Dog_Horse_Girl

I used this from time to time, given with RMBs only. I don't feed minced meat products at all, it's a waste of money for me - bones are cheaper and better for the dog IMO. I used the Complete Mix mostly if we're travelling or no more than one month out of twelve. I haven't fed it since we left Melbourne, though, so that's the end of 2005. The dogs do better just on raw veg/fruit slop...in my experience. edit b/c I left a letter off a word...now it makes sense!

The pads are much nicer than newspaper. They're more absorbent, and the moisture doesn't sit on top of the pad the way it does on newspaper. The dog/pup is more inclined to use it also b/c they're impregnated with a scent to encourage elimination on the pad. I use them for Molly b/c she can't always hold it all day when we're at work. And I remove the pad as soon as I get home if she's used it.

My understanding is that phenobarbitone has to be given 12 hours apart and with (at least some) food. The timing is crucial from what (little) I've read thus far. I've had to delay Molly's first blood work b/c she has a nasty ear ATM but we aren't sure what it is b/c Molly (even under sedation) would not allow the vet to perform a complete exam. I'm not very happy about the experience...am still deciding whether to re-visit or to try a different vet clinic. Sorry to go slightly O/T. I would definitely look for a more knowledgeable vet if this were my dog. While you may live in a remote or regional area, making this expensive, you do have a primary responsibility to care appropriately for the dog. Do you have a major regional centre or small city within a couple of hours' drive? Can you give us an idea of what area you live in? There is no way I'd be satisfied with the 'help' you've received for this condition. At the very least, if a brain tumour is suspected, a scan should be done to rule this in or out. Medication can be started regardless but without a proper diagnosis (reason for the seizures), treating with medication may not resolve or minimise the problem as well as it could do. Please find further help for your dog.

Yep, the dogs have always been inside dogs. ATM b/c they're adjusting to the change in climate, we have the air con going a bit for them. But as they cope with the increased temperatures, we are reducing the time it's on. So far, so good. Ruby and Lilly have lived in Cairns but Darwin is much hotter in comparison and the humidity is still quite high for this time of year. Ruby is a Darwin dog (we got her from the pound here back in 2001), so she's re-learning everything - but there were no cane toads here back then.

Agreed PF, and I'm trying to caution people against a knee-jerk reaction (stopping vax) when there is no scientifically-proven link. My Molly is only 3 yrs old, so I'd say that her seizures aren't even remotely caused by her immune system having been compromised due to frequent vaccination.

So does dettol kill toads? Yep. They might hop away a bit but you find their bodies later. I absolutely REFUSE to handle them in any way, shape or form. And there is no way a cane toad will see the inside of my freezer...yuck!

Nope, she's never put off by it...in fact, she wants to catch then more than ever once she's got the first one. Typical greyhound. We hope that it's an isolated incident for this time of year, but everyone waters their gardens every day (some twice a day) so that just keeps the toads breeding year-round. :D I want to buy a toad trap, but at $100 + I just don't have that to spare ATM. I need a job.

Cavandra, I don't support the use of heartworm preventive injections. I have never supported this particular product due to the adverse outcomes reported in the USA, UK and other developed nations. I use Interceptor Spectrum. I understand some people's reluctance to use western products but I would rather take a (very small) risk in using a proven-safe product such as Interceptor to prevent heartworm than to have a dog contract this awful and usually lethal parasite. Annual vax, as I said - I don't fully agree with annual jabs but I'm yet to find a vet that will support a three-year protocol, never mind one that does titre testing either routinely or at all. It is still also cost-prohibitive in this country as so few laboratories are equipped to handle titre testing en masse. As we do board our dogs, and as any reputable kennel will demand, an annual C5 is the bare minimum accepted across the industry. Here in the wet tropics, we also have deadly Leptospirosis to contend with and there are at least three strains covered in the vax for that disease. I intend to give each of our dogs the stand-alone Lepto vax rather than a C7. That not only minimises the likelihood of adverse responses, but gives the dog the required doses at the required intervals of four-weeks apart in a previously non-vaccinated dog. While I accept that some people have strong views on current western vet practices, as do I in some examples, I caution against blanket statements such as yours that indicate seizure activity must be caused by over-medicating to prevent serious and deadly diseases, when this is not proven to be the case at all. Sadly, in many cases of epilepsy, no cause is found (idiopathic) which doesn't mean that vaccinations have caused the problem at all.

