Staff'n'Toller

Yes, Vets will do Vasectomy on dogs but unless you are absolutely opposed to the idea of getting rid of the teticles (and they can put in fake ones anyhow) then there really is no point and it would cost the same- if not more. No, you don't have to remove the uterus and ovaries of a female dog either- but you risk accidental pregnancy, cystic ovaries, pyometra (infected uterus) which is potentially life threatening, and mammary gland tumours later in life. No, you don't have to remove the testicles of male dogs but you risk prostate probs in later life- then you will need to castrate anyway- or testicular cancer- and the thing about testicular cancer is that the average Joe Citizen wouldn't realise until the testicular cancer had probably already spread. Yes, Sirmonsta- now that humans are living longer and more men are having prostate problems what are the alternatives....????? I think if you are still angry about what happened with your dog you need to take it up with your Vet, bearing in mind that most males that come into my clinic can't even say the word 'castrate' or even 'remove testicles', so the Vet/Nurses there probably assumed you meant castration, and if you signed a consent form it would have been written on there what surgical procedure was going to happen. ***********Sorry thread hijack******* If you're not going to show/breed with your dog then the kindest thing you can do is castrate it whilst it's still young. IMO I would be upset if I was told to give my dog a vasectomy then have to castrate it at 7+ years when the anaesthetic risk is much higher/ the dog is undergoing surgery when it is already ill. Kind Regards, and good luck with your decision, Mel.

DON'T USE WOOLWASH!!! Sorry about that just had to let everyone know lol If you use it on a regular basis you will very soon have a dog with no hair, it damages the hair follicles. Don't use human shampoos either- our skin ph balance is different to a dog's ph balance. Yes it is generally 'you get what you pay for', ask your Vet about what's best to use, especially if you have staffies- they tend to have sensitive skin. Aloveen, Natural Shampoo, are both great, if you want cheaper go for Fido's puppy/kitten shampoo. The one that I use on my grooming dogs is Rudduck's Strawberry puppy/kitten shampoo (kmart), very nice to use, washes out the dirt really easily and leaves the hair soft. I have also seen heaps of dogs with burns from the excelpet flea shampoo or rinse or whatever it is.... Mel.

Yeah Neocort and NeoTopic H are practically the same- just a different brand. Mel.

Good luck, let us know how it goes eh?? I'm going to bed, the other inhabitants of my house are starting to complain about the lights. LOL Mel.

I'd probably use the fresh, I'm guessing it may have more oil in it...??? The tea should be a good antiseptic and the lavender should stop the itching...

I found it! 'A quick fix is to make a strong cup of herbal tea using a chamomile tea bag, a greeen tea bag and/or a black tea bag. Add a handful of lavender flower heads if you have them or a couple of drops of lavendar oil. Leave to cool and soak, then slop onto the hot spot using a wad of cotton wool or a chux cloth.' Dr Clare Middle BVMS, CVA,DipHom, a Perth based Vet who uses homeopathy. I haven't tried it myself, but I will be for the next one!

Geez, how big is it?? Dexafort is a long lasting cortisone....should be working.... I'm fresh out of ideas....Ice pack?? My mum read out a special concoxtion which is supposed to make them disappear, it was a natural remedy, I'll just run downstairs see if I can find it.....

If they are oozing I tend to dry it with tissue/paper towel as much as possible, then put the cream on straight away, and I use a generous amount so it soaks in well. Perhaps cause the area is wet the cream isn't penetrating..?? Just a thought...

She's hiding in the pantry ;) that's funny, no offence, my boss (Vet) has labs, I love 'em!! Mel.

Hi Lablover, Sorry to hear you are having so much trouble with hot spots! My Staffy has just had her first two for the season. They are the one thing that will escalate very quickly. It's amazing how quickly they grow! My advice would be to put the Neocort on every hour or so. When my staffy gets one I clip it immediately (it's good to have some clippers at home with a size 15 blade) and I put the Neocort on up to five times during the day, this tends to nip it in the bud pretty quickly. Also have a look at her paws, they may also have infection in between the toes, treat that as well, as everytime she scratches she will spread the infection with her foot. Hope that helps! Mel. ;)

Hi Gemibabe, Over here in vic there are a few lifevest brands sold in our local pet supplies. The cheapest ones that I've found are actually sold at the dog pool. The RSPCA endorsed ones and others I have looked at are often double or triple the price! If you wanted to purchase over the phone & pay the postage I'm sure they would send one over to you, the vest itself is very light, it would just be the size of the postpack. There are a few different sizes so you would prob have to measure your dogs length and width around the bellly. The brand I have is 'Shakespeare'. The link to the dog pool is here Vests are in the products section. Good luck with your search!! Mel.

