RE: Traumatic Patella Luxation
I'd consider a dog-literate chiro as well, and for non-toxic pain relief and promotion of healing, acupuncture is a wonderful thing.
RE: how do you clip a dog that's scared of the clippers??
A few things I note that haven't been covered .... One, exercise before grooming. A good, long, disciplined walk, a hard romp, or better yet both.... will relax the dog. Deb did mention this in passing, but it is really worth emphasizing. The more tired the dog is, the less fight, surely, but it isn't just that. An un-exercised dog is going to have more nervous energy and tend to see things in a more fearful way. Also, walking is a bonding experience and will help create trust, done properly. This requires some effort... you need to walk the dog, not the other way around, you need to set the pace and decide on a few stops, not make it a sniff fest. But I promise you, it really helps.
Second, for the dog to get over it, YOU must get over it. This doesn't mean you rush through it or don't take time and effort working with the dog. It does mean that you have to get your energy off of the dog's fearful reaction and being concerned about it. Be calm, be in control, be relaxed. Being concerned/worried/"sorry" for the dog will only aggravate the problem and slow the recovery. Don't do "oh you poor baby." Keep your demeanor upbeat and confident.
Third, working around the issue... I hope you're doing obedience with this pup. If you aren't, please start! Dogs that are fearful need obedience work to build confidence in themselves and teach them boundaries for behavior. Everyone likes to know when they're doing right, and a well trained dog is a more confident dog, as well as being a dog who is in the habit of listening and following commands, which is a helpful thing when grooming and a lot of other stuff.
Fourth, set up the problem in a way that gives you more control. I was helping a friend with her dogs' nails and we found that the corner of the back of her mini-van was the perfect spot. The dogs were comfortable in there, and contained, and the light was good, and the corner just eliminated a lot of discussion. (This continued until first I and then she decided it was time to flip the dogs on their backs and just get the job done.) Your best spot may be anywhere, I've no idea, but give it some thought. You might be able to set the problem up better.
Fifth.... repeat, repeat, repeat. Short sessions and doing it OFTEN will tend to work wonders. That's the problem with stuff like that, it doesn't happen often enough. When I got Hal, she was terrified of hoses. Would panic if you turned one on in the yard with her. This continued until we started going to a lake daily and she started getting hosed down afterwards every day. After a week or so, it was just routine. Now I can call her to me with the running hose in my hand, knowing full well she's going to get soaked before a jog. All it took was some repetition.
Finally, follow your frequent clipping sessions (or just running the clipper over her sessions if she doesn't need clipping) with something fun. Dogs are great at connecting events... "we get our shirts on, and get in the car, and we go to the dog park!" so mine are happy to put their harnesses on. Creating a positive association can be a great tool. Playtime, a car ride, or any other favorite activity scheduled right after grooming could do that, even a special treat ... but it needs to be close together, as in right after, and consistent.
RE: Dogs and (human) medication
One should always have a syringe and a bottle of peroxide around, that's for dang sure. I not too long ago had to use that little trick...
One thing about peroxide is, it loses potency over time, and especially once opened. So make sure you've got a bottle that is fresh and in regular use, replaced in plenty of time... or keep a dedicated bottle on hand and replace when it goes out of date, if it isn't something you normally use. I was in Petsmart the other day and noted that they now carry 60 mil syringes, which is what you'd use for a bigger dog (teaspoon per ten pounds is the dose I found online that night...) Cost you a few dollars and worth every penny, and should last indefinitely if it is unused in your K9 first aid kit.
Teaching a dog to wait for permission to pick things up is a helpful thing. Never a guarantee, of course.... but another little pause or safety that can buy you that extra second.
RE: Dogs and (human) medication
Inducing vomiting is a good thing to know and be set-up for, and yet as you say may not have worked out here. In any case, a terribly painful loss for the owners and for the lady who watched it happen.
Tell Bud, there's no law against walking in the dog park! :B
RE: Dogs and (human) medication
Oh, how sad. I don't think I can blame them for leaving the pup with a person in a wheelchair, sounds like she's mentally competent... and anyone can certainly drop a pill, I do it all the time. The lady must feel horrible. Just a perfect storm of the small size of the breed, plus being a puppy... Probably not more than a couple pounds, ingesting an amount of a drug designed for an adult human.
