Erny

Hope you sent in letters to the pollies, Kirty. Even though it went through anyway.

They are official. Royal Assent was granted yesterday. They don't listen. They won't listen. Half of them don't even understand what the laws actually mean - they even explained it incorrectly when they debated them. They're not interested in anything that they're not afraid will hurt by way of votes.

As equally as it is wrong to denounce the sport from whence the titles came, but then do a back-flip and embrace them for the sake of import because it suits them to do so - but only for their singular interest. A clean out is needed to straighten up the biases and ridiculous policies, at least in VicDogs (because I'm not remotely familiar with what happens within other State Bodies). IMO, the only way VicDogs can straighten this out without skulduggery going on is to acknowledge the Schutzhund/working dogs along with their titles. Straight up.

Wow! That was a very expensive tummy ache!!

I can confidently recommend All Breeds Boarding Kennels & Cattery in Lyndhurst. I train at their grounds; do Boarding/Training there and have also worked for them when they've needed the extra hands, so I can vouch for the attention to care and cleanliness they give to their kennels and to the dogs and cats who stay with them.

Driving from behind. Loved getting that from my horse - the feeling of sooooo much controlled power. Staranais - I think it would be something akin to use walking using our butts and keeping our pelvic muscles engaged (as we're sort of supposed to). Do that and it helps our upper bodies to straighten/lift and improve posture. Not exactly like this for dogs/horses, I guess, because we're built so differently, but I suspect similar.

I'm not a canine physio/chiro or any other form of canine structure specialist or expert, but my thoughts are that the underwater treadmills are even better for rehab than swimming pools. Don't know what the other of our DOL experts think.

Oh - OT but as an aside .... if you have ducted heating but the underneath of your home is exposed, you'd be losing quite a bit of heat through the ducts. If you can get around to closing it in at some stage I'm sure you'd find your heating to be more efficient and more economical.

That's interesting, CH .... and to be honest, potentially a bit disconcerting, especially if she is so hell bent on getting there that she will even cause self-harm. When did this behaviour begin? Perhaps you mentioned - but to save me going back through posts? Also, does she have a preferred spot/place under the house? If so, what room would she be under? Mind you .... my train of thought gets dashed by the fact that she exhibited this behaviour to your neighbour's home as well. But I'd still like to pursue it, all the same. Just in case.

Reading this thread lead me to wondering how many cases of "allergies" do we assume are allergies? I'm sorry if my layman's thinking is off base, but how often could these allergy type symptoms actually be a sign of toxins that the body has been unable to deal with and are therefore coming out by way of the skin? Perhaps toxins as a result of the diets we feed, the vaccines we administer, the worming drugs, the heart worm drugs, the flea and tick preventions ..... ? If these are all addressed as "allergies" and then we go about the business of immuno-suppressant drugs, aren't we then suppressing an immune system which might actually be functioning at its optimum, and only suppressing the immune system so it will tolerate these drugs and diets? And if I'm anywhere near making sense or correct, is that really the right thing to do? Just thinking. I see the trends of skin issues discussed here where people and some vets jump to the conclusion of "allergy" reaction, even though they are unable to discern to what. And it makes me wonder. And it bothers me.

I'm not a Vet nor anywhere near expert, but I believe that it is possible to "support" the immune system, and for one that is compromised, the support to result in a strengthened immune system. But I think success (or not) depends on why the immune system is not functioning at an optimum level in the first place. I also think it is not only what you give the dog (and this would relate to the most balanced diet as possible) but also what you would be better to NOT give (eg. over-vaccination; unnecessary chemical drugs; etc). The latter can serve to labour the immune system. Whether you need to give a dog more than a balanced diet and a dose of sensibility when it comes to drug/chemical administration, I think depends on whether the immune system is compromised or not. I feel as though I'm not answering your question, Mas1981 and that perhaps I'm being more obtuse than I need to be. But with the above in mind, I give my dog Active Manuka Honey in times of stress and/or unwellness (eg. Canine Cough). This has antibacterial qualities as well as qualities which support the immune system. This would I'm sure be only one of many, many examples of things that are available that can assist.

