Horsefeathers!

Our little Rowie is growing up! :cry: Really, you sound like you are maturing into quite the young lady with a very well focused head on your shoulders. It sounds like you've put so much thought into it. I'll just say basically what others have said... if you have the support of your parents, go for it! I'm sure you'll be great.

[url]http://msnbc.msn.com/id/5905417/[/url] I think it's pretty cool. They're saying only medium/small dogs and some other pets for now, but if it's successful, it could be expanded. Beneficial for homeless pets and students. I'm all for it!

I reckon it just means Zaphod is normal. Individually, any of my dogs can be the image of manners and training. Get them all together and sometimes they're like a runaway train. :oops: I think individual time and space is important for dogs just as it is people. You've found something else that works. :wink:

All we know is that "it" was/is bacterial since it responds well to antibiotics. Doc sent home antibiotics for the entire Gang since the weekend was coming up and that's when usual catastrophes hit and so we'd be prepared. Still, it looks like just about everyone is clearing up. It's so wonderful to be able to sleep through the night without having to make 2879483648395 trips to get sick dogs outside, or having to clean up behind those that didn't make it.[img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0YQAAAHYfIDjWpLbhXWCnAvn88DI44GS8PK6b648XKU4sxgXWDpqh34GJ7kmuf681dMz**zVSMYP2t*HG3OQb6osEa3Re!WwmEiI14uRAv5EiXRFSg8AzBOVBf3LnLbkwhzv6MTlY5z3Z5UGmDkoyzQ/smiley%20barf.gif?dc=4675477711840231082[/img] The best theory we have is that the last hurricane washed something up. Several other dogs have appeared at our clinic showing similar symptoms as well as mine getting sick and they are responding to antibiotics, too. If it continues or reappears for mine, Doc is sending a sample to the lab for culture. Best guess... probably raw sewage washing up from somewhere since there was a lot of flooding and standing water. Thanks for joining me in my happy poopy dance! :D

[img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0YQDrAkQffSYPBTEGYKf5OxR!v0sDbkh1gkSAT*YNDJzRyxQYKf6IXbcpe!cTw!E*3zSt0vvVnJ09v!6DAyy2WbSwiEVQk0Vz!RT27GXPRqzqYpqNdyF!tGAVeIXMsXdHpiewGaoTE1PyneIWzioD4A/news%20flash1.gif?dc=4675445993838603157[/img] [size=7]REAL TURDS!![/size] I knew you'd be thrilled for me. Only other dog lovers could possibly appreciate the significance of solid poo. [img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0ZwAdA!0h*yY!ZkbV2fEk8rG*Lrb1pMaeydC9zajVhJCU!bk8JXRW3hWW9eFCx2FK080l150ZcxsT5RqzbeDgmP9FdHjHTBdLhrqt3o3J0djq9SUVJxN93TEw3bn10yfTtVbkQwYq48ohJLA5CeehQQ/img%20srv=happygirl.gif?dc=4675484293988715053[/img]

I don't give a rat's *ss about his situation, if there was no shelter nearby, if he had nine starving children at home, or if he was an expert marksman. I'd be just as furious if HE were attempting to euthanize with a needle. The fact is that if he weren't committed to following through with the upkeep and maintenance of these puppies until they could be homed, he should have spayed his dog. He had a responsibility and to dispose of them by killing them by ANY means is wrong, wrong, wrong. I don't care about the nitpicky crap of how well timed and well placed the bullet is, or comparing it to, say, bludgeoning, drowning, beheading, or whatever. Lobbing off someone's head can be painless if done "right" as well, but I don't reckon I intend to learn the "right" method of doing it. It disturbs me greatly to see people think this *may* be an acceptable means of birth control since it *may* not be painful as long as it's done "right." Once again, personal responsibility is going right out the window. SPAY the d*mn dog and then disposal of puppies would be a non issue.

Wanna trade her for two Standard Poodles? Just for grooming day, you know... :P Hey, wait! Here's a brilliant thought!! I know a *ahem* new up and coming groomer who's going to need lots n' lots n' lots of practice. SHE would surely love a couple of well mannered Standards to practice on!! Too bad newfiemom didn't think of that first. *snicker*

Yeah, there's nothing I hate more than these little old blue haired ladies and their frilly foo foo Bostons with their puffs and bows. I keep my grooming guide close by for those so I don't mess up. :P

I absolutely cannot justify putting a bullet in a dog's head (adult or puppy) as a means of birth control. I don't care how good a shot someone is or how quickly it's over. Somehow, I doubt this guy had these puppies' best interests in mind when he was shooting them and probably wasn't really worried about it being "humane." He was merely disposing of a nuisance. Poetic justic would be that he gets to live long enough to sweat while listening to his children discuss how to "place" him when he's old and a nuisance.

