muffinmclay

I don't know what is going on, this is costing me an absolute fortune. I put Advantix on the dogs last night, and still this evening there were live fleas. So I went to the vet and bought some Capstar tablets, which I gave them at 6pm. Still there are live fleas. I just can't understand why they are still there - surely the advantix should have worked by now and killed any adult fleas on the body? I have to leave the dogs outside while there are fleas, and it is killing me that I can't have them inside with the family like usual. I'm about ready to shave them both bald

I discovered fleas on my dogs approx 10 days ago and treated them with advantix, as well as washing bedding, spraying the backyard with insecticide and giving the dogs a capstar tab too. Now one of them has fleas again, however they seem to mostly be around his hind legs, not really up near his neck where the advantix was applied. why are they back again? How will I ever get rid of them? I feel like crying, i spent an entire weekend washing bedding, floors, everything to have to do it all again :D

Yes, here in the nation's capital, that gives us more money to spend on buying brown cardigans and funding roundabouts. :D Unfortunately we live in Canberra and have just battled a flea infestation. We were told by the vet that once the weather got cooler we didn't need to use a prevention treatment, but lo and behold, apparently it hasn't been cold enough yet to kill off Canberra's fleas! The warmer weather and rain has apparently contributed.

My two dogs have fleas. I have no idea what to do, but i'm guessing i need to treat my house as well as my dogs as they sleep on the beds (ewwwww). I've never had a dog have fleas before and I have no idea what to do!! Help urgently!

Sorry, I just want to clarify that my dogs are actually professionally groomed, including clipped, twice a year in the warmer months. However, over winter I let their coat get quite long and wanted to prevent matting and horrid-ness, rather than needing to fix something that has already happened. I got a dematting rake on the weekend and, despite cutting myself twice, it was very effective at stripping out the undercoat and getting the knots out. My boys both look lovely now after being de-mattified, combed, shampooed, conditioned, ears plucked, feet and eyebrows trimmed

Thanks for the advice guys. I think if I pulled the dryer on my dog he would freak out completely, so we will stick with the 'run like a crazy dog around the house after bath' drying method I'm going to head to my local pet supplies store after Good Friday and get myself one of those dematting rake things and a steel comb. I had a go at plucking the ear hair myself the other day and expected resistance, but my guys just layed there and let me do it, so it can't have hurt to much.

We own a labrador cross poodle. Thats right, what is commonly referred to as a 'labradoodle', although I'm well aware of the fact that such a breed does not exist. I am also aware that I am a horrid 'designer dog' owning person, however, we love our dog beyond words and look after him as if he was a third (hairy) child. I would rather not get into a debate about 'labradoodles' - i'm feeling rather delicate with a awful cold right now. Anyway, I've been grooming him with a slicker brush, pulling the hair back so I can see the skin and then brushing right through the coat. He hates having his legs done, although i'm working on him by feeding treats to reward leg brushing. Am I using the right tool? Should I be using some sort of comb? He is a wool coat and although I brush him twice a week, he never really looks 'brushed'. I'm worried that i'll inadvertently become one of those people who takes their dog to be clipped and doesn't realise he has matted bits of fur. Any advice about the grooming would be greatly appreciated. Comments on 'labradoodles' can be saved up for another time :D)

Not sure if this is still relevant, but we have been using SB for about 4 weeks now and just this week our dog seems a little better. He is 15 months old and was diagnosed with HD about 2 months ago. We tried the cartrophen(sp?) injections and I didn't really notice any difference, but we kept on with them anyway. We were giving fish oil and glucosamine with chondroitin and no improvement. As i said, we started on SB on the advice of our vet about 4 weeks ago, and just this week he seems more spritely and doesn't seem to be having as much difficulty in getting up. But hey, it might just be the weather or something!

I noticed tonight that my dog has a black crusty scab under his chin, about the size of a 5 cent piece. He pulls away when it is touched, so i imagine it is sore. Any ideas as to what this might be? We have two dogs and they often bite each other around the ears & muzzle when playing, maybe it could be a bite and the black is dried blood? I have no idea, but would like to avoid an unneccesary vet visit if possible.

Thanks so much for this, I will call them tomorrow. Sorry about the delay - i forgot that I posted the question! BTW, your Vizslas are beautiful - love the breed

I have two dogs and unfortunately, the one I'm talking about hates the water! The other dog tries to get in the bath with the kids! Any time I try to get the HD dog in the water i have to go in too ) Thanks for the advice. I'm going to up the dose for the fish oil and gluc and see if it makes a difference (and yep, he is exactly 15.9kgs, just got on the scales with him). We are off to see a dog chiro next week too. Not sure if I should investigate acupuncture aswell?

My 1 yr old Lab was diagnosed with HD a few months ago. The vet told us to put him on 500mg of glucosamine + chondriotin daily, but I don't think it is helping at all. Should the dosage be larger? He weighs about 16kgs. Also, how much fish oil should he be having? He currently has a 1000mg capsule twice a week - is this enough? I've not noticed any change in his pain or limping - we've had 4 of the arthritis injections too. Also, are there any hydro pools to take a dog for a paddle in Canberra? I don't really want to go to the lake/river as I'll have to get in too and they aren't the cleanest or warmest!

Wow dog water beds - what will they think of next! Thanks for the advice everyone. I think if I asked him, my dog would request a queen size inner spring matteress with a lovely duck down doona, seeing as he's decided my bed is better than anything else!

I'm looking for a firm, rectangular shaped indoor bed for my boy who has recently been diagnosed with hip dysplasia. He seems to prefer to sleep stretched out on his tummy like a frog - so we are after a bed that he can do this on. His current bed is oval shaped for 'curling up in' - which doesn't seem comfortable for him anymore. Does anyone have any recommendations? I'm looking to buy something online as they are a bit more reasonable in price compared with the average pet supplies shop. I thought maybe a Snooza 'D1000' - i saw it on a website and it looks like it would be nice and firm, but of course it's hard to tell without feeling it! BTW, he already has a trampoline bed with a soft cover that he seems to like for outside.

My 11 month old lab has just been diagnosed with hip dysplasia. I'd like to get him doing some swimming, on the advice of the vet. Are there any swimming pools in Canberra specially for dogs, or hydrotherapy services? Or where else might I take him for a swim a couple of times a week? He can swim, but isn't overly keen on the water, so I'm guessing i'll have to go in with him to get him to actually paddle for a while - as you can imagine i'm not overly keen on swimming in any of Canberra's lakes... Also, i'd be interested in hearing from anyone who has used acupuncture to treat HD. Did you have any success?