sandgrubber

Your question about leads is a good one. I began with a single adjustable strap anchored to the wall in my hydrobath (boarding kennel . . . so owners are almost never present). I eventually added a strap from another angle so that the dog is triangulated to the wall, so to speak. I haven't had a real struggle since I added the second strap. I don't think dogs like to struggle against something that gives them few degrees of freedom and doesn't yield at all to their jerking around. Anything that allows them to get feet above the rim of the bath is asking for trouble. I am not a proper groomer, and for most dogs, I consider it good enough to wash them with their ordinary collar on . . . but never a choker.

My foundation bitch is a bit over 10 and is limping from the shoulder on one side. I've tried glucosamine and anti-inflammatories with no noticable effect, and will get some Sasha's blend next time I'm at Better Pets and Gardens . . . but I suspect it may be something other than arthritis. . . perhaps something pinching or out of alignment. I normally go to either Applecross or have the local mobile vet out . . . but I haven't been that impressed with either on muscular-skeletal-nervous system problems. I'd like to try alternative approaches before diving into the whole X-ray scene. Can anyone suggest someone in Perth Metro (prefer SOR) who is good at feeling a dog over to figure out what is going on . . . and, hopefully, correcting it or lessening the pain.

Yes, vaccinations can make a pups sick. I have a couple dogs that come to my kennel accompanied by letters from a reputable vet saying they get only the parvo vaccination because the distemper vaccination almost killed them. And I've had pups GET kennel cough from the C5 vaccine (with bordatella done via nasal puff). But there are LOADS of other things that can make a pup sick. See a vet.

I have a similar situation. It was one pup, in particular, who made "getting out" into a game and she taught everyone else to play Houdini. They didn't run away. They'd all be waiting at the gate for me to let them back in. An electric fence stopped the game in its tracks, though I now have a mob of Labbies who will chase a rabbit UNDER a normal, poorly hung fence without batting an eye, which calls for caution when it comes to off-line exercise.

With pups ribs, I generally figure "now you see them now you don't". Overweight tends to be worse than under (ok, I've got Labs, but I think it fits with most breeds). But if a pup gets a bit of fat on, come a growth spurt, you'll see the ribs again and maybe even be able to count them. It's ok to bounce between two and four when aiming for three. Just try to avoid one or five.

Scrapings are cheap. I had a client who took her dog into Murdoch Vet School for a biopsy and ended out with a $1500 bill, and a dog with lots of stitches here and there. They didn't find anything.

My hydrobath sits in a corner. I've drilled eye bolts into the brick wall on front and side of the wall. It's a boarding kennel, not a grooming parlour, and many of the dogs I bath have never been in a hydrobath before. If I think there may be a problem, particularly with a strong dog, I clip a line from the eye bolt to the collar (fixed collar reasonably tight, never a choker) from each side. The arrangement makes it almost impossible for the dog to jump out . . . though I can't do a 100% job in the area around the dog's collar. Once the dog finds it can't move more than a few inches and is pulling against a brick wall, it generally gives up struggling. Most of them are fine once they discover the water feels good, and can be unclipped.

If it's bad, I would be inclined to clean and disinfect it and wrap the paw fairly loosely with elastic bandage. If you have one of those webbed pads that become flexible when you heat them, that would be a good base for under the wrapping. Obviously, this won't work if your dog doesn't tolerate bandages and you may have to take additional measures to prevent him from chewing it off.

Everybody talks about chicken frames as a commodity, but having been through four suppliers (I get 100 to 200 kg/week, some for my dogs, some for the boarding kennel, and some for other breeders), I conclude that each source varies, and the sources that leave a lot of meat on also tend to leave a lot of fat, and sometimes fat and skin on. My breed, and a few of my dogs, are prone to obesity. Accordingly, I trim off the main fatty bits and toss them (sometimes to the magpies). Often this reduces the mass by 10%. And I can still see all my dogs' waistlines Do others do the same?

I think they do taste tests with dogs. Smelling bad to humans probably helps get a good K9 reaction. After all, cat pooh and rotting fish seem to be dog attractants.

Chloromide sounds like the active ingredient is chlorohexadine. Chlorohex is a very toxic to microorganisms but not particularly harmful to mammals. I had a dentist perscribe it as a mouthwash. IT TASTES worse than anything I have ever put in my mouth . . . so bad that I changed dentists. Bottom line, could be worth a try. It's also good for cleaning thermometers. (I like to understand what the active ingredient is and go for that rather than buying some commercial spray. It's usually MUCH cheaper, and you end up knowing exactly what it was that worked or didn't work.)

