Athena GSD

There is a new product out now that is a cortisone spray (cortavance) that is designed to sit in the skin and is only minimally absorbed into the body. It is a prescription medication so you will need to get it from a vet. Wiping feet with a clean wet flannel after she has been on the grass is often helpful too.

If you are concerned there are 2 good dermatology specialists in Brisbane (if this is close to you?). Mike Shipstone consults at a number of specialist clinics in Brisbane and also on the Gold Coast. Ken Mason has his own clinic in Springwood in Brisbane. Good luck, I hope it is not serious. Have they checked for demodex (usually seen in younger dogs than yours but still worth ruling out) they should have seen it in the biopsy though.

A simple solution would be to continue using the i/d. If your dog likes it, it makes your life easier and you know the fat content is fine.

Epulis are usually benign growths originating from the gums. Normally they grow slowly but can displace the teeth. If the lump is slow growing and does not interfere with the teeth or eating I would leave it alone. However if it becomes large, displaces any of the teeth or affects their ability to eat I would remove it. If it is removed it must be with a reasonable margin, usually including adjacent teeth and bone. The only warning is that taking only a portion of the lump for a biopsy or if they are not properly removed they can be aggravated and grow more quickly. If the biopsy has been sent to a pathologist they will normally recommend removal if they think it is necessary. Talk to your vet about what they recommend.

I am sorry to hear about Kayla, all I could suggest is putting her in the bathroom when you are showering, the steam will help loosen the congestion in the lung, and get her onto a course of antibiotics.

We have found that the Hills Science sensitive skin works really well at putting weight on dogs. Seems to be due to the high density of nutrients/weight of food and the omega 3 oils. (There is also a sensitive stomach food in the Hills science range if the vomiting continues). These all have palliatability guarantees so if she will not eat it you can get your money back.

I would check right down the canal of both ears, you may need a vet to do this. Sometimes inflammation, infections and foreign bodies aren't immediately obvious. Good luck, I hope you find the cause.

Most vets are reluctant to do speys on dogs on heat as the uterus has an incresed blood supply, is swollen and generally more fragile. For this reason it can take more skill and time to perform the operation and there is a risk of postoperative bleeding. Some vets charge more to reflect this. Like most things it is a risk not a certainty. If it is not a problem to wait until after the season, I would wait.

Daxilly, if you are concerned, my recommendation would be to seek a second opinion or ideally get a referral to an eye specialist. Have you been given an alternative eye cream.??

'' Gently they go, the beautiful, the tender, the kind.'' ''Quietly they go, the intelligent, the witty, the brave.'' Rest in Peace. Dianne.

I would suggest taking the dog back to the surgery that did the operation, they should remove the plaster free of charge and it also gives the vet a chance to check the suture line.

Sounds like a Contact Allergy to me. Get a second opinion.

The newer test kits will only detect adult female worms, not microfilaria. The heartworm products can be dangerous if adult worms are present. They are killed and move within the heart and into the lungs causing blockages to vessels and blood clots can form as the body reacts to the worms as they are broken down. Much of the problem is the sheer size of the adult worms. Animals can sometimes have an anaphylactic reaction as the worms are killed. This happens in animals that have a hugely exagerated response to breaking down the dead worms.

Thanks for the advice Erny and Poodle Fan, I really appreciate it. I am in the process of contacting a behaviourist and I will take him into work to assess him medically. He has no other clinical signs to make me worry about a medical problem apart from his physical injuries caused by his escape attempts during storms at the previous owners. I will keep you updated with his progress.

Sorry about the length but I wanted to give as much background and detail as possible. We rescued a 7 year old desexed male GSD about 9 months ago. We knew he had some issues from talking to the original owners. The major one being storm phobias which caused relatively serious injuries on 2 occasions when he tried to escape the storms. For the first few months we found him relatively timid, especially when it came to being touched in certain areas. He would be sensitive about his ears, hind end, legs and feet being touched. He walks on a lead well and responds to basic commands. Occasionally he would tail chase and mount legs but it seems to happen only when he gets very excited. He has never shown any aggression to other dogs, even when a large dog ran at us and barked in his face in the street a few months ago. I think the previous owner used to play a bit rough and allow him to mouth. We tried very hard to discourage this and now play with balls, toys, kongs. He has never growled over food or toys, will let you touch him when he eats and take toys from his mouth. Since we have had him he has calmed down considerably. He very rarely mounts/tail chases and if he does will stop immediately if you tell him to sit. He is still frightened during storms but as long as he has some human company and we act as if everything is alright he copes well, just sits somewhere quiet until it is all over. He has been much happier and settled recently. he will happily roll over for a belly rub and let you touch his feet and ears. The big problem is he has had a few occasions of seemingly being frightened and lashed out. He barks aggressively and snaps. It happened once when having a vaccination and today when I applied frontline on his neck. Normally the frontline is fine, he does not like the smell but usually just turns to look at you. Today he turned around snapped, mouthed my arm and when I turned away he caught me on the back, barking at the same time. After about 3 seconds it was all over and he was back to normal and did not seem to realise what had happened. I realise there are triggers for these things and things I could have done wrong was 1. approach when he was eating and 2. touch him around the rump at the same time. Can anyone give me any advice, I can not ignore this as a one off but I have become very attached to him and want to exhaust all possible ways to help him. Thanks.