Erny

Pardon my ignorance, but these are not the same as ant-acids, are they?

You can see the affect the bowed legs had on the twist (lean over) in his feet more so in this photo : ETA: To the OP - in your case definitely needs a nail trim. That can make a big difference. Not certain that your dog's problem is the same as I had, as the photo's certainly don't appear to be showing signs of knees knuckling over.

I'd need to see better photo's but is there a hint of carpet laxity syndrome in there? This is where the bones in the legs grow at a faster rate than the ligaments can stretch - the ligaments then pull down not allowing the bones to straighten. If you catch this earlier enough and very carefully monitor diet and weight gain, it is possible these will grow out. My boy had this although his was far more severe than what your picture shows : I think he was about 9 weeks old in this photo (need to check date). He was a skinny pup when I picked him up and I desperately wanted to put some weight on him but if I fed too much it went into a growth spurt, so I had to make sure that he gained weight slowly but steadily, rather than focus on weight gain at that time. That was so hard to do because I hated to see him so thin, but for these efforts, thankfully his front legs have grown out straight. If you don't catch this early enough, it can become a permanent deformity. ETA: This cause of this condition is generally either over nutrition, or under nutrition.

It is 2011. If you go to "calendar" you will see she is in China in late February 2010, with Australia marked in for 26th and 27th February 2011.

Don't think it is an entirely new occurrence. You'd already be aware of how evidence was fabricated in the RSPCA -vs- Innotek case regarding e-collars. And what you said, SBT123 .... Completely agree. History dictates that one has to wonder.

I think that's a bit rough.

Apart from utilising the crate as you do (ie don't give it up), allow him out but have him on lead. IOW ..... train (show) him how you want him to behave inside.

How long does it take for the hives to recede (with the use of drugs and without the use of drugs, if you happen to know)?

I like that attention is being drawn to some of the RSPCA activities. They need to be kept honest and I think that the free run and mate-ship with Government (so it seems to me) has caused this organisation to become lax and a bit self centred and righteous. There is no "body" that the RSPCA can be reported to for wrong-doings and perhaps the RSPCA has languished in that luxury for a bit too long. The base structure of the RSPCA as I knew it many moons ago was good (to my knowledge) but I think it needs a dose of salts to bring it back on track. I agree that a charity organisation should NOT have influence in Government nor be splashing in money. Didn't they have $52 million in the bank only just recently? Or was that just RSPCA Vic. ? A charity organisation who has no obligation to be accountable to anyone should NOT be given the power for prosecution and judgement. That's madness on the part of the Government who grant them that right and it needs to be reversed.

Well written and well said, WoofnHoof.

I didn't even see this thread, which I note dates back a good while ago. Lablover - don't know if you got the bed you were after yet, but I'd recommend you looking up Puppy Power. They sell on ebay, but they also have a warehouse/show room in Dandenong and if you arrange it with them ahead of time you can go down there to have a look before you buy. I've found them to be very competitive price wise and usually cheaper than retail outlets. Let me know if you want their phone number. Oh - and they sell good quality stuff too (including Snooza). ETA: Kal used to have a preference for my sister's dog's bed and she used to 'pinch' it first, every time I had him over to stay. So I bought her one (her reward for passing us through the scent detection course I was doing through NDTF at the time). It was the same cushion bed as what Monti had. But she still always pinched Monti's whenever he came over, in preference for her own. There was a bit of 'top dog' going on between those two, in the nicest, quietest sweetest way. But 'top dog' all the same.

Thanks Sas. It is hard for me to tell anyone exactly what is wrong which is the reason I think that my posts are so long (that, and the fact that I'm not exactly against talking ) - possibly because I am resisting the usual veterinary path of GA, AB's and Cortisone and without sticking cameras and so forth down his gut or up somewhere else, and nothing appearing on blood tests, there is no firm diagnosis. I am just so convinced that these things will set him back. It's an albeit strong gut feeling on my part and I hope I'm not wrong. And I mean no offence to the Veterinary system or the people within it. They do some excellent work and of course there are definite times that without their help our dogs would not last as long as they do. Barry (hair sample) said to me when I first telephoned him to enquire, that most people come to him as a last resort. I guess I'm working the opposite way around and venturing the natural path with a view to giving Mandela's system every chance of becoming stronger without influencing that by him needing to work off the affects of drugs/GA. I am so that I'm not doing him a disservice.

