greytlucy

Welcome. I'm in Chandler moving soon to Gilbert. That's a very pretty girl and she looks very happy in her new home!

Still only the small bags on Pacifica where I buy. The owner did tell me she got some of the other blends in this week and was hoping hte Pacifica in the medium and large bags would be in next week's order. She did have large bags of Ranchlands so that must be one that's back in full distribution.

I've had a hard time getting Pacifica down here in AZ. The place I buy it at has had the small bags only. Since I feed this in the morning and Instinct at night it hasn't been too terrible, though with two dogs I'd like to go back to buying the medium size bag again. I'm due to pick ssome up over the weekend, based on what you are all seeing in your markets i'm hopeful the mediums might be back this time!

I'm just reading this....my poodle got really sick about a year and a half ago, right before his first birthday. He'd had a long series of infection(we now suspect maybe something auto immune related to vaccine reactions) and next thign I knew he was really lethargic and not well. When I took him in his platelets were 18,000! All his lymph nodes were also enlarged along with high lymphocytes so lymphoma was suspected. I took him to an internal specialist here in Phoenix...we never did figure out exactly what was wrong with him as everything did test negative and he did eventually get well. But some ATBs, a little pred, etc....and eventually he was better even if all the vets were still scratching their heads. Knock wood he hasn't had a relapse since(and only had a 3 year rabies vaccine since which he did have a reaction to). I hope you have similar good turns with your dog. it was really scary when he was so sick and his platelets were so low...once he was feeling better it was REALLY hard to keep an 11mo old puppy down but I couldn't risk any sort of activity that might cause bruising. Sounds like you guys are good in hands. Wishing all of you good health soon!

I had a greyhound with a lot of sensitivities...I raised him from a pup and put him on CA Natural lamb and rice around age 9 mos. I also put my other greyhound on it at a time....they both did great on teh food for over ten years. I haven't fed it in a couple years now as both dogs are gone and I have my poodles on Acana but if they formulations haven't changed I'd recommend checking both their chicken and their lamb formulas out. Very few ingredients so great for dogs with allergies...

I"ve never had an issue with gas or poor poop in any of my dogs once I've had them on a food that works for them. I also don't mix anything in the kibble - to either manage gas or entice eating. It gets put down, they eat it or they don't. If they don't I pick it up and then they typically eat at the next meal. Few dogs will starve if they skip a meal. The only time I've ever had to do anything to entice a dog to eat is once they are really sick, have lost a lot of weight, and are nearing the time to say goodbye. I've had two dogs that weren't food driven and they both became good eaters at mealtimes. (coincidentally both of these dogs I raised from puppies, not sure what that says! whereas both my rescue dogs would eat anything put in front of them at anytime! LOL) That said I agree variety is important in a diet and do offer them things separate from their kibble - often using chicken, salmon, and beef as training treats or offering a bit separate from meals. I also rotate kibble proteins once I find ones that work for them. I will say the few times my dogs have been gassy it's because they've had too much of something other than their regular foods (for instance when my mother comes over and gives them a million cookies when I'm not looking).

I feed Acana Pacifica in the morning. My dog does great on it. I tried one of the other formulas(with lamb...i forget which it was) and it didn't agree well with his digestive system.

Don't do a boarding training situation. Those are typically trainers with strong handed methods. At least with my leash reactive dog(poodle) any sort of coercive training has always made him worse. Counter conditioning is working well with him so far...the behavioral vet and behavorialist I work with are big fans of BAT training. I actually haven't tried it with him yet as he also chases cars on leash and we've been working on that first but we've made a lot of progress there and while it's crossing over to the dog reactivity as well I'm going to try the BAT stuff next. Here's the website: http://functionalrewards.com/ There's a good yahoo discussion group you can find through that site. Lots of strongly opinionated people but lots of good experience and insight. I've learned a lot by reading it over the past few months.... As far as equipment Ive had the best luck with a gentle leader. I've used an easy walk harness as well but he was so reactive I needed a little more control so neither of us got hurt. He's come a really long way and I'm thinking about trying the harness again. A lot equipment wise is dog-dependent...any neck collar stresses mine out so I never walk him in any sort of buckle, martingale, prong etc and he's learned to relax on leash a lot from taking that piece out. It's vital he learns how to relax so you can make forward progress.

