OSoSwift

I have never worked for a vet that was paid kick backs from a dry food company. Our vet recommends a diet made up of 80% age/weight appropriate Good quality dry food (Super premium Advance, Proplan etc - we can't get Eagle pack or others at all easily) and the rest of the diet RAW meaty bones, but not chop bones even if raw, and NEVER cooked. They also say a small amount of meat, veggies rice pasta etc. Most of the clients don't want to make up a purely raw diet, so to me this is a good path to take. They also have toothbrushes, chewy things and pigs ears. Another vet I worked for fed his dog bones daily and a mixture of meat, liver, rice and vegies/fruit every second day. She was always really fit and in fantastic condition and lived a long life for a large breed. My dogs get a mixture as I worry about getting the mix of raw only correct and my dogs are in good condition and fit and healthy.

I would definately consider a second opinion. Considering she is young, corrective surgery earlier helps reduce the damage to the joint. I have seen quite a few young dogs that have had surgery and been really good. As for only show dogs having the surgery, It is potentially a hereditary problem and a dog with Luxating patella shouldn't be bred from at all. If you reduce the severity of any arthritis and have a dog that is more comfortable then I believe it is definately worth it. Good luck

OH, well if you get the pattern and it's not too hard maybe I could make a couple? I can crochet and do some basic knitting but haven't for a long time - however I have an extremely talented MIL who does all manner of craft, patchwork, crocheting, knitting, sewing by hand and machine. My mum is also very talented, if all else fails I will send it to my mum or MIL

Oh Havahug, if you get the pattern maybe I could bug you for it? I would love to have a go at making some. And they are the cutest snoods I have ever seen.

The dogs were owned by Chinki Yen Chinese crested, I would suggest you contact them and ask to buy some, or get the pattern.

There was a thread on here about them. The Chinese crested were owned by a breeder that has dog profiles on DOL. I will try to rmember for you.

Thanks Nekhbet, I was looking for things along these very lines. The top one should be okay shouldn't it IR or is their an ingriedient lurking that I have missed? I am off to bake doggy bisuits! Been making jam and stewed plums so it's time for the dogs now!

Yep okay Tkay, I totally agree there, I was just saying that it could be seen as a gadget or gimic, but draw reins and curb bits can cause extreme anxiety and discomfort, a clicker might elicit a bemused look but that is it if the dog doesn't have any association. I still think that just because it is quicker or uses food, toy or prey drive it is not the easy way out.

I think that you cannot label one particular way of training something 'the easy wasy out' Each dog is different. If what you are using is working, but gets a result twice as quickly as another method doesn't make it the easy way out to me it makes it the smart way. In the horse world using gadgets is the seen to be easy way out. I guess if that was true then using a clicker could be seen as the easy way out as it is to a gadget? I guess also if this is the case any piece of equipment could be classed as that. I think some people hang onto the idea the dog should just want to work for me and if someone uses a high value reward - food, prey drive, toy etc is is seen as that. I myself don't agree. I think it is a case of don't necessarily work harder, work smarter.

I said over 12 months, but it depends on breed, with my Dobes - just about never mentally! With my Whippet she is 1 in a few days and physically she is quite mature, but mentally I think most dogs are pups until 18 months

Kelpie-i I don't think you need a flame suit, you bring some interesting points. I think it is human nature to be more likely to believe what is infront of them, a newer theory takes a little while to be accepted as we are suspicious and creatures of habit as a rule. This is the first I have heard of these theories and this particular person so I for one would need to do more indepth reading before I adopted his theories as my own, if I decided they were infact correct or not. Nothing wrong with some healthy debating. Have a good Christmas

Interesting, I have seen the carnage left behind by dogs working together as a pack to maul sheep calves and horses/ponies and they seem pretty organised in what they do. Is it hunting as a pack or just prey drive? I thing if they are working as an organised pack of up to four (quite often only two or three) then I would think they are hunting as a pack as Tony said to satisfy 'age old instincts' as they did not need to hunt for food. Very interesting reading though.

These products are usually very concentrated compared to the dog products. I have seen dogs die and heard of dogs being poisoned by people doing this. I would not do it, it is not worth risking my dog.

our Staffy ended up with a lump bigger than my fist was very sore and couldn't lift his head for a week. He hasn't had it since. Advocate for us.

