Papillon Kisses

So irresponsible! Good to hear the dog you found is back home though. I take dogs to the closest open vet to be scanned. When people lose their pets they call vets and shelters/pounds, starting with those closest to them. I helped a non-microchipped, non-collar-and-tag-wearing dog get back to his family that way. Oh boy were they irresponsible too. They thought a hedge !! would contain a toy poodle (or any dog) AND he had run away before! The poor thing had been running around in frantic circles on a busy road all day before I found him.

Laying down on the job? I thought that was a Grey's job?

Yes we added in Amitriptyline early December after three other failed med trials. I'm not sure whether it's making him worse as he was starting to go downhill before that, but it certainly doesn't seem to be making him any better. I feel like after two months we should have an indication. The only thing that helped, initially, was Prozac. I think it probably needs to be upped. He's on a 'half' dose as it is because the full dose makes him worse, but he's gained 400g (10% bw) which I'm struggling to get off him.

ORT Prep & Considerations Because we might just give it a go! SYDNEY 3 Odour ORT (Odour Recognition Test) on Sunday May 21 then NW1 TRIAL Sunday August 6th then the first Australian NW2 TRIAL on Sunday Oct 15th For further info check out K9 Nose Time on Facebook or ACSW. Oh and for the Victorians amongst us Helping Hounds / K9 Nose Fun are also running an ORT on 2nd April.

I confess that I'm getting a bit fed up and weary. The heat probably doesn't help I know. Apart from the odd good day, Mal's anxiety has been worsening. Apart from my arms his safe places are no longer safe. Nights are awful. He's barking more and set off by the slightest thing and can't settle. Many tears have been shed. I just want my little man to feel better, you know? And to be able to do simple things like open the windows to let in a cool breeze when the heat is oppressive, cook dinner and do the laundry. Last night I could only prep/cook while holding him in my arms with his calming cap on because Mr PK wasn't home to tag team. And hoping beyond hope that the smoke alarm wouldn't go off (we think we'll take out the batteries and rely on upstairs). I've been thinking about getting a trainer in for additional help but I don't know how much that would help given that I think it's mostly a medication/medical issue. I'm a shit trainer but I do think I make good progress when he's actually in the headspace to learn. It's quite startling the difference between training a sick dog and a slightly healthier one. He does have quality of life mainly from eating (lol) and nose work but f me it's exhausting. So exhausting. I'm constantly putting out spot fires. I feel so sad for him. And tired.

Here's an online review, though bear in mind that this is just one person's opinion, and there are a LOT of different opinions about what makes a good dog food. http://www.petfoodreviews.com.au/dry-dog-food/genesis/

No worries, I just know that sometimes PMs can go missing in full message boxes! Fantastic to hear that Dozer is settling in. And no fence fighting, wow!

http://m.police.nsw.gov.au/news_media_releases?sq_content_src=%2BdXJsPWh0dHBzJTNBJTJGJTJGZWJpenByZC5wb2xpY2UubnN3Lmdvdi5hdSUyRm1lZGlhJTJGNjEwMTcuaHRtbCZhbGw9MQ%3D%3D

Eeep! Poor Dozer. Has he settled down at all over the past few days? With Malcolm even just re-arranging furniture results in an anxiety spike so this must be intense! Do you have curtains/blinds you could keep down or could you put up a towel or sheet while you sort out the fence and windows? Congrats on your new job! Edit: @Taliecat I've sent you a PM.

Scottieeeeeee!

I've tried to do the moat thing with both Malcolm and Hamilton. They both drank the moat dry.

Do Clean Run still do their free international shipping promotions? When I was Secret Santa stalking I saw lots of references to it.

It may be easier to keep your car cool than the crate. My nose work instructor has huge versions of those foil reflective shade things. Like the ones you can get for your front windshield but they I swear they cover half the length of her SUV. I want! She said she got it from the reject shop but I haven't seen any.

Peas and alfalfa also have some protein. I'd give it a go. The variety will be good for him and the ingredients do look to be a higher quality. It would be interesting to see if there is an improvement in his CCD.

I haven't seen it in Aus. It looks like they've packed an entire shopping list in there! My only thought is that it doesn't seem to have much actual meat content as there's no meals listed, but I know you feed meaty bones etc daily so maybe that isn't an issue when you think of his diet as a whole.

I would imagine wings. I don't give necks to Malcolm as I reckon he'd try to swallow it whole. He is a 4kg adult Chi x.

Oh my gosh those ears.

Last week in class Malcolm became quite stressed trying to find two out of three hides. Both were moved to easier spots while he wasn't looking, but one remained too hard for him to find so we had to abandon it. We were still able to finish on a good note with him finding the other one that had been made easier and receiving a huge jackpot. I saw this article posted on the Aussie Noseworkers group this week which was a good reminder that it's ok to abandon searches, like we did, when the dog is getting stressed. Being stressed looks different on each dog. Malcolm was whining and looking at me a lot, and he progressed to jumping up on me. On another dog this week, it presented as being flat and disinterested, losing focus, and toileting when she ordinarily wouldn't. I know a dog who performs random tricks when he's stressed! Anyway, this week we did one non-paired search and Malcolm put his head right into the boxes with birch in them! An exciting moment. Well done Nova you clever boy! How exciting to be at your first class. You two are going to have so much fun!

There's a couple of different ways. There's a blood test they can send off to pathology. All vets should be able to do that, but it can be very expensive. Prohibitantly so. A second way is the Vaccicheck titre test. This is in house and a lot cheaper, but not many vets offer it as it's so new in Australia. More details and some vets listed here: http://www.dolforums.com.au/topic/267474-vaccichecklooking-for-interested-dog-owners/#comment-6845142 Dr Jaime Jackson from Primal Paws (Jumabaar on DOL) may be able to do a house call depending on your area.

I got Malcolm's Vaccicheck results back from Primal Paws! He was Strong Positive for Parvovirus, Strong Positive for Hepatitis and Positive for Distemper. These results mean that he is considered to be protected against these diseases and does not need a C3 booster. There are two ratings below that. Negative (vaccination required) and Weak Positive (may require vaccination). It was a simple blood test and cost $50. He still had an annual checkup and kennel cough vaccination.

Hahaha, so you pictured it too. I imagined Labs wearing lab coats in labs, crunching numbers with their pens and papers while surrounded by Bunsen burners and microscopes.

+1

Anyone else read this: As Labradors instead of laboratories?

Love your photos.

How a dog's diet shapes its gut microbiome Summary: Studies of the gut microbiome have gone to the dogs -- and pets around the world could benefit as a result. In a new paper, researchers report that the ratio of proteins and carbohydrates in a canine's daily diet have a significant influence on the balance of microbes in its gut. Researchers observed that dogs fed a high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet had enriched microbial gene networks associated with weight loss in humans.