I don't understand the technicalities, but did have bloods done after the first bout of him going off his food. The liver function test showed no probs. When the first bout of him going off his food occurred and he had a bit of colitis, the Vet prescribed AB's. I put him on those but mid-way through the course he worsened (wouldn't eat anything) and his stools became extremely sloppy and blackish. That's the only time he has ever been given AB's and no, they didn't do anything for him. I've looked up "Canine Urticaria" and what happens to Mandela doesn't sound like that. Apart from the hives (all over his body, although it does sometimes seem to be sectional - ie that some parts might be worse affected at sometimes compared to others at that time) and the itching that comes with that (for which I use the Calendula Tea wash), the only other thing I notice is that his eyes get a bit gunky (and I'm careful to cleanse and soothe them with Saline solution if I need to). He sometimes goes a bit flatter than he normally would be (which, if it wasn't for the fact that he's not well, would be a temporary relief for me because he is so "out there") but that would usually also be the days when he hasn't eaten, so this I assume is likely to be because his stomach is feeling sore. What I don't understand about the suggestion that he could be allergic to the normal staph bacteria on his skin is that we can go (if past history is anything to go by) for months with all being well. And the hives are always preceded by him refusing food. If he were allergic to his own staph bacteria, wouldn't we be seeing the allergy symptoms continuing rather than abating and ceasing for so long? And why would they cease at all? ETA: One thing I have noticed is that on the two or three occasions in his lifetime (19 months) that he has vomited, I've never seen any bile. The naturopath is aware of that and we are moving forward to correcting PH balance in his stomach. If he was not creating bile (or enough of it) then I can understand why his foods aren't being digested properly. This would also make sense of why I have so much trouble getting weight on and why he has to eat so much for this to happen. Which of course would be a catch 22, because the more food he eats, the less bile to 'go around', the less the food would be properly digested. These are only my thoughts. Take no notice of me. I'm rambling. ETA Note to self : talk to naturopath about potential Gallbladder problems.

..... we're on an "up" at the moment. Hives are all but gone - although he looks a bit moth eaten where his coat has dropped from the hives that erupted. But that's getting better. Coat is generally looking better, as is skin. Has put on some weight - helped by the fact that he's gone off Roo mince and Rabbit mince (BARF) and is now preferring (again) chicken frame mince, which of course has more fat content. Gotta say that I'm a bit relieved (or my purse is) because the Chicken frame mince is far cheaper to feed than the other. He is eating better lately, but it is still unreliable. Push comes to shove and I feed him from a spoon. Sometimes that does the trick when he'd otherwise leave his food. But too occasionally, he won't touch it. Hair sample man (Barry Templeton) has done the 3rd hair sample now and suggests that we've righted the issue of his liver not functioning sufficiently to cope with the body toxicity level. Still working on 'cleansing' his body of all the toxins and fixing his irritated stomach. I must say that Mandela has shown more marked improvement since I started him on Barry's meds. So it is a bit fingers crossed. When I have got him 'right' again, I'll be waiting. The first bout of turning off food occurred at around the age of 7 months, followed a month later by a bout of hives. We got him going again with the VAN diet and I thought things had come good but 7 months further down the track and he goes off that food, followed closely by another (worse) bout of hives. So I won't really know if we've got him right this time around until another (approx) 7 months go by to see if there is a pattern in all of this. I'm also still with the naturopath. In fact, we're due to make a follow up appointment with her in the next week.

Mandela's condition, it seems, is not really an "allergy" as such. It seems for him it is a matter of food not being digested properly for one or two other (presumably organ related) reasons - the toxicity from improperly digested food builds up in his system and his liver hasn't coped with filtering the toxins from his system. Hence the out-break in hives. So I guess I don't quite qualify for your "K9 Allergy Support" List? PS In a way, I suppose it is somewhat like an allergy though - isn't that when foods are the cause of toxins that the body can't cope with and so the skin reacts?

Any reason why weaning off the Omega Blend? I fed what you are proposing to feed to my previous (avatar) girl, Kal (bless her cotton socks) and she did very well on the VAN Complete Mix/Roo/Omega Blend combo. Mind you, she didn't have any allergies to contend with, but she did look exceptionally well on it. Also make a mental note that many dogs do so well on the VAN that they can pork up fairly quickly. You might find that you need to feed considerably less than the amount of food prescribed on the packet. I dropped down to half that quantity pretty quickly as I noticed Kal all of a sudden getting somewhat fat! So feeding wise, it worked out pretty cheap overall. I'm paying back for that privilege with my boy though LOL.

