KitKat

Cut back his food by a 1/4 and see how he goes? Cut back further if needs be...you can also top up his food with some grated carrot if needed.

PetBarn at Underwood is soon going to have it's own Groomer - not sure what they are like tho, my dogs don't need specific grooming - however they are supposed to be very nice people!

The owners of my boys brother had their vet tell them their dog would need elbow surgery and hip surgery before the dog was 12months old...even suggested they get it done asap and they could book them within a week or two. The dog had a case of pano...and it was agreed on by another two vets that we suggested they get a second opinion from. The original vet had them on expensive washes/shampoos with baths every other day to clear up puppy pimples!

Smart dog...not enough for a meal until it's bigger... Just kidding! Nice story

I don't use a spray, just use the Advantix ampoules and that keeps the flies away as well as fleas, mozzies, etc

I use Redgum Kennels for when either the dogs or cats have to be boarded

Are you serious? I do know some lovely Maremmas but they are not the same temperament as a golden. Unfortauntely it's a standard line from many sales people And it doesn't help that the crossing of Maremma/GR is becoming popular :D

PF - fats/oils are often missing from the list on the SC bags...I usually use the location of the fats/oils as an indicator of what is in the food - eg everything before those is what the main/important ingredients are...yet i rarely see the fats/oils listed on the bags. Unless i have to go looking again if they've added them back to the food/list?

My cats get RC as well

Other - Royal Canin

Wow...that's about half price!!! Very much a bargain!

Thinking of you and yours Cas *hugs* RIP Jake..

I use a double rowed rake for my GSD's - unfortunately the good brushes like the furminator and coat king just cuts my boys coats (luckily those brushes are great for the cats!)

How old is this dog with a not so nice lush coat?

I've also seen people decide they are getting a new pet that day, walk into a rescue place and walk out with a new pet - how is that different regarding impulse buying? I know of once place that has also sold the odd one undesexed and even included it's papers etc if they had them - this could be heresay but i've heard it from more then one person, and a person who has oneas described.

Thanks for that KM - It's always good to hear stories of dogs reactions on different foods, be those good or bad stories - it's a reminder that dogs are individuals just like their owners

Sleep well sweet Faith

I believe the info may be kept under wraps so as not to encourage public backlash from either side of the argument?

Stop sales of pups and kittens in stores? I'm really not sure that will ever happen - at the very least there needs to be a better push to making sure there is suitable legislation and minimum requirements that must be met and policed. There are stores out there that sell animals on behalf of rescue organisations - should that be stopped as well since they are an animal being sold in a pet shop?

Why would vets necessarily know about the awfulness of Puppy Farms/Factories - is it part of the studies? Why should they know any more then anyone else in the pet industry? Several of those i've worked with IN the pet industry didn't know more about puppy farming then it was just 'breeding purely for profit with more then the average number of dogs'. I know people who also worked for a small pet store that sold pups and kittens - the 90% of the kittens were those dumped at the store or nearby vet surgery (who owned the pet store) and each of the pups was personally purchased by the store manager from byb litters, not large scale byb'ers or farms/factories. I know this because i know the store manager and fostered many of the kittens which were dumped at anywhere from 3weeks of age. Perhaps being a high profile vet doesn't excuse him from moments of stupidity but at least he appears to be setting a better example... there are other high profile vets who advocate PP by, for example, passing up opportunities to encourage good pet ownership to open new flash stores instead.

KM - which RC product did you feed your GSD? Aahh ok Natural Choice = Nutro, i was trying to work out which product was called Natural Choice! One of the nifty things about the GSD RC range is there is no wheat as many GSD's have an intolerance to it But as per my sig - feed what suits your dog But the mince is ok if it contains bone - eg mulched chook frames - mince doesn't have the correct balance and it's rather iffy adding things such as calcium powder etc. And the bone needs to be amounts which can be completely eaten - so while a pup steer clear of load bearing bones, for example leg bones.

Perhaps drop back to JUST the Nutro - no other treats/extras/etc that way you should be able to be sure if it's the Nutro causing the issue or not?

I think they have the stories available on their website

I'm also glad that it wasn't made out to be a nutty rant - i thought it was a very good piece.

Some foods jsut don't agree with some dogs - unfortuantely it doesn't necessarily have much to do with the price or quality of the food. If the dog isn't doing well (loss of condition, vomiting, bad poos, etc etc) then look at something else or go back to what did suit the dog. Also a change in formula of the food can cause issues as well as if the product is tainted/off/etc - just in case it is somethign the dog has been on for a period of time and recently a change for the worse had occured etc.