Peachy

Poor Lizzie. White Horse Hill is lovely for doggy walking, would be fab up there today, but having a fight when you get home isn't what you want. to you as well. It's exhausting when you've got two that don't always get on and you end up being on edge, which I'm sure they sense. Maybe Zara needs reminding who's boss and where she is in the pecking order?

Good luck Harvey, I'll be thinking of you. Hope it all goes well x

Oh my, he's very very cute. I can see why you didn't take much persuading! I'd have him snuggled up next to me in my bed, the sweet little tinker boy. Hello Jack

Morning, Afternoon and Evening to everyone For everyone who needs them (and also for everyone else) My RMFs are: 1) I have an interview tomorrow Despite spending five years as a Recruitment Consultant, interviewing people all day/everyday and spending the past eight years in sales, I'm carp at interviews and can't sell myself (in the right way, of course!) I'm pooping myself. 2) My kitchen tilers were officially sacked today. I have a new man, proper tiler man, coming on Wednesday to start again 3) More importantly than the interview or tiles, I have a bit of spare time and an oven that needs using so I'm cooking roast potatoes, roasted parsnips, roasted carrots (why boil when you can roast roast roast), a quorn fillet, stuffing, SPROUTS and gravy. Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm 4) CarpetRight should be renamed CarpetWrong (or better still CarpetNoCarpet) 5) My filter tap in my kitchen isn't filtering the water and my kettle is furry. Rangemaster said that it's because it's only improves taste and odour, but their brochure and techy leaflet thingy said it reduces limescale. So expensive filter taps give you fur. Please note. 6) I prefer light evenings Can someone switch the sun back on?

That's a positive post to read, Natalie I've taken comfort from it because I've read so much of the other side of the coin and relied on hearsay for how things might turn out. It's good to hear from someone who is already travelling down the road that I'm just starting on. Muckyhen, I hope you don't think I'm hijacking your thread

Oh I love it!! She looks so pleased Edited because I can't write properly

to you and Flora Ronnie also has HD. He's only been with me for three weeks and I took him on knowing about the problems we might encounter. He's a two year old greyhound. You might have seen his x-ray when I posted it a couple of weeks ago. You can see on the left of the screen as you look at it, he doesn't really have a ball and socket joint. It's completely distorted and grown out of shape. This x-ray was taken in July 2006. I can't imagine what I might look like now. TBH, I don't know if Ronnie is aware of it. He doesn't seem to struggle, except for the stairs but there's no real need for him to go up there. He needs lifting in the car as well but that might be because he's not happy about travelling. I've got him on glucosamine but will be changing to Synflex, thanks to Madmerle. He also wears a Bioflow collar, which I can highly recommend (about £30 online). I've read quite a lot recently to help understand more about HD and it seems actually quite common sadly. My vet seemed unpanicked (but so far we've only talked on the phone about him), as if she has managed a lot of cases. She said they don't normally recommend surgery in the vast majority of cases and usually opt for pain management, good diet and controlled exercise. I need to meet the vet and discuss it in more detail but from what I've read, I'm not sure about surgery. As with everything, there are risks, but in some cases it can make it worse which I would never want to happen. Like you, I find the pros and cons list is confusing, full of conflicting information and guilt-ridden. I too have the cost issue to consider as Ronnie had this condition when I took him on so no insurance company would take him, as I've always said, I will always do the right thing for my dogs and cats. I would have to make sure I trust the vet enough to know they were recommending it because it's right for Ronnie and not because they think I can claim on the insurance so won't mind what they suggest. I'm sure you've done your homework but is your vet giving you the 'worse case scenario' or being objective about how Flora is now and how he/she sees her coping with HD? I'm a novice with this and I'm keen to read the responses as much as you are. I just wanted to say hang on in there and give you a . Keep Flora happy and stimulated because that's half the battle of giving them the strength. Ronnie says hi and wondered if Flora would like a handsome greyhound as boyfriend?

