ellz

I don't want to upset you with my answer and no doubt there will be other opinions but.... If it were me, if she were visibly contracting and obviously uncomfortable, I would probably have erred on the side of caution and I would have called the vet on the Sunday night. This is almost what happened with Koda. She got VERY restless and was obviously not happy at about midnight on the Saturday night after her temp had dropped at midday Saturday. I watched her all night and when nothing was happening by about 5.30am Sunday morning, I rang the vet. I was at his surgery by 8am and the first puppy was out by about 9am. At the time, it wasn't a true "emergency" and we could have proceeded a few ways....oxy shots and monitoring, do nothing but watch or go in and take the puppies. As it turned out, it was lucky we went in because the placentas had started to separate and two of the puppies were showing meconium so they were definitely ready and starting to stress. The vet commented at the time that had we not acted when we did, or had I waited until the Monday there probably wouldn't have been any puppies alive. As it was, there were 9 and all survived. BUT...we can all be wise in hindsight.

No, many bitches have some form of mucous discharge at various stages of gestation. It doesn't necessarily mean that labour has begun.

I've got an awl already. I use it when I'm making my Arabian Show costumes. Thanks for the feedback and the advice. I have literally just discovered that I can use my cross stitching stand as a temporary, portable holder for my braiding until I can find the wooden toot roll holder that I know is hiding here somewhere! I really enjoyed the braiding the few times I managed to find and keep the "rhythm". I found this listing for different coloured kangaroo thonging....is it any good? http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi...e=STRK:MEWAX:IT

The Supercoat probably wouldn't be helping matters much either. Get him off that and onto a better quality dry and you will probably find things to be rather different.

Obviously I stand corrected but I do still wonder if the breeder may have been feeding raw to their adult dogs and whether the chicken was in addition to other foods? Yes, head into the Dane thread but the BREEDER should be first port of call.

Over or under "ripe" potatoes can be dangerous for ALL species (not just dogs). Nobody should ever eat a potato that has a green tinge to the skin and any fermented food of any kind has its own particular set of risks as well.

Yes and yes!

There was a Saluki litter born not so long ago from dual sires. Not sure of specifics but it was a decent sized litter and there were progeny from both sires in the litter.

Have a look at http:www.showmanager.com.au. You can use the "trial" function for one dog and it is a very easy, user friendly and efficient website for show entries! :rolleyes: Hahahahah ellz, I said I was going to! Except I don't understand, I put in the show info then go to print it and it just brings up this (see attachment). Don't I have to nominate which dog I'm taking and stuff? Am I just not using the site correctly? Everything seems to be conspiring against me *huge dramatic sigh* You need to spend a bit of time playing there to fully understand the site. From what I can remember off the top of my head, you have to first go to the section where you enter Luuka's information. From there you go to the community section and add the shows you want to enter to your personal listing. Then you click on the show, add Luuka's information to it and save the updated show information. If you don't put in the entry fee amount, it won't save is something that I discovered. Then when you go back to the front page, click on the print icon and your PDF should appear showing your completed entry form and the entry summary.

It is the biotin issue that many people are referring to when they discuss egg whites. Research has shown though that moderate amounts of raw egg white if fed in conjunction with the yolk and an otherwise balanced diet are not going to cause great concern. With regards to the macadamia nuts etc. As I mentioned, sometimes a "once off" may have no effect whatsoever. BUT it may also be that the once off reaches the tolerance level in the body and if it happens again, there MAY be issues. Some things in the individual have a slow build-up effect. This isn't just the case with animals, it is also the same with humans. One known example is the preservative 282 in bread products.

Yes. If they've walked somewhere that is harbouring the disease. Now....this leads me to a question. You say that the cats have been eating the dogs food....does that mean you leave food down all the time? If so, if it were me, I wouldn't be doing that any more. Your vet says your puppy has parvo and they have obviously done the necessary testing to diagnosis it so I'm not disputing it in the slightest, but there are also many other diseases that a dog can pick up from eating contaminated food. If the cats can get to it, then so can rodents, flies and all manner of other not-so-pleasant dining partners.

The virus is shed in Faecal matter, so you can literally walk it in to your home, drive it in on your cars tyres. Or dried stuff can simply blow into your yard on the wind or be dropped there by birds which have walked in it.....and you won't know it is there unless your dog shows symptoms.

