Nessa the Pit Bull Lover

I have a fishy issue.....

One of my guppies was acting lethargic today, looks a bit bloated/fatter than yesterday and has a very thin one inch clear string of what I'm guessing is poo? Super-thin clear and strange... stringy. I'm doing a bit of research and everything points to the conclusion that it is an internal parasite. Though I am reading that some fish become very thin with an internal parasite and my guppy is a bit bloated. I'm reading that the best option is to treat the entire tank with Jungle Parasite Clear, though none of the other fish appear to have symptoms. He seemed fine yesterday.... today he is hanging out near the top and doesn't want to be bothered. Not interested in food either. Foodwise they get flakes, occasional bits of egg and veggies like carrot and broccoli. As of right now going to try to find this parasite killer stuff.... any thoughts???

I bought two 5 gallon fish tanks today, for very cheap, that have a TON of baby Trumpet Snails, I am talking hundreds, in about 4 inches of water with gravel. No living things in the tank but snails.

I've decided I do not want these snails as they reproduce quickly! What is the best way to kill them ALL and dispose of them so as not to harm the environment?

Credit Question!

I do not have any credit... neither bad nor good. I am also a owner of a Dog Grooming Business so by default I am Self-Employed. Credit card companies frown upon both of these and see me as high-risk. I am 31, so not super-young.

I would really love to get a credit card... after research I have found two cards which you prepay, that count towards building credit. I was wondering... if the Walmart credit card counts towards building credit? I scoured their website and could find no answer. Any tips? Even my own bank won't give me a credit card and I've been using them for over 15 yrs. Sigh......

I am a dog groomer, and NEED a good digital camera to take clear pictures of the finished products. Dogs move around a lot, and I need to have a fast shutter speed (less shutter lag) not sure how to word this. I want to be able to press the button and the picture to be taken with no hesitation, (I have a million pics of blurry dogs because current camera does not take the pic fast enough).

I need non grainy pictures! Current digital camera is 5 yrs old, and is 6 megapixels and WAYYY too slow and too grainy.

ANYWAY! How should I word this on yahoo answers if I am to be specific? *Need fast shutter speed camera?* Or lag speed.

I'm a little confuzzled. Help! Anything is appreciated.

I have a red 99 s10 I need to sell in California, (transmission is broken) it has 89,000 miles, fairly nice exterior, everything else works great, just passed smog etc. Transmission gave out and I want to sell asap. What is a decent starting price???

Any help is appreciated!!! thx

Hi!

Upon driving home today I managed to capture and rescue a stray pit bull mix female, skin and bones, dodging traffic and following a woman trying to shoo it away. (Took three people and a lot of chicken) I know a lot about dogs, but not much about the female heat cycle (as my dogs are fixed).

She is young maybe 7 months to possibly a year, perfect teeth. Very malnourished, nipples about an inch long and her hoohah is swelled up to be very huge! I almost thought it was a boy dog with a ballsac at first when I approached her....

She is not bleeding, but has licked herself a bit down there. Do nipples usually get so long and large on a dog in heat? Could she possibly be pregnant? Would the vulva be swollen if she were pregnant? Or only if she's in heat? Any help would be appreciated!

She will most likely see the vet after the weekend, I just want to get an idea of what I'm getting myself into!

My truck broke down, and I am renting a car for a week in order to find a new *used* car! I need a loan FAST! As in today or tomorrow... how long does it typically take to process information and get an answer on a loan? I have never gotten a loan, only paid cash for other vehicles. I live in Sacramento, California, I need a $5,000 loan and am Self Employed as a Dog Groomer who makes 35k a year.

Bank or credit union? Through research I figured it was best NOT to go through a dealership's finance process. They are more than willing to finance me now for a huge interest rate.

I have applied through my bank... Golden 1 credit union, Safe credit union, Sacramento credit union, all online but with no response yet.

Comments or useful tips? I am new to loans and need one ASAP!!!

Thank you in advance!!!!!!!

Help!

