Sarah

last night, my little girl, Molly had a severe seizure. At about 0345 she darted out of bed to the living room and had a seizure on the carpet, followed by severe disorientation and possible temporary blindness (she did not recognize me or my husband). We calmed her down, called the e vet and got her body temp to go down as well. We were instructed to keep an eye on her as one single seizure may not be cause for alarm.... Cue to 0700 another seizure followed by a half dozen more of varying severity. The last one occurred around 0800, very bad, she lost control of her bowels and immediately began running full speed into walls and other objects. Obviously we rushed her to the vet. She stayed all day and they found nothing. They sent her home with some rectal Valium and a medication called zonisamide which the vet stated was a fairly new drug and not much is known about it. She had another very small breakthrough seizure this evening. Needless to say its been a harrowing two days. Has anyone had experiences with seizures that can offer us some hope? More specifically with this drug or other drugs like it? What methods are successful? Do you have any advice for future spells or what we should do next?

Sorry this was so long, thank you for your time.

I am currently being attacked by my civilian friends for disagreeing with Obama and his views. They tell me that I should just be quiet b/c their lives matter more than mine b/c I "signed mine over to the government" and that now my sole purpose is to protect their freedoms and I don't deserve healthcare and other benefits provided to me b/c my only purpose is to serve country and protect their way of life. Direct quote, "But long story short the military is there for one purpose and one purpose only, protect our freedoms as civilians. It's not about you". How do you respond to that?

I recently read that Obama is moving forward to cut benefits for active duty and retired military. As a current servicemember (AD) I'm wondering what this means. As of right now, my healthcare is fully paid for, so will I now have to start paying some? Is this just geared toward spouses and other dependents? What are your opinions? Can you elaborate a little?

http://m.examiner.com/conservative-in-spokane/obam...

My friend owns the sweetest Doberman and the Navy is relocating her to San Diego in the near future (June). She's having trouble finding places to live because of it. Does anyone know of any doberman friendly neighborhoods?? Or anywhere that would welcome a nice dog regardless of breed? Or any info on liability insurance and how it works?

Im asking this on behalf of a friend. Her husband is applying for a job within the sheriff's office of his county. He has been recently diagnosed with Bipolar disorder and chronic depression which are being treated with Prozac. He went off his meds during the screening process, for drugs (which is dumb b/c most drug tests do not test for psychotropic drugs but they are stupid) and the general interviewing process.

My question is, if the potential employer finds out about his medical history is that a disqualifying factor?

My friend who loves rottweilers and has been raising them for years recently lost one to old age, so she purchased a 3 month old female, pure bred. On a side note, I've already asked her wheere she got it and she said from an Amish man. I know, I know the Amish are like the last people you want to get puppies from b/c they usually run mills and/or inbreed their dogs. I've already told her that so moving on....

Here is her question:

I don't know what happened to the post I put on here last night! I had asked if I could get some suggestion's on how to deal with a 3 month old female rottweiler, who has been showing signs of aggression. She can be very sweet, a little on the feisty side, which is typical for a puppy, but I'm concerned about the aggression to my husband and myself. When she becomes over 100lbs. and is still doing it, what then. I can sure use some help. Anybody out there with some ideas. She has been corrected for the behavior, it just seems that at the time, unprovoked, she seemed to be aggravated. I don't kniow.

SHE TOOK HER TO THE VET:

They can't figure it out, My concern is when I bought her The owner of the mother was Amish, buggy and all. He said his brother's dog was the father, I'm hoping they weren't brother and sister. She went after my husband because he took a bone off of her,it was a vicious attack and then last night I was filling the diswasher and she was licking the dishes and I petted her and kissed her and she turned around ,growled and snapped. That surprised me. So that is why I'm asking for suggestion's.

I have a 2 month old little girl and I am really excited to make her food in a few months. For Christmas I received a Baby Magic Bullet and after reading the reviews and seeing all these cool gadgets that steam and blend all in one I am now having second thoughts.... Should I return the BMB and buy a Brezza or a Baeba? I don't own a food processor at all.... should I just invest in a good food processor and vegetable steamer? That way I can continue to use them even after she has moved onto finger foods?

A couple of months ago (September) my male puppy got Giardia, and it was really bad. The vet treated it with Panacure and synicore(sp?) its a pro-biotic, and barium for his nausea. He got better and was treated for 2 weeks, we treated my female as a preventative during the same time, she never exhibited any symptoms we just did it as a precaution, at the vet's suggestion of course.

