Birdie

I just thought i would update this thread. Over the last 6 months Tilly has made slow yet steady progress at homw without any vetinary intervention. She can breathe easily and is now longer squeaking when she breathes in and out or struggling to breathe. Gradually we cut down the amount of times per day/ week we cleand her nose and face and now she doesn't need it cleaning at all Occasionally her right eye runs a bit but she is able to clean it herself. I think before it was so sore she didn't even like touching it herself as she used to sort of mime cleaning i.e doing the actions but not touching her face. Her fur has all rown back around her nose and eyes and she is looking so pretty instead of sore and miserable. We have also totally cut out the homeopathic medicines now. I changed lots about her environment. Newspaper and wood shavings are banned and she has vet bed which is changed every other day and has a litter tray in a seperate compartment and a build up of urine and faeces can affect breathing too. Rdiators are off or down and the window is kept open. I am hoping now she is well enough for her vaccinations so she can play outside for a little while with Maisie. They are fine out of their bedroom but in there the fight so need to be kept seperately. Prior to this the vet had said her immunity would be compromised which is why she is still unvaccinated. I haven't wanted to tmpt fate and say this before as it has been a long road to recovery but i will try and get some pics of her now you can see how far she has come Thanks everyone for your get well wishes. They worked

Probably 'Take this bloody harness of me'

Alan and his sisters went to the Greyhound Gap Show in Birmingham last Sunday. It is about a 2 hour drive but the dogs love their little van affectionally known as the 'Bean Machine' after Holly Bean They and we enjoyed meeting and greeting everyone. The dogs did really well with Alan winning 'Best Black Dog' out of over 30 dogs and Holly coming second in 'Dog the judge would most like to take home'. Meg, Sherry and Grace entered the open class for dogs that had not yet won anything and came joint fifth. A friend of mine took these pics and i love them Alan Grace Holly Meg Sherry While we were there i bought Meg, now 9, a new harness which has worked a treat. I have spent the last 7 years trying to get Meg to walk nicely on a lead using reward based training, and stopping walking the more she pulls and other various techniques but nothing has worked and she has alway lent into her collar. But not anymore It is like walking a different dog and i am now finally enjoying walking her again as more recently Andy has walked her as it is easier on my back. I can thouroughly recommend them as it is so nice not to feel like i or she are being dragged around by the other. If you look at the pics you might notice a friend who entered his black dog in the show trying to steal Alan so he has the best black dog. The thing is Alan just walked off with him and didn't bat an eyelid . Hope you like the pics and there are some more i took in the slideshow below if you just click the link below http://s98.photobucket.com/albums/l269/kir...nt=2c7ca3ae.pbw

I am glad he had people rooting for him. He will have been here a year in August I just had a squiz through the overlooked oldies and am sad to see thet Louis is still looking

Alan has taken his regional win in his stride and has been celebrating by snoozing on the sofa That pic of him always makes me smile. He had only been here a few days travelling 200 miles from Castledon Kennels to me here is sunny west yorkshire and soon found the sofa. You wouldn't believe he is 11. Without the Oldies Club i wouldn't have Alan in my heart and home

Happy 11th Birthday Alan Today is Seskin Alan's birthday!! He is 11 years young. He has done so much since coming to live with us including, going camping in Birdie Towers (material house), winning Gap Show Black Dog 2008 and being a mentor to little Fenix our irish greyhound foster puppy. There is not a day has gone by that i have regretted taking Alan since i saw him on the Oldies Club so i have a lot to thank you for. Thanks also to Jodie at Castledon for letting us have him. It made us ...and i think him... very happy. Here is his montage with some of his best bits of the last 4 1/2 months Alan's Montage

Frances Harcourt Brown is who we would be referred to if things don't improve. I live in Yeadon near Leeds bradford Airport so Harrogate isn't that far away. I have just had the shock of my life tho. I was cleaning Tilly's nose as i have been doing twice a day when a lump of it came off I thought it was just a bit of dry blood on the end of her nose but as i have been cleaning it and applying vasaline it has sofened it and the whole scab attatched to ??dry snot?? has come off. For a minute i thought i had pulled her nose off and her nose was dying. Now i have calmed down and had another look the skin looks nice and pink and healthy underneath. it is still swollen but i think if the swelling goes down her nose will be as perfect as ever. I have applied fucithalmic lotion which has anti bacterial properties. i can't wait to see her twitch her nose again I will definatley look into the medibed

Umberto Gianni shampoo and conditioner for curly hair then their flity curls scruncing jelly. I wash mine on an evening and put it on wet hair. When i dries it initially feels like cardboard but after you have slept on it is softens beautifully and keeps my curly bonce under control which is saying something. I should mention that over the years i have tried everything and have found flirty curls the best. I tried some frizz ease spray in stuff a few years ago that was like glue in my hair so i took it back to Boots. They asked why i was returning it and i said look at m head. I got my refund

