Dogs love sweet potatoes and pumpkin. If you eat in balance with your local area you'll be more healthy and so will your dog. This is why seasonal fruits and veggies are important. In fall and into winter everyone, even my hens and pig get sweet potatoes, echinacea- cone flowers (which they eat no problem) and garlic. As mentioned I also start throwing mint, basil and any other herbs I have growing in the ground right before they freeze. This builds up immunity for winter.

Then spring you can give berries and baby greens which are easy to grow. But if you don't garden buy a big bag of blue berries at Sam's Club, defrost what you need and add to food with a small amount of yogurt. If you don't garden buy the tubs of organic spinach and salad mix - puree and add. They are under 4.00 a tub and one tub will last 1 human, 2 dogs or 1 tub 5 dogs.
AS summer heat approaches continue greens and add cantaloupe, green beans and peas. Soy beans in limited amounts,

There are things you clearly stay away from. Onions, tomatos (some tomato sauce ok) citrus, grapes, anything acid. Corn is ok but it's really too starchy and adds very little to their diet.

I eat a lot of beans- black beans, pinto, black eye peas. I always make extra for my dogs without onions and often throw in greens.

Change your own diet, become more balanced with the earth and your local environment then share it with your dog. Yes, he needs protein but why not supplement with fruits, veggies and legumes?

Here's what gets me... they tell you the life expectancy of certain breeds and it ranges from 14-20 years, right? The life expectancy of humans 40 years ago was very low, now its proven, with proper diet a human can live a healthy life to 120 years! I feel we can give this to our pets too. Over and over I see the results of of dogs living 25-30 years. Some of my dogs are already older and I didn't know what I know today. The dogs I adopt are already challenged BUT I see a huge difference in every aspect of their life by watching their diet, brushing, nice music, walks and love. We all benefit from this plan. (kiss)

When you search for breed life expectancy, most sites give you 12-20 years and also list what each breed is prone to, as well.

I am gonna start off small with baked chicken and sweet tatos and see what she does.

I'm unsure if Hartz OR Sergants flea & tick products have been brought up in this thread.

Dont use them. Although you can buy them at the grocery store they are extremely toxic and the side effects can be long lasting and / or deadly.

I have some Dr.Fl33 natural shampoo that is the best shit ever.It's concentrated,lasts a long time and smells hella good ..
Cant remember what I spent but it is worth every penny.

www.kelcoshampoo.com

Updates on our two special needs dogs.

Our lil dog has not had a seizure for a month and a half now.:cheesy:
We are trying her on that pottasium bromade stuff. It has not made her
lethargic at all. She is 100 times more playful, in fact. She must of really felt like shit with out it.

My puppy who was in ICU on IV's two different times as a baby, is now a healthy ,rotund and super sweet 7 months old.
I actually feel comfortable enough to have her spayed soon and seriously
thought I never would make it to this point.
I may have ruined her (a tiny bit) with my over protective issues and she is
a huge sissy.

Here's to healthy babies and relieved dads/moms/owners all!

And I so agree with you about those two product lines. They SUCK. I warned my clients not to use them. I've seen hideous burns on cats and dogs with sensitive skin from their craptastic collars.

hello all - what flea products do you recommed for adult cats. A Vet recommended revolution. I've never used it before and I'm not sure if the vet is recommending it because it is good or because this is the product they sell. We've been using Frontline but I've been told by this vet its not as good as revolution. Fleas are bad in this area and we track them in, I'm sure. The cats are all house cats but one recently developed worms and the vet is blaming frontline for not being effective enough.

Rufus

Hey , I'm glad you brought up revolution

here's a link that has some info

http://www.1800petmeds.com/Revolutio...265-10265.html

We've been getting it through the vet and I'm investigating a cheaper
way.

The flea shampoo I posted says you can use it on anything
so my duck could be getting a bath soon. ( normally I do him in Dawn)
I also need to make a call to a vet who does fowl in this area to see about
getting him a shot so he doesn't catch nothing from a damn mosquito

Here's what I do. I hate giving my animals chemicals of any kind. We have bad tick problems here in Southern VA. Most of the year I use this:

http://www.ashleysgreenproducts.net/PetPrideNoFlea.html

It really works great. Its cheap and effective. Its' also healthy for them and you'll see it in their coats.