That brings us to last night. My female, Molly is an excellent dog, she is fully housebroken, they both are, they sleep in bed with me. Apparently, while me and Murphy (my male) were sleeping soundly Molly had gotten up and vomited twice (what looked like food) and had EXPLOSIVE diarrhea. I fasted her and took her to the vet this afternoon after she had diarrhea again. She tested positive, a VERY strong positive, for Giardia. This time, we saw a different doctor than the last time, same office though. This doctor prescribed metronidazole tablets, this time murphy got a preventative prescription.

Does anyone know the difference between the two meds and if one works better than the other? Does anyone have similar experiences with reoccurring Giardia? Any suggestions for trying to prevent re-infestation? Last time I bleached my yard/patio and anywhere the fecal matter could've been, I no longer have a backyard lol. The vet seems to think that it's just very common to this area due to the climate and the large amount of dogs kept in close quarters (we live in military housing). Does anyone else live somewhere like this (Pacific Northwest)? I am just so upset and my little girl seems very nervous, I'm open to any suggestions.

I took my puppy in to the vet the other day for an operation for stenotic nares, in case you don't know it's where they basically open up the dogs nostrils allowing them to inhale larger amounts of air and also allowing them better body temperature regulation. He could barely breathe through his nose so we decided to do this help him and it has worked wonders, sorry for the rant... this is not what this question is about....

While I was at the vet she asked if I would like them to extract his teeth while he was under for the other surgery because he hasn't lost many. I opted to not do any teeth extractions in hopes that they would fall out on their own. He's a little over 5 months, I just thought it was jumping the gun. What is the normal age for a small dog (he's boston terrier) to be completely done losing their baby teeth? Has anyone had any experience with a dog retaining his baby teeth longer than normal? Did I do the right thing or should I have goen ahead with the extraction? What kind of problems can arise if he hasn't lost them?

My little guy just got neutered yesterday, against my better judgement but my husband insisted, and we have not had any problems previously with urinating indoors. The surgery was done by laser and I have been trying to make sure he takes it easy but he really seems to be feeling ok, you know how resilient dogs can be. Today he was walking and peeing at the same time, in the house, as if nothing was going on. He NEVER does this. Is this normal at all? Has anyone ever experienced this? I understand if it's just a recovery thing but I'd hate to think that something went wrong.

I took my little guy to the vet this morning (his picture is my avatar, he's a boston terrier) and the vet convinced me that she should operate on his little nose b/c he is having trouble breathing. He's about 6 months. When I purchased him from the breeder, she explained to me that when they are born their nostrils are really small which gives them that stuffy nose sound but they usually open up. Apparently, his didn't, it does sound like hes struggling to breathe when he is breathing through his nose but he doesn't snore. They vet explained to me that if I didn't do it he would be susceptible to heat stroke and more temperature sensitve. Does anyone have experience with this surgery? Should I be this nervous? I love the little noises he makes, I'm sad he might not make them anymore :(

I've been watching Pit Bulls & Parolees all day b/c its been a marathon and I've never really seen it before so I decided to give it a shot. I love what Tia does for the dogs and the guys, there's just something about her that rubs me the wrong way. Like I get a weird vibe from her, and her daughters especially Tania. Does anyone else get put off by them a little bit?

This may sound crazy but I have never owned a male dog before, though I've owned a lot of dogs throughout my child hood, they've always been females and we always spayed b/c of risks of litters and to avoid menstruation messes. This is my first male, so it's the first time I've ever had to make the decision of whether to neuter or not. I currently have two Bostons, my female Molly is spayed.

His name is Murphy, he's in my avatar. He's a 5 month old Seal Boston Terrier and he is seriously one of my favorite things in the world. He does not misbehave just the occasional puppy antics and he's housebroken with no accidents for some time. He was purchased on a neuter contract but please note that his papers mean nothing to me b/c I have no plans on breeding him. This is just me now having second thoughts on going through with the procedure. I know we always joke about neutering being the amazing cure all for bad behavior in males, he doesn't really misbehave. I'm also kind of nervous that it will change his personality for the worse, can that happen? I have a fenced in backyard and they are never even out back without my supervision, so the chances of him tying to a random female are pretty slim to none. I've just always been under the impression that it was the appropriate thing to do. Your opinions matter so take this a little seriously... I'm looking at you Bells and Uhavegot2be

*NOTE*: This is me being serous.

Now I know I want a Beagle, I JUST HAVE TO HAVE ONE!! They are so cute and besides, Snoopy was a beagle and all he did was lounge around and play pranks all day. That's the dog for me. Except Snoopy didn't howl or bark so can you tell me where I can find a beagle that will never howl at anything even if I leave him home alone in my studio apartment for 6-8 hours a day.

I also need a really lazy one that doesn't like to run b/c my yard is like 10x20.

If not, do you know any vets who will rip out a dog's vocal chords? and how much it costs?

Any answers should use Snoopy as a refernce point.

