I learned something yesterday. My shepard Sheba had some hot spot that she chewed raw real quick. So I took her to the vet yesterday, and they found another one. They had to scrap them clean, I have to use flush on cotton balls twice a day. She also got anti-biotics, and along with prednisone to stop the itching, and has to wear her cone. We switched there food from Science Diet sensitive skin to Science Diet sensitive stomach cause my boy Sam had gas that would clear a house. We slowly switched them from one food to the other so it was not a shock, and a smooth switch. Well I didn't know until talking to the doc yesterday at the Vet, the hot spots may occur when the protein level in the food fluctuates. I just thought I would share that for fellow dog lovers.
My eldest dog, Chorizo was diagnosed with Diabetes a couple months ago. He's very young, turned 2 on Dec 24 and the vet and I were both quite shocked. He's been eating Prescription Diet W/D and getting only boiled baby carrots as a treat. He gets two shots of 4 units of insulin every day, once after each meal. He's a trooper about it, I call him and tell him it's time for his shot. He reluctantly walks into the kitchen and patiently waits while he gets his poke. Doc says we caught it in time to treat it and keep him healthy, he was on 5 units after every meal, but we were able to get him back down to four. It's tough when your buddy is sick.
My mother in law has four dogs. Haley her white lab has the exact same thing. She was diagnosed when she was 5 bro. They get her in there with a treat, and she is like okay. She is the biggest sweetie you will ever see. Sorry to hear that. It is great that Chorizo has a great owner.
My three dogs are Sheba, named after a past shepard I had in high school. My big boy Sammy, mix was named after Sammy Hagar. My little tom boy poodle was named Daisey. My wife named her.
Our 2 year old pit bull scratched a spot behind his neck raw. We have to put some kind of lotion on that. And he didn't lose any weight after being put on Science Diet. So they ran blood tests and said he has a thyroid problem. So he is on thyroid medicine to lose the weight (he is at 110 lbs). He is the nicest dog I've ever had, a lot nicer than our 5 year old dachshund. The pit bull is so annoying though. He is paranoid and really territorial. So he flips out at any noise or anything that walks within a few hundred feet of our house. Its a pain when I'm trying to read.
We had a stray pit bull take up here. My daughter fell in love with him, took him to the vet etc. Now, since she travels all over for AFLAC, guess who baby sits the dog...yep, that would be me and Danny. She drops him off on her way to the airport and picks him up on her way home. He's such a big baby and very good natured. Loves to wrestle and play with my sons lab. He's so clumsy tho'. He runs into things and blunders around. We have to watch him around every thing. She takes him to the vet and to be bathed etc. He's really a spoiled brat. So, now, we have the grandgirls, a pit bull, my sons lab and his daschund ruling us. It's a real mad house around here at times. (the lab only comes in once in a while) Tebow, named after the gator, chases the daschund and skids all over the house, furniture etc. The moral of this story: Just like Bill Cosby said. Even if your children leave home, they always come back and bring more with them!
My 2-1/2 year old Bichon, Yoshi, does the same thing. You always know when the mailman is coming! All you other dog lovers might find http://www.dogfoodanalysis.com/ interesting. I found this site after switching Yoshi to a grain-free (Wellness Core) dog food. I wanted to find a review of it, and found that this site has reviews of EVERY dog food on the market.
I have 5 dogs: Kenya Bronx Memphis Juneau Emmie Lou (after the beach) All are rescues. Emmie & Juneau have skin conditions similar to the ones mentioned above. Kenya broke her leg once. Bronx just got back from the vet with stitches because he cut himself to the bone near his armpit. And Memphis...well, (this is the truth) when he was a puppy a tech at the Humane Society dropped him on his head. He's completely functional, just incredibly stupid. Sometimes, we have to remind him to quit drinking, I'm not kidding.
I don't own any dogs myself per se but my family has a purebread german sheppard, a mini white eskimo (that thing is loud), a mutt, a black lab, a black lab mix, a yellow lab. I also have two cats. I consider all these pets mine. I want a huskie.
Things to do today: 1) Ruin innocent family pet thread: Check! Actually it's all Maynards fault...... I mean come on that was served up on a platter man.
I have a Bean to go with Opie's chorizo. She's 4 and quite the character. Loves to get attention. She's pretty healthy thank goodness. Your dogs are very cute John - especially Daisey. Bean
I was going to post this same site. You would be surprised at the foods that are listed as bad. They say that corn is the most common problem for dogs, since it isnt a natural food for them. It causes more health problems than any other food. Check out the site and possibly do your dog a favor. This is an independant site in the style of consumer reports, only for dog food.