Drop it, or "spit!" as I prefer (I swear it is easier to say at speed, and easier to train) is an essential safety command for any dog. Although with something that small... it may not work in time. Before spit, and useful in many high risk situations, is the "no" or "off" or "stop!" or "AAAAAT" command that tells the dog not to grab the thing or do whatever else is about to invite disaster. "Stay" can also be used to keep the dog from being close enough to attempt the grab. Absent any of those controls being established, I'd recommend that anyone taking anything their dog shouldn't ingest, do it away from the dog... in a closed bathroom or something. Purses can be a real menace, I had several doses of no-doz go missing one time. Never was sure which dog, but had to call poison control and keep them with me for a few hours.
So yer hanging out at the DP, huh? I'm going to have to come check that one out. I assume they've got a small dog side and you're using it?
RE: A very old stray {The Old Fella Story}
Richard, it looks like Peaches is losing weight... Which she would need to do before anything surgical anyway... but I'd also say, wait to make decisions on how much needs to be done, until you see how she is at her correct weight. Extra weight is really hard on joints that aren't working well, and is likely aggravating the problem.
RE: Travel with a hyper dog ??
You would work on conditioning with the engine ON, since the dog is apparently already comfortable with the rv, just not the sound/vibrations of the engine. Same basic process, you just can more or less skip the normal first part. Or maybe not, you might want to teach "jump in jump out" with the engine off, and then try it with it on.
That assumes you have anxiety, though, and not excitement, which is a whole different deal to train for. What exactly do you mean by "becomes hyper?" As in, exactly what is the dog's behavior and demeanor?
RE: CO Dog Leash Laws - My Reply
I just always find this hysteria about the idea of a dog ever being off-leash so interesting. And I do mean hysteria. I don't know when that happened, or if it is just "city people"... but the concept that dogs do not have to be physically restrained at all times is a very upsetting one for a lot of people these days. I suspect the worst of the hysteria comes from people who have poorly trained dogs, but I haven't done a scientific study on that.
Now, where I live I do not see this. I can walk through my neighborhood with a pair of dogs off-leash and have no trouble. My neighbors have their dogs out in front yards off-leash, as well. Nobody remarks it as long as they behave. But to get online and have people realize a dog in some other part of the country was off-leash somewhere... that's guaranteed drama!
I think at some point, you just have to say "whatEVER" and go on with your life.
RE: Bone causing obstruction?
After you get past the medical issues, you really need to do some training. It IS possible, and indeed it IS necessary for your dog's health, to teach it not to pick up food (or anything else) when you're out and about, without permission, and to teach an effective "spit" command. You need to get the dog's respect first, but it can be done. And it could easily save a big vet bill... or your dog's life.
Besides that issue, putting the dog on a down-stay away from the table and teaching him to stay there consistently, will not only teach that needed respect, but will prevent him from being a pest at dinner or getting into things that he ought not have.
I'm not a fan of rawhide, but my dogs do love a good couple hours gnawing on a raw knuckle or marrow bone. Plenty of chewing satisfaction, no bowel obstructions... as long as you get them of suitable size, too big to swallow, and watch that they don't get gnawed down.
RE: Hot day leaving vehicle running with a/c on - escapee
Glad to hear that everything worked out okay.... the reverse situation can occur, and animals and children have been killed by accidentally putting windows UP while their heads are out the window.
The moral of the story being that if there's any chance of your critters (regardless of how many legs they may have!) accessing the window controls, you should use the lock that almost all of them come with. Seatbelting your dogs in is also helpful, since if they can't stand up and put their heads out the window, that prevents the choking issue.
RE: Doggywood at Dollywood
If the weather is mild, no worries about overheating, and your pup is comfortable in the rv and has had a good long walk before you go, I would think the rv is a way to go. With respect to the other rv'ers, I'd leave a fan and/or tv on for white noise, and leave your number with the management and/or the neighbors.
Now if you get to the rv park and the dog is ballistic about the neighbors, then you might want to reconsider. But boarding a dog in a strange place is usually pretty stressful, especially for a dog that is an only dog.
RE: Problem with my Lab, need help/advice
See now, this is the point at which I'd call my dog psychic (yes, really) and have her ask for the dog's perspective, if this is pain, or what.
But I realize that is just TOO California for y'all...
