mita

Well defined is definitely good. I was also pleased to hear the high praise for the oncologist....which means you have the best of info & experience to work along with.

Lovely pic of Wags... v. handsome boy.

Shall be sending warm thoughts to both of you as you wait for the classification results.

Max & Mischief will be purring with pride on the other side of the Rainbow Bridge...knowing that lots of love & care gave them such long & happy lives.

How lucky they were to find your Mum!

A lot of these dang fatty lumps giving folk a fright!

So glad all is good :D

Lilypily, let's know how you get on at the vets. Warm wishes coming your way.

Our 10 yr old tibbie girl went thro' something similar last year. We'll always be grateful to fellow DOL'ers for the information & support they gave. I'm so pleased you're getting the same.

The needle biopsy from our girl's lump...on her side...was not easy to diagnose. Cells were 'odd'... not clearly yet mast cells, but maybe on the way to changing.

So the vet removed the lump. Turned out to be the same as Piper's BC...a mass of fat cells.

Our little Sheltie, Danny, would have been the first dog to welcome the little Unknown Sheltie on the other side of the Rainbow Bridge.

Danny would understand how hard it had been for the Unknown Sheltie, until he was helped by people who cared.

Dan also was found straying, in poor condition, with rope burns around his neck. Thanks to the Uni of Qld Vet Clinic, he got the best of medical care & thanks to 2 wonderful women from the Sheltie Club of Qld, he got totally cleaned up (took them nearly 3 hours).

Of course we adopted him...I'd found him...& no owner ever reclaimed. He finally died nearly 13 yrs after that...& was the sweetest dog ever.

Yes...Danny would have been waiting for this little fellow...& the 2 sweet boys will run free for ever as best friends.

What a special little dog Muffet was....& how fortunate he was to find someone who loved him so much.

Bless his owner for making sure he would not suffer...or feel fear...so that he went to sleep forever in his very favourite place...his owner's lap.

Hugs to all Muffet's dear friends who are so sad today.

Pyohex Lotion is great....I got it from local vet surgery. I used to put a bit of the Pyohex Shampoo on any area Gracie was scratching & biting at. Trying to stop it turning inflamed & infected...a hotspot. But the lotion's better for doing that.

But I cannot get over what a difference diet makes. In the last few months, Gracie's been kept off any food with preservatives & artificial colourings. And the difference has been amazing. No hotspots, hardly ever scratches & her skin looks healthy (she's also been clipped right back).

So the Pyohex Lotion isn't being used much!

What a handsome boy Jimmy was. And how lucky he was to become part of your family. Bless you for caring for him.

You gave your lovely girl the greatest gift...you made a decision to release her from pain & distress...no matter what great pain it gave you.

In a way, you took on her suffering to bring her to peace.

But you don't have to do that any longer. Your beautiful girl would be sad to know that you still feel badly. Give her another gift, with the same love...let the pain go.

Can only tell you things that I've found helps our Gracie. Her skin allergies were bad. Vet pleased with her now.

Flea control. Advantage. I put half the tube in neck region, other half on back over hips (but not where she can chew).

Bathing I don't overdo it. Normally use a fragrance- free dog shampoo by Melrose. I dry her thoroughly with cotton towels (not hair dryer) as damp hair makes her skin humid. Some Fido's Fre Itch Rinse in the rinse water.

When her skin (& inside ears) starts to go pink....I give her Polaramine anti-histamine tables (recommended by vet).

When her allergy is flaring & she's chewing....I use Pyohex shampoo. It kills the normal bacteria on the skin that sneak into the chewed bits & turn it into infection. You leave the suds on for up to 10 mins.

But first I cut her hair right back to the skin around any chewed at bit.

Any sign a spot is turning into an infection, I give her Rilexine antibiotics (vet gives me some to keep handy in the fridge.) Within a day or 2, stops infection.

Keeping her skin cool seems to help. I've found that areas where hair cut back right to the skin do not get to the horrible chewing stage. So I'm getting her clipped to skin by groomer.

Omega Oils are good for skin. She gets a couple of cans tuna in springwater in dinner a week. Also an egg yolk (not white). Sometimes Flaxseed (Linseed)Oil.

Her diet is rice, chicken & vegetables. And NO artificial colourings or preservatives in food....I use Supercoat Lite dry food...& Tuckertime roll (from the vet).

ADDED: She's been on a diet to lose some weight (built like a fat little tank!). And I've noticed her skin allergy has improved with weight loss.

This is in addition to the good advice given so far....not a sole solution.

I've found that it can help to teach a dog (that tends to bark as separation anxiety) that good things happen for it, only when it's quiet. And absolutely nothing happens, if it whines or barks or makes any noise to get your attention.

The dogs have to 'Sit' & be quiet to get a pat, a treat, dinner, lead on for a walk, get in the car etc. Any noise (even the slightest), I just turn my back, total ignore....only when quiet turn back. The penny drops after a while....that the sound of its voice doesn't get attention & good things....but quiet does.

I had to do this because of a dog that screamed & barked non-stop as separation anxiety.....& screamed even louder, in excitement, when we came home. After a couple of weeks....& with the neighbours being told what we were doing....the screaming & barking stopped.

Every morning when i let the ducks out and water the Mulberry tree I always say Morning Murph.

I'm so glad we're not the only people who talk to trees!

Our little dog who died at age 22 yrs is buried up under the mango tree. When we or our neighbours go past that tree, we always say, 'Hi, Gran!' (She became known as 'Gran' from age 13 yrs on).

Visiting tradesmen have given us some odd looks.

Nice to know that Murph is snug under the Mulberry Tree, waiting for the voices she loved so well.

