gryhnd_adoptee
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Posts posted by gryhnd_adoptee
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Tessie doesn't like her feet messed with either, and would drop to the floor and hide her feet underneath so we couldn't get to them, so I took her to a groomer. What she did was put Tessie into the bath tub, and while I was holding her, the groomer's assistant was spraying Tessies feet with the hose one at a time while the groomer clipped. The water alternating on her feet shifted her attention eslewhere while she got clipped. That went on for about three trimmings, but now she's fine while standing on the floor without the water. I just need to be the one to hold her, talk sweet nothings into her ear while rubbing her belly. Her heart still races while she gets clipped, but she is much better with it now. I take both girls once a month to get clipped now.
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Kare Bear has needed her anal glands expressed every so often. She and Tessie are on 50-50 Taste of the Wild Salmon and Eagle Pack Holistic mix. Nighttime snack is a hand of Core Wellness. My question to the vet was poop size, but he stated that they are finding that really doesn't matter anymore. He said some dogs just have more issues with them than others, and also mentioned allergies as being an aggravator of anal issues!
Kare Bears sign of a problem was glancing back at her hind end. The first time I noticed her doing that, I thought the worst and got her right in for an exam. It did not take long for the vet to say she had issues and expressed them. I cannot believe what a different dog I brought home after it was done. She was stinky, but after a bath, she was a zoomie dog again, and hasn't looked back once. Now we know to have her checked there often.
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Last week I found two fleas on Kare Bear, and one on Tessie. I have never had a flea problem, and didn't want this to get out of control being as we have carpets all over the place. I called our vet, and got a dose of Advantage for each girlie. Then I took the day off from work and did laundry from morning, till way past midnight! I washed "everything". Our beds, dog beds, couch blankets, even the pads and blankets in my car got washed. I pulled everything away from the walls and vacuumed to the baseboards, and did every inch of carpet in the house. I also got down between the furniture cushions. It was also suggested that I get a really cheap flea collar and cut about 4 inches of it, twist it really good to activate it, and put it into my vacuum bag. This is supposed to kill the fleas and eggs in the bag so they cannot get back out again.
I hope you get them under control soon. I worked my butt off that day to be sure I gave everything a thorough cleaning. Fleas give me the crawlies!
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A few years back, our LuLu's ALT levels came back very high after a seizure (which happened to be her first, and appeared out of no-where). We suspect it may have been due to the Distemper/parvo shot she received two weeks prior (but nobody at the vets will say that for sure). At the advice of the vet, we added a daily dose of vitamin E, and Milk Thistle to help support her liver. A few months later, her re-test came back completely normal. I was told the elevated ALT level is an indication that something toxic happened to the liver, which led us to suspect her recent inocculation. Since this episode, we titer our dogs now before any shots are given.
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When we fenced our yard, we went with a 6 foot livestock fence with 8 foot poles every 10 feet. We get a lot of snow our way, I would go with nothing less than 6ft. Because livestock fencing is not very robust compared to chain link, they are also never out there unsupervised. Also with this particular fencing being very hard to see, especially when the sun is low in the sky, I tied plastic garden ribbons on the fence about every 2.5 feet at eye level. Leave enough of a tail so they can clearly see the tape is there.
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The ultimate floatation assisstance!!
I loooovvvve this picture!
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We have a huge toad which resides outside the garage door stoop in the evenings. For several nights on the way out Tessie would stare at it and nuzzle it with her nose to try to get it to move, but then would just walk away and leave it alone.
One night she decided to pick up this toad and carry it into the yard with her. She dropped the toad like it was on fire, and instantly began foaming at the mouth…..a lot! I called her over and rinsed her mouth out, but you can bet she gives that toad a wide berth now whenever she goes out!
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i use interceptor monthly, no worms! the stuff is great. talk to your vet about options.
I am religious about giving Interceptor to my girlies on time each month. Kare Bear tested negative in April for worms, but this past Saturday, she tested positive for hooks yet again!! Last weeks stool was taken three days before her next dose was due, so maybe that's why they saw them this time and not the last?
She is now on a two month regime of Interceptor and worm med alternated every two weeks, followed by re-test. I will be sure not to test any time soon after her last dose is given.
Regardless, they are nasty buggers.
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Today was Tessies yearly check up, and heartworm/lyme test. Kare Bear went along for heartworm/lyme test and rabies. Kare Bear had a fecal flotation done in February which was clear, but I took a sample in for both girls anyway not knowing if the vets office would want it or not. Left the vets with negative results on the heartworm and lyme tests, but got a call this afternoon saying they found hooks in Kare Bear, but not Tessie.