Then two times I give them frontline- once around june and not again until august. I might even stop that too.

I also put this: http://www.garlicbarrier.com/ in a hose end sprayer. I add a teaspoon of any cooking oil. shake often and this stuff works great not only on ticks and fleas but I spray my garden weekly with this stuff. The oil helps it stay a little better. I spray around the house and dog yards. It's pricy but worth it IMO. when you start looking at the cost of flea and tick and the health risk it is.

In my house I even clean with vinegar, natural products. I dont want my a animals exposed to chemicals. I do use bleach now and then.

In our menagerie at the moment:
Angus - the dog, probably a Landseer Newfoundland mix, 80 lbs, about 2 years old, we just adopted him in May
Cerridwen - female cat, 6 year old Maine Coon mix, mackerel tabby
Liam - male cat, 5 year old Maine Coon mix, black
Willow, female cat, 9? year old calico
Nobby Nobbs - 1 year old male champagne hooded dumbo rat
Gytha - 4 month old female tangerine Bearded Dragon

We used to feed Angus Kirkland Signature kibble until we found out he's allergic to wheat and chicken. Damnit. So we had to switch him over to Blue Buffalo Whitefish and Sweet Potato. So, of course, now that he can't have wheat or chicken finding treats for him at Petsmart is all but impossible. Anyone have any great recipes for wheat-free homemade dog cookies?

how about mini rice cakes with a little peanut butter on it?
also dehydrate large pieces of sweet potato and apples.

I have made a few treats from this website
http://www.bullwrinkle.com/Assets/Recipes/Recipes.htm

The one I make for my dog Gouda which she loves and that I made for all her dog buddies for Xmas is

http://www.bullwrinkle.com/Assets/Re...20Biscuits.htm

Not saying they are the best or the healthiest. They were the easiest to make for me at the time and she ended up loving them

ETA: You could substitute rice or potato flour for the reg flour in most of those treats Im sure

Here in Texas heartworm is a huge concern.
revolution is also a preventative for that.

For me, it's the lesser of two evils. My dogs are getting that
medicine not heartworm.

yet another link
http://www.heartwormsociety.org/pet-...s/faqs.html#q9

Dude - I order frontline from this site. They use Paypal. Free shipping and a lot cheaper than 1800 ped meds.

http://www.petproductsontheweb.com/revolution.htm

Rufus

Please help...
 

I hope that as a "healthy pet" thread someone might be able to help me. I'm at my wit's end. Here is the background info: Normally I adopt all my pets from the humane society, but my gf has wanted a Boston Terrier since she was a child. I had Bostons when I was growing up and know them to be wonderful sweet animals so I went to a breeder (not a puppy mill type), and got a little boy, papers and all. The lady assured me that the puppy was up to date, vaccinated, de-wormed, etc. I also got to view the lady's other pets, as well as the parents and siblings of the puppy. They all seemed to be in perfect health so I felt confident in my purchase. I gave the puppy to my gf on Christmas Day. His name is Butch and he's around 10 wks old. He's been a wonderful, hyper, seemingly normal, happy puppy since the day we brought him home. Until last night...

Around midnight last night, he started throwing up. He refuses to eat or drink, and has become very lethargic. Now, not only is he throwing up a white foamy substance, he has also been having a horrible liquid diarrhea. I can tell he is dehydrated from the elasticity of his skin. We've been trying to get liquids into him with a puppy feeder syringe-looking thing, but it's just not enough. There are only two vets in our town, and being weekend they won't even return the emergency calls. We've also tried calling the only 24/7 emergency vet which is almost 2 hours away but they couldn't see him today either. I don't know how in the world he got so sick so fast, in just a matter of hours. He is monitored closely, and there's nothing hazardous he could have gotten in to. Could it be an underlying illness that he's had this entire time? He's had no symptoms at all of anything before last night. I am so confused and so worried.

