Danois

I am pleased to see that you have had the insight to remove the advertisement selling the puppies from your signature.

I use a leather lead from www.hamishmcbeth.com and that is fine for a 65kg dog! The gummi ones from the petshop seem quite strong too - its woven nylon with the design stuff over top - am happy with that on Angs too. What I have been advised is making sure that the clip on to the collar is a solid piece as this is stronger.

Not necessarily daggles from what I understand. Skin allergies can be caused by a number of factors and you need to go through a number of tests to figure out what the allergy is - Sas and Stormie are 2 members here who will be able to tell you a lot about this area. Angs does not get his boosters as he has an immune based condition - which could have been caused by vaccination or it could not have been - more than likely was not but I am being cautious. I will get titre testing done on him in due course but mainly for proof if he needs to be boarded.

kyliegirl Check out the online edition of Urban Animal - this is a free magazine in Sydney - they recently did a 2-3 part series on dog foods. If you cannot access all the articles, I am sure if you contact them that they may be able to send back copies. Well worth the read.

Hi I have a dog who is on mid-long term cortisone use. IMO I would not be continuing to medicate once the original dispensed amount ran out - I would be seeking a new consult and treatment plan. Cortisone can have significant side effects with longer term use such as muscle wastage, weight gain, blood clots, coat condition, internal organs effected etc - you want your dog on cortisone for the least time possible and at the lowest dose possible to manage the condition. Cortisone can also mask other issues such as infections as it keeps the dog's temperature down. Long term use in the absence of a diagnosis would seem indicates that the underlying cause is not being treated - only the symptoms.

Try Lane Cove Vet Hospitals (Dr Ian MUrdoch) - they are great! Have a clinic in Gladesville too.

I'd be really interested too as Angs has these on his legs. They are worse on the bottom half of his other leg - I just happened to already have this photo! They seem to have come about in the last few months.

Angs does not tolerate Drontal and was vomitting afterwards. I now use Interceptor and have no problems (other than remembering to do it once a month).

Chicken carcasses! I have huge troubles with Angs holding his weight and trying to get him to put it on and this is what I have been recommended along with cheap grade human mince (ie a couple of dollars a kilo stuff). I have a fine balance between too much food (gassy) and not enough (drops weight).

Juice Angs' just appeared suddenly too - in about an hour I reckon but his was a little squishy because it had not built up by that stage.

Oh Shek :p Another beautiful DOL dog taken way too soon. I read the last couple of pages with tears rolling and hoping that there would be a post which said she had bounced back but it was not to be. Jaida And big hugs to you Shek.

I've been put off by Sydney Animal Hospital - bit like a bulk billing medical practice there. If you can travel - go to the Lane Cove Vet Clinic - they will look after you! Angs had a huge lump the other day - suspected bite but when we stuck the needle in and drew a sample it was an abcess. If it is an abcess then the worst it will do is erupt outwards through the skin but best to have it drained and anti-biotics.

Hey Angs had a 3cm long x 1cm wide piece of his tongue removed recently after it became necrotic. It had stiches down the side. It healed very quickly (notwithstanding that he is on cortisone for another condition). Keep an eye on the wound area and make sure it stays 'alive'.

Hi Depends what breed you are talking about I suppose. I know a number of dane owners feed Eukanuba Large Breed Puppy or Royal Canin Giant Puppy/ Junior. I have used these 2 in the past and now feed Eagle Pack Holistic. From what I understand, a number of breeders do not feed a super premium food due to cost etc

I am no expert but it sounds like Obi is going through a fear period (the sudden reaction to the traffic). From what I have read the worst thing to do is turn around and leave - you are better praising him, treating etc as otherwise you are cementing to him that he should be afraid. I am sure that Erny can help further with this.

Someone commented about giving a favourite treat - the issue that may arise is that there is then an association between that particular treat and you leaving and not coming back for ages - ie the anxiety kicking in. What I did with Angs (with thanks to Sas and Steph&Bam) was to desensitise him to leaving and returning - leave the house and wait for him to settle, return to the house and ignore the dog until he relaxes (lies on side for example), then get up and repeat and keep repeating until they do not pay attention or make a fuss. The importance is also routine - everyone needs to leave and return in the same manner. When I leave I do not say anything to Angs, everything else is already organised and I change my routine around. I usually tuck a pigs ear or something into his toy bucket or out the back when he is not paying attention. I ignore Angs for a good 10 mins when I arrive home. I come in, drop my stuff, feed the cat, bathroom, change my clothes and then say hello etc. By this stage he is nice and quiet and normally bored with me so I call him to me, put him into sit and give him an ear scratch.