ESS, I have 10 dogs. 2 Standard Poodles (Perry & Pauly) 1 Toy Poodle (Peanut) 3 Lhasa Apsos (Devin, Missy & Fred) 1 Black Lab (Tucker) 1 Schnauzer (Simon) 1 Chihuahua (Chico) 1 Doberman Pinscher (Rocco) Rocco was sick first, then Perry, then Simon. The others who are showing symptoms are Devin (puking), Tucker (diarrhea) and Peanut (diarrhea). Don't know about the rest yet. I know this much... I've never been so glad in all my life to see a normal turd as I was when Pauly went outside earlier. :oops:

Hey, you're doing great! That GSD looks huge! :o I really do hope you'll post more photos as you work along. I'd love to be able to see how you come along. Definitely get pictures at the dog show. Especially those Poodles... you know, you'll need a visual reference later on. :wink:

Goo, we've been wondering if maybe the hurricane passing through might have washed up some kind of sewage. It's definitely something to think about. We haven't seen any evidence of it, but it would be hard to tell just by looking. I'm sure it's possible I initially thought that hosing down the yard with bleach solution would be useless since the ground is absorbent and whatever is in it can wash back to the surface, but I'm just about to the point of saying screw it. I have one of the bottles you're talking about and I think I'm going to bleach the h*ll out of our yard. At this point, I'm willing to try anything from bleaching the yard to exorcism. Thanks. I think I'm going to do the bleaching thing.

Ugh! I like little toy dogs so much and it drives me berserk to see them so often in the hands of people who think of them as little people in fur suits, or as some fashion accessory. They don't realize they are DOGS and need training and structure like any DOG. My little Peanut Poodlet is such a joy to be around that I wish more people could experience her and maybe some other folks could learn that brattiness is not cute. I have one client with this bratty Lhasa (actually one of my Devin's littermates... talk about puppies that should never have been created :oops: ). He was kicked out of the only other groom shop in town for his behavior. His single mom owner calls him her baby and nothing is too good for him. She keeps a leash attached to him 24/7 because she can't reach down to pick him up without him biting her! Still, I hear her talk about how he bites her when she tries to get into her own bed and take her pillow from him. He is the king of his castle and he knows it. No amount of telling her to keep him off the bed and to stop accepting his behavior sinks in. The thing is he's not a difficult dog to handle if you don't accept his "temper tantrums." He's turned out to be fairly easy to groom even though in the beginning he was a flurry of gnashing teeth (I always say no to biters, but, well, he was Devin's brother and the lady pleaded with me so much for help :oops: ... I'm actually glad I finally took him on). This dog LOVES me and I think it's because I took the "stress" away of him having to test me. He knows I won't put up with it. Too bad the lady doesn't get it and people will see him and think ALL Lhasas are like that. I love this client to bits and she's so sweet, but I wish she'd get control of this dog for his sake as well as hers. That behavior is exactly the reason Devin was surrendered to me. I adore little dogs and it just irks me that so many people don't know how to handle them. I'm the first to gripe that brattiness is NOT cute. Divine and others who work in vet clinics or groom salons, do you ever come home and start stories with "a dumb*ss came into the clinic today..." I always feel like Al Bundy (Married With Children) when he would tell his "a fat lady came into the shoe store today..." stories.

Why is it that when our dogs get an ear infection, we feel guilty?? :o In ALL these years with ALL these dogs, I've never had a problem with ears except the [u]one[/u] time with Pauly. I'm pretty vigilant about keeping check on their ears (particularly Pauly & Perry since Standard Poodles are so prone to ear infections) and one day BAM! it's like it came out of nowhere and Pauly had a yeast infection. I felt sooooo guilty as if it were some personal failure. He didn't have a smell, either, unless you flipped the ear backward and leaned into it and even then it wasn't bad. That's the only ear infection I can think of ever having in any of my dogs (other than infections I treated upon fostering and adoption), but I still felt like I had personally given it to him. I hope Laurel is getting some relief. When you said you felt guilty, it kind of brought it back for me. It must be a "normal" reaction.

