RE: Please put Gretchen on your prayer or good thoughts list.
Consider having a tick panel drawn, and ask your vet about blastomycosis. Here is a copy/paste list of symptoms of blasto
Fever
Loss of appetite (anorexia)
Weight loss
Eye discharge
Eye inflammation, specifically the iris
Difficulty breathing (e.g., coughing, wheezing and other unusual breathing sounds)
Skin lesions, which are frequently filled with pus
Best wishes for a great turn around and recovery.
RE: Why are Goldens prone to illness?
Copied from another site but may be of interest here...
Story at-a-glance
Sixty percent of Golden Retrievers die of cancer, and the age at which dogs are developing cancer is getting progressively younger.
The Morris Animal Foundation is sponsoring the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study, an observational study that will enroll up to 3,000 dogs and last 10 to 14 years.
Enrollment is now open for healthy Golden Retrievers under the age of 2 who have a three-generation pedigree.
Owners of eligible dogs must be willing to make a long-term commitment to participate in the study, complete online health and lifestyle questionnaires pertaining to their pet, and arrange for annual veterinary exams and sample collection.
Owners of dogs in the study will be responsible for the cost of annual exams, sample collection and test results. Morris Animal Foundation will reimburse owners up to $75 of these costs per year once it verifies the exam and sample collection has been accomplished.
The whole story : http://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/he ... tsNL_art_3
To Enroll : https://www.caninelifetimehealth.org/
It has been noted that the Morris Animal Foundation has strong ties to HSUS, and Mercola advocates against the use of commercial pet foods, so that may add into a decision to participate.
RE: Amish country
I live in the heart of Ohio's Amish country and suggest you visit The Berlin, Charm, and Walnut Creek area. There are lots of touristy quasi-Amish shops around, but if you travel the backroads you will find many 'real' Amish businesses. There are bulk food stores, harness shops, buggy shops, quilt places, etc.
There are livestock auctions in Kidron and Mount Hope, google for the days of operation. In Berlin, visit the Helping Hands quilt store; there is usually a quilt in progress by Amish women.
The Der Dutchman restaurant in Walnut Creek is very popular but done up for the English tourists. More locals go to Boyd and Werthman's in Berlin.
Be sure to pick up a ring of Trail Bologna...named for the little village of Trail where it originated. It's wonderful cold or fried. There are several cheese houses in the area and they're all good. Some have tours.
Be careful driving the backroads - it's hilly and there are many buggy rigs on the roads. The Amish appreciate it if the English visitors attire themselves respectfully of their culture; this isn't the place for ladies in short shorts or men in 'wife beaters'.
It's a beautiful area in all seasons. Take your time and enjoy your visit. Wilcommen!
RE: Dog in 5er?
Go for it as long as you can keep the crate ventilated and not overheated. In my world, competition dogs travel in LQ horse trailers, in the dressing/tack rooms of stock trailers, in little dog trailers, in dog boxes mounted in PU beds, and they do fine. The people who transport their trial dogs this way are not dog haters either; some of them have paid multiple thousands for their pooches and all of them have invested as much in care and training.
Family members or not, they are dogs, not furry little people that get a hate on for you because they can't ride up front and look out the window.
Geez.
RE: General question about trip planning
We did a three week cross country trip with two kids, aged 4 and 8. Being back in the day before Internet, I used a good old Rand McNally road atlas and tourbooks from AAA. We chose our destination ( Oregon coast) then checked out possible routes. We wanted to stay off interstates. The atlas has POIs marked, so we checked out which sites might be interesting along the three possible routes. Then we marked our 'must see's' and connected the dots to see where that would take us. I used the AAA tourbooks to look for additional sites along the ways, that weren't marked on the maps.
Travelling, we started early so the kids would sleep away a few morning car hours. We made an effort to stop for meals in places where the kids could run off some energy, and found our overnight spots early enough in the day to allow the kids some time to play outdoors, never used reservations at all, relying on one of the campground guides to find a place. IIRC, we travelled from about 6AM to 5 or 6PM, with several good stops during the day. We all had a blast and didn't have any meltdowns.
Good luck with your adventure!
RE: Aggressive (to other dogs) male Golden Retriever
Might want to suggest to the dog's owner to have his thyroid levels checked. A friend has had two dogs' personalities go back to normal after appropriate treatment. One dog had become unexpectably dog-aggressive. Here is a link from an expert in thyroid disease in dogs
Dr. Dodds
Goldens are high up on the list of breeds with thyroid issues.
