becks

You will still need to buy scissors, even if you wish to groom for someone else. You could also ask to start at the bottom with a salon, as a dog washer and then see if they will train you on the job.

Ask the groomer, they may even sell you some of what they use.

Dogs with a good diet shouldn't need to have the glands messed with by groomers/owners under normal circumstances

If you are worried, ask the vet to xray his stomach, if he is bringing up lots of grass and bits of ball, he could have other things already in his stomach that can't be easily digested.

When did you last apply the drops?

ACV = apple cider vinegar - it should be the one from health food shops with the cloudy 'mother' in it, not the one from the supermarket. I would be inclined to just monitor the urine pH at this stage, there are also calcium oxylate stones that can form if the pH goes to far the other way!

You might be better to buy the strips to monitor her urine pH and see what other foods you can try that keep the urine in the right pH range. When my old dog had a couple of bouts with struvite, she was later changed to 'Chappie' don't know if you can get it in Aus. Have you also checked with the owners/breeders of other dogs in her lines as it can be a problem to run in certain lines (at least this is true for mini schnauzers)

I wonder if the client didn't listen to the vet properly? Maybe the abcess had come to a head and the vet released the goo from the abcess and gave the dog an pain/anti bio injection and asked them to go back in a couple of days for a check up. One of mine had an abcess which burst, I just had her on antibios for a week, and in a few days it looked nicely healed up, it did ooze for several hours though.

What about a spaniel? There are a few different types to look at depending on what size/activity level you are looking at.

In the UK we have to follow (a) but that is the way I would choose to do it anyway, that way the pup leaves with the paperwork and the new owners know they have a registered puppy and not just a promise. I also like to have a theme for a litter, so I choose the names, the new owners can still choose the pet name.

I train one, do the homework with both and take the other dog to the next class. these days I need to find out how to do obedience and agility when the classes are at separate clubs on the same day and time

forgot to mention, some people swear by using diatomaceous earth (food grade) in the carpets/furnishings and on the pets.

cheap solutions vacuum carpets, all corners in the room, the furniture and take the cushions off. buy a household flea spray (they are about £15 in the UK and last for 12 months - use this in each room, you can have the windows open as you use it as you are spraying into the corners and under the furniture, so there is no need to leave the house for hours. vacuum again, wash all the dogs bedding keep in mind the life cycle of the flea, this is a battle that isn't going to be won in a day, it can take a few weeks and you should see a knockdown in the numbers as you go. Treating the house stops the fleas from breeding the next generation, you will then need the current generation to jump on the dog to get a dose from the frontline. best not to keep bathing the dogs or using lots of different cheapy treatments.

What is he fed and how well digested is the food he brings back up?

I would still take him to see my own vet, if only for my peace of mind and to see what they would suggest as being poossible reasons for him being like this. While he is with you, he is under your care, so I see no reason to not have him checked out. If you are worried about the owners, ask them if they would mind you getting a 2nd opinion about him from your own vet.

I would take her to a different vet for a check up, the one who speyed her sounds like a butcher

LOL I gave my standard stuff a little "grooming" when I first washed it to give it that 'new look' again! But I get the impression Swayd's vetbed is new and hasn't drained pee from the start? ps. After many washes I don't bother grooming each time but do give it a 'fluffup' when it looks a bit too bunched up. BUt it's only used as bedding now and doesn't get peed on. and so using the brush to break up the pile will allow the pee to drain, that is why I suggested it!!

sway, try the slicker - it is what they used to use in toy factories for breaking up the pile on the fur toys. Great for renewing lambswool rugs too!

What have you washed them with? Was there any fabric softener used?

I've not had that problem with any vetbed I have used, once the rubber backed ones are well used, they drain through to the paper underneath, but even newer ones that have been used haven't had pee sit on the top. Try brushing the vet bed with a slicker brush to break up the 'fur' and see if it will then drain better.

A friend with a litter of labs has my pens atm and they are 30" high, so they should be fine. How big is the litter? Just thinking that 2 sets of pens maynot give enough floor space for a large litter to do any playtime while inside

In the UK we are not supposed to show desexed dogs - unless prior permission has been given from the kennel club, this is then printed in the kennel gazette so anyone will know. Is showing a desexed bitch any worse then her being pumped full of chemicals to stop her coming into season for a few years or more? It seems a lot of people are very happy to use various lotions, potions, sprays, chalks, creams etc to give their dog an advantage in the show ring and it isn't just about 'presentation', this is against the rules too. Walk past a lot of grooming areas and it can be hard to breathe or walk a black dog near where a white one is being prepared and see if that black dog is still black! I show a groomed breed and must be the only one who doesn't have the legs packed with powder and spray, who doesn't use hairspray over the body to stiffen up the coat or just groom the dog into a shape that has no baring on the shape of the dog underneath. I have had other miniature schnauzer owners tell me that blacks or b/s can never have hard coats like p/s and yet mine manage to have very hard coats through breeding and hard work.

I would go to the vets and let them decide. She'll probably get antibiotics anyway.

I tend to keep the rubber back ones for the crates, use the ordinary vetbed for pups. sometimes the rubber does ball off a little for the first few washes but i find as it ages, that stops. I've not seen pee sit ontop of the vetbed, although it would find it difficult to drain through a rubber base!

I'd drive - this way I could also meet the dam and any other relatives the breeder has, along with seeing how his routine etc is normally. I have driven pups home taking several hours and they have been fine with it - some have travelled on my knee when a friend drove - on a cooler day this is no problem (make sure the window is closed incase pup has a sudden wiggle for freedom) on warmer days the heat from your body can make them to warm. I had a 4.5 hour journey with a car sick pup (who managed to empty both ends just as I got onto the motorway) not a pleasant experience to travel to the first services but she travelled the rest of the way home without anymore incidents.