Thanks so much, everyone. Kat, your theory makes more sense than anything we've been able to come up with. Here's my longwinded update before I go and slash my wrists... It's pretty much an epidemic. Perry came home today from the clinic. He hadn't blown out all day and his appetite is back with a vengeance, though we aren't overloading his system. Perry is bouncing around like a new dog. The vet sent him home today in hopes that Perry would have a normal stool. He's been walked and walked and walked at the clinic today and never pooped (no diarrhea which should be a GOOD thing, right?). He wasn't home 30 minutes when he had another attack of diarrhea. As long as he acts like he's feeling ok, we'll just wait and take him back tomorrow and see what the vet says. Perry is still on antibiotics (as well as Rocco and Simon). Simon is still at the clinic. The vet wanted to keep him one more night for observation. He seems to be feeling better, but Doc wants to see if the food we fed him earlier will stay down and if it doesn't, he wants to be able to have a look at what comes back up/out (mmm, the glamour of vet work). Several of my other dogs now have diarrhea. No one else is puking yet that we've seen, but we definitely have an epidemic of some sort. Doc said it's definitely bacterial since "it" seems to respond to antibiotics. If this continues through the weekend, or we get new cases, he's going to send a fecal sample off to the lab Monday for a culture to see if we're dealing with something like salmonella. I don't know what to do. There is no way to isolate the sick dogs' potty area from the others and there's no way to effectively scoop up diarrhea. Even if we identify a pathogen, I have no clue how to "fix" it. I mean, won't it still be in the yard? I know of no way to effectively sanitize grass and sand. In addition to this, we are facing the potential threat of hurricane Ivan and having to think of what in the world to do with all these sick dogs and wonder if the last hurricane is what washed whatever "it" is up in our yard. We are exhausted. I appreciate the good thoughts. I hate to seem like a hit and run poster and will try to catch up on all the other posts soon. I just wanted to update before pulling out every stitch of hair on my head. Well, sh*t. In the time it took me to type "no one else is puking," Devin just barfed on my couch.

Courtnek, if that doesn't work, you can take an old pair of nylon stockings and cut the foot out. Fold Laurel's ears over backward and slip the stocking over her head. It'll help keep her ears back and still let air in and might be a little more comfortable. I hope she gets some relief. If the infections are a pretty regular thing, it might be time to consider if there's something causing it from inside like an overgrowth of yeast. I hope she gets some relief. I swear by the Blue Power ear potion.

Courtnek, they all get ONLY bottled distilled water. It's been several months since any of them had any tap water. We do wonder if maybe there might have been something in the standing water left after this last hurricane. If that were so, I would think more dogs would be sick, but who knows? :-? Scratching my head.

[img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0YQAAAIYfVzyPoHbo*VO*k6YkVsjsui1KYGfqoPb3PGet0mEYsc71EksSfApXuugKjHdt1Ms4!cD27pQV8nrn8Vh1Jhp2wswyWX0yeLo5t9d9eOaYgyyxKZz4x4bs7X9inMY8rVtfq!D6vFgssAQgqA/crying%20girl.gif?dc=4675436072349453090[/img] Perry has hemorrhagic enteritis(?) and Simon has... well, diarrhea and vomiting, but is not bleeding like Perry was. A thorough search of the yard has turned up nothing out of the ordinary. We just cannot, for the life of us, figure out what is making these dogs sick. Rocco seems to be improving, but Perry is spending another night at the vet clinic and Simon is staying there tonight as well. [img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0XQDdAtwdpp8aL9hNK8RP64ui!zjH56mA!dqQQVcp7lq495ZgCn7iCositkqzDUQ5Qnl9YWC3Noq!e1FBp3Wnj*ex2ttgi2L28RCAmjGTMlqtZCW810NITcWo81FAyeILJCwBYudewp4/give%20up.gif?dc=4675483731229224342[/img]

Gigi, I wouldn't think so, but I'm not sure of anything. Rocco already had diarrhea, but he tends to get it from time to time, anyway. Our backyard is fenced and we don't see where anything has blown INSIDE it. I'll have hubby go outside today and take a good walk around to make sure, though. We're willing to consider anything.

Well, Rocco still has diarrhea this morning, Perry made it through the night at the clinic, but can't keep any meds down, and now my Simon dogger is sick as well with the spewing and the blowing. Off he goes with me to the clinic this morning. What in the world do we have going on here?? No recent food changes, can't imagine what they could have gotten into, no idea what's happening. :-? Thanks for the thoughts.