In kennels I find that dogs who won't eat raw foods are often happy to eat them when they pinch them from someone else (little buggers). Once they get over the initial prejudice, they usually take to it big time. Could you convince the dog that the cat is getting the stuff and allow her to pinch it from the cat bowl?

In my kennel I find that many 'little fluffies' go mad over chicken carcass IF you first smash it to bits with a meat cleaver. I prefer to start with carcasses because it's much clearer what you're feeding. I think some places, perhaps some Lennarts branches as well, throw the skin and fat into the mincer, which could end out with a pretty fatty mess. Not to mention guts. As for cooking Lennarts mince, I beg to differ. The problem with cooked bones is that they splinter. If they are previously ground reasonably fine, I think that takes care of the splintering problem. (Happy to be corrected if someone has evidence to the contrary.) I am more comfortable with cooked chicken mince than raw -- particularly for pups -- because chicken is notorious for carrying Salmonella.

I don't understand why you want to blacken snow nose. It is deceptive to do so if you are showing and you could get thrown out of the ring. They should evaluate the dog, not the dog's makeup. I can see no health benefit. But then, I myself don't wear makeup and I can't see putting it on dogs. Different strokes for different folks :rolleyes:

In my experience, "kennel cough" might better be called a "doggie cold". It's a virus, and while you can ameliorate the symptoms with various concoctions to soothe the throat and make phlem come up easier, the infection doesn't respond to treatment. It may open the way for bacterial infections -- which respond to antibiotics (Vibravet preferred, except for puppies). In many cases it isn't serious, and if symptoms remain mild, I wouldn't bother with the vets (but I've got nine dogs and a boarding kennel, and am in regular communication with a vet who often advises me that treatment is not necessary and "let me know if it gets much worse").

I have had pups GET kennel cough from the C5 vaccination. . . and pass it on to the next litter. But on the other hand, I C5 all my dogs regularly, and the pups didn't pass it on to the adults. That's something. I wish someone was doing quality control on K9 vaccinations. Can you imagine the furor if school kids caught full-blown measles from their measels vacs?

"Vets" are an extremely diverse group of Homo sapiens. Some of them know more than others :rolleyes: Some of them were asleep in class when the one lecture on canine body weight was given or failed that part of the exam. To my knowledge, there are no institutions in place to ensure that vets do learn the things they didn't pick up in their short time vet school.

Pumpkin got Kennel Cough from her 12 week round of vaccinations. From there the virus turned up in the next litter of pups, starting when they were 5 weeks old. Lark, who comes from the affected litter, is now 13.5 weeks old and still coughs a few times in the early morning. No other dog on the property has come down with KC though I think some unvaccinated dogs have been exposed. (I run a boarding kennel and recommend C5 but will accept C3). Question: Is Lark still contagious? Can she go to puppy training classes?

I don't remember exactly, but it was around $3 including GST (they quote prices without GST because they sell wholesale). They have beef, mutton and roo.

I have an 11 yr old Sibe in the boarding kennel who loves Mandarins. They haven't killed him yet. Also had a tenant whose dogs used to eat not only the oranges and date palm fruit, but also whole LEMONS with no apparent bad effects.

There's an active thread on cheap dog food meats in Perth. . . lots of good SOR suggestions.

South St has always been a great source, but not always the cheapest. But if you're feeding one or two dogs, low prices are good enough, you don't need to travel distance and buy 20 + kg at a time for rock bottom prices. Leonarts is often the cheapest source of chicken frames. Phone ahead and have them hold them for you. Different branches have different prices/availabilities. Better Pets and Gardens gives discounts to registered breeders, and is often very competitive with City Farmers for a lot of things. I haven't tried them for meats. City Farmers isn't bad for mince. Jurien Pet Foods mince is top quality, but they have a minimum of 40 kg and they have just upped their prices.

Where are you in Perth, and how much do you buy? There are a couple outfits that deliver to the kennel areas . . . varying products of varying quality. Even if you don't live in a kennel area or buy 20+ kg at a time, you can often get a breeder or kennel manager to add a bit to their order and on-sell to you.

Sounds to me like you've got the bases covered. YOu didn't mention the obvious . . . fever, lethargy, looking sick. If she seems to loose the fighting spirit, doesn't eat, or otherwise changes behaviour, I'd be in touch with the vet, pronto.

My first girl got a localised deep pyroderma. Nasty. Scary. A breeder suggested putting her on BARF diet. Six years later and she's never had another serious incident. Or perhaps I've gotten better at dealing with the problem. At the slightest sign of pyroderma on any of my dogs, I get out the clippers and leave a bald spot around the patch and pour on whatever I've got on hand to get rid of bacteria and keep the area dried out.