All food need special taste testing, doesn't it? They look like they're having a great time! I clicked through and saw your Bridge tributes, so lovely. Ratties Got me thinking of all my past ratty friends. Such little characters. I loved all my ratties so much

Oh wow!! I fink I luff him I have an urge to give his nose some sloppy kisses

Exactly my point, Ian. A locum saying 'I don't know' and suggesting I see another vet isn't worth £28 of my money. I said 'I don't know' in the first place so I took him to the vet. Nobody paid me £28 Any offers? To be fair, she was very friendly and I'm a sucker for good manners You are right, vets are like GPs and know a bit about most things but don't all 'specialise' in certain areas. If they do, they can command 'specialist' fees and referrals. If I'd had my clever head on that day, I would have just taken Alfie to the specialist's surgery, as he's also registered from a while back, and paid £25 for a standard consultation with the specialist vet. As it was, I had my not very clever head on (again) I also meant to say thank you for the link you posted. I still couldn't find the vets I wanted I still find the range in fees really interesting. It's got a lot to do with north or south and a lot to do with the vets themselves. Phoenix and batmobile - you are both VERY lucky having vets you trust and that charge very competitively

Coming back with a fierce £115

I've just realised that I'm bidding on the teeth descaler AND doggy biscuits Maybe that's where I'm going wrong

£5

£105

£8

Here here!! I used to have quite a few (about 17 at one point) rescue ratties and one of them cost me a small fortune in getting lumps removed. She was such a feisty little ratty and was prepared to take on the world so I wasn't about to stop her. She lived to a ripe old ratty age in the end and my lovely vet (at the time) even sent me a little card saying how much she'd miss her All of them deserve whatever we can do in their best interests. There's nothing else to say.

I've seen other people mention Synflex as well. Thanks for that, I might have to have a chat with Little Miss Google about that and see what she recommends. I've also read that liquid versions are better absorbed and have been clinically proven to be more effective so definitely worth a try! Synoquin is...... Synoquin Cat is a uniquely patented combination of Pharmaceutical grade Chrondrotin and Glucosamine in the following amounts: Glucosamine (99% pure) 225mg, Chondrotin Sulphate (95% pure) 175mg, N Acetyl Glucosamine 99% pure 25mg, Ascobic acid (Vitamin C) 25mg, Zinc sulphate 15mg. I've definitely got stuck in a rut with Synoquin and have mindlessly being paying out for it for about 4 years without giving it any thought It's interesting to see how the individual charges vary, isn't it. Some people pay more for consultations but less for treatments and vice versa. It all works out to be much the same, I'm sure.

Lester Lucky Jess, having such a good looking friend to call her own

Before I start, I want to say that I would never deny my dogs (or cats) any treatment that the vet or I thought would be in their best interests. I've gone through stages in insuring them, then not, then starting again. At the moment, it's just Alfie that is still insured and I'm going back to the point where I think that the savings account/vet fund is the best option, when taking into account the excesses on policies Anyway, back to the point. I was just reading Coryn's post about Kimbo and noticed that the council vet was quoting £150 for two x-rays. I recently paid my vet £320 for one x-ray (under anaesthesia). I've also noticed in other posts (but can't remember which ones) that vets fees seem to be quite a lot less than mine. Out of interest, what are the sort of prices that your vet charges? For example, a consultation with my vet is £28 (and a few pennies). I took Alfie a few weeks ago about a black mark in his eye. The locum said she didn't think it was anything nasty although had never seen anything like it before. She got another vet in the surgery to look and she said the same. For peace of mind, I was referred to the other vet in my town as he is an eye specialist. I ended up paying my vet £28 to tell me nothing, and then the other vet surgery £94 for their specialist view. The end result - iris cysts and nothing to worry about I also get Synoquin (glucosamine) from my vet for Lucy, my arthritic cat. £37.05 for 90 capsules. I found them online for £28 Guess who will be asking her surgery for a prescription to order online...? I also realised that I'm much better off getting Frontline in bulk at Crufts because it's much cheaper than getting it from my vets. I used to have a really good relationship with a couple of key vets at my surgery but they've both left and I'm desperate to find out where they have gone. I've tried calling the local surgeries but to no avail I'm starting to think that, after years at the same surgery, it might be worth finding a new vet. I always seem to see someone new nowadays and they all seem to be fresh out of vet school. In some cases, I feel that I know more than they do about certain things and they always look a bit scared/bamboozled when I say things like 'Rapinovet please', 'Oh, Rimadyl. Are you sure?', 'I have some Metacam at home', 'Not ACP, I want diazepam'. I'm sure I'm in the wrong job. Well, I know I am but that's another story PS Ronnie is fast asleep but his bum is wide awake. Full hooman-stylee raspberries being shouted at me

Mods, am I allowed to sneak a post in to say that the coat is as new, in really good condition, clean, ironed and ready to be worn proudly? The photo is a bit rubbish (my fault for rushing and not getting the iron out before!) but it really is a nice clean coat

£6

£4

£6

My thoughts exactly!! The auction is a bit addictive though, isn't it? It's just like ebay but you know the money is going to a very worthy cause and there is no horrible postage catches so it makes it much more fun and gives you a nice warm feeling

£80 Fierce bidding already underway