All of those ideas sound lovely and maybe i will consider them for my boy Milo that also went to the bridge this year 2 weeks before my dad . SWT (sighthound Welfar Trust) sent me a rosemary bush in his memory then Meg has diahorrea and 'went' on it the day it was planted. I had to giggle through my tears. They will never be far from us when thy are in our thoughts and hearts

Where is Westonbirt. have you a postcoade so i can google map it. I have felling it might be too far from not so sunny West Yorkshire but i am sure Alan would love meeting some other oldie although recently he has been behaving like a spring chicken

Last Thursday Tilly had her tear ducts flushed and a swab taken and today Tilly has been back to the vets today for a check up and the results of her swab. The results showed absolutley nothing . Thats right no infection there at all . The vet said it could be that any infection was too deep rooted although as they swabbed both her nose and conjunctiva i doubt it. In a way i don't know if i am pleased or not as pasturella can be a horrid infection although how can you treat something when you don't know what it is??? Thaks for info on Duphapen but as it isn't pasturella i am assuming it wouldn't be woth doing unless the specialist suggests it. I does seem then that my initail suggestion of an allergy wasn't so far fetched as this could be the root of her problems. The vet was pleased to see she had made some progress since her little op last Thursday. I also took phots to show her progress and he said that was an excellent idea. The plan is that if she continues to improve she doesn't need to go back but to just let him know how she is doing or if she doesn't improve she will be referred on to a rabbit specialist. He said it could be the flushing of her tear ducts that has helped relieve symptoms although he did impart the information that they ruptured her tear ducts doing it which i wasn't aware of before or her body is now fighting or coming to terms with whatever has caused her symptoms. He says it would be better if it was the latter as he wouldn't want her to be reliant on having that procedure done if symptoms were to reoccur. He did praise the TLC she has been recieving although wasn't a big believer in homeopathic remedies (i bought some Homoepet nose relief which she has been having for the past few days). Mainly he said because they weren't a substitute for vetinary input which some people thought which meant some animals were left to suffer unneccesarily although he said alongside vetinary input they were fine. So thats it. We are home alone to tick along doing regular nose and face cleaning in the hope she continues her recovery slowly but surely. I think i may remove wood shavings and try just with the safe paper bedding or even try vet bedding that i will have to wash. I took out newspaper a few days ago. I would love to know what it is that has caused this although i will feel really bad if it someting i have done or provided that has caused her so much discomfort. This is todays picture which is shocking to say as bad as it looks it actually looks better than it did. . This is what it looked like a few weeks ago. It looked like she had a beak This is what she should look like so you can see whay i am so upset. Continued healing thoughts for my little girl please

You must be devestated . Have fun at the Bridge Rupert

My Benjamin was always an only bunny but he lived inside so we were his family. He lived til he was 11 1/2 going to rainbow bridge this year and i miss him madly. He did share his home with 3 dogs tho so i think he probably forgot he was a rabbit. I now have 2 girls. I actually thought i had a boy and got Till from Leeds market as she looked a bit frail and i felt sorry fro her and thought Jack would love to have a bunny companion. It wasn't until i took Jack to be castrated that i found out he was a she and is now called Maisie!! Between Maisie taking a while to recover from speying and Tilly suffering from Pasturella i have been unable to bond them properly yet However Tilly always goes to sit by Maisies hutch. I do think rabbits do better in pairs but Benj had cardiomyopothy so i never had him neutered as i felt the risk too great. I am hoping my 2 girls will bond and you find a friend for Houdini

They are lovely. I have two bunnies and one poorly one at the moment Fingers crossed they find a new home soon

Poor dogs. They should be in a place of safety not a place of more pain and suffering. Is it run as a charity, how is it funded. Sometimes i despair of the human race

Hi Cycas, i hoped you would reply I think my comment was a little sweeping on reflection. What i meant was so many bunnies are bought as childrens pets and then left to their own devices as the chidren get bored. I had a bunny myself as a child but she was never handled enough and so became hard to handle therefore didn't have a great deal of interaction. We cleaned her out, gave her food and water but she really on reflection led a solitary and probably very boring life. The same is true of my neighbours bun that now does not like to be held and lived in a small hutch although they did buy it a bigger one recently. I didn't mean as she was an outdoor rabbit her owner wouldn't take her to the vet but i thought her symptoms may have been more easily missed. At the end of the day rabbits are outdoor creatures i just enjoy their company inside. I don't use plug in air freshners and the dogs are not allowed near them. Meg and Sherry have met Maisie (prior to Tilly's arrival) as they are fine with rabbits but Tilly hasn't really been well enough. Maisie lives in a seperate hutch in the same room and is not affected at all I may try a humidifier as it might help. For now i have got the window open and have just spent ages cleaning her face (seperate cottonwool pads for each eye). I am just worried about her never having had a bunny with pasturella symptoms. My bunny Benjamin had cardiomyopathy which sounds awful but as i knew all about it i learnt to live with it and he lived for 11 1/2 years. This is a new thing for me so i am at the 'just learning' stage'

