Jennifer M~ Got the Giggles

My dog has taken a sudden liking to eating poop. While I try and clean up daily, it just doesn't always happen right when they go. Plus they have a doggy door so they can go out as they please.

After just cleaning up a pile of puke made up of bits of poop, I have decided I have to try something else besides trying to get the poop right away. I'm pretty good at getting it during the day, but he seems to be getting it at night.

I found this product: http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display...

Has anyone tried it or something similar? Good results? Bad? Any other suggestions?

I have three dogs, so I'm assuming I have to feed it to all three since I have no idea if it is his own poop or the poop of the others he is eating.

Yick. I also find it weird that he all of a sudden has decided to start eating poop. He never used to do it.

We are considering adding some chickens to our backyard and we are getting some conflicting information regarding them. We are experienced with animals, but total novices when it comes to chickens.

I've read up on coops, dietary needs, etc, but one of the main reasons we are considering getting chickens is for egg production. Now they don't need to produce mass quantities, but I need more of a straight answer.

The breed we are looking at is the Silkie We need something fairly quiet and gentle and the silkie seems to fit the bill, but then I read on one place they can produce around an egg a day and in another that you will be lucky to get 3 a week out of them.

Any ideas which information is more realistic? Or can you suggest a breed that would also be gentle and quiet but might produce more eggs?

Someone sent me this link http://dallas.ebayclassifieds.com/dogs-puppies/ant... and I'm a bit baffled. It seems there are new BYB's creating fake names every day. I hear the argument that referring to a dog as a "goldendoodle" is easier that a Golden/Poodle mix, and that people know what breeds it is mixed with when you say it....but this one? A Walrus?

They named it for a marine mammal.

My question is, what breeds do you think these mutts are made of? I have an idea, but wondering what you all think.

LEGIT: Would you buy a mutt puppy, even from a shelter, if they gave it a designer name?

I have three dogs. A 125lb Bullmastiff, a 17lb Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, and a 65lb German Shorthair Pointer. The GSP was a rescue dog I took home to foster for 2 weeks...14 years ago. She is around 15/16 years old now. We were going through water like crazy so my husband and I bought a few of those water bowls that refill themselves which meant we were only having to replace the water about every other day instead of several times throughout the day. It seemed like a great idea, however, the old dog will NOT drink from them.

She started drinking from the toilet instead. So we started closing the toilet. I thought the problem was solved until I realized she wasn't drinking at all and had become quite dehydrated.

So, does anyone have any good ideas for getting her to use the new water bowl?

I should mention she was horribly abused and can be a neurotic mess at times. We've gotten over a lot of it with her, but she is still a bit weird with a lot of things.

So I'm not highly familiar with the American Pit Bull Terrier breed. I know plenty of mixes and badly bred "pitbulls" but I'm still learning what makes a good APBT.

My daughter was actually reading over my shoulder and saw a question regarding someones "blue nose pitt" and she didn't understand so I was trying to show her some pictures of what they were talking about. I was trying to show her the differences between well-bred and badly bred and came across this: http://www.drawthelinekennels.com/males/mr_rip.htm

Now here is where I'm confused. The dog on that page looks like a monstrosity to me. He weighs more than my Bullmastiff who is twice as tall. But he is a 2006 UKC Ch, registered with the ADBA, won weigh pull events....

Soooo I'm just confused and hoping someone who knows about true APBTs can straighten me out.

This isn't a place to vent how much you dislike the breed. I only want to learn more about what a true APBT should look like. And if this guy isn't it...how did he win his Ch in the UKC?

Thanks for your help.

I was woken up this very early this morning by crazy animal sounds. Sounded like something was dying in my yard. My dogs have access to a doggy door to the yard which leads them to a fenced in dog run. They of course went to investigate. Eventually I called them back in, closed the slider so they couldn't go out again and left it until morning to investigate myself.

This morning when I went to check I was expecting to find something dead. Didn't think much of it when I let the dogs follow me. Edward, my Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, immediately picked up on the scent and was off. We live on 1/3 acre and part of it is up and embankment. I run after him but then hear hissing and spitting noises and him barking. Called him back, and was surprised that his recall was that good actually. I thought it was a cat, but then saw the raccoon. It seems to be living under my pools solar heating system.