I have four dogs at the moment. Three are mine, and one is a current foster. I have a 9 year-old Female spayed pit mix, 2 year-old Male neutered pit mix, and 2 year-old Male neutered chihuahua. Scarface is a male Miniature Pinscher estimated at about five years old.He was a part of three small dogs running the streets and homeless. I found homes for two of the three, but Scarface was the most difficult of them all. He was very dominant, was extremely human-shy and hand-shy, he was afraid of being in the house, he would lift his leg and mark in the house, and was not sure what to do, having most likely spent most of his life on the streets. He was crated most of the time at first, having him and his two little buddies neutered all at the same time. After the neutering surgery healed, his two buddies found homes, and I introduced him to (my) pack. Luna, Charlie, and Bruce. It took Scarface about a week to adjust to free reign in the house and to learn the pecking order of the pack, and also what is acceptable and what is NOT acceptable. Luna is the dominant dog, she makes sure everyone follows the rules, and also plays momma, cleaning the boys faces/ears and making sure they behave. For the first few weeks Luna watched little Scarface like a hawk, getting onto him for jumping on tables... trying to chew up clothes.. or attempting to mark in the house. She was SUCH a big help to me by teaching him the rules. Scarface accepted Luna as the boss and followed her lead. Bruce my tiny chihuahua was thrilled to have a friend to wrestle with, and they became buddies. Scarface was leary about Charlie at first, at 65 lbs he may be a bit intimidating for a 10 lb Min pin. Charlie only wanted to share his pull-toys with Scarface and play, but Scarface put up a very tough front for about a week and a half until he relaxed around Charlie, realizing he is not a threat. Scarface had made a HUGE improvement during the next six months of us trying to rehabilitate him into an adoptable dog. He wags his little nubby tail, he plays nicely, his aggression is gone (most likely due to his neutering) He loves to be pet, and will jump in your lap! He gives sweet little kisses, and prances around like a sissy-boy. He got into a great routine, and learned to go to his crate at *ni nite time* he has learned many commands, and will scratch at the backdoor to go potty and/or will come and woof at you and run to the back door. He was doing SO well fitting right into the pack. He did not ever challenge Charlie or Bruce and definately not Luna over dominance. He accepted his fate as *the new guy*. He did not mark at all, and only occasionally had potty accidents in the night in his crate. Until........ about a week and a half ago. I am wracking my brain to try and think of everything and ANYTHING that could have triggered him marking. I live with my boyfriend and male roommate... me and my boyfriend went on a 3 day vacation to the beach and had just my roommate watch the animals while we were gone. Upon our return, Scarface had marked about 7 different corners in the house. After drilling my roommate, it happens that Scarface and Charlie got into a spat over a chewy bone while we were gone (which I took away and hid). Now I know dogs do not hold grudges, but could he have been upset that his routine was broken, and me and my boyfriend were not there for three days? Or possibly he thinks that Charlie is trying to win dominance over Scarface and Scarface wants to mark, saying that it is his territory? I did notice something odd, we feed the dogs in seperate rooms (except scarface and bruce eat together as they eat the same food and both are non-food aggressive) Anyway, I noticed Scarface marked around the kitchen table where we keep Charlie's food and food bowl. He also marked around Charlie's house (crate). There's about seven corners he keeps marking ever since a week and a half ago. And he's being super sneaky about it! We were keeping very close eyes on him to try and catch him in the act, but he'll mark while trotting towards the hall, not even thinking twice... just lift and keep trotting. This makes me want to just cry! We have worked SOOO much with him to get him potty trained, and we all decided that he has had a lot of rehabilitation and has done so well, it's time to find him a home.. and this happens! I've been a little busy the past few days so I put a little doggy coat on Scarface backwards, so that it wraps and velcros around his little Weiner. He absolutely hates it, but he can still have free reign instead of being cooped up in the computer room and i made sure he CANNOT mark! He's not happy though, and I need a permanant solution! What should I do? Him and Charlie are getting along fine, they still curl up with eachother on the couch and play tug-of-war. Nothing seems different in the behavior towards eachother. If you have experience, please let me know your input!

I have a question!