I am freaking out here, crying on and off, and terrified that he is dying. I don't know what to do! I can't stand the thought that the little guy is suffering. Does anyone have any idea of what I can do to help him until I can get a vet to see him? Any way that I can give him some kind of comfort? Any better ideas on how to get at least fluids in him? Any advice or ideas would be so greatly appreciated. We love this little angel and can't stand the thought of losing him so soon after finding him. We would all be heartbroken, because my son is totally attached to him too. Please help...


http://i111.photobucket.com/albums/n149/cdsilv1/014.jpg

[QUOTE=dixielady;35544]Around midnight last night, he started throwing up. He refuses to eat or drink, and has become very lethargic. Now, not only is he throwing up a white foamy substance, he has also been having a horrible liquid diarrhea.



It sounds like a blockage, he may have injested a toy or part of something. Puppies are quick. I would get him in to the vet and have an xray done. The hours before they open are the longest. How is he this morning?

he needs to go to the vet asap. it could also be that he ate something toxic. you really need to supervise puppies. They get into all kinds of things.

Good luck and keep us posted.

I hope we get an update on the pup

I know you said the breeder gave all shots worming etc. I hope you saw documentation of this. Im pretty anal about that stuff and have to see documentation especially for parvo. Plus I have seen people give parvo vaccinations too late once the pup already had been exposed to the virus. Not saying thats what the pup has but its a possibility and IF thats the case getting to the VET ASAP is of the essence I wouldnt delay at all especially in a 10 week old pup

Please be cautious about using online pet pharmacies.

Also, the problem with using flea collars is not the brand, but the chemical being used. Because there is no way to control dosage in a collar, animals are frequently overdosed. If you have to use one, cut the "tag" off.

Here's a couple of articles about Frontline and Revolution. They break down the chemicals used and how they are transported through the animal's system. If you are going to use an "off brand" of these medications, please double check the main ingredient. Frequently, the "off brand" is a concentrated form of dog flea/tick dip (some version of a pyrethrin). Pyrethrins can be toxic to cats.

I have had two puppies over the last year. One made it ,one did not.
I'm hoping you have your little guy at the vet. It takes the entire series
of puppy shots before they are safe from distemper and parvo.(Something I learned the hard way)
They get dehydrated really quickly and a lot of puppies (according to my vet) die from the dehydration when people wait to take them in for help.

Our first pup died from distemper (two weeks after she had her first puppy shot) AND She also had coccidia and an infected incision from the stupid shelter that never should have required us to fix her at their clinic before we could bring her home. fuckers. She was only with us for 11 days and didnt make it even after being put on IV's amd antibiotics two different times for dehydration.
She was way underweight from the beginning.Too many things going on with her for that poor baby to fight.


Enter next underweight pup.This one from the pound.
Our 2nd pup's symptoms were pretty much the same as yours. Parvo is known for it's stinky diarrhea ( very fowl smelling) Our pup after her worming
and first shot's threw up as soon as we got home. I called them and they thought maybe she was just car sick. That night at 4 am came the diarrhea smell that is unforgettable. Some people say it was the shedding of the parvo virus from the shot. I took her back in the next day and he put her on an IV
and antibiotics for 2 days. She got rowdy,hungry and I brought her home. Then after two days she was not eating or drinking again.
So I took her back and to be on the safe side again we put her on Iv's for two or three days. She again got rowdy and ravenous so she came home but this time with an oral anitbiotic that finally fuckin worked.

None of the tests were conclusive as to what her deal was which was
nerve racking and very emotional. I was afraid to continue to get her
series of shots (thinking she again would have a bad reaction) She did not
ever have another problem. For 3 months I kept her on ID dog food to be as gentle as possible on her stomache. She's 7 months old now ,eats like a pig and is the picture of health.

I'm far from an expert but hope that I can help by putting this info out there somewhere (All of which I knew nothing about until we had our personal crisis)

Good luck with your baby and let us know how he's doing.

Parvo is also very contagious. The virus can remain alive for up to 5 mons. without a host.

I'm so glad your pup is still doing well!!