Kare Bear battled hooks about a year ago and it was partly my fault for stopping their interceptor during the dead of winter. Since Karys last diagnosis and treatment, I have been "absolutely religious" about their monthly interceptor doses. Todays test was done just three days prior to their next dose which is due on Tuesday, which is maybe why they were able to pick up on them this time and not on the previous test.
So we go to war yet again with these nasty little buggers. She got her interceptor today, and in two weeks will get a worm med which I need to pick up next week. They told me what she was going to get, but for the life of me...I cannot remember what that is now. We will do this regime twice, followed by a re-test which I will be sure to have done very close before her next dose of interceptor is due.
Proof yet again, that interceptor is not foolproof!
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I'm thinking we all just keep brushing.
I was thinking this morning as I was yet again brushing, that this is the first year I've gotten so much hair from Kare Bear! She started shedding in the spring and hasn't stopped yet. I think our pups knew way before we did it was going to be an unusually hot summer this year. We got up this morning and the humidity was 92%...with no rain even! It has been brutal the past few weeks.
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Claudia, more good thoughts coming your way from the hilltops of Java. I hope Ekko has a better night now that she has had some fluids and meds. Hopefully a good nights sleep will do wonders for a better day tomorrow.
Tessie the Fuzzzzy and Kare Bear send snuggles and heavy body leans too...you've all been through a lot the past couple of days.
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How often do you guys do your titers? I thought I always did them every year
(It sucks getting old
)I think when I first started titers, they were done about every 6-12 months until three sets of numbers were complete in their charts. This established the normal baselines for each dog. It was explained to me that they are more accurate if you compare a dogs titers to their own over a period of time to establish what is normal for that dog. It's hard to compare your dog to a cookie cutter standard, as each dog's "normal" titers may vary from one dog to another.
Now it's just been once a year.
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I am really confused now to. My Vet told me , that he will no longer carry Heartguard because Intercepter is supposed to kill more Parasites then Heartguard , so I switched .
We've had a case of hooks while on Interceptor many years back too. The company reimbursed the vet for the initial test, and treatment, but not the follow up test to be sure she was clear. Nothing is fool proof I guess.
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When we were managing Lulu's pain, I got her Deramaxx from Drs Foster & Smith. At the time, it was the cheapest I could find, and the most reliable and reputable source for meds. The only problem I had was the vet was not willing to call in the prescription, and Drs. Foster & Smith would not accept a faxed copy because it shows up as void when sent. I had to buy enough tablets from the vet to cover the few days it took to get her prescription in the mail. It took time for them to receive the actual script in the mail, but they were really quick on the turnaround once they received it. In fact, if I remember correctly, they had already taken care of the sale and charged my credit card. It was ready to go as soon as the script hit their mailbox.
Deramaxx is very expensive, but in conjunction with the Tramadol, was the only med that worked for her. We had been on three other combinations before we found the Deramaxx to be the best. For the limited time she had left with us, I was not going to complain about the cost of the meds if it meant keeping her comfortable for as long as I could. Our baby girl deserved nothing less.
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This could have been my exact post 16 months ago. Our Lulu was the same age, same personality.....I can totally relate to your feelings. You are both in my thoughts!
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Do you, or someone else have a camera with the ability to take macro shots? Worms gross me out!
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Jen, I am soooooo sorry you have to walk this path like too many of us already have. To mimic what many have already said, you will not walk this journey alone. I still clearly remember the day we got the same news about our heart girlie Lulu, and I so know the feelings you are having right now. People who I never even met offered support, and even though they were not there for me physically, it helped for me to know they were there in thought and spirit.
I too received a load of wonderful advice and support from this group when we went through this 15 months ago. It was all wonderful, but I remember one very important piece which I pass on to everyone who has to go through this. As hard as it will be to do, you need to be positive around Neyla. When you need to scream, cry, rant and vent, lock yourself someplace private to do so. These babies are so sensitive to our feelings, and will mirror what we are feeling, and ultimately it makes them feel bad too. Trying to stay positive, even though your heart is in a million pieces, is the best thing you can do for your baby girl.
Stay strong Jen. You say you cannot do this, but like we all find out…..we can….and do manage, because as difficult as it is, it's the only way we can get through it.
You and Neyla will remain tucked tightly in my thoughts as you take this journey.
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Our Willa Bean was very sensative to barometric changes, and would begin to panic before storms were even anywhere near us.