Here's the crisis du jour: I know it's not proper to play favorites, but my Perry (and Peanut) has to be my heart. I love all of my dogs and would do anything for any of them, but Perry (and Peanut) is just my best friend, heart and soul. He began vomiting last night. Rocco's been sick, too, but it's mostly diarrhea and he's acting fine. Rocco has no loss of appetite and does tend to get bouts of diarrhea from time to time, so we don't worry if it doesn't last more than a day or two, or as long as he acts ok. I thought maybe Perry had whatever "bug" Rocco has, but apparently not. Perry seemed uncomfortable last night, but he did eat this morning. He didn't keep it down. Still, we weren't TOO worried. All of a sudden, this evening, Perry just started rapidly deteriorating. He wanted to drink water in excess and can't keep any on his stomach. We had to take the water away. He turned up his nose at any food (NOT like him) and started getting wobbly and lethargic. He all but refused to walk and was bumping into things when he tried. He's all drooly and disoriented. We made an emergency run to the vet this evening. He started Perry on IM antibiotics and did an exam, BUN and fecal. When he tried to get a stool sample, it was nothing but blood! His symptoms are very similar to parvo, but it is not parvo. Perry has a history of gastric problems and did have major tummy surgery a couple of years ago. The vet is thinking enteritis(?), but will be running more tests tomorrow morning. Perry had to stay overnight with the vet and if he is looking worse early in the morning, they will begin IV fluids. He's going to have more extensive labwork done in the morning as well. Please (once again) send whatever hopes and well wishes that nothing serious is wrong with my boy. I love all of my dogs, but Perry is just really, really special to me. :( Never a dull moment in my house. [img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0bADlAmgjB8chJNSjCczJkBJYDbPHSDTuy6CZtxT7Pa54j2tMRz7Ukyz*J36VIdNgsahPi4cS5y9JMLifz!snRcWZiXOYSG5GCAu63Z!s2VDFaT!8fvai4jYeytihb6KYg3fItam1xdmbYcqPu2HsHBCjzGtKTL!u/Perry%20happy%20birthday.jpg?dc=4675488192236042813[/img]

I was the one who got to break the news to my vet today (as I was hoping). He was sure I was misunderstanding something. :P We may not have to wonder too long about how many dogs were affected. One very upset owner showed up at the clinic today after seeing/hearing about the ProHeart recall. Apparently, this dog recently died after having some similar symptoms as reported (wherever he saw it) from PH6. This guy is scheduled to meet with the vet tomorrow. Since the vet didn't even know there was a recall before I told him, I have no clue how much he's tried to find out and I can't imagine what he's going to say to this owner. I'm sure this owner is only the first of many more to come forward. Still, the vet is sure that PH6 isn't the problem. He said the dog was having problems (seizures maybe?) prior to the shot. I'm thinking maybe a dog with problems especially shouldn't have had the shot, but the reps push it so strongly and dismiss complaints as being unfounded. The vet's wife and one tech were outraged and called the whole thing stupid since "we" have never had a problem (how do they know?). I love my vet, but sometimes I believe he relies too heavily on what the reps tell him. He kind of dismissed my complaint of Advantix causing a rash on not one, but TWO of my dogs since the rep told him she'd never heard of a complaint. I wish he didn't trust these reps implicitly. He's so cynical about everything else. :-? My best friend's dog died about 12 hours after receiving a PH6 shot over a year ago. At the time, we never even realized PH6 could have been the cause since the vet thought the dog had been poisoned. I'm sure now the dog WAS poisoned, but PH6 was the poison. :(

Cruiser is stunning. It has long been decided that there will be other Dobes in my future in addition to the Standard Poodles. Rocco has certainly won me over. But this.... *drooooool*dreamy sigh* :iloveyou: [img]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v107/lhartlep/General/100_5521.jpg[/img]

One of my very ancient dogs had such bad dental decay that his body has basically reabsorbed his bottom jaw and he had no bottom jaw at all (I'd initially thought it had been removed, but the vet said no). Don't shoot me for neglect... he was an old rescue :wink: . The few remaining teeth he had were in absolutely horrid shape. Even at this little dog's ancient age, he did fine with having all (but one) of his teeth removed as well as having no jaw. He ate canned food and eventually ended up just eating softened kibble. He lived about another year or so afterward, but it was definitely worth it to us to give him that extra year with a pretty good quality of life. Then again, from a monetary standpoint, it really didn't cost us since the vet basically "donated" the services for this particular dog. This dog was one of HIS rescues that I fostered and then eventually adopted. I guess that doesn't do you much good except to say that this little old ancient dog did really well after having all his teeth removed.

Frances is bearing down on us as well. Right now, we are between power outages (and tornadoes *whimper*) and my yard is strewn with limbs and debris and Frances is still coming. :o And now there's Ivan coming. :-? Y'all stay safe!