Well, we had our first 'experience' with the dreaded toads since moving into the house - yesterday evening. I had the dogs out for a toilet break, Lilly was muzzled as it was after dark...the other dogs went back upstairs but Lilly was scrabbling around in the garden. I *knew* she was after something and when I caught up to her, the muzzle and her mouth were covered in foamy saliva. Great. Yelled for OH to come and help...as I removed her muzzle, I could clearly see the frothy stuff caused by her grabbing a toad. Yuck. We did the usual hold the dog's head forward, rinse for 15 minutes protocol. OH still wasn't convinced it was a toad though. ;) Then on the last toilet stop of the night...lo and behold I walk out the front door and THERE IT IS. :D A bloody awful toad...only a baby but big enough to cause poisoning. Wasn't prepared with the dettol squirter (don't ask me why ) and it got away. We now have a dettol squirter and torch just inside the front door. :D BTW - it bucketed down rain last night. :D

I'm sorry that I have no experience or advice to share. My own Molly has recently been diagnosed with epilepsy and it's a learning experience. I have a visit with a new vet tomorrow to check her levels and we go from there (we've just moved to Darwin and only found out about this the week we left Canberra). I would be guided by your vet's advice, and also from reading what you can from credible sources - and there's nothing wrong with non-western opinions as long as the reader is clear when it is an opinion being offered rather than proven or science-based fact.

Cavandra, while I respect your right to voice your opinion, can you please provide some evidence (research) as to how you have arrived at the opinion of seizures being caused by medicating and vaccinating dogs? ETA: I'm still to be convinced of this apparent link...but if you have conclusive evidence from a respected vet school, I would be very interested in seeing it. My chi x has recently been diagnosed with epilepsy and in the reading I've done to date, I cannot find any conclusive or solid research that proves a link without reasonable doubt between vaccination and/or heartworm preventives and seizures. I do believe that ivermectin can cause issues in sensitive dogs but whether that also leads to seizures is still in doubt. However, the recommendations for seizure prone dogs in terms of preventives are to use a non-ivermec based heartworm preventive such as Interceptor Spectrum (which I've been using on all my dogs for YEARS without incident); FrontlinePlus for fleas and ticks (again I've been using for YEARS without issue), and continue with vaccinations that are required in the area in which the dog lives and visits. In our case, that had been C5 but we now live in the wet tropics, so I'll be having the dogs done with the stand-alone Leptospirosis vaccine on vet's recommendation. BTW - I use both holistic and western philosophies in managing my dogs. They're all fed a raw, whole foods diet. They are vaccinated at recommended intervals and I will be discussing this with our next vet b/c I would like to move to a three-year protocol rather than continue with the annual vax. They are on western preventives for parasites. I also use DAP products to manage anxiety, and other holistic products for specific conditions such as our dog with skin allergies (she will be starting on two McDowall products soon as moving back to Darwin seems to be re-triggering her allergic response). ;)

Excuse my naievety, but what is BSL? BSL = Breed Specific Legislation.

Aloveen shampoo and conditioner.

My only two thoughts were poison and seizure. How's Tango today?

Please tell us where you sourced this...it sounds like it might benefit so many novice handlers. ;) Me included.

If the family aren't ready for another dog (and I understand that), why not foster? This will help their dog and many others in the process. I'd also recommend they get their vet to check their boy. He's likely going to need something stronger than RR...he's grief-stricken and that can warrant a sedative combined with a stronger anti-anxiety medication. I'd definitely suggest a DAP diffuser too, if he's kept indoors at least some of the time. I wouldn't recommend a PUP, but an older, calmer dog just might do the trick. Contact Wei Rescue...they are sure to know of an older dog needing a new home or foster carer.

