Airedaler

I agree with this. As hard a decision as this may be. I would find it very hard to sell this puppy knowing there was an issue with him. I think it is unfair to pass the problem on to a new puppy buyer ---- assuming of course that he would be sold or even given away.

If you look at the link whippytails posted it does state that arrangement may be made to go and groom under the supervision of a staff member but did not mention the cost.

They sure know how to fleece you

Thanks for that info whippytails. I did wonder if it was because of the short time they are there now.

Are you still able to visit a dog you have imported while it is in quarantine at Spotswood? When we last brought a dog in I was allowed in every day - I think that was because they were not very busy but I have been told by someone (whose reliability I question) that you are not allowed to visit any more.

I agree with others. You need to take her to the vet to confirm pregnancy at the very least so that you know if puppies are expected or you are just going to need to deal with a phantom pregnancy. I would also be concerned that her temperature is rising at this time. If it is the first litter you have whelped I would like to see you being a little more proactive rather than sitting back and letting things go. Have you been in touch with the breeder of your girl to seek their assistance? Is the father a Maltese as well?

I agree with Sash. I have an 11 year old that has very poor bite inhibition but he has never broken the skin and only mouths now when he is very excited. Still not really acceptable but for a dog to do this over a high fence is rather worrying in my mind. Certainly your friends need to let the neighbour know they are taking the matter seriously and addressing the issue somehow to prevent any further occurrences. I would imagine if the neighbour reported the matter there could be unpleasant consequences for owner and dog.

I would replace some of the kibble with more vegetables (preferably minced or crushed up) as these are anti imflamatory.

Kayla1 so sorry to hear the results are not what you had expected. Fingers crossed that a good outcome can be achieved with further surgery.

DD this sounds very much like what my girl has and pathology showed that it was a benign granuloma - auto immune induced. The vet was loathe to remove it because of where it is - on the power rim of the eye. Actually she has 2 the other above the eye and had a third removed before these two appeared suddenly. I'm now having these treated by an holistic vet who is using acupuncture, laser treatment and herbs. Only a week into treatment at this stage.

No, Haredown, you are not the only one I hate it. Not lonely that but terms such as "guardian" instead of owner or "adopting" instead of buying