So the question, Edward and the raccoon did come into contact with each other. I can't find any cuts scrapes, or bite marks, but I am paranoid that something bad will happen to him. He is UTD on all of his vaccinations. Can you think of anything I need to look for or anything that the raccoon could have given him? I think I'm being overly paranoid, but I'd rather be safe than sorry.

To add to my concern, I found blood on my floor after coming inside. I don't know if it was Edward, but one of the dogs is bleeding from somewhere. I just can't tell who, or from where. I think it is Shankly, my Bullmastiff. He was near some blackberry bushes and I think it cut his paw but I can't be sure.

Sorry this is long and rambly. And I totally realize it was my fault for letting them out with me in the first place. I didn't even think about it at the time. And of course, should anything be actually wrong I will take him to the vet.

I have a friend who has been living in Yokohama, Kanagawa Japan. I have been unable to get in touch with her through email and I heard something on the news about a website where people were posting information about loved ones that they haven't been able to reach.

Admittedly she isn't a very close friend. We were close long ago, but since she moved about 10 years ago, we only speak through email and regular post mail. We just send pictures back and forth of our kids mostly. Because of that, I have no other contact information. None of her family or other friends.

I don't even know how hard her area was hit by the disaster. I'm concerned about her and her family and would love to know if she is okay. Other than waiting patiently for an email back, does anyone know of such a website or program where people can check on friends and loved ones?

Thanks for any info.

My daughter just turned 8 months old last week. She has been on solids since about a week before she was 6 months on doctor recommendation in an attempt to help reflux (it didn't). She has never been a fan of solid food whether it is bought jarred foods, homemade, or table foods. She is otherwise a breastfed baby.

Up until this week, she had been eating pretty regular meals. Cereal or yogurt and some kind of fruit in the morning, fruit or veggies at lunch time, and cereal and a fruit or veggie for dinner. I would have skipped the cereal, but it was one of the few things she seemed to like besides avocado and peas. I figured it was because I use breastmilk to make the cereal.

So now she is just refusing solids. I can get her to take a bite or two, but then she turns her head and refuses more. Even the little puffs and Baby Mum Mums, which she previously LOVED. She will just throw it on the ground.

My other two daughters never did this. I'm not horribly concerned, I know she is nursing plenty, I just think it is weird.

Any ideas?

I want to write an email to my local news station after they aired a segment this morning with a "designer dog liaison" aka broker. The woman buys in the puppies and then resells them to the public. She had 5 different types of mutt there. Toting the poodle mixes as "low shedding" and the "puggles" and the "pugaliers" as great for kids.

I would like to link some informational websites to my email. Any suggestions?

My bullmastiff has been waking up every morning with hives for some unknown reason. At first we just thought it was from shedding, like his undercoat was coming up in tufts, but then it became apparent that it was actual bumps under the fur We also thought it might be bug bites. His belly and groin are essentially furless and I can see the red raised bumps. It looks like hives in a human.

I've made an appointment with the vet, but I am just looking to see if anyone has any suggestions as to what could be causing them.

They seem to go away by about 11am every morning. I've washed all of the bedding several times. He is on flea preventative. He eats Orijen with some raw supplemented and I haven't changed his diet since he was a pup. He hasn't had any raw in over a month. Orijen did change their formula a while back, but I didn't notice the hives until recently.

I have 2 other dogs, with no problems.

Any ideas?

Just curious of opinions out there. I do not have a wire coated breed. I'm just curious. I know there are a lot of groomers and ex groomers out there as well as breeders of various breeds so I'm just curious.

Obviously a show dog you would strip the coat to make it look proper, but what if you have a pet quality version? Would you clip the coat or still strip it? I've heard various things about stripping. From the "it's cruel and painful" to "dogs just lay back and relax". Now I don't honestly feel it is horribly painful for the dog if done right, but it can be time consuming and a pain. Should a pet quality dog just be clipped?

I am not sold one way or another. I just wanted to see how others felt. All opinions welcome. No TD's from me either way.

I'm looking for a good website or program to help with planning family meals. Any suggestions or feedback from some of the ones out there?

Thanks!

My daughters clothes had a piece of tape on the back and it went through the washer and dryer. Now there is an icky residue that I can't get rid of. Any magic cures?

Is there any harm that can come from a dog eating money? Not coins, dollars. Anything different than if he ate paper?

