Nadia

One of my nicest and longest standing clients ( 17 continuous years of her dogs) came to see me a few weeks ago, she brought me a beautiful card with a photo of her last dog and thanked me for looking after him for his long hairy lifetime, he had just passed away. She said after all these years it was very strange not to have a dog but that she was going to travel and had decided not to get another dog. I was very touched and thought what a shame that the nice ones move out of your life etc etc. She rang me yesterday to say her hubby had presented her with a new puppy, and it will be coming for its first face feet and tail next week The lovely ones make it very rewarding.

What is the worst coat to clip that you have found? For me a swag of maltese X silkies that my blades all just hate, horrible soft cotton wooly stuff Yuck!!! Why can't owners ensure that fluffy or benji empty out before they bring them? Why do owners say "He has never done that before" after fluffy trys to reduce your number of fingers or shorten your nose. Then you discover every other groomer in town has been bitten too! Do you get many dogs who have coats that matt to the skin overnight? Normally owned by people who brush them all the time How about the owners that want fluffy to go home with 2 inches of coat when the poor thing is matted to the skin and only a #10 is going to do the job. Why is that the nicest dogs with the best owners, who bring you morning tea and always remember you at Xmas, move away?? Actually I have a swag of excellent owners just now and half of them are being transferred or changing jobs. Some lucky groomers will get some new really top dogs.

I have many clients who start off wanting to keep their poodle unclipped. Have only had one last out the distance, and I groom the dog every week. Usually we clip them by the time they are 15/16 months. Maintaining a puppy can be relatively easy, it gets harder as the coat grows and adult coat comes in. They are very hard work, and for most the novelty wears off, and the once cute little pup comes in to be groomed looking something like a neglected flokati mat. It is essential that faces and bums are kept clean and my preference is to clip around the anus, tummy and under the corner of the eye and down the bridge of the nose, and keep the face trimmed up, and ears plucked.

It is the Veterinary Surgeons Board that registers all Vets and is responsible for disciplinary action.

Linda it would be wonderful...LOL

No it isn't, BUT, many of these crosses have shocking coats, combinations of texture, just plain awful. Many of them also have owners who believe they have bought an easy care non shedding dog. They buy cute fluffy puppies with very little thought as to what they will need to maintain them. The Pet Shop bought pups I find are the worst here, they get no information on coat care. I've had people stomp in with little fluffys that are astounded at how much coat they have, they were told the parents had shorter coats, Yep they did, clipped off coat If they can't manage the coat at home, then the dog needs to be kept clipped short, and done regularly, not just when it has turned into a Yeti and no one can stand the sight of it..EASY...it isn't rocket science. Long coated dogs require regular time and effort put into their coats, and it appears that so many owners simply do not understand how much, and yes we try and educate them. Some change their ways, many simply don't bother. We had a peke come into work last week that had been straining all day to poo, owners raced in with it for the Vet to see. It couldn't poo because it's bum was covered with matted hair and dried crap. It's little bum was raw and sore.

All Stainless here too, including water bowls. Yep and washed too.

The number of these oodles and similar crosses that belong to folk who seem unable to wield a brush and comb is amazing. Have also had a run of Silky T X Maltese, all of which have shocking coats that blades seem to hate, and never brushed maybe it is a viral thing..LOL

Off to the Vet, and try to work out what chemicals you may use around the house on the floors etc, what plants you have in the garden, any Wandering Jew?? It could be a contact allergy. But off to the Vet and get that calmed down quickly.

Mine happily much on rabbits and hares, fresh, very fresh. No ill effects. They seem to enjoy them

Sometimes the hardest decisions are the kindest ones. You are going to have to be guided by the Vet here, but if she doesn't really tolerate the meds, then it is not fair on her. It is very hard to let them go when they have been a part of our lives for so long, but it is the last truly loving gift we can give them. Thinking of you all.

Personally I choose the Vet because of the quality of service they provide and their suitability to the needs of my animals. As far as vaccination prices go, a consultation fee is built into the price at the majority of Vets, the actual cost of the vaccine is quite low, so you are paying for a thorough examination at time of vaccination. If you paying high prices for vaccinations and a consult fee on top you are being ripped off. Vaccines do not go on weight of the animal, one for all, regardless of size or age. I look at it like this, find a Vet you are happy with, one that gives you great service and that you have confidence in. In the long run it will pay off, and you will have a Vet who actually knows the full history of your animals and how you treat them, your breeding ideals etc. Quite often people shop around for this and that and then have no real relationship with a vet and complain that are not treated like royalty.

No need to lift any heavy dog onto a table, large breeds can normally jump onto a lower table or at least put their front feet up, or you can use a ramp. If $$$s are a problem if you have a blow feature on your vaccum cleaner it can be effective too. Small dryers that dry by heat rather than airforce are not effective and quite damaging to coat and skin, not to mention SLOW. I can remember drying my Afghan with my Breville hairdryer many many years ago, took half the day..LOL An airforce dryer like the one Hesapandabear mentioned use air velocity to blow the water out of the coat and seperate the hairs and blow out loose dead coat.

Air force dryers are invaluable with double coats as far as I am concerned, especially when they are dropping coat. Makes for a blizzard of hair, but is really effective and speeds up the grooming process. A table is an excellent back saver.

There is nothing stopping any group of like minded folk setting up a registry and registering themsleves with that. However the the body in Australia that deals with recognised registered Breeds is the ANKC, labradoodle, ooddles, schmoodles whatever are not recognised by the ANKC because they are not breeds. Individual breed clubs, and the ANKC itself have schemes in place whereby many breeds have to be health screened for genetic problems before breeding. When buying a puppy of ANY breed it is advisable to research thoroughly the breed, and then ask any Breeders you talk to about the health problems in their lines and any testing they carry out.

Note I said RESPONSIBLE. Big difference between a Responsible registered Breeder, and just a registered Breeder.

Responsible registered breeders are doing all they can to try and eliminate these problems Oracle, THAT is the big difference as far as I am concerned. How many producers ( I refuse to call them breeders) of these crossbreeds do any testing at all. I sure have never seen any DD producers lined up waiting to have their dogs eye tested whilst mine have been getting done.

You might find this interesting.... http://www.petdiabetes.org/diet.htm

All bones RAW, always RAW.

Some cavalier pups go through quite a lean looking growth stage. Generally Pugs tend to be chunkers, unfortunately you have no way of telling when you buy a cross which breed it will take after. If your pup is healthy, lively, has a nice shine to it's coat and good colour in it's gums. I would not be too concerned. You do not want a hefty chubby pup whilst it is growing still anyway.

Sounds like your dog probably has urinary stones, and its urethra is blocked, it needs Vet attention right away.

Victim of BSL simply because of the way she looked. RIP baby girl you are definately in a nicer place.

I think that maybe you are expecting a bit much from a hound puppy. They are not naturally chubby, she looks gorgeous and her condition looks great. Sighthounds can be frustrating for people not used to them, but honestly she looks good, stop worrying. You don't want her growing too fast and carrying too much weight whilst she is growing anyway.

Shek the hanging piece probably isn't viable now, I would have it removed, it will probably speed up the healing process if you do. Lips are a pain in the butt when they are injured.

I am not quite sure what part of the lip we are talking about here, but it is possible that the piece that is hanging will need to be removed. I doubt if it could be stitched now.