I have been told that Vitamin E oil put onto the scar helps to reduce scaring and keep skin supple. I have tried it on myself and it worked quite well. I have shown against and been beaten by a Dobe that had a hairless patch on his show side about the size of a large hand fingers fully oustretched. He got bitten or scratched by a cat and got a nasty infection that under ran his skins and it scared and he lost all the hair. I think that your boy will be fine as it is not a coat or skin probelm and many dogs have scars - not that large mind you, but as long as he is able to move correctly and his coat mostly grows back I don't see there should be a problem. Oh and please do not feel guilty for his injury, hindsight is a wonderful thing, but there was know way you would have even begun to imagine that this would happen after getting xrays for hip scoring!!!! Hope all is going well and I would love to see pikkies of him when he is back in the ring - as I know he will be.

Definately check her thyroid levels and as others have suggested a general senior blood test would not go astray. If she has damaged both ACL's then you want her as lean as she can be without of course going skinny. I have always been told no to feed cabbage so I am not sure about that one, I've been told to feed carrots and pumpkin. I would consider the xraying as suggested previously and hydrotherapy and acupuncture. My old Dobe who had lots of arthritis as well as damaged disks in her neck loved her acupuncture and afterwards was much more comfortable. The hair regrowth or lack of, I have never seen quite like that before. Good luck and hope you find some answers.

I would definately try acupuncture! Worked great for a couple of different problems with my old girl. She loved having it done. I am guessing his nerves are probably going a haywire around that area, maybe even some hydrotherapy in warm water to try and soothe the whole are(And he may find it relaxing as well!) If he is able to swim it might help promote good blood flow and help calm down the nerves - not sure just throwing things out there. Good luck!!!!

Hi I am a first time Whippet owner of a now 11 month old Whippet. I have 3 cats and yes it was a long process but she is now really good with the cats, she tries the odd fly-by but does not try to bite at all. My Whippet came after the kids, one was just over 2 the other was 5 months. She is fantastic with my kids however I am very strict with interaction and NEVER allow the kids to tease the dog, or pull ears etc. My now 13 mo is a work in progress of course. I did end up with the quietest puppy out of the litter, so I think having a good realtionship with your breeder so you are more likely to get the temperament you require is very important. I live on acreage so exercising off lead at a park is not a problem but a friend of mine has one that is always 2 feet away and never takes off, once again training , consistancy and the correct puppy will go a long way. I think the most important thing re babies is treat the dog the way you want to treat it BEFORE the baby is born, restrict access to rooms well before baby comes home. I think they are fanatstic as a pet and with kids but all dogs only have a certain tolerance level and should not be pushed until they retaliate so training of the kids is equally important. My girl is super quick with obedience training. She doesn't have the length of concentration of my other dog, and gets distracted more easily, but weaves better than my other dog at 5. She has been purely positively trained and they are sensitive so I don't think they would handle correction based training at all. Her heeling is magic. She is loads of fun and as long as they get a 15 to 20 minute free run each day they are happy to lay around - preferably with you inside. My girl has 5 acres around the house were were go on 2 dedicated exercise sessions per day of about 30 minutes but she follows me around hanging out washing, watering etc. I think the are fantastic breed of dog suited to many different types of people. Oh and they do not handle extremes of weather, need coats and inside in winter, and inside if very hot. I have many different coats to handle all senarios, and she is inside a lot anyway. ETA - My Whippet has a very very good recall but I have worked on it since she was brought home and always very highly rewarded the recall.

Gad to hear about Zedley ( you can tell your son now it definately isn't catching) My mum has hyperthyroid and had terribly itchy dry skin. Her skin on her heals was very thick and split. Now it is a bit more under control and she has lost 12 kgs. Guess dogs and poeople are not that different. Once his dose is finalised he will be a different dog. Fanatstic!

Congratulations lots of luck for tomorrow!!!

You can buy replacement hinges as well if you need to and don't need to replace the whole bag. My first one last 4 years, then I left some treats in it for a long time and it was that nasty I threw the whole thing out. Then I got number two pouch with liner. Onto 2nd liner, long forgotten treats again, but bag is still in really good condition.

Buy chunkers instead of tinned. If you must have tinned use a premium product. We were told by someone in the industry that tinned was 80% water and 20% s@#t, the stuff swept off the floor and boiled down!

agreed Huski that is a bit extreme! When Rommi is in hyper mode she wouldn't even notice you were touching her ear, that is if you were quick enough to grab it in the first place!!!

I have noticed that some people don't like the fact the puppies don't get to play and others don't like the fact they do get to play? Just goes to show can't keep everyone happy.

A Friend of mine had a dog, he was bigger but still, he was staying with her folks, they went outside called him he wobbled up to them saliva everywhere and collapsed at their feet. Rushed to vets, two vials of antivenin, artificial respiration for 5 hours. He recovered, did take a bit of time, and died due to old age about 5 or so years later. Good luck, snake bite is my worst nightmare!!!