aliwake

use something big and heavy. People have mentioned on here before using old ceramic basins I think? I use a large stainless steel bucket, and the weight of the water itself makes it hard to knock over.

That's so awful Cassie - I'm so glad you guys were able to get Sumo the help he needed on time! you must have been petrified!

That's wonderful news! Very glad the outlook is good

Maybe coconut oil? I don't know anything about it other than it's meant to be amazing for everything :)

If you don't want to mess around with capsules, you can buy small squeezy bottles of vitamin E oil too - it's a bit less messy. You just get it from teh chemist. I'm not sure it would help after all this time though.

I think it's this one: http://qld.fairdinks.com.au/natures-domain-salmon-meal-dog-food-15-87-kg/

'poultry protein' - which is also the main protein in the adult food, but the adult food also contains pork protein, which is new. He was on the RC lab junior, and the adult food is the RC maxi adult, so maybe I will consider the RC lab adult food. I originally didn't want to cos the dosage suggestions seemed really over the top, which made me think there was a lot of filler, but, the ingredients are very similar to the jnr food, and the protein and fat contents are almost the same too. I'm thinking, being a breed specific food, maybe they feel that labs do better on a higher protein, lower fat diet? The adult lab food is 30% protein, 13% fat. I'm kinda feeling like I'd like to try a grain free food, but I know he did well on his puppy food, so maybe I should just stick to what I know.

Hi Anne, he's just been wormed, which is why I've been considering other options. Pers, i think the change in food has adversely affected his poo - it (the poo) seems drier, and a little harder for him to get out. It also seems a smaller diameter than before - perhaps the lack of psyllium husks as Lisa said? I know reduced bulk can contribute to anal gland problems (though in theory his anal glands seemed ok). Regardless of those things which I'd already noticed, the vet's suggestion of a mild food intolerance of some kind of seems possible too - perhaps he isn't tolerating the addition of pork products? He certainly hadn't really had any pork before the new food. The vet suggested that whatever intolerance he may have could be making his bum itch. I'm not going to disregard the possibility anyway, which is why I decided to compare the foods and see what major differences there are. You've certainly given me lots of other suggestions too though, which is great. The vet said that the small amount he managed to express from the left gland might be enough to relieve whatever discomfort he had, so I guess I'll just have to wait and see if there's any change over the next few days.

I decided to do a quick comparison of ingredients between the puppy and adult foods we've been using. Main differences are: Adult food has dehydrated pork protein. Protein 26%, Fat 17% Puppy food has rice, and psyllium husks. Protein 33%, Fat 14% Most other ingredients are present in both. I find it really weird that the adult food has more fat! Explains why we're struggling to drop weight... And perhaps the pork doesn't agree with him? Maybe.

Thanks Pers. I just figured it's a bit unusual - I've never seen him doing it before, but in the last week I've seen him do it 3 or 4 times. And not just outside where he'd get a good scratch from the grass... My gut feeling is that I'm wasn't happy with his current food even before he started scooting, so maybe I'm just projecting the cause and result to suit myself :)

Given they hadn't been a problem before I was ok with having a consult - I had a few questions about food etc, and ended up being in there for ages, so it's all good. Consult was $60 so not too bad... Apparently his anal glands didn't seem unduly inflamed - the vet expressed his left one a little, but couldn't even find the right one. In combination with what I said about him straining recently, he said it could well be a slight bowel irritation due to something in his new food. I gave him a probiotic when we got home, so hopefully that might give him some relief if he's a bit uncomfortable. So, I don't know. back to the food drawing board I think.

All good - seeing the vet at 12. No doubt it will be a consult, but will see.

Thanks for that cavNrott - good to know I might not have to pay for a consult if I specify I just need his anal glands looked at :) Can you confirm that the bum scooting is usually a sign they need doing? It's definitely not a behaviour he's shown before.

Sorry to go slightly off topic, but was searching 'anal glands' and this is the most recent thread. I haven't ever had a dog with anal glad problems before, so I'm making a few guesses here from things I've read over time. My lab boy has just starting scraping his bum along the ground in the last week or so. He has been recently wormed, so I'm guessing this can be a sign of anal glad problems? Is there any way I can tell just by looking, or do you have to go digging around? If it's the latter, then I guess we're off to the vet :) I do think his poo has been looking a bit dry-er since switching to adult food about 2 months ago - in fact I had another thread about him straining. I gave him a heap of probiotics and I haven't really seen him straining since, but poo is definitely looking dry still.

We have used a kennel a couple of times for weekends. We're really happy with the level of care he gets there, so are starting to consider weekends away occasionally. His first visit was at about 8 months when we had to go away for family reasons. He is a very social dog though, so I think he enjoys it. Not all dogs have that kind of personality though, so it won't work for them all. A bigger consideration for us is that we miss him like crazy when we're away :) We recently had a longer holiday, and had a friend take care of him at home, which was great.

I didn't have much success with the infin-8, but I suspect I bought a size too big. A traditional halti is the only way I can manage my freight train lab.

I quite like the black dog halti. Seems like a more flexible fit than some other designs.

Ps the cloud collar is comfy, but not super effective

I have a large comfy cone I could sell you - tried on once and discovered it was a bit small for Nixon

I hope we get a fashion parade once these jumpers arrive?!

Have you had a look at these ones: http://www.hamishmcbeth.com I bought some of their jammies on the weekend, and they're great!

Happy Birthday Jingo!! That photo of Fritz and Esky is awesome! Looks like they're loving it!

advocate definitely covers flea prevention. all you will need is: - advocate (monthly) - tapeworm treatments every 3 months - tick treatments if needed (I think I heard someone say you don't have paralysis ticks in WA - check with your vet though!) if you buy advocate and tapeworm treatment today you should be fine - just ask about ticks while you're there too. Advantix (your first quote) does covers ticks, but is a different product to advocate, and it doesn't do any worming. You were quoting descriptions for different products, which is why you were confused I think - the names are similar, but they do very different things!

I used advocate when my pup was that age. It's hard with dogs that grow so fast because you can't buy in bulk! I think some vets will sell advocate singly, or you can sometimes find 3 packs. It is a good product. You also need additional tapeworm treatment though, and tick treatments if you live in a tick paralysis area. I think you only need a tapeworm treatment every 3 months (though cookie might still be young enough to need it more often - I can't remember). Your vet should sell single treatments of the right dosage too - you can just pop in to buy it as needed.

Wow, that's bad... I just re-checked the renewal notice they (finally) sent me by email, and it has no mention of the excess. I'm worried now!! In other news, I gave them my new bank account details for direct debit about 3 weeks ago, and they just took this month's payment out of the old account... Lucky I thought that would happen and left some money in it! It pays not to have high expectations any more. Hopefully it's actually sorted out this time.