A very loud round of applause would have greeted Murphy she stepped off the other side of the Rainbow Bridge. Doggie Heaven can pick the best. This is an amazing lady.

My sympathies to her family who will miss her so much.

But I'm still wondering about mita's comment about the mystery spray....

The uni vet was commenting on a well-known TV vet showing how to give small breed, fussy-eater dogs, commercial cat food... first warmed in the microwave.

She disagreed strongly....& I vaguely remember it had something to do with a final fatty (?) layer being added which was in line with a cat's nutritional needs?/digestive processes?....but not a dog's.

We had a small mixed breed dog at the time, & I'd asked her about giving it cat food, after seeing the TV vet demonstrate it.

I trusted the uni vet to the extent that I've followed her advice & use the 'human' tuna in springwater for the dogs. She owned cats herself.

I was told by a uni vet a long time back, not to feed the dogs commercial cat food. She said the cat food gets a final spray of something which makes it appealing to cats...but which is not so good for dogs.

I know this info doesn't add anything to this thread unless more detail is given for this reason....& documented in some way.

But I've followed her advice & not let our dogs eat the cats' food. I put tuna in springwater (Home Brand) in our dogs' dinners.

I've noticed a difference between the 2 types of breeds we've had.

The working dog types were more likely to respond obediently because they seemed to want to 'please' their pack leader. Though a temperamental difference could show. Like, our Sheltie boy, Dan, was quick & enthusiastic to respond. Shelley, the girl, would obey...but she could stamp a touch of dominance in the response.

The Tibetan Spaniels are totally different as a breed....self-confident & committed to figuring out their own self-interest. Tibbies taken out for obedience training out in the park say, 'And the point of all this is....?'

I've found I train the Tibbies very differently. It's just necessary to link the fact that good things (in their estimation) will always happen when they do desired behaviours.

Then I've found that these dogs are the fastest learners I've come across. They remember the links, so I can't remember the last time I actually gave an order to one of our Tibbies....they figure it out from the context....& 'do' the behaviour that they know brings them the good things of life as a housedog & companion pet.

I actually like the Tibbie thinking...never slavish, always intelligent, & very clear about what's a good life for them. And being enormously responsive & affectionate when they decide you're OK.

There's individual differences...that learning can temper.

Like I was warned by her breeder, that our Gracie was the most strong-minded Tibbie....& the one most likely to get away from her.

Yes, Gracie is strong-minded....but with the training that good things come with desired behaviours, she doesn't get away from me. When she takes off for a little runaway when the bath comes out, I just crouch down with my arms out....& she makes the decision that if she comes to me something good happens, so she runs into my arms for a cuddle. I don't have to say a word.

Mita it would make a song title too dampen the dander down LOL

We're songwriters!

" Dampen the dander down, dude'

Dampen the dander down.

If you dampen the dander down, dude,

You'll have dander dampened down."

You'll have to take the snorkle mask off to sing....I'll do the dancing.

Peibe, I think it's the disturbed dander released into the air when you groom Zoro that's triggering the allergies.

Some suggestions....& I'm no expert...but would constantly spraying with water (maybe mixed with some of the coat conditioner you leave in) as you work, help dampen the dander down (what a tongue-twister!).

Experienced groomers feel free to say 'N00000!'

Also to protect your eyes, you almost need a snorkel mask. Feel free yourself to say 'N0000!'

I use the Melrose Flaxseed Oil, too (from fridge in health food shop....& our local pharmacy).

I also add a can of tuna in springwater to the dog's food a couple of times a week. And a raw egg yolk (not the white).

No matter what , when you see a problem with a dog's skin its ALWAYS about the immune system

Absolutely right. Our Gracie spent the first 8 years of her life as a highly successful showdog in NSW. Never had any skin problems. Have not heard of any in her wide progeny either.

Then she came to us in Qld for a forever pet home. She was desexed. I noticed a 'bubbly' inflammation on the suture line. Vet didn't think it important. I did.

Took her to another vet who said she'd had an allergic response to the suture material used for the inside stitches. He also said that there was another kind of suture material which would not have produced an allergic response....if it had been used.

He gave her cortisone & said if that didn't clear the allergic response, he would have to operate & try to remove the allergy-producing internal stitches (which are supposed to dissolve).

It cleared....but the dissolving of those stitches seems to have set off, for the first time in her life, a constant tendency to have allergic skin reactions. Something got switched on....or off...in her immune system.

I couldn't comment on the pup in the pic.

But when we adopted an 8 yr old tibbie who'd been in Canberra, she had white sections on her nose (it was July). Our vet, who'd worked in northern USA, said it was 'Winter Nose', & would go away.

Within her first year here in Queensland, her nose was all black....& has been since.

That's fantastic info, TA....that Quik Itch can be used diluted as a shampoo. I'll be passing it on to the tibbie list....& can I have your permission to show the pics of your bubs in the bath? (Very cute, too!)

TA, thanks for the tip about Quit Itch. I'd never heard of it before. Shall look into it.

http://www.petstock.com.au/index/canine/view_details/79

This doggie sounds like out girl who gets hotspots...but on the other end. Gracie gets them at the rear. Polaramine, the human allergy relief helps a bit.

There's bacteria on the skin normally....& when the scratching breaks the skin an infection, inflammation is set up. Then antibiotic Rilexine clears it up.

I've also heard that Mylanta is good for 'hosing' down an itch. Our vet told me that when he was a lifesaver, they'd pour Mylanta on any sting or itch.

Our 2 tibbie girls have Supercoat Lite. They're the most sweet smelling dogs I've ever owned. So no problem here.

Thanks for the tip, poodlefan. Shall try doing so.

It's interesting that the fat tib only had a problem with fat that rolled on from nowhere....after being desexed at age nearly 8 years.