I don't know about milk but I've certainly got her addicted to food. Well, I've woken up and, heart-rendingly, it's only Chinese dentist antimatter, so maybe I'm just not with it, rather than irremediably stupid, but I don't get it. I don't know, Eunice. I wish I did, but I don't. The milk connection, I mean. That tyre fitter still hasn't got back to me, though I've emailed them twice. When I remember who they are, i.e. when I search for another local outfit, I'll post their name here as someone to avoid.
Yup, city foxes are much less fearful, and disrespectful... https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/cx2x1ex1wd3o
They are a litter of kittens. The mother is only a year old, she was a feral kitten herself and is doing really well with them. There was 5, 3 black and 2 black and whites but sadly 1 passed away last night, it was struggling yesterday, just wasnt active like the others. Was up most of the night trying to hand feed it and keep it warm and active but it didnt make it. Moo knew something was wrong, she sat by the cage, whimpering a little and wouldnt leave and when I picked the poorly kitten up she followed me. Clever little moo
Advice re: arthritis in dogs needed please. I’m not asking for myself but for my lovely neighbour and former dog walker who helps me out with Iggy when I need to go to court. Her 9 year old male GSD has it in his back legs and she’s desperate because he was having monthly Librela injections but they’re no longer having much effect as the relief only lasts about a week nowadays. She was in tears the other day because she feels it’s only a matter of time before his quality of life is such that he will need to be put to sleep. I imagine she’s probably had advice from her vet and done plenty of research, but I said I’d see if the DFUK hive-mind have any suggestions. Thanks.
Iggy had his post-op check up yesterday and all is good. I was a bit worried because I had found a 1cm lump at the top of his wound and thought it was a hernia caused by his refusal to rest during his recuperation period (even though he’s now on a double dose of Trazadone, he’s still bouncing off the walls), but thankfully it’s just scar tissue forming around the suture knot. His dosage of lactulose (which neutralises ammonia in the gut so it’s not absorbed into the bloodstream) has been reduced to see if his liver will start to cope with it’s detoxification duties and his wound has healed perfectly, so he no longer needs to wear his kinky crotchless playsuit. He’s also back up to 16kg from just 12.5kg when he was admitted to A&E on Easter Saturday. Next is a bile acid stimulation test at the end of August in order to check that his liver is working properly.
Great to see and hear that Iggy is well and truly on the road to full recovery Also sorry to hear about your neighbour's GSD. I know that they, like labs and retrievers, have the potential for bad hip dysplasia leading to arthritis. I think once that stage is reached any treatment is only to relieve the pain. If her vet is out of options on treatment then I regret to say, heart breaking as it is, that probably the time is approaching. Pain management, such as Librela, is, as far as I know, the only course of action for her. Early stages of hip dysplasia can have improved outcomes from a carefully managed exercise routine, basically enough to maintain/strengthen muscles but not too much to exacerbate the issue. However, in the case of her dog it sounds like it's well beyond that stage. Hopefully this was an earlier consideration and the dog has enjoyed it's best life. N.B. I have no veterinary qualifications or associated professional knowledge, have just coped with a Golden Retriever that was starting down that path before passing away due to another health issue. I wish her all the best with managing this and coping with the loss when the time comes.
Scooby is four today. We’ve had extra long walks and ice cream and a great birthday card from my niece. He wished his sister moose a happy birthday and her owners informed me they’re planning on having a litter with her next year. I asked them to keep me posted.
Don’t worry about the weight (within reason) Kenny put on quite a bit through inactivity. It’ll come off when the good times arrive again.
Although I have no veterinary qualifications I have kept 3 GSDs over a 20 year period during which I was involved in the GSD community. People will often talk about GSDs having 'back end' issues without being specific so first of all is it definitely arthritis? Our last hound, good 'ol Nobby Nelson, started to have such difficulties which turned out to be Degenerative Myelopathy. This is a disorder where the spinal column degenerates which in turn affects the nerve signals getting to/from the rear legs. The classic sign of this is the rear paws knuckling under especially when turning. Hip dysplasia can be common in GSDs but it is very much dependant on the dogs breeding & hence pedigree. The German GSD club, the SV, have tight rules regarding line breeding & breeding without or with a high hip/elbow score all of which can be seen on the 5 generation pedigree. Note, the kennel club don't enforce these, or similar, rules. And, of course, it could just be arthritis in which case it is manageable, along with hip dysplasia, with a good diet, weight control, careful exercise, anti-inflammatories and good old cod liver oil and/or pilchards. Btw - when he was around 6 or 7 he had his usual yearly jabs and within a day went from an action packed hound who could do half a dozen fields to a hound who could barely get out of the car & stand.... he never had a yearly jab after that. Summat I suspect you couldn't do nowadays what with insurance & what have you.
15.5kg - 16kg is his correct weight tbh. One year when I took him for his annual checkup the vet nurse couldn't believe that he was so heavy considering that he is so petite and she had to check the scales had been zeroed correctly. He's towards the bottom of the breed standard range for length and height but right at or over the very top of the range for weight because he's packed with muscle and has very sturdy bones, which is a good job tbh as he spends his life jumping down stairs, crashing into things at full pelt and getting hit by cricket balls. The vets at the animal hospital said that his growth will have been stunted due to his liver defect so God only knows what kind of hulking monster he would have turned into had he not had that condition. He's never had an ounce of fat on him and so you can imagine how unwell he looked like after he lost a quarter of his bodyweight over the course of about 3 weeks.