We don't feed leftovers to our dogs, I freeze them or take to work next day for lunch. Our dogs are raw fed though.

Molly seems to be OK ATM...we've just arrived in Darwin (dogs have gone to a lovely 'home stay' type arrangement) and we haven't noticed any seizures since we left Canberra. But she's been crated in the car for a lot of the trip so it's impossible to have watched her the whole time. I need to find a vet pronto as Molly's blood work needs doing in two weeks' time.

I'm still waiting for my samples too. Given that we are now between houses - it's pointless if the samples get sent. We wanted them before we left the ACT...and had planned to buy some Nutro if it suited the dogs, also before we left Canberra. Never mind, we are happy with what they're on while in transit. That's Nutrience, Royal Canin and Pro Plan Sensitive. Nutro? Nope I wouldn't bother now.

You need to go back to the beginning with all of these dogs. Supervise, confine when necessary, and re-train from the start.

Look t the bag to see where it's made. Most of Royal Canin available in Australia is from Europe not US. If I had the bag, I would look at it. But we had to move the food into a plastic container for the trip so I threw the bag away before we moved out of the house. It's on a rubbish tip in the ACT somewhere. So can anyone direct me to a website for Australian-available RC so I can figure out if what I've bought is on the recall list?

It doesn't say if this product range has been exported to Australia...where can we find this information? I bought a bag of RC for Lilly b/c of the move/trip...now I'm very concerned. It's the only processed food she tolerates.

You mean cooked chicken mince rather than cooked chicken pet mince, I hope? Pet mince contains a lot of bone and should never be cooked as they use chicken frames to make the mince. Most dogs also prefer their foods served raw b/c it smells 'better' to them. :rolleyes: I won't begin to discuss the reasons against feeding IAMS/Euk... As long as your dog is happy, that's the main thing.

How did you figure out what to give each one of them? How come not all of them are on the same brand of food ?(not necessarily same type though, like they all could be on Nutrience but different type for different needs) Ruby and Molly could likely eat almost any processed and do OK on it for short periods as is the case ATM. Lilly, OTOH, has a very fussy bowel and therefore we found raw is definitely best. She does OK to fair on RC but it's the best processed food we've tried. We tried many many different brands and formulations before we switched her to raw in the first place. Most dry foods literally go in one end and straight out the other - what comes out is mostly liquid! RC at least is a semi-formed stool at the other end. I don't usually buy processed at all. And I avoid brands available in the supermarket due to the poor overall quality. But the Pro Plan Sensitive is not bad. Reading through the ingredients list is (mostly) a pleasant surprise except the first ingredient is a cereal... I like dog food to contain mostly animal product (and not by-product either!) so it's not easy to find one that suits all three. And they're very different in terms of breed/mix. Lilly is a greyhound, Ruby is a staffy cross and Molly is a mini foxie x chi. Raw suits all three equally well without the need for buying different foods for each one. :rolleyes:

I voted BARF b/c there's no option for raw other than BARF. I don't feed BARF in the strict sense but a modified raw, whole foods diet. ATM b/c of the trip/move/kennels, the dogs are on processed and raw meaty bones. The processed foods are: Royal Canin (for Lilly); Nutrience (Ruby and Molly); Pro Plan Sensitive (Ruby). RC is OK for Lilly but not great - she doesn't digest processed very well and does well to have a firmish poo on RC! Ruby is on antibiotics and her poo isn't great b/c of that...the processed might have something to do with that as well. Molly does fine on Nutrience...it's the bowl she doesn't like! :D If I serve it on the floor, it's OK...but in that nasty stainless steel bowl? Nope, it's gotta go on the floor! :D I think whatever works best for your dog, but buy the best you can afford and understand the ingredients lists and the nutrition panel info. It's important to know what goes into your dog's diet IMO.