Not much help........but you just do! I found the following article a useful guide when I had to make the decision recently. Hope you do as well. How to Know When It's Time to Euthanize Your Pet By Dr. Andy Roark | vetstreet.com Just last week, while I was performing euthanasia for a critically ill patient, the pet's owner looked at me and said, "I bet this is the hardest part of your job." That gave me pause. For me, putting animals to sleep is not one of the hardest parts of being a veterinarian. That's because euthanasia is often a blessing and gift to a suffering animal. In my experience, the hardest part of being a veterinarian is telling owners that their beloved pet has a terminal illness and will soon be leaving this world. The emotions that pass across their faces, even if they have suspected the worst for some time, are heart-wrenching. I still remember the first person I had to share this terrible news with. He was a nice, middle-aged man with two small children and an 8-year-old Rottweiler named Stone. Stone was a member of the family, and when he started to limp, his owner brought him straight in to be checked out. Stone was a wonderful dog at home, but he was not a fan of the veterinary clinic. My best dog treats did nothing to warm his heart, and when I manipulated his painful left shoulder, well… that ended our chances of being best friends. Even though Stone was not an admirer of mine, I liked him, and I really liked his owner. That made it so much harder to discuss his diagnosis: osteosarcoma. Osteosarcoma is a painful bone tumor that responds poorly to treatment. In some cases, treatments involving limb amputation and/or radiation therapy can be beneficial. In Stone's case, these options were not feasible. Together, Stone's owner and I decided to provide him with the best palliative care we could, and we promised each other that we would not let Stone suffer. When the time came, we would do the right - if tough - thing and put him to sleep rather than allow him to live in increasing pain. Stone's owner was the first person I ever had an end-of-life discussion with, and he was also the first person to ask me a question I have heard hundreds of times since: "How will I know when it's time?" The most recent person to ask me this question was my own mother. Her Miniature Schnauzer has battled long-term health problems and was recently diagnosed with diabetes. Unfortunately, she initially responded poorly to treatment. She lost her love of food, began soiling her bed and was generally acting pitiful. How to Decide Over the past few years, I've heard a lot of veterinarians give wonderful advice to people who are wondering when it is time to give their pets the gift of a peaceful passing. Here are four of the best pieces of advice I've heard, and they are the same ones I passed on to my own mother for her consideration. Every pet, illness and situation is different. There is no single rule that can be followed for when it is time to help your best friend "cross the rainbow bridge." Getting input from your veterinarian on the specific medical conditions that your loved one may face is vital for doing what is best for your pet. You may also benefit from having a caring friend who is not as emotionally involved in the situation as you are to help you gain perspective and really "see" what is happening with your pet. Remember that pets live in the moment. One of the most wonderful things about animals is how they embrace the present. Every time I walk into my house, my faithful Viszla throws a one-dog ticker tape parade. The fact that I have entered the house thousands of times before, or that I will leave again in a few hours, means nothing. All that matters to him is the joy that he feels right now. When our pets are suffering, they don't reflect on all the great days they have had before, or ponder what the future will bring. All they know is how they feel today. By considering this perspective, we can see the world more clearly through their eyes. And their eyes are what matter. Ask yourself important questions. Sometimes, articulating or writing down your thoughts can make the right path more apparent. Some questions that help pet owners struggling with this decision include: • Why do I think it might be time to euthanize? • What are my fears and concerns about euthanizing? • Whose interests, besides those of my pet, am I taking into account? • What are the concerns of the people around me? • Am I making this decision because it is best for my pet, or because it is best for me because I'm not ready to let go? Measure their quality of life. This is no more than trying to determine how good or bad our pet's life is at this moment. Trying to assess this can be difficult, but there are some ways you can try and evaluate it. Let's take a look at a few of my favorites in the next section. Is Life a Joy or a Drag? Our pets may not be able to talk to us and tell us how they are doing, but if we pay close attention, there are many clues that can help us answer that question. The Rule of "Five Good Things": Pick the top five things that your pet loves to do. Write them down. When he or she can no longer do three or more of them, quality of life has been impacted to a level where many veterinarians would recommend euthanasia. Good Days vs. Bad: When pets have "good days and bad days," it can be difficult to see how their condition is progressing over time. Actually tracking the days when your pet is feeling good as well as the days when he or she is not feeling well can be helpful. A check mark for good days and an X for bad days on your calendar can help you determine when a loved one is having more bad days than good. HHHHHMM: Doctor Alice Villalobos is a well-known veterinary oncologist. Her "HHHHHMM" Quality of Life Scale is another useful tool. The five H's and two M's are: Hurt, Hunger, Hydration, Happiness, Hygiene (the ability to keep the pet clean from bodily waste), Mobility and More (as in, more good days than bad). Dr. Villalobos recommends grading each category on a scale of 1-10 (with 1 being poorest quality of life and 10 being best). If the majority of categories are ranked as 5 or above, continuing with supportive care is acceptable. Pet Hospice Journal: Keeping a journal of your pet's condition, behavior, appetite, etc., can be extremely valuable in evaluating quality of life over time. A Tale of Two "Endings" Thankfully, my mother's Schnauzer, Zoe, eventually responded to her therapy. As a perpetual optimist, I like to think that she may be with us for some time to come. Still, the reality of having older pets is that we must be vigilant in their care and aware that every day is a gift. In the case of my long-ago patient, Stone, with whom I first walked this path, I am glad to say that he did not suffer unnecessarily with osteosarcoma. His owner made a good decision, and Stone crossed the rainbow bridge while in the loving arms of his people. He was remembered by them as a strong, loving protector of the children in his family, and I will always remember his owner for having the strength and wisdom I hope we'll all have when the time comes to say that final goodbye. Dr. Andy Roark is a practicing veterinarian at Cleveland Park Animal Hospital in Greenville, S.C., where he lives out his dream of caring for animals and educating their owners on optimal pet health. Dr. Roark is also the founder and managing director of a veterinary consulting firm, Tall Oaks Enterprises, LLC, as well as a member of the VetPartners consulting group. While in veterinary school at the University of Florida, Dr. Roark served as one of the first national presidents of the Veterinary Business Management Association (VBMA). He currently serves on the NAVC Program Committee, the Veterinary Team Brief Advisory Board and the National VBMA Advisory Board. A nationally recognized veterinary writer, speaker and thought leader, Dr. Roark pens regular columns for DVM Newsmagazine and Veterinary Team Brief. Dr. Roark is also a dedicated concierge, chauffeur, storyteller, dress-up fashion consultant and diaper changer for two young daughters.

