Aellyssa

Ears do not generally ooze pus nor smell abnormal - so it's gotta be an infection. Ditto eyes. General malaise ie doesn't want to move plus rigors (fever plus shivering) = TAKE THE DOG TO ANOTHER VET IMMEDIATELY!! Stop the dog shivering or his temperature will rise even further. Ailsa

Hi DoberDave, I have always mixed my vegies with chicken mince - which I do myself - chicken breasts mainly. I usually buy 2 Kg as they are always on special and I use about 2 kg every 3 weeks. I also add a small amount of garlic, linseed oil and apple cider vinegar. They eat it all down, no problems. Good luck with it. Ailsa

Grass seeds are so ubiquitous and insidious aren't they? I check my dogs daily for them as with wool they tend to attract them. I am sure that you have been just as diligent. An abscess can form pretty quickly as you know and being aware of the early signs & symptoms may help. Inhaled ones are very difficult. My best advice is to take your dog to the vet, and have a loooooong chat with them. Find out if there is any way to detect them, even if it means getting your dogs used to you opening their mouths after they have been running around. I would also ask if there is anyway that they can be encouraged to move if they get stuck there. (sort of like eating bread to get rid of a fish bone - tho that doesn't always work) I'm sure that this has all occurred to you, and I don't mean to teach you to suck eggs but it really is all I can think of. Good Luck What's the update on Ruger? Aili

When I started my boys on the BARF diet, I was told to keep away from anything in the deadly nightshade group ie onions, capsicum etc. I also try to keep away from having too much starchy vegies ie spuds. When I prepare their food I add almost any vegie (except those above) and fruit. I also add some crushed garlic, apple cider vinegar and some linseed oil. I prepare food for about 3 days so into that container I would add about 1 teaspoon of each of the above for 3 meals for 2 dogs plus I also add minced free-range chicken breast (about 2/3 of 1 breast for the container - cats get the rest ) Twice a week the cats and dogs share 2 cans of sardines - usually in oil though if I can't get that then I get them in spring water. The dogs always have raw chicken bones (carcasses, wings or necks) with their meals and once a weekend they get a lamb's shank each. Mmm Bone paws!! Hope that helps. Aili

So so sorry to hear about your first pup. It's always hard to lose any dog but one so young makes it more difficult. Tramissa is right, this new one will take another part of your heart, that's what puppies are for. We can be assessed for how much of our heart has been given to others and I am sure that yours is HUGE. Allow your grief to flow but not block you from ever loving again, your pup's legacy is that lesson. Enjoy your new pup. Aili

Dearest Beasley, :rofl: I remember the first time I saw you - I called you a funny looking dog FLD but you persevered and won me over. You made love to my pillow - an unwelcome find at 12midnight but you grinned at me & I forgave you. I saw you run for the first time with your ears streaming behind you - and it was such a romp of joy. So it was in January when the above photo was taken. I am so glad I was there that day to witness your celebration of life. So many images pass through my mind, I have seen you every year on holidays and loved being with you. Bonnie and You gave me your 2 sons - Keeshah & Ubu to balance and bring joy into my life. Every day I see you in them & I miss you, Big Boy, so much. Run pain free next to the bridge Beas, part of my heart runs with you. I love you Aili

I was going to go past this ...... but I couldn't. Sirmonsta - no one is disputing your decision to have your dog sterilised via a vasectomy as opposed to sterilised by castration. And, yes, the vet should have acceded to your request. So put your anger there. If you see castration & speying as mutilation - so be it - others see it as appropriate surgery. What others have asked is for you to see their reasons in a non-emotive and non-anthropomorphic way. It appears to me is that Cordelia et al are placing their reasons for preference for castration NOT criticising you for your decision. I happen to agree with them - however I would also support your choice - provided all the pros and cons had been explained to you. This is really about informed consent. Aili

Hi S~B, It's a term borrowed from shearing. You probably have seen sheep that have had shorter wool around their anus & urethra & down their legs. I do the same with my dogs - I make sure that their wool is very short around their anus (including the first 2-4 cm of their under tail), I do the same around their penis. They certainly watch me very carefully when I am doing that . It does help if the dog has been castrated. (They probably don't think so ) Aili PS There is no such thing as a stupid question.

