White Shepherd mom

Boxagirl, how is Barf going in your household? The way I see it, there are Barf feeders who don't use any veggies so whatever you use should do fine. Perhaps try and rotate them so they're not getting too much of one thing! I look for what's in season (and hence cheaper!). Basically leafy greens, some grated carrot (or frozen julienne carrots), frozen peas, sometimes pumpkin. I also throw in some crushed garlic, maybe an egg, some yoghurt or some sunflower oil. If anything else grabs my fancy at the shops, I put that in too.

Hi Framed and welcome to DOL! I don't usually have your problem because everything I want to get is on a list. The dog stuff takes up quite a bit of space on the list! Usually I get them biscuits, marrowbone biscuits, basted treats, bones, raw mince, a couple of dog tins, tuna and sardines. I think that's all We already have 2 beds each, a couple of leads and a couple of collars as well as an array of brushes. I want to get them another water bowl to keep inside so on hot days their inside water will hopefully stay cool. I get the meds (eg heartworm, etc) online as it is cheaper.

good on you kkisiel, I was about to agree with everyone else about not vaccinating but you've already made that decision! I hope all goes well with your girl and she gives you many more years of love. ETA : I would still suggest you take her for a check-up every 6-12 months though.

two unrelated losses in one day is almost unbelievable. What makes it worse is that they were too young to go. I am so sorry you are grieving today CK. At least they have each other on their way to the Bridge.

You have certainly had a hard time of it. How do you cope? I hope the loss of Maggie was the last of your sad events, you've had more than your fair share. My thoughts are with you.

20kg for a full grown male collie does not sound enough - as you say, no wonder he eats everything they give him - he'd probably eat them if he could! Probably 30kg would be more likely. The right weight for a dog (as I'm sure you know) is when you can just feel the last ribs. You should be able to feel the hip bone a little but not as much as you say you can feel on Conner. 50kg for a golden at 8 months? My grief - how is that dog still alive? How old is he now? He does not sound overweight, he sounds obese. It doesn't sound as if the vet was convincing enough in telling them. I don't know what the ideal weight of these two breeds is but I agree with your thoughts on the matter.

Time moves too slowly sometimes. I hope all the good memories of Maggie will stay with you forever. At least she's in good company.

Just because you didn't find fleas, doesn't mean one nasty sucker didn't take a bite and jump off! Buckley might be allergic to flea bites or being spring, allergic to pollens that come out now. He could also be allergic to grains in his diet, of which Eukanuba has plenty but I don't know how long it would take for his system to react. When did you last bath him and de-flea him?

oh wow, if that's not a good omen, I don't know what is! Now every time you see a rainbow, you can think of Cadence. I hope you are doing well.

I'm so sorry for your loss Shona. At least little Billy is not in pain now but has left you the gift of his love and wonderful memories. RIP Billy.

had you not been there both those dogs might have run across the road and either both been killed or caused a horrific accident. This is not your fault isaviz and you did everything you could by taking Mika to the vet and then calling his owners. Be glad that those imbecils (for want of a stronger word) did not hit you as well.

bl, I might be wrong here but I think hotspots get wet from the bacteria on the skin and that is what makes the dogs itchy so they lick. You might notice on your labs if they get a hotspot where their tongues can't reach, it will still be moist. If it was a hotspot, maybe it dried on its own simply because Kirri is hairless and so the skin was properly aired. Like you say, it may have been a mild infection that just cleared itself up.

bl, from your description, I thought your pup might have had a hotspot but since she's ok now I was guessing wrong! Glad she's ok now!

I'm so sorry for your loss, Dougal. Your boy put up a brave fight and you gave him all the love a pup deserves. I hope you have happy memories of him forever more.

I used to give my two the annual heartworm injection without a problem. Then I changed to Sentinel Spectrum so as to take care of heartworm, fleas and worms in one go. Three months later, Casper had his first seizure. The vet told me to stop giving the Sentinel but also suggested I no longer give the annual heartworm injection as his immune system was now compromised and if he had a bad reaction to the vaccine, he would be stuck with it in his system for 12 months.

That's great news. Natures Gift tins are the only ones I buy as emergency back-up. It's the only tin I've seen that advertises no preservatives and no by-products. Would be nice if they got a little competition to bring the price down a little though. Isn't the info you get on DOL fourms just great? Hi Julie-anne! I buy mine from Woolies, in the dog tin section. In 3 different shops I have found these tins on the far left of all the tins. I can't remember if they're below waist height though... I'm sure all the supermarkets should have them.

Juile-Anne, I am sure Joey will be very pleased that you forgot about his dew-claws - he's had a tough enough time of it and he's only little, poor mite! I'm glad his op went well and they've sorted his hernia out too. Is he getting attention from Jenna?

Great news MSJ, I'm guessing you've already picked him up? He must be pleased to be back in his mum's arms. Did you get his dewclaws done as well?

Shekhina, may I ask why he HAS to eat puppy kibble? Have you tried making his meal out of fresh ingredients and finding out what supplements to add for a growing pup? Maybe there's something in the kibble he doesn't like or doesn't agree with him so he would rather not eat it unless he is starving. What did your vet recommend?

I don't feed yoghurt often but when I do I use a plain flavour, one that mentions acidophilus and all the other goodies I can't name right now! For tuna I buy the big Woolies home brand one, usually in oil. I also buy the Woolies homebrand sardines in oil in case I only want to feed them a little bit of fish.

Never heard of them but I must say that the name does not sound very appetising!

I'm so sorry you lost your little pal, Glenda. Boy, it sounds like she had one good, happy, loving life and it's great that your childhood memories include her.

I'm sorry you lost your little mate Meggz. My thoughts are with you.

Hi MSJ! I guess what was a small hernia on a 5 month old German Shepherd would be a huge one on a baby Cav! I think removing dew claws are a personal decision. I know of dogs who have small dew claws that lie against the foot. Casper's ones stuck out from his feet and were loose and floppy. I was concerned that he could tear those very easily. Knowing now what a klutz he is, I am glad we had them done! ETA - I'm only talking about the back legs. He still has his front dew-claws as they're not a problem.

Casper had one too which was sorted when he was desexed. Poor darling came back with stitches from his desexing, his hernia, and his removed rear dewclaws. He was probably wondering what mean household adopted him from the pound! I saw on the bill that they did not charge for the hernia. Either they thought they were making enough off us for the other stuff, or they didn't remove it. He still has a little scar there. MSJ, it's common enough so don't panic!