cowanbree

I had a similar thing and went through various tests and surgeries over a period of 3-4mths. He had a partial obstruction in the form of scar tissue that allowed the barium through but not the food. It didn't show up on x-rays either so I was referred to a specialist and we had him scoped which gave us a video of everything internal. If I had to do it again I would go straight to the specialist.

It was me. Which one did you get again? I still have a half broken one that lifts with every gust of wind. How do you find your new one in the wind?

Thanks everyone for your input Aziah, I am interested in Boost ya boys but have had no response from their website and can't find the product on it. Would you have a link to the correct website please? Steve, the teaser bitch was a Bulldog and the male a sheltie. He was quite frightened of her and is never a fan of the vets at the best of times. Not a great combination for a successful collection I guess. How much Aloe Juice would you give him? HW. It sounds like you have been down a very similar road to me. I hope you had a successful outcome. Did you ever get a collection that had semen in it? Alice or otherwise?

Thanks everyone. Yes he has been used before successfully but it has been about 4yrs. He was just used recently but there were no puppies so I thought I had better get him tested. When I say it was a half hearted sample, I mean he was quite uptight and nervous, not at all interested in the teaser bitch and the vet only got a sample after about 10 min. He retracted very quickly, less than 2 minutes and I really wonder if it was a true sample. The vet seems to think it was and has declared him infertile based on this sample. I just wondered if absolutely no sperm was normal. I could understand and accept if there was dead sperm or very low mobility but a total absence is not something I have struck before. I would love to consult a reproductive specialist but that is just not something we have here

If you join the Caravan Association you have assess to all their camp sites for next to nothing and most allow dogs. You do have to be fully self contained. NZ is a great place to live

I have just had my 9yrs semen tested and it appears that he is infertile, absolutely no semen at all which is very disappointing. It was a very half hearted sample as he was not happy with tge experience and I was wondering if that might be the cause of the problem. The vet doesn't think this is the case but she isn't a specialist. Has anyone had experience with this?

I think you just get them at horse shops but they are normally plastic, well mine is anyhow

If he is approachable I would ask him to try and minimise the barking in the morning but having said that some barking at 7am is deemed acceptable. Our animal control allows something like 15 barks per hour between the hours of 7am and 9pm before it is deemed unacceptable.

Is he itching as walking dandruff looks just like dandruff.

It is very difficult and a question I have often struggled with but for the oldies they can still have quality of life even if they don’t have the same spark they used to. I have a number of oldies who have various different issues and the number one question I always ask myself is if I was that dog would I still want to be here. Sleeping more is fine as long as they are still fit enough to enjoy life when they want to. Being vison or hearing impaired is fine as long as they aren’t frightened and upset. I do know how difficult it is. I am never sure, I never just know and agonise over every decision both before and after the event.

I have a sheltie that wears a muzzle when out and about as he has a throat issue that means he can not eat solid food. On the muzzle in bold print is do not feed, throat issues. I regularly have people try and give him food as it is so mean to deny him. It is not mean when he physically can't swallow it!

I always go outside with the dogs for their last toilet trip, mainly to make sure there is no barking but also to make sure my oldie Bree actually goes to the toilet rather than just wander round. If she doesn't go then it is a middle of the night toilet trip. That said I find the oldies do get to an age where they can't hold all night so at that stage I have to organise a work around so we can all be happy

Thank you, sadly that is what I thought. Do you think a dehumidifier would help?

I have a sheltie that has terminal lung cancer, diagnosed in November he was only meant to have 6 weeks. The heat was very difficult for him last summer and with summer fast approaching I am looking for solutions to keep him cool. I have a heat pump but to be honest the cool cycle is average. It does cool the house to a certain degree but it can still get quite hot and humid inside. I have a dehumidifier but have never used it, would it help at all? He loathes water and would never consider going anywhere near a pool. I have tried the cool mats but he wasn’t a fan. I was thinking a cool coat or something similar but it would have to be ok to leave on him for 10 odd hours I am at work and work on a coated dog. I am not against shaving him if it would help but he has a more drapey flowing coat rather than a dense one so I suspect it would be of marginal help. I would welcome suggestions.

Would never do it unless it was an emergency and I had no other choice. In fact I have to fly away for a day trip soon and will be gone from about 5.30am until 7.30pm and I consider that too long to be left alone so will be getting the dog sitter in.

Very common issue here

Thanks everyone. Spoke to my vet today and he said he considers Gibby to have mild viral infection which may or may not be cat flu and he suggests just keeping up the Doxy and seeing if he comes right. He is not against Lysine but said wait and see if it is needed first which I suppose is quite sensible

I just add a bit of water. My shelties used to eat so fast they would choke, certainly stops that

Thanks everyone. Vet has only put the older one on a 12 day course, 1/2 once a day so will have to talk to him next week.

Yes he is as he is quite rattley in the chest. My other cat has only sneezed a couple of times and has one slightly weepy eye so my vet has said just monitor him at this stage. All my cats are vaccinated against cat flu so how is it possible they have it? Admittedly Gibbys isn't overly recent but the young cats is

Thanks Kirty. IS this likely to reoccur? It is the first time in all my years of cat ownership that I have had it and the cat affected is 13yrs old. I do wonder if it is anything to do with the new kitten Munro as he had mouth ulcers when he arrived 4mths ago?

I have a cat currently with the cat flu, he has received vet care and is recovering well but I was wondering if the weepy eyes part of the flu is contagious to dogs? I know the flu itself isn’t but wasn’t sure if the weeping eyes was just part of the cat flu or conjunctivitis which would spread to dogs?

I also put the human foot cream on that pad, just to keep it soft. He has had issues for a few years now and as long as I keep on top of them they don't cause too much difficulty.

I have been using it for the past few months on my cancer boy. He is terminal but I thought why not give it a go and see if it extends his life. He was given 3mths max back in Nov and is still here today. I know it could change at a moments notice but I just enjoy him while I have him. He gets the Golden past 3 times a day as apparently it only stays in a body a few hours. I would recommend for anyone interested in this for people or animals to join the FB site, they have some great stories, it seems a miracle supplement used for all manner of things.

Sadly that isn't always the case. I lost my perfectly healthy 6yr old aussie to aspiration pneumonia and I can assure you she had the best vet care possible, it just wasn't enough. Pneumonia can be very deadly so you were very lucky.