Then I must be weird too. So do I, CWW. Besides - when you get to see them at the Vet's it is often only a glimpse due to time restraints, and usually your head is so full of trying to take everything in that it is easy to come away not remembering what you actually saw. I would expect your Vets would most particularly want to hold onto Charlie's records, even if they were a clinic that would normally release them back to the clients. Charlie is an extraordinary case. I wish it wasn't so, though. I wish for Charlie a positive prognosis and an easy cure once it is known.

Hope your dog is ok, Aidan.

I'll bear this in mind for the next time around in insuring an animal. Thanks for that feed back, Labsrule. I had a bit of difficulty in getting my claims approved and paid with PetPlan, but I thought I might have been a 'one-off'.

Gosh. I thought the obligation to continue paying (if opting to pay monthly) for the 12 month period was only if the insurance had paid out on a claim in that period. I'd be seriously thinking about speaking to the insurance ombudsman regardless of insurance 'fine print' if that was me.

LOL - "Oi" is so universal. I use it on children who are doing things they ought not to, as well . Sometimes I think for them it is the shock of a stranger saying it. Hhhhmm .... wonder if I should use the water spray bottle on them if "Oi" doesn't work.

I think letters into the relevant Government Department objecting to their "intentions" or at the very least, expressing grave concerns as to the powers they'll be giving, to who, and for what, would be pro-active and possibly serve as a foundation for formal objections, comments etc. for 'later on' when their agenda is more clearly known, would help. Want to draw up a basic letter, HR .... that everyone could use to send in individually? Or perhaps someone else would take up the task? You're right about the "wolves in sheep clothing" analogy, HR. But that doesn't mean we have to meekly fall in like the sheep that we often are. I'd formulate one, but I am ploughing through some other documentation at the moment for another dog-related purpose .

I had my boy on the Allerblend for about 7 months after he went 'off' previous foods, broke into hives, lost weight etc.. He did well on it for that period of time and looked well, although with him it was difficult to get weight on. Bear in mind that his 'allergy' so to speak is not a contact or food allergy and that he is that 'type' of dog who carries lean at the moment anyway. It was a bit exxy for me, because I needed to feed 2.5 packets per day (2000g) to him. But many other dogs wouldn't need that much. After 7 months of being on Allerblend and all things going well, he suddenly went 'off' that and we struck then another bout of hives; spasmodic eating and so forth. But I do not put that down to the VAN food. With my boy there are other things going on. I would definitely give the VAN program (I presume it is Allerblend that you would have him on, along with Omega Blend Oil and perhaps their skin support forumula?) a go. It is good food and if it works for your dog, then that would be a bonus. BTW - the Skin Support Formula (just saw a post where it is referenced) contains multi-strain pro-biotic, trace elements and anti-oxidants. In more detail : Protexin powder Milk Thistle Flax Seed Grape Seed Barley Grass Astragolus Perilla Seed Vitimin C Quercelin Beta Carotene Ginger Devils Claw Green Tea Colostrum Cat's Claw Zinc

A "not for profit" (if that's what they are) doesn't mean people don't get paid for the work they do though, WP, does it? If that were the case it would be might hard to find people who would be able to do the job required, as they themselves need to work to put food on their own tables. Aren't assistance dogs in training for something like 2 years?

In another thread relating to powers; laws; etc. I mentioned that it seems once it is documented and accessible to the public, even proposals or in this case, "intentions" are already a done deal. Making it accessible to the public before it is final seems to me to be mere semantics and there'd be nothing to little that we can do to stop the snow ball that has already gained momentum within the wheels of government. Doesn't mean we shouldn't try, though. I can see how the RSPCA's push to coerce Councils for what IT wants now ties in. Once more, I bring to awareness the proximity of election time and for us to make sure we use our Votes wisely. New Zealand is looking more and more attractive to me by the minute. Or perhaps some undiscovered island. ETA: Does anyone also note that initially, 'they' picked one small aspect at a time - something that only affected one small percentage of the dog-owning population. NOW they have gone for bigger chunks percentage speaking, but they are also coming in from all sides, making it difficult to keep up. Conspiracy? Or not?