Thank you SnF. Your words moved me. My avatar girl ... Kal - she is the catalyst for me knowing what I now know and doing what I now do. She is my heart/soul dog. I miss her and wish I could have both Kal and my current boy, Mandela. I think she would have had her work cut out for her, coping with his boisterous and persistent ways, but I'm sure she could have taught him a lot, and far better than I, and I think they would have grown to become best mates. But sometimes I think Kal whispers to him, from wherever she is, because there's just some certain little quirky things he does that reminds me of her, even though Mandela is so different - and for that alone I love him (pain in the that he can be ....)

I was about to suggest the same things. I know all too well about grabbing at cords on dogs causing injury - and not just burns. In my case, the cord sliced off the tip of a couple of fingers. Not my dog. Not my lead. And not even on my watch. Just made an emergency dash to stop the dog from running into the traffic. I can't tell you in words how much pain that one simple thing caused me.

Please still talk to your Vet and inform him/her of the initial symptoms, even if they have (thankfully) disappeared.

My avatar girl (now passed, bhcs) was diagnosed with a very enlarged heart and heart murmur. The murmur I knew about - but it wasn't a biggy. Anyway, the enlarged heart was a big worry, as she needed emergency surgery (enlarged heart diagnosed at time of emergency) for something else at the time and the Vet I saw at the time was very concerned that she wouldn't make it through surgery. Make it she did - 3 surgeries, in fact, and all long ones. Fast track forward and we've gone to Werribee University of Melbourne Vets (why did I go there? .... long irrelevant story) to see a specialist about her heart. Specialist takes more xrays and confirms his first thoughts - the original Vet had left my girl laying on the xray table for too long - this and her position caused her heart to appear very enlarged, whereas follow-up xrays proved there was nothing wrong with her heart at all. I guess you need to trust your Vet - I must say that in my case, I certainly didn't.

Spending mental energy is far more tiring than spending physical energy. Training; tricks; socialisation (ie to the world and all the things it has in it - the list would be endless). And of course, be your dog's leader .......... from your DOG's point of view . There is just sooooo much you can do .

I empathise. When I have dogs in for Boarding & Training but if I need to ring the owner for whatever reason (about a training query or some minor thing), the first thing I quickly follow with after I have announced myself is : "your dog is fine ..... ". I am familiar with that heart skip that happens when something triggers you to think something is major wrong.

So you're not the "biggest tight " that you make out to be, . Don't know what the dehydrators are worth, but I think that it would be more time and cost effective to simply purchase the ready made stuff if you don't already have one. In the space of about 18 months, I think I've gone through about 4 or 5 packets of the Calendula. And (*touch wood*) I'm finding I need it less and less so a packet is lasting a lot longer than it once did.

Growing the marigolds is a good idea, and you get the value from them in the garden in the meantime, although for me personally, I don't think I'd have the time nor be bothered with picking and drying etc. The other thing to consider (and I'm not sure about this myself, so I'm only raising it as food for thought) is the sterility factor in the process of drying - after all, you're using the tea to treat skin which is potentially raw and open and wouldn't want to use something that might have been contaminated with something that could lead to infection rather than prevent/stop it occurring. I have no idea what processes the commercial field uses from the growing to the drying and then packaging stage, but might be worth enquiring about before you DIY.

The tea you make from the Calendula has anti-inflamatory and anti-bacterial qualities. It can be taken orally or used externally. On dogs, commonly used to ease rashes, itchiness and to help thwart secondary skin infections which might arise as a result of allergic reactions.

Yes please, Megan .... if you wouldn't mind and get to think of it. :D

Awww ... twodoggies - it's tough, watching our oldies get old with all the things that can come with it, isn't it? Console yourself - your little guy will adjust to his failiing eyesight. They do so much better than we do. They live for the moment and just get on with getting on. They don't tend to dwell like we do. Also, remember that dementia (as far as I know) is something that is often worse for the carer than it might be for the sufferer and I expect that would be even more the case in respect to dogs. for tomorrow if there's no improvement and you feel you need to see your Vet and hoping that this bout of vomiting is something that medication or medication adjustment can easily assist. But hoping that it is something innocent and gone by tomorrow and that your boy is back to normal by then.

LOL .... sounds like it . I presume it is Australian?

Cheers for that tip, SK