I couldn't find a commercial treat that motivated my dog so used roast beef, cooked chicken, salmon, cheese and natural hot dogs. One day the groomer showed me some treats though adn told me she'd given a couple to my dog and he loved them. They came from Costco. They no longer have them in the warehouse but still available on line. My dog will do ANYTHING for these treats. It's amazing to me really. I tell everyone about them so that Costco won't stop carrying them(Drs Foster and Smith has them too but they're a lot more expensive there). I get the peanut butter ones. http://www.costco.com/Pampered-Pets-USA-Peanut-Butter-%2526-Honey-or-Cheddar-Cheese-Dog-Cookies.product.11711683.html

Our poodle likes to bark. He's a pretty good watch dog and likes to sound the alarm. I have low tolerance for excessive barking so we've worked on this. In most cases, he's sounding what he thinks is an alarm, so acknowledging to him that he's doing his job with a "thank you" and some sort of cursory investigation with an "it's all good, cosmo!" will quiet him. He barks at knocks and doorbells...we say thanks as we walk to the door, ask him to sit, and he'll be quiet while we open the door. Occasionally he'll hear something out front and is slower to settle, but once I open the door and show him "it's all OK" he quiets. we've used treats and a clicker to encourage him to quiet when we ask. We don't stifle his barking completely as I do like the warning barks he gives. If for any reason he starts barking incessantly in the backyard (at a dog he might hear in the distance or some other environmental trigger) we make him come in and ask him to settle down. He's 2 1/2 now. We've been working on this since he was young. It takes some time but it was definitely worth the patience and investment of energy and time. Good luck!

Our country shelter put out an urgent request for food donations today. I would like to send some over...my dog eats acana and instinct. If i can determine a still good quality kibble that costs less than these two i can send many more bags over but am unsure what would be best to donate as i really am not familiar with most kibbles. I know the kirkland stuff isnt bad but because of my work schedule i wanted to order from one of the local distributors that deliver so need something that would be found at the big pet supply, feed stores, premium boutiques, etc. Any suggestions? Maybe some of you that have worked in shelters have a suggestion on the foods they typically welcome?

When our girl started with arthritis problems we had good luck using a combination of Adequan, accupuncture, glucosamine, and Fish Oil. I was able to keep her off the harder meds for about three years. In the last two years of her life we had to add in a daily half dose of Metacam which brought her a lot of relief and kept her quality of life good. She left us at almost 15 years old...her arthritis was being managed well with this protocol but her CHF became too much and those drugs weren't doing their jobs anymore so we had to say goodbye.

Not personally attacking you, but this exactly makes my point. You have NO IDEA the horror that this level of anxiety creates day after day for any animal. Human or dog. It's like living in your very own horror movie and getting no rest, no bathroom breaks, no popcorn breaks, etc. Worst case scenario medicating my dog ends up shortening their life by a few years it's worth it! I would much rather them be happy and relaxed for 6-9 years than miserable in their own skin for 10-14 years. It's a disservice to them. What if you could have shortened that rehab time in half with some short term or long term medication? It would make for a less stressed dog. I used to be rather anti med, until Sunshine and Vet #7 proved otherwise. Literally within 48 hours Sunshine was marching around outside in front of me on leash not shaking or crab crawling. I tried for years to socialize her with minimal meds and lots of training. 3 months of Xanax while finding the correct long term med did more than what I was able to accomplish in 2 years. For two whole years I tip toed around and tried to do the "right" healthy thing that most people would do. It wasn't fair to Sunshine and I will never be hesitant to use medication when warranted ever again. My job as a pet owner/mom is to have happy healthy pets, mentally and physically. And for what it's worth You can tell when they have side effects. Munchies, belly not feeling right, tiredness, hyperactivity, disorientation, loss of inhibitions, drunkeness, heat flashes, etc You just have to watch and know your dog. Obviously you are pro-medication, and obviously I am anti-medication. We can leave it at that. Let the person figure things out on their own, and realize that any time you put a foreign substance into a body, we arent exactly sure what will happen. Take for instance the medication ACE that was popular but has since been shown to create a hound that is basically a prisoner in their own mind as they cannot physically move their body. How can we be sure what is going on here? There's no pro-medication nor anti-medication. There should only be pro-individual dog and its situation and what is the best for that combination of dog/situation. Is medication right for every dog? Far from it! But there are SOME dog that do need the help of some medication to progress through whatever challenges may be bringing them. This is WHY it is so important to get help from people who really are well-experienced in dog behavior and medication for behavioral help. Medication should never be the first resort but in difficult cases it should never be ruled out when behavior modification just isn't getting the animal far enough. Is OP's dog one that needs medication? No one here can say as no one here has worked with the dog personally nor has the experience of both diagnosing and then dispensing these classes of drugs in this situation. That should be left to the experts and I hope the OP can find a good qualified expert(s) (I'd echo the suggestion to look for a board certified veterinary behavioralist) to help her sort out her dog's challenges. OP you've gotten some really good advice here from folks. Take the time to really interview vets and behavioralists you consider working with and hopefully you can find someone wiht both experience in the problem you're trying to solve and with whom you are comfortable with. So many out there aren't worth the money they spent to have their cards printed! I wish you and your dog the best. Keep an open mind and always listen to your gut as you live with your dog in and out and know her best. My first greyhound lived under a desk for the first year due to fear of ceiling fans...I remember how upsetting it was to have a dog afraid in its home environment. She lived to be 15 and those that didn't know her that first year never believed our stories of how afraid she was...I hope you too will have the same soon!

