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My dog has scratched himself raw. No signs of fleas anywhere. Any ideas? I can’t get him to the vet till next week.
Hi pawbly-
If a dog had pneumonia as a puppy, are there residual effects when they are older? I’m curious because one of our dogs, Riva, apparently had pneumonia when they first got her to the rescue. She is 2 now and seems to tire easily. Loves to play and run, but not for too long. Curious if there is a correlation or if she really is just a diva?
Hello,
I have seen lots and lots of puppies recover from pneumonia and all of them grew up to be normal active healthy dogs. It is (theoretically) possible that the damage to the lung could cause scarring and potentially make exercise (breathing and stamina) more difficult. But, my bet is more on diva. ?
Good morning pawbly friends. Looking for advice on feeding multiple dogs at once. Feeding time has never been an issue before, but we’ve only had two at a time. We have a third now and it is proving to be a little hairy at times. Part if the issue is my senior guy doesn’t eat well, so I’ve been sitting with him and hand feeding. Our newest rescue, and it is VERY early days, isn’t really eating normally yet either, so I have to kind if watch him as well so our remaining dog doesn’t go and eat his food…. he’s getting better as he learns the routine, so I’m sure that will work itself out shortly. In the meantime, it’s a challenge. Any advice would be appreciated! Thanks??
Separate them. I would crate feed, to be quite honest. This allows each dog to relax after a meal (which is ideal to avoid bloat). If you can’t crate feed for whatever reason, separate into different rooms.
I agree with Laura. It’s the only safe and sane way to watch multiple dogs AND avoid them from focusing or fearing the others. It just keeps the meal time calm and manageable which is exactly what they need. Xox
I adopted a 4 year old rescue small lab mix about 2 weeks ago. She is already deeply attached to me, and is starting to show some separation anxiety. Keeping her contained and safe while I’m at work has become a challenge. My Boston Terrier is content gated in the kitchen, but my rescue Duchess simply climbs over the gate. So I put her in a crate and I have attached a pic of the result (it’s sideways). She had bloodied her mouth and scraped her muzzle. The last couple of days I’ve left her loose in the house and hoped for the best. I saw evidence of her trying to push the gate through to get into the kitchen – to be with my other dog? I don’t know. Any advice is welcome.
Hello!
There are lots of things I would recommend.
First of all exercise is my first and constant default.
1. Start taking long walks before you leave for the day. A tired dog is always a better behaved dog. See if this helps.
2. Ask me (I’m her vet) ☺️ About solliquin.
3. Try DAP. Dog appeasing pheromone. There is a lot of great evidence to support its efficacy.
4. Try a radio or tv while you’re away.
5. Try a video monitoring device. See if watching her and intervening helps assuage her chewing.
6. Ask about a neighbor or dog walker to get her out during the day while you are away.
7. Ask me about a trial period of an anxiety med. I’m lots of cases they help make everyone happier. Especially as she adjusts to her new life
Thank you for saving her. Please keep in touch
Xox to you candy and duchess!
If you’re located near Dr. M, I’d look into obedience classes near you – 4Paws has a selection of classes to consider. She might be otherwise obedient, but classes will help to make her feel more secure in her position in your home, and will help her settle now that she’s past the 2 week introduction phase. More info about training classes at 4Paws here: http://www.4pawsspaonline.com/training.html Kathy Forthman’s a good trainer.
Hi there!! Thanks for rescuing. We just rescued another GSD this week and are going through the same thing- separation anxiety. I’m using a lot of patience and I’m walking the soles of my shoes off with him? No, seriously, long walks seem to help. More so than a good romp around the yard with our other young one. So what I did yesterday that really helped, was had him romp with her for about a half hour after right before human dinner, then ate quick, then walked him (while my other two stayed home) for a good long walk- almost and hour. This helped as he was good and tired and went into his crate without opposition. Now he still chewed his way through a bed, so I’m looking into ways of addressing that. We have Kong’s with peanut butter in the freezer right now. Also we have replaced the bed with towels and are hoping since they are not foam, they’ll do less harm?And a nice nylabone and a few rope pull/chew toys have been helpful. If you find another bit of advice that you find helpful, please share? Thanks!!???
Hello pawbly friends!! We have just rescued another GSD- he is beautiful. We have only had him about 48 hours. He is still very anxious from his trip and new surroundings, but our two GSDs are showing him the ropes and being very patient with him. He is only 9 months old, so he really is still somewhat of a baby. He has taken to the house very well, and is learning the rules already. The stairs however, are a really frightening thing for him. Absolutely REFUSES to go down. He’s gone up them. Riva (one of our dogs) has gone up and down many times in front of him. We swear she knows we are trying to teach him??We have tied all of us being down there with a squeaky toy, treats, praise…. just looking for some advice. My guess is once he is comfortable enough and feels secure it will not be an issue, but we have a lot of stairs, so it is a little difficult trying to maneuver things right now. Any advice would be great! THanks!???
Hello,
Congratulations on the new baby! Stairs can take a while for some dogs. I think it is a matter of time to find heir comfort zone but yes going down is always much scarier than up. One of the things I do is have my husband walk directly in front of them so hey can’t see the whole scope of the stairs. Or find a place with deep shallow long stairs like at the park and practice on them. I also have picked up my dog and placed them on Yw bottom two stairs and practiced them. So they only have to go a few feet. Maybe go up and down the bottom stairs until this is comfortable. Then go to the bottom four stairs. Etc. Etc. Eventually they just sort of try and eventually they get comfortable. It just takes time. And patience.
Try stairs outside first. Some dogs cannot deal with enclosed staircases in houses, but they’re fine with stairs in parks and the like.
Hello pawbly friends! We are very excited to be gaining a new rescue GSD to our home. In the past, whenever the first introduction has occurred, it has been during the day and we have been able to have a nice long walk including all the dogs involved and then after they’re good and acquainted and tired, we go int the house. This rescue is a little different as the pick up time is late Sunday night. My two dogs will be “in bed”. My thinking is to bring them outside one at a time to greet the new addition, and then take a short nighttime walk and then all go in together. Please share any wisdom to help make the transition as smooth as possible? Thanks!!!??
Hello,
I would either do what your plan is, if it’s not too late and if I have the stamina to have the night be longer than I planned OR. I would take He new dog for a long long walk after a dinner meal (always feed after transport). And then put him in a cage at the farthest corner of the house so he can sleep (and everyone else can too). In the morning I would do the intros. I just think that this pup will be stressed already and there’s no sense stressing yours after bedtime. Your new pup will prob be tired anyway. If not a long walk with justvthe two of you should help remedy this.
Thank you for rescuing! ?❤️? love you guys!
Hello,
It could be allergies or infection (amongst a host of other possibilities). If your dog is not on a flea preventative I still recommend you use one. Please use a safe one (lots of otc’s are not). Also you can ask your vet about trying Benadryl or an anti itch bath. In lots of cases a prescription medication is needed to stop the itch and treat the secondary skin infections.
All it takes is one flea to cause misery if your pet is allergic to their saliva. I hope you’ve found relief for him.