RE: Beverly Hills Chihuahua star is a rescue
I think the point of the tie-in with the shelters is to point people toward adoptions rather than feeding the puppy mill industry. I suppose that in the end that is better even if some new homes are not permanent... better to have some go out and come back than to have thousands more put into the system due to impulse buys. On the other hand, I hope the shelters do a good job educating those who come in looking for a chi. They're cute, but they aren't for everyone.
RE: Poop Solution
I think snipers with rock salt loads, strategically placed, would be a much faster and cheaper way to convince people to pick up after their dogs. :B Of course, you'd have to make sure not to hit any innocent parties, including the dogs...
I know, I know, that's bad, but if you saw how much dog waste I have to walk past daily with my dogs, you'd understand completely. Some people just need to be spanked.
RE: Pet a Paws
I have a Peticure, which is the first one that came out, earlier this year.... I do like it and have used it on half a dozen dogs. They argue to begin with, and I haven't er... "followed the instructions" on acclimating any of them. I just overruled them and once they realized it wasn't going to remove their toes they got over it. The nice thing about sanding down the nails is you can get closer to the quick and do a better job shaping the nail. My dogs have nails like oak trees, so its a big benefit with them. With dogs with really overgrown nails, (as with my mom's chi when they got her) you can really get a lot done in one session if you're patient and careful.
I tried it briefly on one of my cats and didn't find it all that helpful. For a cat, a pair of human nail or toenail clippers is plenty high-tech for me. I guess they'd be nice on the back legs, but that's going to take some time to really do, and I'd have to be more motivated to put in the effort. I've considered using it on the bunnies... Wuzzy being black, it is hard to clip them because you can't see anything... and they aren't shaped like a cat, where you'd know where to cut to. But I haven't tried it yet.
You CAN quick the animal with a grinder, I've done that a couple times. No big deal, if it keeps bleeding, you put a little flour on it... no yelps when it happens like with the clippers. Uusally they start to pull back when you're getting close to the quick, though, so it doesn't happen too often. You do need to switch nail to nail as you go to avoid overheating and burning the nail.
The sanding bands for the peticure are apparently standard dremel bands.
Now, how all that information applies to the newer knock-off models, I've no idear. In particular, if the rpms are slower, are they still adjustable? Mine has a dial for the speed. I find that different dogs have different nails and with Hal I need a 6 to get anywhere, but with Tig, a 4 is more comfortable and works fast enough. I think it would not be so nice without adjustable rpms.
RE: How do you train a dog about Traffic?
Divide and conquer is definitely the way to start. E-collars can have a place in such a problem, but not if they are doing it on-leash or when directly supervised (that is, ignoring verbal commands), that needs to be about training.
"Come" is so very important, indeed a real life-saver. The problem I have with the "my dog is never off the leash" attitude is exactly the issue with the "escaped" dog running into the street and being hit. A dog that behaves that way when it "gets loose" is a dog that has been always restrained, and clearly never trained in how to behave when not restrained. People think they're keeping their dog safe, but they're really setting the dog and themselves up for tragedy by not training off-leash. You can have a beautifully behaved dog in the house, but if that dog is going to run from you or not listen the day you slip and lose the leash, what you've got is a disaster waiting to happen.
Another command I really like is "stay." Especially with a "down" in front of it. Oh, a good down-stay is worth the weight of the Incredible Hulk in rubies! Properly done, stay is the ultimate pack leader reinforcement tool, and it is an "off switch" for the dog. It will teach a spastic, over-energized dog HOW to be calm, and you can use it to create and reward that calm. It is easy to teach, and easy to practice in a lot of situations, you need only only persistence and adherence to a few basic principles.
Another way to settle a hyper dog is walking. This seems counter-intuitive, because you'd think the dog would get more tired and settled by running. However, I've found that a good "Dog Whisperer" style walk... at your side or behind you (at heel is great for this), no stopping or sniffing except possibly a couple of breaks YOU declare in advance... and no really they DON'T need to pee every ten feet, that's called marking... you set the pace, no looking around, no messing around, we're walking, is quite tiring to even a very fit and high energy dog. The mental discipline will wear a dog to a nub. Once you get a little practice at it, you should be able to manage the both of them that way, and keep them moving forward. Or you can separate them and get lots of exercise yourself. :B