I"ve had really good luck with the Thundershirt with my Standard Poodle. I use it fairly sparingly as I don't want to get him to used to the feel of it and have it lose it's effect but it does really help him calm down when he's really worked up and just won't settle. I only use it at home, doesn't seem to have much effect when he's in a different environment. I'd definitely recommend trying it, can't hurt and you'll get your money back if you feel it isn't effective.

I've used an Easy Walk harness on my reactive dog for the last two years. I've found he relaxes better in the harness...though the difference can be very subtle. In the past couple months we've started to make real progress on the reactivity and I've started transitioning him back to the collar. I keep the harness on him right now so if his stress/stimulus levels get too high I can switch him back. The last two days we were able to stay on the collar the entire walk. I don't really like the harness as one of his issues is he's prone to chase cars(and everythign else that moves) and I don't like the lack of control over the front end in the harness when he does react to something. That said it's been a real useful tool to teach him to relax on leash to begin with. It's definitely worth giving it a few more tries and watching for any difference. If you do try the harness again, consider the front closing ones vs the ones that attach on the back.

Our vet wanted to treat our poodle last year with flucozanole for VF with no positive titers. After consulting with U of A I refused to do so, however we did start him on Desert Defense figuring it couldn't hurt. He had been having a lot of automimmune issues prior to the illness that caused the vets to suspect a weird case of VF with no titer. His immune system has improved considerably in the year since. I can't be sure that the Desert Defense helped, but it didn't seem to hurt at all.

Not a fan of flexis and woudln't want to use a lunge or any other long lead in the situation described by the OP. If the dog spooks and takes off a long lead will allow it get to enough speed to hurt itself when it hits the end of the line. I use long leads for training but only in very controlled situations. The described situation is one reason I really prefer the umbilical method for houstraining...the dog stays attached to me in the house and goes out on lead with me until it relieves itself. Then it gets free time in the yard. I don't take my dogs out on leash in the yard for the rest of their lives but starting this way on training means I can then have them take care of business on leash in the future. For the OP, I'd recommend taking some time and training the dogs at home to go on leash in the yard. Since you konw their schedules it should be easy to train. Even if you just start with the last turnout of the night before bed...take them out on lead, wait them out until the pee, give a treat and praise lots. Keep repeating and try during other times during hte day when you know they will pee quickly(First one in the morning for example). Good luck!

