Skip to content

YOU Are Your Dog?s Advocate!

Basenji Health Issues & Questions
  • Thank you for this post. My male will be 13 come the next rounds of vaccinations. I often wonder what I should watch for, caution/request from my vet and how that fits into the requirements that the state of Illinois dictate as mandatory. What should I consider non-essential at my boy's now advancing age? Any suggestions???

  • Good article, Dan. What I also see from this is that you have to be very communicative with anyone you come into contact with regarding the care of your dog, and be willing to get a second opinion on your dog's care - just like you would for yourself if you had a medical problem you needed to address - why should you be any different with your dog?

  • Personally I have never encountered a vet who did not abide by my wishes when it came to decisions about my pet's care. They might try to convince me that such-and-such was necessary but if I refused they abided by my decision.
    I think if anyone is uncomfortable with a vet then you should find another (of course emergency situations are different).

  • Some vets are pushy but you have to stand your ground and be firm, "no I don't want to do that". Most vets just suggest and I just say "no I don't want to do that" or "not right now" so I can look into it or see another vet and that's the end of it.

  • I think it depends on whether your older B has contact with other dogs like at dog parks, kenneling, foster dogs, etc. Does your dog have an underlying medical condition that vaccines would affect?

    You could have titer tests done on your dog to determine immunity instead of getting vaccines.

    Jennifer

  • After the first few years of shots, I do the titers…no more shots except rabies by law
    Otherwise, they don't get them.

Suggested Topics

  • Picky Fanconi dog

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    6
    0 Votes
    6 Posts
    6k Views
    tanzaT
    It is my understanding that Dr Gonto can only respond about the protocol to a Vet and can not give advise direct to an owner, so you may want to have your Vet sent that information to him. Or send the lab information and copy your Vet so that he can communicate directly with your Vet if he suggests changes.
  • Dry dog food

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    11
    0 Votes
    11 Posts
    6k Views
    Chealsie508C
    Oakley was on the Iams intestinal sensitivity formula because I tried taste of the wild ( of all kinds) and he was still having stool issues, combined with a puppy bout of giardia…he did well on it but I didn't feel good about the ingredients. From there I tried nature variety and he wasn't a fan. He has been sensative stool wise with many of the high quality foods so now we use Fromms and he is terrific. He loves all the varieties ( I mix two kinds at a time..one of their grain free versions with a grain version in order to get a reduced grain diet; stool issues if none or too much!) His weight is steady and his coat has never looked shinier, smoother of softer. Lastly, he loves the taste and I don't have to coax him to eat. I agree with not free feeding OR feeding from the same bowl. Since yours have issues (whether it's weight or sensitivity) knowing when they ate and controlling how much will allow you to better navigate around the health issues and possibly identify the cause of some as well!
  • Do you think this dog is inbread?

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    14
    0 Votes
    14 Posts
    8k Views
    misspodhradskyM
    @giza1: Heh, heh, inbread/purebread is a pet peeve of mine as well. That, and SPADE. It's not really my dog, I don't have inbread dogs, I got it from my genetics list (when I saw the title I thought that these people shouldn't be making that mistake). Go ahead, use it. Can you pull it off the forum or do I have to email it to you? HAHAHAHA I thought the exact same thing. I was like…WTF! People should not own dogs if they dont know how to spell things. lol SPADE is on my "list" And "inbread" and "purebread" I dont really like when you say "purebreed" either, to me its purebred. but maybe i am wrong on that, thats just how i am. hate it! lol but thats so funny tho! THANKS for sharing! super cute!
  • Dog Origins Revisited

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    3
    0 Votes
    3 Posts
    4k Views
    curlytailsC
    The original article is here, for those interested: http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0028496 I'm no scientist, so much of it was lost on me. I do admit being inherently skeptical of attempts to represent THE origin of dogs… I can't figure out how these studies account for how human relationships with dogs have developed over tens of thousands of years, and I'm far more interested in the way that culture and history have shaped the way we think of dogs -- or even what even counts as "domestication!" A lot of the Asian spitzes historically straddled and crossed that line, for example, roaming free as packs of wild dogs. Anyway, I also find it interesting that they chose a number of island-based village dogs to sample (i.e., the Taiwanese tugou, which is also close to my heart). @Mr B, I chuckle at your comment about "phasing over to the Basenji." I frequently think of doing just that so I don't have to deal with all these giant furballs all around my home!! But I think I will always be partial to the Asian spitz breeds. I love the look of your Jindo, and your Shiba is adorable too.
  • Dog Lice

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    4
    0 Votes
    4 Posts
    2k Views
    dmeyD
    Thanks for the advice. We are now lice free, thankfully. I did some research and it turns out that. Dog lice are a specific species, different from human lice and we cant get them, neither can my cats.(I have two cats) I guess the bird lice are different. I had already given them the frontlin( not actually frontline brand, its called Fipronex, so that they wouldnt catch it. So I was extra worried for no reason. I am not a big fan of chemicals either. Thats why I didnt have Ayo on the regular dosis of frontline but the thing is that we have such a big stray dog problem that , almost every patch of grass in town is flea and tick infested and we end up having to deal with it a lot, so most people use frontline or similar products regularly. I didnt really have that problem with my last dog ( my great dane CHelo). I used to find a couple of ticks on him like once a year and usually they would dissapear with one application instead of having to regularly do preventive treatment with it. I will read up on the natural remedies, maybe I can use them next time without having to use the chemicals. I also read that these lice are very very uncommon in countries like United States or European countries,.. again, its the conditions of all the stray dogs that we have here. Its a shame, and there are a lot of organizations that try to help, but in the end, you know, when you have a lot of people that need aid, its really hard to get aid for animals. Thanks for the help….
  • Is Eggplant Toxic to dogs?

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
    14
    0 Votes
    14 Posts
    53k Views
    AJs HumanA
    Tanza: Until the late 1700's, people who ate tomatoes without dying were considered to be witches. European wisdom at the time was tomatoes, while a pretty plant, were poisonous. They had to be because they look so much like Bella Donna. That's why the immigrants of the time thought Indians were magical: because Indians ate tomatoes and peppers all the time. There isn't enough of the active ingredient in any of the foods you feed your kids to hurt them. Since you peel your spuds, you have nothing to worry about.