I think that all of us dog owners have experienced the *lip quivering* at some point in our lives. My question is: Why do they do it? This question is more for those with a dog behavioral background. I am guessing it is an extra smelling sensory? I have read that Males will do this lip quiver after smelling an unaltered female. I have an altered female (9 yrs) and I have rescued/fostered only male dogs (unaltered but were very shortly altered, after being under the care of me) I noticed when the males were unfixed they would smell my female and lip-quiver, (even though she is fixed). This lessened more and more as the months went on after the male's alteration. However, my older female has also displayed a lip quiver after checking and (cleaning) one of the males in the genital region. (A male who has been altered for about a year and a half) Is there a technical term for this? Just curious!

Hello!

I will try to make this short and sweet as some of my questions get lengthy with details.

I live in the ghetto. Many people around here do not take care of their dogs. My neighbor has two female dogs whom are not spayed, got pregnant, and recently had the pups, only one survived, I'm not sure which one had the pup (both were pregnant). My neighbor also hardly ever feeds the females and I have been feeding them dog food over the fence during the pregnancy, and recently they are only skin and bones with nipples. This breaks my heart, and I want to help the mamas as much as I can.

The question!!!!!!

I did some research and realized mother dogs need a good amount of calcium in their diet to provide milk for the pups. Can anyone recommend a dog food.. (dry or wet?) to feed them? Or possibly vitamin supplements to help them out? I've heard a mush of dog food/milk may help... but I also read that dogs are not supposed to have cow's milk. I give my own dogs Vitamin C, Echinacea, and Vitamin E once a month per vet advice. But I do not want to give a mother dog something that would harm the pup. Any opinions???? These dogs need help! Thanks in advance...

***More info for those who are appalled by the situation (as I am) My neighbors are hardly ever home, they speak a different language, and are not friendly. I have never dealt with mother dogs as all my dogs are spayed/neutered. I dare not call the authorities on the dog's living conditions because that would be a death sentence, trust me... I have looked into this.***

Hi!

This little man has been rescued off the street, and obviously is a mix! What breed do YOU think little Yoda is? He weighs in at barely 15 lbs.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/48809351@N08/86065833...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/48809351@N08/86076961...

Size comparison to the chi/minpin

http://www.flickr.com/photos/48809351@N08/86065970...

Have you had experience with Kennel Cough?

I am fairly sure that my dog Luna (8yrs) has what they call Kennel Cough. I did a HUGE amount of research on the subject and she does seem to be feeling a lot better now. I had planned on taking her to the vet today but now I'm not so sure that it is necessary! What do you think? My other dog, Charlie (1 yr), has been vaccined against it in March of this year and I've read that it has an %85 chance of resisting the virus when living with a dog who has it. (He has no symptoms and seems fine) I am more worried about our other animals, 1 rabbit 1 parrot and a parakeet as they can contract it as well. What can I do to prevent them from getting this virus other than keeping them in seperate rooms? Also, I am a dog groomer and want to keep this virus AWAY from my clients at work. Shall I hose myself with lysol?

I've been pretty vigilant about keeping a record of how she is feeling and what I've been giving her. This is how I came to the conclusion it was Kennel Cough:

Luna did not get her shots in November when they were due.

Charlie was vaccinated in march (five months ago) no symptoms

Luna has not come into contact with any new/strange dogs within the past

few weeks.

Noticed loss of apetite and sluggishness

Thursday and friday - also trying to poop and straining

coughing began saturday - did not eat her dinner saturday

Dry hacking old man sounding cough with horking up foam and phlegm

Sunday-very sluggish and sleeping most of day, glassy eyes and hackles are up.

Feeding her ice cubes. No apetite in the morning.

Crunched 500 mg vitamin c and 1 capsule echinacea mixed with small cream cheese

and sugar at 3pm (showing signs of apetite)

Boiled chicken breast and broth mixed with 1/2 cup cruched up food (Iams Active

Mature) at 4 pm

Ate normal ammount of dry dog food at 7:30 pm cough has quieted some

Monday- Luna is doing much better. Coughing is not as severe and horking up

phlegm has almost stopped. Eyes are brighter and hackles are down. Begging for

people food and jumped in daddy's lap.