Okies.....here is my first attempt at a round 4 with a little bit of pretty blue rattail. It's a bit wonky in some parts because even at my advanced years I kept getting my rights and lefts muddled (or maybe that is BECAUSE of my advanced years? :rolleyes:). Once I got the diagrams worked out.....and colouring them in really did help for those who are yet to attempt it....it wasn't so bad. I'm going to try and get hold of some kangaroo thong now and give it a go on some real leather but for now, I've got some black and gold rattail so I'm going to have a stab at a two colour piece! And then if I can do that without stuffing it up, I may have a stab at a round 6. But....I love your setup Mystiqview and will try and cobble together something like that for myself. It's got to be better than my temporary setup last night. Don't laugh but I tied my braiding to my toe first off and sat on my bed listening to a DVD, and then when my back starting aching, I tied it to my leg! Brings back memories of my macrame phase where my poor father succumbed and hung hooks from a lot of doors and ceilings in the family parts of the house so that I could play with my knots!

Have a look at http:www.showmanager.com.au. You can use the "trial" function for one dog and it is a very easy, user friendly and efficient website for show entries!

For numbers I'd say Crufts. For pzazz, spectacle, showmanship and a fabulous time, I'd say Westminster any day!

Psssst.....edit your title and take the apostrophe out of Litters....it doesn't belong there!

Doesn't sound normal to me either! Aside from the risk of infection through the open drip site, there is also the issue of the dog crashing during treatment which can (and does) happen.

Many breeders still do the whole "cereal" bit (ie weetbix or farex). I'm not one of them, but my puppies DO get supper each night (warm milky drink and a biscuit - I have found they sleep better with something warm in their tummies) and they help clean up the skinkids breakfast bowls when they're finished with them (waste not want not). It simply isn't necessary to feed puppy food to bitches these days. A good balanced diet will provide all the caloric requirements a bitch needs, without the extra expense or bother of puppy food which can often be an overload anyway. It is the same as extra calcium supplementation during gestation....not necessary. A good NATURAL source of calcium on a regular basis for life is what is more sensible.

It "kind of" gives step by step instructions....but is very diagram heavy. I've decided that the best way for me to follow the instructions is to photocopy the page that I want to try (they are black/white line drawings) and then colour each individual strand in a seperate colour and have a cord of the same colour so that I can move each one to look like the part of the diagram that I'm following IYKWIM. I've got a better chance of taking it in and "getting" enough of a hang of things to allow muscle memory to take over then. I'm fairly dextrous but I just need to fully understand each particular movement of each individual cord before I can be confident with what I'm doing.

Yes, they can survive parvo. Especially if early treatment takes place. It isn't readily understood that the parvo itself isn't the problem with young or old dogs....it is the associated dangerous dehydration that is usually the killer. Fluid replacement is absolutely essential.

I think many pet owners who don't understand nutrition think that if it is suitable for puppies, it must be ok for adult dogs as well. Like it is a watered down version or something. Little do many realise that the products designed for puppy consumption are more like the "high powered" products such as Rev and things like that...extra calcium, extra of many things....not much of which is actually suitable for an adult dog unless it has specific dietary/health requirements due to ill health or injury. It's much the same I think as people who feed puppy foods to in whelp bitches thinking that they are doing the right thing. Yes, in years gone by that may have been the case but foods are much more researched and balanced now and it just isn't necessary.

If you're talking about the stuff in cartons that you can buy from the supermarket......don't waste your money. If you or your OH's mum want to give milk, just normal cow's milk will be fine, as will goats milk or even good old powdered milk. Dogs aren't born lactose intolerant. MANY (not all) become lactose intolerant because they aren't given milk and their bodies stop producing the enzyme that digests it. All of my dogs tolerate milk very readily (which is handy for leftover weetbix and porridge at hooman breakfast time). But then all are given milk on a regular basis from puppyhood.

Which is exactly what I had in mind when I said it needed to be adopted fairly in all states. I don't have anything which qualifies now, but that's not to say that I won't in the future. Unfortunately, the Neuter classes as offered now are rarely contested, but perhaps if there is a title in the offing, it may give some incentive.

Not necessarily. Some lines are slower to grow coat than others. A lot depends upon hormones, maturity and also nutrition. A good coat is BRED for, FED for and CARED for. Many desexed dogs grow a huge coat but often the texture isn't correct. I'd be careful what I wished for anyway....Goldens can shed like the billyo. Less hair on the dog means less hair over the house!