We insulated a closet for her to go into, but her alltime favorite place to ride out storms was in the back seat of my car while it was closed up in the garage. I would leave the door open that led to the house, and the car door was left open so that when she felt safe, she could come back into the house on her own. Some storms were so bad that she would spend hours in my car. I also left the garage lights on for her to "mask" the lightening flashes.
In her closet, I would close the door part way and put a small fan in the opening which kept her ventilated, and also masked the sounds a bit more. I also closed blinds and doors to any rooms which were near the closet so she would not see any flashes. By the advice of our vet, we also gave Melatonin supplements which did not completely calm her, but seemed to take a bit of the edge off.
Good luck. It broke my heart to see Willa go through that fear when the storms came through.
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No to raspberry jelly after all, and I didn't even try putting pills in it.
No to vanilla ice cream.
What if we just can't get pills into him anymore? I'm not going to turn his life, or what's left of it, into a struggle to get pills that aren't even helping him down his throat.
And it isn't just the prednisone and thyrozine. He has 1 1/2 enalapril to take, too.
How about wrapping the meds in deli roast beef? It worked for Lulu....but only for a couple of times. What worked for her one day, was refused the next. My fridge was so packed with so many different things that worked for one meal, and not any more. I am so sorry you are going through this. I have been there, and it is so hard just trying to figure out what will work next.
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I've had really good results with the Nature's Variety Prairie Raw meals. Just thaw the meat medallions and feed them to him without cooking. With Dell, who is now 12, he's never carried enough weight and any little thing can make him not eat (he's a bit of a nervous nelly), I'll be feeding him one thawed medallion in every meal for the rest of his life. He eats great when I add that in there. I break up the medallion into about 6-7 bite size pieces. When he wasn't eating well, I would feed 3-4 medallions in his regular kibble meal. But the medallions are a well balanced meal in themselves.
I second on the medallions. When our Lulu was refusing to eat in her last weeks, these were well accepted by her over many other things offered. I would set a few in the fridge to thaw each night so they were ready for her next meal.
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I don't know details but there is a program, similar to a credit card called CareCredit that will help finance healthcare costs for humans and dogs and as long as you pay your monthly minimum each month i beleive it is interest free. Maybe the vet will have a payment plan?
Speedy healing!
Care Credit can be a good thing, as long as payments are on time and current. My daughter was signed up for it by her dentist for some extensive work she needed. A payment was due and she made it direct online 3 days before it was due, but because they did not process it before the due date, they whacked her with all the many months of back interest for the late payment!!!! They closed her card and were not willing to work with her, so she now has even more debt than she started out with.
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I have two girls and Tessie is the bully so to say. They will both get something, and Tessie will walk right over to Kare Bear and take hers away. Kare Bear just looks at Tessie and walks away. This happens with "everything". Tessie is like a spoiled rotten, selfish two year old child!! There is a whole basket of toys, but if Karey goes to take one, Tessie is up right away to take it from her. They can also have 4 chewies on the floor...nobody bothers with any of them...but you let Karey wander over and look at one, and Tessie is right there to take it away.
It's actually comical to watch. I always get on Tessie for it, and she just gives me sad eyes and walks away....until I turn my back on her, and she's right back at it again.
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The temp here today was probably high 70s maybe 80, he is panting away. No heavy exertion, as in our walk down to the park. By zoomies you mean running full out? Mine hasn’t done the circle thing that I have seen in videos. I also live in an upstairs apartment that can get hot, will get AC just for him. Right now he is on the couch with the fan on him, he came from Florida, shouldn’t he be used to this? Love him.
Keep in mind that fans work on people because we perspire. When the fan blows across us, it evaporates the perspiration which cools us down. Dogs do not sweat to allow this to happen. If mine are laying in front of the fans, I wet them down with a towel so the also can get the cooling benefits of the fan.
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Advantage
in Health and Medical discussion
Posted
A couple of weeks back, I found three fleas total on the girls, and wanted to get on it right away. I got two doses of Advantage from the Vet and treated, and am now wondering how long is the application effective for?
Kare Bear and Tess have always been real clean dogs without frequent baths, but I have been noticing that when I pet them, I am getting a waxy white residue on my hands which I never got before. It's almost like the Advantage is a dirt magnet. It's been 19 days since the application. Am I ok to give them a bath now, or does it actively prevent fleas for a full month? All I got when I bought the doses was a small slip of paper showing how to apply it, and two single use tubes. There was no package, nor product insert with any additional information.
This is the first time ever, since 1997 when we adopted our first Greyhound, that I have had any fleas on any of them. We have been fortunate until now to never have them, so I am a little ignorant about the treatments.