Posts made by nobarkus

I've only been doing the manual brush once a day on my 2 but I may want to try the electric. Both are a little fidgety while brushing.

I Just got the below message from Karen at So Cal Basenji Rescue. Any suggestions would be great to pass along.

We have an adorable tri gal, my special love and not looking for a home since she has us wrapped around her toes and heart. She is seven years old, weighs 17 pounds, and has started having cluster seizures. My first Basenji had seizures but only an occasional one and I had never even known about cluster seizures. Shida started into this gradually with a short seizure and several weeks before another. We had finally put her on zonisamide 25 mg to stop any further seizures. We have a terrific vet here and a friend also has a Basenji boy, an older gentleman, who is on zonisamide, so we at least were tuned in to the best medication. The last three days have been hell with a night filled with seizures almost every hour, an visit to the vet where her dosage has been increased to 50 along with a great Chinese herb that does help keep her calmed down, and this morning we are already on number 3. It looks like she is settling down now but these short seizures have to be taking a toll with their frequency. I don?t think she is hurting but she now whimpers as I hold her during a seizure as she comes out of it. Shida is just about the sweetest little thing you could ever meet and we are being torn apart watching her deal with this and not finding a way to get it under control.

There is no way a breeder will offer info on seizure medications but I thought you might be able to reach out and get some response from your network. We are open to every bit of help out there?diet, meds, supplements?.

Get the video Really Reliable Recall by Leslie Nelson.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VnLVm2GhQw

How dirty are their teeth? Do you brush them?

The vet gave me a few packets of Purina Veterinary Diets Fortiflora when Paolo had gastritis as he was throwing up back in January. It took care of it quickly. Last week he was throwing up at mid night as before. I started giving him this product again (I bought it on Amazon) and the first night I gave it to him it took care of it. It will take care of any diareaha too. As long as it's not a serious illness this product works great. Paolo has a sensitive stomach.

I just bought this. It really helped my Paolo, a r/w 5 years old I just adopted in August. His coat looks great and he looks and feels better.
http://www.onlynaturalpet.com/products/Only-Natural-Pet-Immune-Strengthener/999032.aspx

@dcmclcm4:

Does your dog have problems eating chicken since he got sick eating cooked chicken? My Arnie has allergies and I do not feed him anything with chicken or chicken fat in it. I do not feed raw though.

Jennifer

Jennifer,
I've been giving him chicken since I got him 3 months ago. I've been giving them chicken thigh meat (baked organic). He never had any vomiting. but he I have stopped since Saturday. I've also cut back on the amount I was feeding them as I think it was a little too much food. They aren't fat but it puts stress on the digestive system. Vet gave me some 3 cans of Science Diet ID which is turkey and pork (low protein and fat) and recommended 1/2 a can at each feeding which is .415 ounces. I have a scale and weigh it in baggies.
Paolo is doing well right now and has not vomited.

Lisa,
The Steve's frozen raw has no eggs in it but it does have egg shell powder.
http://stevesrealfood.com/Inside2.pdf

Analysis
Protein: 11.10%
Fat: 10.50%
Fiber: 0.90%
Moisture: 72.20%
Ground Chicken, Chicken Breast
Frame, Chicken Livers, Carrots,
Broccoli, Chicken Gizzards,
Romaine Lettuce, Cantaloupe,
Flaxseed, Extract of Chicory (FOS), Dried
Kelp, Potassium Chloride, Sea Salt,
Sardine/Anchovy Oil, Zinc Proteinate, Iron Proteinate, Vitamine E,
Copper Proteinate, Maganese Proteinate, Oxy-Gon Powder
(Natural Antioxidant), Vitamin D, Eggshell Powder, Dical Phosphate

I just took Paolo to the vet as he had been throwing up 4-7 hours after eating last week. Vet said he had some gastritis. When I told the vet I fed him some (1/3) frozen raw (Steve's Frozen Raw) mixed with canned he was like "I wouldn't feeD him raw as he could get bacterial poisoning". I've had Paolo for over 3 months and have been feeding him that and he seemed OK although had been itching and licking himself a lot which could be anything. I was experimenting last week to see what was giving him trouble and it seemed that when I did not include the raw he was not throwing up and when I added it back he would vomit (4-7 hours after). Now one day I came home and gave him a little cook chicken breast, we went for a walk and after we got home he threw it up. I feed the same to my other B, Buddy and he seems fine. They both were getting probiotics in their food as well. This what it says on Steve's Raw Food website.