My Staffy swims at a dog pool for fitness and due to bad joints. She wears a lifevest as she does sink, and I can get more laps from her if it is easier for her to float. I would get a lifevest for your staffy Gemibabe, just in case she tires and you need to go in and grab her. Dogs are just so crazy about swimming they don't realise how fatigued they get. The lifevests also have some protection against hypothermia, if the water is a bit cold. If you have trouble getting one, let me know. Mel.

My dogs are on Hills Science Diet, and one is on the Prescription Diet due to skin allergies. I'm very happy with Hills, one thing I notice is that my dogs are never ever sick, we see dogs often at the clinic with unexplained tummy upsets - my dogs never have those problems on premium food. Just my two cents worth... Mel.

We have had great results using Propalin at my clinic- no side effects that we have noted. Mel.

Sithspawn, You shouldn't give dogs human vitamins, they need different dosages. You should start feeding a well balanced raw diet and go from there, there will be signs if the dog needs supplementing i.e. the coat is dull or skin is dry- needs essential fatty acids. When you give synthetic vitamins you force the dogs system to use it, there are just as many illnesses from oversupplementing as undersupplementing. Maybe no-one answered because no-one feeds Wendy Volhards diet. You need to get 'Grow your pups with bones' or 'Give your dog a bone' by Dr Ian Billinghurst, an Australian Vet who has written these about the BARF diet. Mel.

An interesting thread me thinks You've got me hunting out the Veterinary Texts...... Yes it is correct that being Vacc'd against KC doesn't guarantee your dog won't get it, my understanding is that it will not be half as bad. In an unvaccinated, immune compromised dog, KC could be very serious. Coronavirus: Single strand RNA virus, associated with feline infectious peritonitis and with diarrhoea in dogs. Leptospira canicola: Aerobic spirochaetal bacterium that can penetrate mucosal surfaces or areas of damaged skin; the kidney is the predilection site for the organsim where it causes an acute interstitial nephritis; clinical signs include depression, vomiting, renal pain and oliguria(small production of urine indicitave of renal damage).....most animals will respond successfully to antibiotics and supportive fluid therapy.....now inculded in routine dog vaccinations and offer good protection. Taken from 'Dictionary of Veterinary Nursing' DR Lane and S Guthrie. I had a lecture with some guys from a vaccine company last year and my understanding is that coronavirus is closely linked/or believed to be another strain of parvo...something to ponder. But I was also told that Leptospirosis is not common here in Australia and DON'T QUOTE ME OK! but that the figures of diagnosis has been unchanged for a number of years, and generally is similar to the numbers of humans diagnosed with it approx. 4-5 persons each year. Kind Regards, Mel. :D

Hi, My dogs love greenies, my staffy has bad allergies and has had no adverse reactions having 1 every second day. Yes they are very high in protein so you should chose the size relative to your dogs, the weight range is on the packet. As they are high in protein they are considered to be a meal, my guys have them for brekky. At work we have a large booklet of questions and answers, if anyone wants to know anything I'm happy to look it up and reply for you. Mel.

Is that why I'm so grumpy all the time? :D Mel. Edited to say: It is still freezing down here!!! :shakehead:

Well I can't speak for the stress of information overload cause I haven't done the course. But the first day I have heard is quite chaotic whilst everyone gets organised, as you would imagine. :D Ensure your dogs absolutely love their crates! Mel.

Yes I'll prob. put in an expression for next course and it gives me a great excuse to come up to sunny sunny QLD!! Make sure you crate train your golden and teach lots of calming exercises, i've been told that it is VERY high stress in the first week intensive- 80 stressed out people and about 50 stressed out dogs in crates! :D You'll love it tho. Mel.

Good luck to everyone doing next year's Delta Course... I live in Melb. and am very jealous of all of you who are attending!! Current situation doesn't permit me to go so...I'll have to be patient. Have heaps of fun. :D Mel.