-Gave luna Vitamin c and echinacea mix at 10 am as well as 1/2 cup of chicken

broth. Ate it all without hesitation.

I'm in northern California, I love rafting/floating the Bear River. Nothing bigger than a class III. What are some other good "lesser known" rivers to raft? Anyone know of any good spots? Thanks!

Hi!

I just moved to "Ghettoish" part of Sacramento, California. I am a responsible owner of two dogs that I love and adore. I am finding that a lot of people in this area are simply very mean-spirited. My next door neighbor has a friendly Male Pit-Bull terrier that is tied to a tree in the backyard with a very large chain, and has never left that chain in the three months I have lived here. Mind you the chain is only about 4 feet long. I have only seen the owners a few times, once very shortly after we moved in, he was talking on his cell phone in the backyard, and when the dog started dancing around for some sort of attention he got kicked and cussed at. I've NEVER seen a soul in that backyard interacting with the dog. It has no shelter but the dirt and few leaves at the base of the tree to lay on.

It has a water dish that is clear across the yard that he cannot reach and I have yet to see him be fed. I've tossed him treats and he ravenously scarfs them down. The poor guy I'm assuming is just another stereotypical "Chained guard dog" except he's the sweetest dog, and does not bark! There is no other explaination for the way he is being treated, as they have about a 9 foot fence and the dog could easily be let loose off the chain. I worry about him, and tonight we're getting some very very cold weather and a week of pure rain following, and this dog has NO shelter!

I have done some research, and per California's law:

"No person shall tether, fasten, chain, tie, or restrain a dog to any dog house, tree, fence, or other stationary object. A person may temporarily tether a dog “no longer than is necessary for the person to complete a temporary task”

I (could) contact the spca about this I suppose, but I don't want to make enemies in this neighborhood if you know what I mean. They don't seem all that freindly, and who knows what they will do if they know it's their neighbor... and I do not want to put (my) dogs in danger in fear of retaliation. I don't think they even deserve a dog the way that they treat it, and they will most likely only be cited... possibly combined with the fact that they do not provide shelter, or adequate food or water. Maybe it would be better if he *accidentally broke out of his collar one night and *accidentally disappeared. My heart is a bit torn... but something must be done!

Has anyone gone through something similar? Calling in an abuse report to the spca? How did it turn out? Many thanks.....

Can someone legally stop payment on a check for a service in California? I am a dog groomer, and a client has stopped payment for their groom. What can I do about this?

Hi!

I have replied to many pet owners questions on yahoo answers, whom have pets that are SERIOUSLY ill and need to see a vet ASAP but claim to not have the funds to do so. I'm sharing this information from personal experience with an ill dog that I recently took in to a VCA vet facility. VCA vets are all around the usa and have a vouchure that you can print out for a FREE vet visit and exam for up to two pets. (Not valid in New Mexico though, unfortunately)

I'm posting this to hopefully save the lives of pets who are in dire need of veterinarian attention.

Here is the website, just fill out the info and it will send you to a page where you simply print the vouchure. You can look up your zipcode as well on the website and it will let you know of all the VCA vets in your area!

http://www.vcahospitals.com/main/offer

If your pet is ill and needs veterinarian attention PLEASE take your pet to the vet, we on Yahoo Answers can only help so much!

Good luck and I hope this will help many of you out there!

I am curious to know if anyone out there with rat allergies have handled a hairless rat with no allergy symptoms? I have owned a pair of female rats in the past and LOVED my girls, unfortunately I was allergic to them and could only handle them with a long sleeved shirt. My allergies worsened to respiritory problems and I had to eventually after two years, rehome my girls :(

I'm very curious to know whether hairless rats make any difference in rat allergy sufferers?

I've read all over the net that it can be the hair,dander, or saliva that triggers these allergies, and also that it is different with each person!

Have any of you rat allergy sufferers handled hairless rats with good results?

Please post your experiences!