What about E.coli, Salmonella and other microbes?

Steve?s Real Food uses only the highest quality (100% human-quality) ingredients, but this is a very legitimate concern, and is often the first question pet owners have. It is also an easy question to answer. Properly prepared raw meat-based diets are very safe for dogs and cats. Always be sure to use safe handling procedures including washing hands, bowls, counter tops & utensils used for raw feeding.

"We regularly test our foods for our guaranteed analysis, Salmonella, E.coli 0157-H7, & Campylobacter (click here for our latest test results) to ensure our products safety. We also test our foods for hormones, antibiotics, and pesticides (our food sources are of such high quality that residues are very unlikely, but we love our pets too much to take any chances).

We then instant flash freeze (-50 degrees ) our foods to eliminate the possibility of parasites. This also locks in the freshness of the vital nutrients raw foods have to offer. "

Anyway I have Paolo on just canned right now and the vet has prescribed antibiotics for the week.

@tanza:

More excerise and less food…. my girls get less then 1/2 a cup twice a day... keep the 2x a day feeding but reduce the amount.. What are you feeding her? And yes, you need to get her out more

Is that 1/2 a cup of dry food only?

@curlytails:

@MacPack Holy cow, $25??? I am incredibly jealous! Anesthesia-free cleaning (not sure if with ultrasonic tools or not) start at $100 around here!

On this side of the bay it's $130. It goes along with the sky high gas and housing prices here.

@eeeefarm:

Some dogs for sure have more of a problem, even when management is the same for all. My niece who is a vet had one cat with terrible teeth, no matter what she did. If you give them bones they will tend to keep their teeth clean, but you risk damage with vigorous chewers. I don't think it matters all that much if you use toothpaste or not. Just cleaning with a brush or your finger with one of those slip on finger brushes should help, as will giving chews of some sort. I have recently discovered sweet potato chews…....just dried sweet potato, no other ingredient.......and they seem to help. I also use a dental scaler from time to time when my guy gets a bit of tartar build up. I can't reach everything, but I manage fairly well until he runs out of patience.

Usually I just use water and the brush. But I started using the toothpaste mainly for Paolo because it has enzymes to help break down the plaque. His breath is definitely better.

@curlytails:

Oh my gosh! I would be so shocked if a decayed tooth just fell out… poor Paolo. I hope it wasn't causing him too much distress.

I continue to struggle with Bowpi's dental issues, but I definitely took heed of your (collective) message the first time. Bowpi is still not great about toothbrushing -- her tongue is extremely FAST and she's adept at licking the toothpaste off the brush before I can even get it to her teeth -- but I do manage to get something done 2 or 3 times a week. She's already shown marked improvement since we adopted her (she's had one full dental with us, too) but her breath is still pretty bad most of the time. It's an ongoing issue. I wonder too how genetics plays a part.

Anal gland problems can cause bad breath too. Dogs may develop bad breath from other causes like sore throats, renal failure, bowel disease, sinus infections, lung infections, digestive upsets, stool eating, vaginitis and lower urinary tract infections.

I preach this now and then about keeping your B's teeth clean by daily brushing or at least 3x/wk. Here's an example why. I just adopted Paolo who is about 4-5 years old. Previous people did not take care of his teeth. Most teeth on the upper sides are gone, upper back molars are bad and lowers and light brown. I've been brushing daily for almost 2 months and they are getting better (breath too) but as I was brushing the back upper left, the below decayed tooth fell out on the couch. I'm using Virbac C.E.T. tooth paste.

Try and use the tooth brush to keep the teeth clean, saving yourself money and most importantly your Bs teeth and health. Bad teeth can lead to bad heath.

Wow, she looks great in the video! The pics are great too! Dogs are very adaptive as Ella shows.

So sorry! You tried your best to help and take care of him. He's not suffering now.

Wrestling at the motel in S CA

Paolo

Hang out at home with Buddy

That's awesome! Third foster was a charm!

@eeeefarm:

35 lbs is huge for a Basenji. Is he tall? My guy is overweight at ten pounds less than that! (not that size matters, but it's a good thing he is sweet!)

Buddy is a large male but not over weight at 30lbs. I think Karen said she put him on a diet so he's probably not 35lbs now. She said he was a large male.

@Chealsie508:

Dan, are you hoping to adopt?

Yes! I will take my B boy, Buddy and see how they get along. Karen, the lady that runs it says he's a big (35 lbs) super friendly sweet boy.