing' problems). However if you are not interested in that side of things and just want to take a photo jpeg is fine (as long as you get the exposure right). Some on here don't like jpegs in the long term and suggest saving the images as TIF (either way always make a backup copy). Its a bit of a stuff around though to set up your photoshop so it can open and read RAW files but you only have to set it up once apparently.

Recently our dog had a gastro problem and it reoccured so took a few weeks to get her back onto her food again. With that the joint guard got left out and then slowly added back - well two weeks after that gap she was so stiff getting up at times and would be lame in the hind leg that originally started her problems til she walked around a little bit. Back on teh Joint Guard with her full doses and it seems that stiffness is starting to go away again

Either titre test or vaccinate - don't just assume and perhaps leave your dog at risk.

The dogs loves them and once when staying at my parents there was a fruit on a tree that was shaped like a banana - seems she took the fruit from the tree took it out to the yard then bit into it and realised it wasnt a banana (and whatever it was was found later).

Would also ask why someone who is not a registered breeder is actually breeding? Is it for the betterment of the breed (so trying to get that ideal breed standard trying to breed top class animal to top class animal. If so why not be registered as has been mentioned. Exception to this would be working dogs however they are still bred on the principal of the best working dog to the best working dog to produce the offspring that will be top class working dogs - these breeders are not planning their main sale market to be for pets.

Yoghurt is essentially a treat and being a dairy product not suited to their gut (lactose intolerant obviously some moreso than others - they have different guts to us so bacterias for us are not the same for dogs unless is stuff especially made for dogs not people). Think about it could you chew on a bone that been buried for a few days and not get sick from it as opposed to dogs whose systems are fine with that scenario. OUr vet also says that eggs do not make a shiny coat either and someone who feeds barf does mention on another thread about if its cooked or raw affects which part is fine and which part can stop some vitamins being absorbed (think cooking swaps it round).

BUt just as many have been to vets each year. All the ones I know of have been so again its not a pointer either way. Nor is exercise when dogs can live in a backyard and rarely go outside it or spend all the day when not eating on a bean bag. Obviously though exercise, vet treatment, feeding it on what it does well on etc can help prolong the good condition of a dog whose genes may result in them developing issues such as hip issues younger than you'd expect from old age. And with the vaccinations prior to the early to mid 80s there was no heartworm problem nor parvo - can remember the vet saying that the family dogs now needed parvo jabs and heartworm as they now had to the 'new' dieases. And heartworm treatnment was originally a tablet every single day until later on the monthly ones came out. AS for weight - well my OHs grandmothers dog was a Golden Retriever that was at least 3 times as big as he should have been around the girth (think hairy coffee table) and he only died recently aged about 14 or 15.

Why feed garlic? Thought it was really bad for dogs to have garlic and shouldnt be part of their diet.

If she is doing well on the supercoat cant see a reason to change. We use to feed it as it was perfect to go in the food ball and buster cube. We also ended up with very shiny healthy looking doves/pigeons that would turn up outside in the morning waiting for the dogs to have her food ball so they could have breakfast on the bits she missed. The only reason we stopped using it was that the pedigree food that she also did well on came in bigger bags so was easier to buy in bulk and store than the supercoat. So the dog did well on it and the birds did well on it. However has she started eating again as its been a couple of days now - if not give your vet a call just to ask for advice.

Good luck and good genes. Family dog 1 - Lab cross lived til 1 week before turning 14 died of cancer had canned and dry pal food and dinner scraps. Went out on walks was fine off the lead lived outside when we were not home and at night (unltil he got very old and it was winter) died in 84 family had him from a puppy and was runt of the litter Family dog 2 - Afghan lived til she was about 14 was put down due to kidney disease and some problem with her neck where she couldnt lift her head up properly. Rarely takn on walks as has no recall and lived pretty much on a beanbag unless outside. Didn't do much running around. Got her when the breeder wanted her gone as she was fighting with another bitch and the other dog was the better in the showring so was either desexed and given away to my mother (friend of breeder) or was to be put down. was around same time as dog 1 ate same diet. Got clipped once a year. Family dog 3 - Golden Retriever lived til 17 (died in Dec 2000) got 1 km walks each day til the last few years, got commercial dog food then later pasta etc should have been gelded as he got adenomas under his tail which was controlled with female hormones for some reason vets never suggested desexing early on. Was put down when his hind legs could no longer support him for long, his hair fell out on his hindquarters and had one massive adenoma through his tail. Liked to sleep outside in the middle of the grass at night and got stressed if brought in when he was older and it was pouring rain (loved being inside with the family but once it was bedtime he wanted out to lay inthe middle of the yard - never used a dog kennel). Relatives dog - lived til about 14 or 15 in backyard and not walked once the kids lost interest years ago. Was given joint product and special food due to teeth issues but didnt see a vet inside the last year due to 'poo on her backside would make the car dirty'. Never allowed inside not even in a laundry in those stinking hot 44 degree days or the freezing cold of winter. So its luck of the draw as not keeping fit didnt affect the afghan or relatives dog (both females coincidentally) eating commercial canned food didnt affect any of them. All of the family dogs had their yearly vaccinations (as did the relatives dog til they decided to stop taking her but was within the last year). LAst family dog had the various heartworm medications (starting with daily tablets then later on when monthly came out onto the monthly option). OUr dog now 11 has joint issues that started when she was young so we prefer to try and keep her fit as that seems to keep the joints in better condition so she doesnt get sore as often. She's had two bouts of gastro (recently and 2 years back) none of the three family dogs ever had this problem. She's also had her teeth cleaned twice, got an infection from stabbing a leg with a tree branch at the park that she simply walked into, had two lumps removed recently that vet said were fatty lumps (and she has more), had hip issues and then last year the front shoulder and elbow had issues, now has slightly high kidney reading in her blood results, was stung in the throat by a bug requiring emergency vet treatment - none of the family dogs had any of these issues ever. Well ok the golden retriever had a lump removed from his throat as a young dog but until the adenomas and hind end problems cant think of much else he had in 17 years. Can only assume our dog came from a backyard breeder from a lab with not so good joints (sire it seems was a kelpie or kelpie cross) we got her when she was 2. So can only put it down to as I said good luck and good genes (and I guess keeping them well fed on whatever they do well on).

Offer the dry food and after a time take it away - gone til next scheduled feeding. If there are no other problems tend to agree with staff n toller. Dont give the dog any alternative in between offering the dry food again. A healthy dog wont starve itself but one training you to give it only the fun stuff might try it. They wont do it for more than a couple of days - so if it went on would contact your vet. However if there are any other symptoms apart from refusing the dry food ring the vet in case there may be an actual problem.

Well said Rommi & Lewis and kitkat. BARF seems to include a lot of fatty food (eg meaty bones) which may be fine for some dogs but many others it is not suited to. I too get sick of the commercial food=maccas crap as its untrue however some commercial foods dont suit some dogs whereas others will suit the same dogs. If someone does the research and tries barf and it works all good BUT equally people who go with the various commercial diets and there dogs do just as well doesnt mean they are 'lucky' it simply means teh dog does well on what its fed. Our dog loves spaghetti added to her evening meal - vet says spaghetti adds carbs and is good but she only gets it added for a day or so after we've had it. (pasta only)