Miss Helena

Good health food shops I think. I had a look recently, but the jars of it I saw were quite solid. Don't know if that is a temperature/winter related thing? I may look further and ask about the actual virgin coconut oil.

I thought dogs were fine with a bit of saturated fat - different systems to us....

Gawd, colouring my own hair is enough! I think it's cute, but would never do it. Doesn't help that I have a 95% black dog either

Def not onion!! Very bad for dogs...

That's so sad when that happens.... I bet they were cute together! The huge and the tiny

That "bang" trick is so cool! I've seen it a few times on YouTube!

Isn't if Veanna? I'm just sorry that some small dog/chi owners underestimate their dogs and don't teach them anything. I've been on DOL for a few hours this morning and Bonnie has been sitting and staring at my back for a while, feeling neglected probably! So I just went and did some tricks with her and she is now happily laying down.

Your pup sounds pretty freaked out. Try and imagine things from his perspective - he's never been out in the big wide world before and there would be a confusing and overwhelming amount of sights, sounds and smells. Some pups would just get over excited and scamper everwhere. A more timid sort would freak out and freeze. My Bonnie was hopeless on the lead at first and she was 10mo when I got her. She was very over whelmed and stopped at times and looked behind her constantly for the boogie monster With time and patience they get better - she loves her walks now. I like Christina's advice re patient waiting...I don't think tugging on the lead is a good thing, as that would increase his sensory overload and would be pretty unpleasant.

Yikes, that is thin! :D

Perhaps he needs some richer, higher quality food? Is he kept Really Warm at night? As in completely covered over and snuggley? Smooth coat Chis feel the cold something chronic. Sounds like a vet visit is in order for sudden weight loss like that. Bonnie's breeder has a couple of chis who are that size, but that is how they always are, just tiny and thin. Bonnie is a whopping 3.6 to 4 kg...... :D :D

It's a closely guarded secret! Well actually... It sort of happened by accident. She was a shy timid type when I got her as a 10mo, so I've encouraged her personality to come out a bit (she is 2yo now). Whenever she thought I was late with her dinner, or she wanted some attention or something, she did that dance/kick back legs thingo. It always made me laugh and I'd call her "cheeky". A few weeks ago I wondered if I could teach her to do it on command - I've been wanting to teach her a few tricks for ages. So I got her on her mat, showed her a treat and said the word "cheeky". Of course the first few times she was "What The...?" Then probably out of pure frustration she did it. I immediately gave her the treat and praised her ++. After that she did it on command to the word cheeky. Has to be on a soft surface though of course! I think I'll teach her the weave through my legs trick next - just the right size ratio!

I love this tricks section! Can't wait to teach a few of these to Bonnie (avatar Chi). I always knew she was smart, but I have been amazed at how quickly she learns new tricks. In the past fortnight, I've taught her to: Dance/kick her back legs on command Sit and "wait" for a treat (I hold it 10cm in front of her face, and she stares intently at it but doesn't move a muscle!) Spin in a circle She learnt all these with about 4-5 repetitions, one one session per trick - I'm so proud of her Her transitions are still not 100%, she mixes things up a bit sometimes if over-eager...I'm working on getting her to focus on me and wait for the command.

Might be different to what your dog has, but when Mum's poodle had a pancreatitis attack, he would throw-up yellow liquid (bile) and be in LOTS of pain (bad writhing/whimpering). It was just awful to watch. His must have been genetic or something, as it started when he was about 9mo and he was always quite thin. Mum successfully managed his pancreatitis by feeding him mainly on cooked chicken breast, veg and rice and "vegetarian" dog biscuits (Dog Ovals I think they were called). He wasn't allowed to have hardly any fat in his diet.

My mum used to have a poodle with chronic pancreatitis (just because, not from being overweight). A very low fat diet was the main thing for managing it. The slightest bit of fat would bring on an attack....

Sounds exactly like the surgery my Chi had last year. It went very well and has made a huge difference to her (and she is only 2yo).

I hope not, as my chi does that too sometimes, when Very Hungry. Seems to all come out ok the other end tho!

Good article - thanks for sharing. Seems common sense, doesn't it? Just looking at their teeth shows they are carnivores. Doh!

On the whole it looks pretty good (the analysis levels are good and the inclusion of omega EFAs and Glucosamine etc are great). I'm not too sure about some the ingredients tho: animal fat (what sort of animals?) brewers rice (isn't that the lowest grade "waste" rice?) natural flavour (what is that?) fish meal (what sort of "fish"? shark?) I still think Eagle Pack Holistic Select is better.

I also like the way the JRT goes off at the end for some "audience participation"

Enjoy! I certainly did

Good to hear Charlies Mum! I personally don't agree with food down all the time (for adult dogs, puppies are different), especially for small breeds that are prone to picky eating. How hungry would we be, surrounded by food all the time? I found that when I got tough with Bonnie and her food, her appetite increased dramatically. She is now the opposite, a real guts and prone to getting chubby....

Ohhh, good luck, sounds pretty "harsh"! Surprising to hear re raw food and high protein issues - can you elaborate?

Who is this "Matt" and what does he have to say about having puppies on him?

Totally agree with you and can't wait for these days to arrive here in Australia. We must keep up the fight and not give in to pressure from those that 'do not comprehend' :D I say that if you can get a titer level done on your dogs and it shows immunity, but your club still won't let you participate---then start a new club------you could ban all dogs without titer certificates!!! Seriously! What they don't realize is that just because a dog has had a vaccine---does not mean he has immunity and therefor is at more risk of spreading a disease than titer tested dogs. A vaccine certificate is just that---'proof of vaccination' but a 'titer certificate' is proof of IMMUNITY. I know which dogs I'd rather hang with. If I was forced to board my dogs I would be terrified, because they would be in close proximity to dogs I consider possible risks. Same as when we go to shows, dog parks, trials, whatever--we are mingling with vaccinated dogs---not necessarily immune dogs. If a vaccinated dog has not taken up immunity and is harboring a disease he picked up somewhere---he is capable of giving it to all other dogs there who also did not get immunity from their vaccines. Without titer testing---how do we know what dogs are safe, including our own? This alone should shine a very bright light on the 'titer certificate' and leave 'vaccination certificates' in the dark. This all sounds very reasonable!

Spy Dogs My Bonnie is often in another room by herself when I'm on here. The moment I shut down Windows and it does that "shut down tune" she comes bolting in to see me, all excited that I'm off the bl@@dy computer :D Back on topic: Is there any reason why the two chis can't sleep together?? Chis love curling up together and keeping warm (their little bodies feel the cold easily)