RiverStar-Aura

It's that horrible time of year again -- bindi season and with the grass being extra dry, the bindis are hurting like a b*tch. Poor Zeus had a horrible one yesterday; it was a weird spiky round thing. I'm currently researching into dog booties for him. He gets so hurt by the bindis that he tucks his leg up so high and it doesn't help that I'm extra paranoid lately because a friend's dog has just had cruciate surgery on her dog.

Leah the problem with his behaviour is that he's now learned that a carry on will lead to him getting inside. He'll last much longer than 10 minutes because he'll want to keep pushing that boundary because he knows you'll eventually give in. Do you have a screen door separating the outside from inside? If you do, I'd try sitting with your back towards the screen door so he can see you, but be completely silent and ignore him. Let him carry on but continue ignoring him and you might find he'll settle because a) he can see you but not get to you and b) you're ignoring him. I'm by no means a trainer, but this method is just something that's come to mind. Failing that, you'd be best off seeking out a really good trainer to get this behaviour under wraps. It's not easy dealing with separation anxiety.

Best news ever MUP!!! I'm so glad to hear that he's home safely! :D

Oh the poor boy; he must be so scared. I have my fingers crossed that you find him. Stay safe Mr Huxley!

Is there a reason other than cost that you're looking to switch KC? I only ask because I've looked into changing my two dogs' diets from Royal Canin (one gets Mini the other Medium) because of the cost factor. Turns out RC is the best choice because a lot of the other brands gave my guys sloppy poos and they lost coat condition. If it's only cost you're worried about and your dogs are doing well on the Euk, I'd leave the food as it is.

I wish Cleo a speedy recovery! Could the simple fact she's been drinking excess amounts of water cause the diluted urine? Hope she starts picking up soon.

Bloat is something I worry about with Zeus and to a smaller extent, Kirah. Both dogs tend to gulp down water very quickly and I'm at a loss as to how to stop it. The other day in fact, Kirah had gulped so much water that I could hear her poor belly sloshing around as she walked. Both tend to run around crazy until they dehydrate themselves, which can be hard to monitor when I'm at work. I've thought about those go slow bowls but an unsure as to their effectiveness with liquids.

I know some vets can find ideal weights difficult too. I was told by my vet that Poochie was overweight at 10 kilos, especially for an Aussie Terrier but later admitted that when she'd dropped weight due to illness, that she was perfect at the 10 kilos -- he was using the breed standard. Kirah on the other hand tips the scales at 6.4 kilos and for the same breed and sex (both females) that's a whopping 3.6 kilos different for their ideal weights. Breed standards are a guide and weight should be determined on each individual dog rather than the ideal. I like to keep both my dogs on the slimmer side due to the sheer amount of running, jumping and twisting they do. They're not agility dogs yet but it's in progress and I believe that as long as they're not underweight, just lean, their joints will be better in the long term. I don't mind if my guys bulk up a little over winter either; they sleep outside so an extra 500g won't hurt but come summer I cut their food back again.

Have been thinking of you and Roo all day today. I hope her final journey was peaceful and may the darling girl finally be at peace. Rest in peace sweet girl.

My local vet has a sign on their counter stating they've already treated 15 severe tick cases and counting.

I just queried my vet regarding the cost to titre testing after I found out they offer it. Unfortunately, they're one of the vets who send he bloods away to America so I'll be looking at the $250 mark per test per dog. Luckily I have a vet I've just discovered who offer in house titre testing so I'm planning to ring on Monday and ask what they charge and what they test for. Am so bummed about my regular vets because I really like them.

Thank you so much for helping this little girl! Steve is bl00dy amazing hey?! Little Tonks looks so sweet. I'm sure Tonks really loves you too for not giving up on her or putting her in the too hard pile!

Oh Kirislin she's just too cute for words!! She's one lucky pup to have such an awesome owner. :D Hope she has a good night and that your others don't antagonise her for too long and that she'll fit in really soon. Love the horse turd shots!

I don't know about any of you guys here but every yearly check-up my guys get, I always ask the vet if they think my dogs are a good weight -- not just if they're too fat, but if they're too skinny as well. I understand that owners can have rose glasses when it comes to weight so I'm happy to discuss weight with my vets. They're always telling me each year that I worry too much that going by my guys' weight histories, they fluctuate by only 100g or so. I've cut Zeus's food down by half again as he's gained a kilo and looking a bit rounder in the chest than I'd like but he's still anything other than fat -- he still has an amazing waistline (one I'd kill for!). Kirah on the other hand has been sitting at 6.4 kilos for 1.5 years so I've got her food well balanced but I still like to check. I guess for me, I'm very overweight myself and I really don't want that for my dogs -- I often say that they eat much better than I do and their weight is much better maintained and supervised than my own!