Hi, I have Bedlington Terriers and they are prone to "dags" as well. I think that the idea of gradually desensitising her to having that area touched is a good idea. All I can offer is my experience - I groom my boys all over every day and whilst they are used to it and generally enjoy it - the areas they least like 1) around the anus 2) their feet 3) their front leg "pits" and 4) their tails. But I persist. I tend to "crutch" them every 3 weeks when I use a blunt ended scissors to get most of the wool away and then finish it with very small embroidery scissors. They don't like it, they do yelp but slowly the cacophony is reducing. I have a 3 week rotation - week one - feet and toes; week 2 - eyes, ears and mouth; week 3 - crutching. If I did it all at one time - the neighbours would call the RSPCA especially with Keeshah. Aili PS I am a typical nurse - the only bodily excretion/secretion that makes me is sputum - anything else I will gleefully discuss

I don't have big dogs but 2 male Bedlington Terriers (almost medium dogs) - but they can be a handful especially as I have a recurring back injury! I also wash mine in the shower. Of course first I have to catch them.... then keep them both in the bathroom whilst I do one and then the other! Because I can't bend down - I sit on the floor with my dog-showering clothes on and wash them that way. They have wool & when it is long (ie during winter) - it does take a while. I shampoo twice - then condition. Then they are left free to sit in front of the fire - whilst I blow dry one and then the other - then they get brushed and combed and look and smell fabulous ...... for about 5 minutes ..... then they go outside. Beddies coats canna look all sleek (except during summer when the coat is short) because they are curly and we all know that curls have a mind of their own. So shower with your dogs is my advice. :p just don't tell any of your non-doggie friends. Blessed Be, Aili

My Ubu was 19.1 yrs - 7 yrs younger for his breed :GULP: I am 6 years older for my age. Ailsa

I have read this thread with interest. My dogs both have fleas despite the Frontline Plus and I will certainly wash all the bedding and flea bomb the house and ensure the cats are de-flead as well. Plus I will move to Advantage. But what do you guys think about Revolution - now that it is available for dogs??? Aili

Hi folks, I went to my vet last night to get Keeshahs foot checked out so he no longer had to be a bucket head. She says it looked good and charged me nothing! She's a good lass. I also mentioned to her the "stiff puppy syndrome" and she had never heard of it & asked me if it was about the "fading puppy syndrome", I replied that that was like comparing SIDS to "failure to Thrive Syndrome" in kids. I guided her to this forum to read about it and she will also find out anything she can about it. In the meantime, Steve, as I am not a breeder and have not had this problem I do not think that I can legitimately send an email to all heads of veterinary schools/faculties in the country requesting that they encourage research into this area. If I get the email address for all of these people do you think that you could send an email to them on behalf of the breeders that you know have had these problems. Goddess Bless

Hi folks, Well I have been to work. Veterinary articles are included in Medline database which I do have access to plus Biological Abstracts. I have searched through 110 out of 502 articles to do with puppies with no discussion about "stiff puppy syndrome" - but I will continue to search. I won't be able to directly access the databases that vet schools use, but it was suggested that I get in touch with the vet schools librarians in Qld and/or WA and explain my predicament and that they may be able to do a lit search for me. I am also going to see my vet tomorrow night as Keeshah has some kind of allergic reaction between one of his foot pads and isn't responding to treatment as well as could be expected - so I will ask her about articles as well, She is a lovely vet and person so she may do a lit search through her accessible databases. Will let you know. Goddess Bless, Ailsa

Jed & Steve, My heart goes out to you. Sortof makes me glad that I have always had neutered males even though I love puppies. When the vet says extensive research has been done on this, can he give you any of the articles. I know there is a way through the web of accessing data bases for a lit search on this & I will enquire with my librarian at work. Unfortunately the OVID search base that I go through doesn't have the veterinary database probably because we don't have a vet school. But the Unis that do have vet schools do have the veterinary literature database and I may be able to access these using my lecturer status, I'll have a go for you anyway. Some will be available electronically. On a different matter but in line with this thread. When we use tubes to feed adults - we check that it is in the stomach in 2 main ways: 1. We draw back some fluid using a syringe and then test it for acidity using litmus paper. 2. We can push some air into the tube using a syringe and listen with a stethescope to hear air going into the stomach. Obviously with such young pups only a little air is used. Stethescopes are not expensive - you can get a relatively good one for about $30. Make sure it has two tubes not two going into one half way down. We sell them at the uni to the nursing students. Yes, you can pay $200 and over for a Littmans (I did) but it would not be necessary in this case. Goddess bless