I made the vet a fun place from day one for Angus. We stopped in for a check up when I picked him up and they made such a fuss over him. We would drop in weekly for weighing etc and he always got fussed over so when we had to go for something he thought it was a fun place. Now when we go into our old vets he goes straight up and puts the paws on the counter for a treat! It also helps if you get him used to other people touching him - running hands down legs, picking leg up etc. Since you only have a short time, I say drop in for a first visit and make it special with treats, pats etc - that way, next visit will not be so 'scary' for him!

Hi! Its funny you posted the bit about necrotic tissue. We had an emergency on the weekend and Angus had to have surgery to remove a small section of his tongue. We suspect that he threw a blood clot in the tongue and it died. Blood clots occurence is increased because of the drugs he is on. He is recovering at home with me now but was a very stressful time. We have to cut back on his normal srugs to let the anti-biotiics work and the tongue heal. This has meant his hock has flared up... Oh la la As PoodleMum said - you learn to manage it!

I have sent you a PM. Just for others reference - Angs was diagnosed with blood tests, fluid taps (which showed the high white blood cell count) and xrays. They also attempted to grow the fluid from the joint in a culture to rule out a bacterial infection. You need to be speaking with the vet about exactly what tests they have run. You are in a delicate time as you are coming up to vaccinations - you will have to speak to your vet about that as to whether you will be able to - highly doubt you will be able to. There is also some theory that IMPA (as I call it!) can derive from vaccinations in suspectible dogs. Anyway - please be assured I know exactly how you are feeling. My other piece of advice now is to get the toilet training sorted ASAP as if he goes on cortisone he will be a little pee machine especially with a puppy sized bladder. Also be assured - it is scary to start with but once the medication starts working, there can be a quick recovery and can be generally easily controlled.

Well we seem to be progressing okay at the moment - touch wood! We have been able to taper the Imuran back to once every 2nd day. He is still on the cortisone (2.5 tabs twice daily). There has been a substantial reduction in the swelling in the hock but there is still a little there. He also has a warm spot on his spine. He continues to drink - I have upgraded his water bowl to a bucket (those low wide ones). He has not displayed the appetite expected on cortisone but he is continuing to at least maintain his weight. Here are the pics of his hock: 16 Dec 11 Jan 14 Jan 19 Jan 3 Feb 13 Feb - Yay!

Thanks for that! They should call it ringfungalinfection to avoid confusion :rolleyes:

Angus has some like that on his legs and they are from mosquitos - I have them bad in the backyard and sometimes they get to him before I get to the repel-x. They do not worry him at all - there is no sore or anything - just a little mark in the hair. Before you posted the update I was going to say not ringworm as Angus is fully wormed.

Yay - we are back on track! Seems like something upset his stomach and as a result of the drugs his body found it harder to shake than usual. I was so happy to see a very orange poo tonight! He is still trying to tell me he is owed some food from the last couple of days! Does not appear that coming off the drugs for a day or so has caused a flare up which is great!

Breed and age: Great Dane, 15 months Product name, size and cost: Royal Canin Giant Junior 15kg $104 (I think) Daily amount fed: 10 cups How long does the bag last: roughly 3 weeks at the moment Average cost of feeding/week: $35 Anything to add: Add 4kgs of beef mince ($14) and this week got 3kg of beef brisket for $6 too. Sardines every couple of days ($1.04 for 3 tins). Would usually last 4 weeks but on cortisone at moment so eating more.

Regular vet using knowledge from the specialist. The frustrating thing is that the cortisone and Imuran were working and he had been on them for 3 days before he got the runs. The swelling in his hock at come down by about 2/3rds. I do not know if the runs was because of something he ate or whether it is just too harsh for his stomach. I am speaking with the vet again in the morning and I think specialist is our next option. All I can say is thank doG for pet insurance!