I just have a few questions in regards to my dogs and their eating habits and whatnot.... They eat Orijen puppy right now.

1. Once in a while my dogs' stools will alternate between hard and soft, meaning that their morning stool will be hard and normal and they might have a softer one in the afternoon, not the consistency of diarrhea or anything alarming, just softer. Someone told me that is b/c Orijen contains not only a probiotic but a prebiotic. Is this true? If so, what does a prebiotic do? Please don't tell me ask a vet b/c she reccommends royal canin and I can't give that to my dogs b/c they throw it up.

2. To rectify the above mentioned problem, I have taken to adding a small amount (1 tsp per 1 c. of food) of canned pumpkin to their food, it has worked wonders. They have normal stools and seem to have less gas. How long can I continue this practice?

3. Neither of my dogs eat the reccommended amount of their food as prescribed on the bag. For instance, the bag suggests that they should be eating approx. 1.25-2 c. per day. They barely eat 1 c. I know these guidelines aren't strict and my dogs look healthy, but do any of you think that's really bad? I do not free feed I only put the bowl down for 20 min and if they have shown no interest I take it away and they do not get it again until it's time for their second meal.

I know a lot of people are always saying that if you cannot afford to take a dog to the vet then you need to just give it up or have it humanely put down. Shouldn't we try to be a little more sensitive and understanding due to the current dire situation of our nation's (USA) economy? Right now, thankfully I work full time in the United States Navy so I am guaranteed a pay check and I savings account set aside in the case that my dogs encounter an emergency but all of that could change in the blink of an eye. If everyone who was down on their luck starting giving up their dogs don't you think it would just add to the excessive amount of unwanted dogs and the strain would just be placed somewhere else?

Lately I've be seeing a lot of commercials for Fresh Pet you know that food that says something about "the only preservative we use is the refridgerator"? While I usually steer clear of brands that advertise so heavily, I have seen this food at my local feed store where I purchase my food now, and they only sell high quality dog food. I've also read a few reviews, but dog food advisor only gave it 3 stars and while 3 stars is ok, I prefer 4 or 5, on the other hand, wet food always gets a lower rating than dry it seems.

My question is, does anyone feed their dogs this? What do you think of it?

Here is the ingredient list:

Ingredients: Chicken broth, chicken, eggs, carrots, ground oats, chicken liver, brown rice, peas, salt, guar gum, natural flavors, choline chloride, vitamin E supplement, niacin, biotin, riboflavin supplement, manganous oxide, thiamine mononitrate, vitamin B12 supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folic acid, calcium carbonate, zinc proteinate, iron proteinate, ferrous sulfate, zinc oxide, copper proteinate, copper sulfate, niacin, manganese proteinate, manganous oxide, thiamine mononitrate, calcium iodate, sodium selenite

I know a lot of people on here have said that our dogs only need a Rabies vaccine every 3 years and NOT every year. Can someone explain this a little further? Why have they suggested it being done this way for so long and we are just now figuring it out that we are over vaccinating our animals? Is it really just about the money? If it is then that is really disheartening and who can we trust?

I live on a secluded island and our options for vets is limited, fortunately our vet is VERY good and I respect/trust her. But I do know that she vaccinates every year for rabies, how can I convince her that I only want my dog to be vaccinated every 3 years?

I know we always say that there is no thing as a miniature or a teacup or what not . But I recently got into a heated argument with someone about their "mini" american eskimo. I just stated that I would never purchase a dog with "miniature" in the description bc it has other implications. He vehemently argued with me saying I was an idiot b/c eskimos come in 3 sizes, and he's right. But so do poodles.... why do these breeds come in different sizes, but say, a teacup yorkie is most likely just runt?

I am a dog-lover at heart. I am one of those crazies that cries when one of my dogs gets hurt or sick. I sleep with my dogs. I do not just dote on my dogs. When friends are unable to take their dogs to the vet to receive proper care I always volunteer to do it for them. I sponsor dogs across the country needing medical care such as surgeries. But I am scared to death of pitbulls. I know that it may seem irrational. I try to keep my comments to myself on here because I know there are people who own APBT and love them and swear by them. I feel kind of guilty that this fear prohibits me from reaching out to that breed specifically. I won't go to a friend's house that owns an APBT and I won't allow my child or smaller dogs to be around that breed. I'm not saying that I wouldn't sponsor an APBT like I do with other dogs, I just feel as though this breed is only for the most experienced owners and trainers and it is a shame that it has been over bred and is a victim of non-selective breeding. For this reason, I find myself supporting BSL especially in larger cities and areas with higher populations. I feel sorry but I can't help my feelings.

Can you still be a TRUE dog-lover but support the BSL?