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CAN WE HELP SOLVE A PROBLEM FOR YOU?
IF YOU HAVE ANY TIPS YOU CAN OFFER PLEASE CONTACT US. A PROBLEM SHARED OFTEN SAVES A VET BILL!
I’m not sure how common you find this problem but I have 2 Labs, 1 a pure bred the other a Lab Cross. We discovered that Talisker, the pure bred has a gluten, soya and maize intolerance. It took 18 months of watching her be sick and diahorrea about every 5 weeks and constant visits to the vets to discover the intolerances. I can spot the symptoms so easily if she has eaten anything that contains the above. I thank heaven for Vet insurance as it took about £1800 in claims to get this far. The best food to give a dog with intolerances like this is either Wafcol Salmon & Potato or James Wellbeloved food. Neither of these contain: gluten, soya or maize. A lot of other dog foods do not fully list the ingredients and cause problems for dogs; we also give the girls Butchers Meat in jelly as again it doesn’t contain any problems. Wherever we go we tell people not to feed Talisker anything unless they check with us first; to be fair we adopt the same process for Dalwhinnie too. – I just wish more dog food companies realised the need to watch what goes into their food.
Emily.
Question: I suffer from asthma and my doctor has told me I have to get rid of my pets. I have one cat and a Labrador - can you help please? I really do not want to lose my pets as they are my family.
Answer: You may not have to, there is a product on the market called Allergen D which is a liquid and you rub this on the dog's coat, This helps to stop the dander and other particles in the coat from causing problems with asthmatics. There is also a product called Allergen C which is purely for cats and does exactly the same thing. Please go to: http://www.communigate.co.uk/ne/catcare/page30.phtml
where you can read all about the product.
Question: What type of collar is best for a Labrador?
Answer: Try and avoid chain collars like check chains - these are purely designed for training purposes and not as an everyday collar. Leather can rot fairly quickly knowing how Labradors love to be in all things mucky especially water. The best type of collar is the webbing type as these can easily be washed, should your dog roll in something he fancies and you don't! They are comfortable for the dog to wear and look good. One important point to remember is to ensure that you check your dog's collar frequently as the dog grows the collar does not and we have had several dogs into rescue recently with collars strangling them. I personally never leave a collar on my dog when it is in the home, it is not necessary and I have known of dogs being strangled by jumping up at the work surface or the door only to get caught on a handle or similar.
Question: My dog pulls like a train - what can I do?
Answer: The majority of rescued dogs have had no formal training and therefore have no idea what to do at the end of a lead. First and foremost get yourself and your dog booked in at the local dog training classes. Your local veterinary surgeon will undoubtedly have a list of these and will be able to direct you to the nearest classes. These are normally held in the evenings and classes are usually for 1 hour. Please make sure that you use an instructor who is registered with the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT)
Check or otherwise known as choke chains are useless for training unless you really know what you are doing. In some cases the problem will be made worse and also you could cause damage to the larynx of your dog. A good half check which is part material, part chain can be excellent. Avoid using chain leads as these are not only difficult to handle but also give you little or no control over your dog. Purchase a decent webbing or leather lead for training purposes. Once you have mastered how to walk you dog to heel then a slip or clip lead will be sufficient.
Another type of training method is by using the Gencon 3 in 1 headcollar and lead and these are obtainable from our Area Coordinators, plus they will demonstrate how they should be used. Halti is another method but these must be fitted to the dog as they are specifically sized for different types of dog.
It takes time to train your new dog and patience is of the essence. Short training sessions followed by fun and games is the answer then your dog will find it enjoyable as well as being taught at the same time.
Question: My dog eats disgusting things, how can I stop him?
Answer: Firstly, your dog does not see this problem as disgusting, to him it is an extension of his diet!
Most dog foods are not completely digested and therefore are still attractive to another dog. The main thing to remember is that even though we are disgusted by this behaviour, chastisement or worse still hitting your dog will not help, in fact it will make the matter worse. If you see that your dog is about to eat something unmentionable then divert his attention either by calling, throwing a ball or dropping a tin with stones in. This will divert him and you can give him lots of praise and reward him. Clicker training is ideal for this problem.
All the old tricks of pineapple, yucca etc. do not work, neither does a thing called Deter obtainable from your vet. With Deter you have to be almost as manic as your dog hunting the offending article out and covering it with powder before he gets to it. Sadly the last resort is a Baskerville muzzle and under no circumstances must it be a sleeve muzzle. Baskervilles can be obtained from your local pet shop and really need to be fitted as they come in different sizes. Having said that we tried it on our boy who promptly got a claw stuck in it trying to get it off and he broke his claw. We have never repeated the exercise.
Do you have a friendly farmer locally who would let you use a field for his exercise, that way you would be away from where lots of dogs are exercised and the temptation is just too great for him.
Another idea would be a training collar – definitely no an electric collar but one that is called Aboistop.
Not cheap but it consists of a small box on a collar which is affixed round the dogs neck. The box contains a liquid such as citronella and is refillable. You have a control panel, much like a tv remote but very small. When you see you dog becoming over interested in something push the button and the box emits a spray of liquid under his chin which gives him a ‘wake-up’ call. This does not hurt him but merely distract him.
You can probably pick up one of these collars on ebay for a cheaper price if not just good Aboistop. The main distributor is Roger Mugford – Kingdom of Animals.
I hope the foregoing will be of some help – I understand your problems only too well and naturally you want what is best for your dog which is not endless courses of antibiotics. One small tip – when you dog has the stomach upset and has to be on AB’s one of the best remedies to adjust the gut back to normal is Live plain Yoghurt. Two tablespoons per day – dogs love it and the cultures get the gut working properly
Dear Anne,
Another update. The Aboistop collar has been fantastic! I had been thinking about one for a long time but wasn't sure which one to buy and the cost was very off-putting. Following your recommendation and that of another dog walker I talked to I decided to go for the Aboistop and have not regretted it.
Nim does not seem to mind wearing it. He still looks for poo but I zap him as soon as I see his mouth opening. It is quite difficult to time it right as I do not wish to take away his doggy pleasure of general sniffing so I am encouraging him to stay with me more, without making him walk beside me all the time (just keeping him in view) . He is two years old today so he was treated to an extra long walk which he hardly spoilt (but he did have to have a bit more than a sniff a couple of times but stopped as soon as he 'got the message'.)
No doubt further updates will follow.
Thank you once again
Monica
Question: My dog steals from the worksurface or the table.
Answer: This is a common problem especially with the Labrador. One way to cure this is to leave him a sandwich, however it will not be what he is expecting! Make up a sandwich and place horseradish or some other hot substance, chillies for example - making sure you have removed the seeds first. Leave it on the work top and do not draw attention to it - ignore it. When you return, if the dog has taken it, make no comment just ignore him. If he has taken it he might just be ready to hit the water bowl so beware! This will probably be enough to correct this problem. My own dog used to do this but the hot horseradish sandwich stopped it immediately and she has never done it since, fortunately we did not have to resort to chillies!
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