Aussie Terriers are around the $750 to $900 mark. Wire coat breeds are generally non-shedding, but will require hand stripping. Hope this helps! Edit: how about a breed that doesn't require health testing? It might help keep the costs down. I don't know much about other breeds but Aussies don't need health testing as they are generally very bomb proof. Some can suffer luxating patellas but that's it.

I'd love select the first option having grown up with Aussie Terriers and that I'll always have one or two around, but in saying that, there are still breeds that I'd love to give a go. Aussies will always be in my life, but I've fallen in love with hounds like beagles and salukis. I'd also love to have a Norwich Terrier too!

Just wanted to update you all on Kirah. I had her at the vet on Monday who also said it was unlikely to be a tick, however she checked Kirah over herself again for me to be sure. Nothing found. She did listen to her throat with a stethoscope and said it definitely sounded raspy so she's prescribed a week's worth of anti inflammatories to see how that goes. The cause might be viral but without sedation and having a thorough look into Kirah's throat it's just a guess. She said to see how we go and if it doesn't seem to be improving then the scope down her throat would be the next best step. On a completely different note, I asked how she feels/thinks of triennial vaccination and titre testing and she said she's all for it. She explained that they don't push it because sometimes the only way they ever see some dogs is for their vaccinations -- the dog could be ready to drop dead and the owner still wouldn't bring it in. I can understand this, I really do; I'm just happy to be getting my Zeusling titre tested this year!

There's Park Meadows in Albion Park, which is 15 to 20 minutes south of Wollongong. Other than that, the Illawarra isn't really accommodation friendly either pet or not.

On her own Facebook post BJ. She posted on it that the man told his dog to attack hers. I don't have an issue with the image of the victim, however, I object to the fact that she's been glamourised. It's not very realistic and I don't understand the need to have her photo there at all -- surely the one of Bella would've sufficed? I guess the paper can sell tonnes more by pasting a pretty face on the article. I just feel that the article became more about circulation numbers than the poor little dog. Horrible thing to have happen, but not surprised with the feral bogan language; you learn to expect it when browsing the Internet.

But that's what's confusing me about Kirah. 3 days later there's no signs of anything different except her bark. Being only 6.4 kilos, wouldn't she have other side effects by now too? I'm just thinking that it seems far too coincidental that her bark was fine until she came up from the creek coughing and spluttering and ever since (immediately after) her bark was different. Edit: now I'm really worried I've missed a tick and she'll get seriously bad.

Yep. When I purchased Kirah from my breeder, she had the change of ownership microchip form mostly filled out and ready to go. I filled in the missing info and signed when I went to view the pups at 6 weeks. My breeder then sent away all forms at 8 weeks when I picked her up. I was posted back Kirah's pedigree papers with her signature though as I needed to pay for change of ownership and send it off.

I've definitely checked inside ears, bum area, between toes inside and around gums, armpits, belly but will check all even more thoroughly after work. If nothing found it'll be a trip to the vet to make sure I haven't missed one.

I'm definitely still checking her over for ticks -- it's something I'm always worried about. She's on Advantix but I'm still paranoid which I think is a good thing not to get complacent. I have lived in the same area my whole life and have not yet come across one *touches wood* This morning she's still bouncing around like a crazy loon and no sign she's struggling to drink water. Definitely still have my eye on her though!

Almost instantly, Kirah has developed a deeper, huskier and more raspy bark so I've been worried about things like paralysis tick and kennel cough. Although I've not ruled out the tick (I haven't found one when looking), her funny bark came on suddenly at the park two days ago and as her behaviour is otherwise normal, I'm thinking chances of a tick more unlikely. She did go swimming in the creek at the park and came up coughing and spluttering and since then, that's when I've noticed her bark changed. Is it possible for a dog to just get a sore throat and if so, is there something I can give her to help it feel better/heal? I've also been reading up on kennel cough just in case, however, since she isn't coughing (she just has a funny sounding bark) it also doesn't seem likely. Her behaviour and appetite are both unchanged. Suggestions?

Yes, please don't delete the thread. Just change it to a 'welcome Rosie' thread instead. :) She's gorgeous!!