blacklabrador

Kymbo in retrospect I guess the elbow scores aren't that important to the treatment of the dog. It will be important for the breeder to know about it though - if they are responsible it may affect their future breeding plans. I don't have anything to compare the price to as Dr Mitchell is the only one in Qld who does the surgery this way.

It was both at the same time. He was able to weight bear as soon as he woke up and by the time the sedation had worn off he was wanting to run again (bloody lab puppies!!) He was done at 11 months of age. I've included a picture of him post surgery. His elbows are shaved like a poodle! The pink bandage around his leg is holding a fentinyl patch on for pain relief. He is such a beautiful puppy! (he's a big strong man now!)

I don't think Tess was comparing them directly. Last time T bone tried to light up a durry he couldn't quite get his thumb to work the lighter. I think she might have been making the point that some people do everything wrong and still seem to have no problems so looking a a few people (or dogs) isn't good enough in deciding that a food is okay or not. You'd really need to compare thousands of one breed split into three groups - an Advance group, a BARF group (fed identical diets) and a control group.

Having an overweight or overexercised dog will NOT cause ED in a normal dog with no predisposition. It will only allow ED to be expressed if a strong tendency already exists. According to Dr Mitchell who is a specialist in this area this is well supported by research. My Guido showed signs of an unusual gait from the time he was a small pup. It was noticable by the time I put him on lead to start show training him and was observed by others besides myself at the age of 12 weeks. We thought he was uncoordinated but it just got worse. He was diagnosed at about 4 months of age. The ED surgery was something I did to improve his quality of life - to reduce his pain and keep him painfree for longer. The other thing I did was very carefully screen his new owners to make sure he wasn't having to climb stairs or have rough play with other dogs or children. I did a lot of rehab with him prior to the surgery in a canine hydrotherapy pool. His shoulder muscles didn't start building until after the surgery though. Surgery cost $3000.

Kym - make sure the score you're talking about is in fact the elbow not the hip score. If it's a hip score it's great, if it's an elbow score that dog shouldn't have been bred from.

I bred a pup 18 months ago with severe ED from parents with perfect scores. Yes he had surgery - by a Vet called Richard Mitchell. He is the only vet in Qld who is doing this operation by arthroscopy. That means he makes small incisions and puts a camera and instruments in rather than opening up the whole joint. The recovery is much faster this way. My boy was back to normal in 48 hours but had to be crated for a month. There isn't a whole lot they can do with ED but a consult with Richard will tell you what you need to know. He is based on the Sunshine Coast.

Can you do massage? Physical touch has been shown to improve immune system function. I don't think you really have to even know what you are doing to have an effect. Ear tip massage is supposed to be very good. Strengthened immune system will help fight the cancer. Best wishes for her quality of life.

Just like babies. They get them a lot, some more than others. I have a bitch who got them a lot until she was about 6 months old. As an adult she rarely gets them. We don't know why anybody hiccups - it's a mystery!

It depends on your expectations. Puppy preschool is often the only place you can safely socialise your puppy before their 12 week vaccination. It's really important that your pup gets to see and play with other dogs during this four week period. Puppy preschool will help you learn about puppy care (worming, basic grooming, clipping nails etc) if you don't already know those things. It will also teach you to teach your dog some basic commands like "sit" and "come". Don't expect it to be obedience - you need to go to an obedience school with qualified trainers for that. *Thinks they need a separate puppy preschool for labs and goldies they are very bouncy puppies!!*

If you want the pup sleeping in your room you're best to buy a crate. Otherwise you are going to have a hyper pup who runs around your bedroom at night tugging on the blankets and trying to jump up to be with you.... not to mention peeing on the floor It takes time before a pup is old enough to ask to go out to the toilet. OH THEY JOYS!!!!

Dr Rowan Kilmartin, Vet Chiro, at Ormeau will do titre testing.

Vomiting water sounds like a gut obstruction TB. What's the chances At has eaten something he shouldn't

Gawd Sammy when I saw the name Fergie I hoped it was some DOLer I didn't know. I am so sorry to hear about your loss. He was such a beautiful boy. Have the time out that you need but don't be a stranger for too long. You know there is a fantastic network of support here when you need it.

Gosh I can't believe it's been two years since she passed on. RIP Miss Timothy... beautiful girl.

My parents lab had an obstruction. The only symptom was that he was vomiting and stopped pooping. He really was pretty much himself otherwise. The vet did an x ray and saw the sock he'd eaten and scheduled surgery for the next day. By that stage it was close enough to his bum that the vet could fish it out under sedation.

No meat without bones, no bones without meat. Nature balances it perfectly for us and we don't need to alter it IMO.

Would that be ethical? I bet it would piss off the owners of the genuine hairless dogs. Disclaimer: I know nothing about CC's so it's a question, not an accusation. I honestly don't know. I do know that some hairy hairless when fully grown don't look too much different to a PP. But I have no idea as to the ethics etc. Cav there are three different levels of hairiness or "hairlessness" (aside from the PP). This website shows the three different types. You can see the the hairy hairless crestie is totally covered in hair and requires a lot of shaving! http://www.crestars.com/grooming.htm

As you say - there were two patches. one yellow and one brown. The yellow was pee and the brown was anal fluid. No problem.

Nobody (or dog) can pee two different colours at one time as the urine is all mixed up together in the bladder. Sounds like anal gland fluid to me. ETA It's common for a dog to let go of anal glands when they are scared or feel threatened.

The peeing has settled but I feel like she's slightly off colour. Viral infections can cause fluid balance shifts or large amounts of glucose to be lost in the urine (which means that large amounts of urine are lost). Chest is clear and she's running around like normal - probably just 95% of her normal 110% idiocy. Something only the Mama would pick up on. We'll be off to the vets tomorrow if she's not 100%. Thanks for your help. Baifra - Diabetes insipidus can occur at any time as a chronic condition either as a pituitary problem (insufficient hormone) or as a kidney problem (lack of response to hormone). Yep it happens in dogs too, but as in humans, it's much less common than DM.

I would get some Inner Health powder and put it on his food every night. It's much better for recolonising the intestine that yoghurt. If you do a websearch on PROBIOTICS you will find lots of information.

Some people believe that commercially prepared pet food with all it's cereal fillers, preservatives and COOKED meat causes health problems in dogs. I would be very surprised if you fed your dog raw lamb and veges and the above supplements for 3 - 4 months that you'd have the problems you have now. If he's been on antibiotics you will need to make sure he has probiotics like inner health or yakult for quite a while to replenish the good bacteria in his digestive system.

I've shown an mod hairless... your guy is obviously a PP. There isn't that much difference between a PP and a hairy hairless. Can you shave him off and show him as a hairless? Might sound extreme - the wellbeing of the dog is much more important than showing. I know how hard it is to treat hotspots/sores etc on a short lab coat without getting out the clippers. It won't cure him but surely it will allow more air/sun to get to his skin if he is shaved?

I would be supplementing him with fish oils, vitamin C and probiotics for starters. Change him to a natural diet for a few months and see how he goes. Chlorhexidine kills staph - are you using shampoo with that in it? It's very common for humans to have those infections in tropical envinronments. Staph skin infections for humans are much worse in the summer too. Are there any vets that do wholistic medicine in Darwin?

If clipping him makes a difference then you should do it. Your dog wants to be comfortable. I doubt he gives a sh*t about being shown. A diet change will require a dedicated 3 months. Try some natural therapies - steriods weaken the immune system and are probably making him worse long term. Do you actually have a diagnosis? "Sores" is not a diagnosis of a condition. If he is regularly seeing a vet for medication then you should have some sort of name for what he has.