I understand and totally empathize. If you see my recent post in Training on the ceiling fan thread I had a greyhound that lived under a desk for a year she was so scared of them. We got her through that without meds. We also got the greyhound pup through his separation anxiety without meds. Our poodle is a whole different ball of wax as the saying goes. He came to us at 14 weeks old and has been high stress, high anxiety from the beginning. We were sure because he was so young we could get through this with patience, consistency, and training but he just can't get to the point to allow himself to relax enough....he just gets to overloaded from sensory stimulus. It's a hard life for him and us. It's also expensive(he's had recurring health issues that have drained our pocketbook...and added to his stress making the behavioral issues worse). I had a falling out with my holistic vet over my decision to use drug therapy with him but...when I had to put him on robaxin for a muscle strain for a couple days I couldn't believe the difference in him and the progress we were making in our walks and around the house with shadow chasing. That's when I decided maybe we needed to explore these options(since clearly druggin him with a muscle relaxer long-term really wasn't the way to go!). We got up early while the world was still quiet and took him for a walk this morning....we had great success with the two dogs he saw from a distance- being able to call him and have him look away and reward him without lunging and barking. He only barked at one car out of six we saw this morning. He checked in with me every time I called his name. This was the best walk we've had in entire time we've had him(doesn't means he's "fixed" by any way but the good moments like this are one to be celebrated to the heavens). If after two years you aren't getting anywhere doing all the "right" non-medication options I would encourage you to explore finding a vet that can help you find the right option for him. IT's a hard life for dog and owner when no one can relax and becomes a negative cycle that only makes things worse(at least in our case that's what we've found, he stresses, we stress from dealing wtih him because in him it results in OCD behaviors and uncontrollable barking, he gets more stressed, we get more stressed). Also, have you tried a Thundershirt? This is one holistic item we've really had results with. I don't use it for noise phobia...instead when our dog gets stressed and won't settle(pacing, salivating, panting, barking) we'll put it on and it's amazing how it does help him calm down. We use it very judiciously as we don't want it's effects to be something he gets to used to and then they have no effect but on really bad nights it's been a lifesaver...I've had some success when I can get him to settle to then use TTouch and some massage to help him relax more(this took some time as he didn't like being pet when he was very very young but now he enjoys it). Personally, I like the Patricia McDonnel/Karen London books. My dog acts out from stress so the tips in Feisty Fido have been helpful. But you might want to look at Cautious Canine for your dog. I've also used some of the Emma Parsons stuff in Click to Calm with some success. Have you tried a clicker with your dog? I've used it well with mine for trick training around the house though outside it's not effective as he doesn't hear the "click" (or anything else) once he's overstimulated. Hopefully now if we can work to keep his stimulation level lower with the help of the prozac we can revisit the clicker when walking for BAT training. If you haven't explore BAT training you might want to look at that for your dog: http://ahimsadogtraining.com/blog/bat/ Good luck!

In January I decided we need pharmaceutical help with our standard poodle after trying almost 2 years of consistent behavior modification and what seemed like every holistic/homeopathic product on the market(some helped, some didn't but nothing every really got us over the "hump" so to speak). He is very high stress, high anxiety along with an OCD obsession with all things that move that produces behaviors such as shadow chasing and lunging uncontrollably after cars on leash. Anyway, I took him to a board certified behavorial vet to help me work out how to approach using meds with him(my regular vets agreed with this approach). We started with Clomicalm which does have a loading period but we saw within the first week it wasn't going to work as he started challenging us which is not typical behavior for him. We then went to fluoxetine(prozac) and he's been on that for about a month now. We went from 20mg daily to 30 mg daily last week and are waiting to see how this work. in the middle of this we moved which of course introduced new stress. Poor poodle has now added a fear of his reflection in the low-e windows in our new house to his bag of tricks and he was really really stressed last week. The behavioral vet suggested we add clonidine to the fluoxetine at least in the short term to help him through the stress of moving and the new environment. He's been more at his baseline the last couple days so this seems to be working Through this all we stay consistent with the training and behavior modificaiton we do with him. We'll see if it makes a difference overall...again too much other stuff going on right now to say. My point in all this is I'm really glad I"m working with a bahavioral vet to sort this out. She's very knowledgeable on the drugs, their applications, etc. Has wide experience in just this thing. She's also been great for follow up on the phone and over email as we've had day to day changes in our situation(ie an email at night to say I felt the clomicalm was backfiring as we were dealing with behaviors leaning toward aggression resulted in an 8AM phone call to stop the drug immediately...she's been very easy to reach and very responsive to our questions). If you have an ACVB certified behavioralist in your area I'd definitely recommend consulting them for help. These drugs are so powerful really, I wanted to be sure when we made the decision we had to explore this option that I was working with someone who really understood their use. I've felt better about the decision due to our experience given the experiences we've had by going this route.