Don't laugh. At a recent meeting when selecting Judges was done one of the members/significant breeder seriously suggested that we add to the contract "that the selected judge should refrain from making any comment about an Australian dog on Facebook" Not sure how this would be policed but the argument was that the comments may influence the entries and there was a breed club (allegedly) whose entries were decimated because of comments made by their judge elect. Personally I think some exhibitors are just a tad too precious and need to remember that tis is a hobby and supposed to be enjoyable.

I used to find if the pups were getting milk too quickly it would sometimes come out of their nose. It did not seem to affect the pups though and as things settled it stopped. As an aside, and not necessarily in this case, I wounder if it is possible to express milk from a bitch that has an excess and freeze it for use if needed for a subsequent litter if needed. The thought just occurred to me as something that might be useful.

Years ago I had the master of all dogs getting rid of heartworm tablets. My son used to feed the dogs and always put a daily tablet in with the food. This one dog always cleaned up her bowl and then ran off to a particular spot in the yard. One day I was home to feed the dogs and watched this process, on inspection I found a small hole which revealed about 10 heartworm tablets. She stashed them every day in the same place. I believe the tablets used at that time were quite bitter. A change of brands and the issue stopped.

Fantastic! Sounds like you have a good vet. Its the first time I've been to her Steve but she has a good reputation and treats conventionally as well as using Chinese principles. I must admit I did wonder a little when I arrived and there were two dogs (presumably belonging to staff) a cross breed and a scotty terrier running around the place. It seemed a little confronting. My usual vet had emailed her the pathology results which she said were very complex. I'm pleased that my regular vet was not offended that I wanted another opinion and in fact I think he was quite pleased as he really was not sure about just how to proceed. Having received the additional pathology results he may have had a better idea but it would only have been conventional treatment which of course is only treating the symptoms. Oh by the way, I have been following your advise about using Aloe Vera and I also used Colloidal Silver when I ran out of AV. She was very happy for me to continue with either. So thanks to you.

Thanks Erny. Your support is much appreciated. I'm off to read more about hair analysis.

Pleased to say I had a consultation with Dr Ann Nevill this morning re my girl's problem. She is very positive that we can sort out the problem without cortisone. We had a session of acupuncture and I have been given some anti inflammatory Chinese herbs to administer and she is sending off a hair sample for analysis. Fingers crossed.

In theory you are correct Persephone, however, although my major issue was the flies biting, my girl still was still freaked out by them being around and it did seem to lessen their presence around her when there were still plenty of flies around.

I had a similar issue although not as bad. Had tried a multitude of repellents without success and mentioned the problem to my vet. his answer was to use Advantix. I am loathe to use this sort of preparation however, given all else had failed I tried it and have had no further problems. I only use it for a couple of months in the summer. Good luck.

Notice received that both of these shows have been cancelled due to the weather. Shows tonight and on Sunday will go ahead as planned.

No thyroid tests, just a biopsy and ensuing pathology results. I'm considering exploring this further with Dr Ann Nevill before committing to putting her on cortisone as my vet thinks is the appropriate treatment. I'm not sure I like the possible side effects of that.

Thanks Steve. These are actually under the skin but I'll try the aloe as you suggest - sure cannot do any harm.

We used them last year, but unfortunately they are not available this year.

Has anyone had any experience with this condition and if so how was it treated? Did you try any alternative therapy and if so was this successful? The condition seems to be far from common and I'm finding it difficult to find any information about it.