My daughter was counting her money, like a little 7 year old scrooge, and she left it on the floor and her door open. Shankly, our Bullmastiff, decided to go in and eat the majority of her money. Good thing is that she only had about $15 in dollar bills. It looks like he devoured all but about $4 worth which he shredded.

So any concerns with money vs regular paper?

I have owned both purebred and mutt dogs and have done basic obedience and CGC courses in the past, but I have never actually worked with show dogs. My two purebreds came from show breeders, but were sold as pet quality.

From talking to a few users here who did/still do Jr Showmanship, I understand the quality of the dog doesn't matter as much as your ability to handle it.

I'm at a loss as to where to start. Do I look for a dog first? I was thinking of seeing if I can find a breeder with an older dog, not a puppy. Do I take her to a lot of shows first and make connections? Someone mentioned handling classes...

Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you to those of you who have already helped out.

p.s. I already know what to look for in a good breeder and my household is fully capable of taking on another dog should we chose to do so. I can also financially support any dog I bring into my home. I also fully realize that although this is her "project" she wants to work on, the responsibility of any dog would fall on me and my husband.

Saw this on the news and it cracked me up...how the heck did it get stuck in there?!

http://www.king5.com/news/Dog-gets-head-stuck-in-w...

LEGIT: Has your dog ever gotten stuck in anything? Or done something that required your skills at extraction?

Just the other day an offleash "pitbull" attacked an injured a horse pulling a carriage in an area near my home. It is the historical capitol of the state and has horse drawn carriage rides you can pay for. Here is the news story and a video of the attack.

http://www.kcra.com/news/26211618/detail.html?sour...

They ended up pinning and shooting the dog because they were afraid it would attack and kill a human.

Now, I feel that animal aggression does not equal human aggression, however I wasn't there and I don't know the exact circumstances that led to the shooting of the dog. I'm not saying it was right, but I'm not saying it was necessarily wrong either.

Here is the kicker, now "frightened citizens" are calling for an APBT ban. ~eyeroll~

One dog attacks a horse and now we can't trust any APBT's or APBT mixes?

How has BSL effected you? (if applicable)

What do you think about any breed ban?

If you believe that BSL is the answer, what is your reasoning?

I'm following a recipe from the UK and it calls for both single and double cream. I am in the US and I have only ever seen "heavy whipping cream" on the shelves.

Can anyone help? Is there an equivalent?

Category fail: Beauty & Style > Makeup

My daughter has been on solids for a little while and I've been going really slowly. Everyone says to wait a few days between new foods to look for any reactions. But what qualifies as a reaction? I mean, I realize a reaction is any change from normal, but at what point do you decide that a food is a no go?

After giving her this latest food, she has been VERY gassy. Not fussy about it or upset in any way, but just gassy. She has also had more frequent poops, but other than frequency, there is no change from normal.

So my question I guess is, should I stop giving it to her? Maybe lay off for a while and try again in a few weeks to see if it is truly this food or possibly something I ate (she is breastfed as well).

What do you think?

My daughter is 5 1/2 months old. She has always been a frequent pooper. She would often have poop in literally EVERY diaper I changed day and night. Always runny, green, slimy poo.

She is breastfed only, no formula. And following doctor recommendations, I started her on solids a bit early in hopes it would help with her reflux. She does take ranatidine 2X daily for the reflux.

Since we started the solids, she is down to pooping about 3X a day but it is still liquid. My problem is that about 5 min before she goes, she is inconsolable. Crying, screaming and thrashing her little body around. Then she goes, quite loudly, and stops crying. The poop is still very liquidy, the consistency of snot and either bright or dark green. And it is A LOT. She will almost always leak out of the diaper with it and through her clothes.

I've brought this up to her doctor, only to have her doctor dismiss it without a second thought....kind of like I am being worried about nothing. So, what do you think? Is this normal? Should I push the doctor to investigate or at least check it out further? I'm not a huge fan of my pediatrician, and can change to a different one within the practice, but I want to get other opinions first. Am I being paranoid over nothing? My other two daughters were nothing like this.

I've also noticed that her urine has a bad smell to it as well. It does not smell like normal urine. I brought this up as well too because my older daughter suffered from problems with urine and kidney infections. I was told if it was an infection, she would have a fever. Which makes sense....but still got no explanation as to why her urine would smell so bad.

Sorry, I know this is long-winded. I'm just looking for any insight and opinion. Thanks for your time.