We had a greyhound that was terrified of ceiling fans. We found this out when we moved to Phoenix from Seattle and had a ceiling fan in every room but one in our new house(oddly enough she had been bred and raced in Phoenix and I assume the kennels has ceiling fans). Anyway, she was really really scared of them and would not go in a room where they ran. She was also afraid in the backyard where she could see the ones in our kitchen and in our master bedroom. She took to staying under the desk in the office which did not have a fan. Won't lie - it took a LONG time to get her past her fear. Over a year. It was distressing for us to have a dog so scared in her own home, we felt terrible for how scared she was. Slowly and gradually we got her past it. She liked to walk so we took LOTS Of long walks to get her out of the house and work to reduce her stress. I worked her on obedience several times a day in the office to build her confidence and help her bond with us(she'd only been with us for six months when we moved). I did Ttouch with her a couple times a day in the office. We did not feed her in there and made her come out for her meals. We turned the fans off in the kitchen when we did this. Slowly I started working her closer and closer to the fan in the bedroom, always monitoring her stress level. Eventually we could work by the doorway where the fan was visible...then just inside, then in the room, then under the fan. I did this on leash. Next I put up a baby gate and worked her off leash in the room(again always watching her stress level and knowing when to quit before she panicked). She did get over her fear and spent the next ten years sleeping in the bedroom with us year round, and in all the other rooms with fans. It seemed like forever at the time but looking back given how long she was with us, it was just a blip in time and worth the time and effort it took to get her past it. Definitely go slow, be patient and don't push to far too fast. Be sure to allow your dog to find a "safe space" to escape to and let them be there. (as the bond built our dog WANTED to be wtih us as well..........so that helped moved training along as having to stay in the "safe space" meant she also was separated from us and the fun things we were doing).

With such a good track record of training I can't imagine why then you'd be looking for so many shortcuts to training your puppy. Belly bands and scat mats are inappropriate training aids for a young puppy. In no situation that you have so far represented would such aids be appropriate for your puppy. And yes, the best way to keep the dog off the counter is to not entice him to get on. Particularly when he is young and learning. So try and keep your dirties out of the sink.

Please don't use a scat mat with a young puppy!!!! I think you were also thinking about a belly band for your housetraining? Your pup is YOUNG! 5 months old! He requires training not gadgets to learn how to be a good housepet. Puppies are WORK! and COMMITMENT! But if you put the time and commitment in you will have such a great canine citizen. Work on basic obedience so you can tell him "off!" when he's looking for things to surf and he'll listen...and learn to keep things out of his reach. A five month old puppy WILL get into trouble and mischief, that's what they do. It's up to us to provide a safe environment for them to learn in...and learn they will do if they are shown consistently what is expected of them.

I always housetrain our dogs using a tether method and a very strict schedule taking them out for regular potty breaks at the same time everyday. This includes both young puppies we have now raised. At the beginning the dog is either attached to me on a leash, in a crate, or enjoying some playtime(AFTER pottying). Freedom is granted very gradually and with both of the puppies we raised it was months before they were allowed any kind of total freedom. Tethering can be a pain but I consider it totally worth it. A few weeks over the course of many years is not that big of a time investment if you keep the big picture in mind while doing it. I've never had any kind of housetraining issues with my dogs by being so super vigilant at the get go. Personally I hate the idea of a belly band on a puppy. Training puppies is time consuming - there is no quick fix if you want to raise a well trained dog.

I have really fond memories of a whippet that lived at my Catholic high school. We had a rectory on campus and the whippet belonged to Brother Lucius. He didn't go to class with Br Lou when he was teaching but otherwise often followed him around, particularly when Brother was tending all the roses around the school. Everyone knew Tiger(the whippet) but he kept to himself and Br. Lou, leaving the student body alone when he was out and about(no he was never on a leash and never wandered far such was his tight bond with the good Brother. I'm not recommending this, just remembering). Tiger was my first introduction to sighthounds and I"ll never forget seeing him the first week of my Freshman year...he was a brindle and I just stopped dead wondering what kind of dog he was. Anyway, probably not helpful but your post just really triggered a memory! I see others here have suggested a whippet, too.

Any vet in Arizona would medicate for VF at those titers. As others have indicated the meds have come down a lot in price but will be a long term treatment. You probably are better off having the drugs sent from one of the mail order pharmacies down here due to the demand we have for the drug, may be more expensive in your part of the country. Back in the spring U of A told me we are starting to see cases with no positive titers as well here complicating things and pushing vets to medicate even more frequently(I found out about this when my own vet was pushing me to medicate my negative titer poodle who was showing many symptoms.) I found U of A to be very helpful as we sorted through my poodle's issues and you may want to contact them for a consult if you or your vet is unsure how to proceed.