Tilly update. Andy, my OH rung Mr Baxter our normal vet for his opinion and told him the story. He said pasturella was hard to treat but now she had had baytrill she couldn't have any other anti b's as they would affect her gut function. He said to carry on with fucithalmic drops we were given but wouldn't advise an op as they drill into the skull :eek: . I was under the impression they just shot water up her nose while she was anaesthetised. Occasionally we deal with brain absesses caused by sinunusitis at work (Neuro ward) which involves a bit of drilling but the vet at White Cross didn't mention Tilly would need this this. Mr B said the best thing we could do is try keep the temperature more constant so off/down goes the radiator in here and see how she goes with the drops. He said he couldn't really say to do anymore now Poor Tilly Bean Has anyone got anymore pearls of wisdom. She is only 4 months old and i don't like to see her suffering

Thanks for that advice. To be honest i have only just started going tot his practise with the bunnies as my last bunny always went to mr. baxter (of TV fame) He is excellent but am coming to terms that one day he will retire so i have been looking for alternative vet care nearby and had White Cross recommended. Alan my newest addition, a 10 1/2 year old ex racing greyhound has also been registered there but my other 4 are with Mr Baxter. i am now kicking myself that i have tried somewhere else as i know Mr Baxter would have given her an injection on ab's straight away so i feel time has been lost and she has been suffering unneccesarily. I will ring up tomorrow and ask them abou the injections

How awful Hop free little Pepper with Harvey

I am really sorry to read this. I was just about to right a reply when i scrolled down and saw he had gone to the bridge. My Benjamin died this year at the age of 11 1/2 and i miss him dreadfully. Maybe they will play together at rainbow bridge where their health is restored

My mum has a westie that i four years old. As a greyhound and lurcher owner Sam would surely do my head in if he lived with me full time as he yaps and like your dog is not backward in coming forward. I know for a fact my mum is too soft with him and i think he could benefit from training. have you thought about taking him to dog training. i have just started taking my youngest lurcher to Tailwaggers. She has been mistreated and will back away from people so i am taking her to build her confidence as at home she gets her confidence from being one of 5 dogs. The club i am taking her only has 6 dogs in the class and they all have differetn problems so it might be worth having a go. BTW Sam has also been snipped and he is still a stubborn so an so!!

My little bunny, Tilly Opal Bean, has been feeling under the weather. She has had 17 days of antibiotics (baytrill) and her symptoms have inproved slightly as in her nose isn't as red and now has a scab on it. She is still sneezing althoug not as much but the other day she started with runny sore eyes. I She has just been to the vet again (different one as it is group practise) and he said it was the worst crusty nose he had seen for a long time . He is pretty sure it is the pasturella that is causing it as she is too young for it to be her teeth. He considered taking a swab to confirm what it was but he said as she had been on Baytrill antibiotics there was probably little point as it wouldn't show anything. She now has some fucithalmic eye ointment which we can also put on her nose to keep it moist and also as it has antibiotic properties may help fight any infection. If this doesn't work in a week she will have to have an anaesthetic and have her nose flushed out Today has cost me £30 which is exactly what i paid for Tilly as she looked so sad when i saw her. Places like leeds market have a lot to answer for as i know rabbits can carry pasturella anyway but the vet said that when he first qualified years ago Leeds market sold all kinds of animals and most of the pets he saw in his practise had come from there. As a matter of interest the vet said he thought that rabbits were one of the most cruelly treated of all animals as the majority were bought as childrens pets, the children got bored and the rabbit then lived very solitary lonely lives. I have no doubt if she was an outdoor rabbit she would probably die from this as i'm sure if someone like this wouldn't continually fork out more money than she actually cost. If anyone has experience of this i would be grateful for the knowledge. Despite being a rabbit owner for 12 years my Benjamin never suffered from it and thankfully Maisie my other bunny doesn't seem to have it either. Please hope she gets better

She is too little to have babies yet but even so i am taking no chances. They are supervised when together which i am letting them be for short periods on neutral territory (i.e the bathroom) in order to bond. The bonding period can take a while anyway although things are going well so far so they won't be allowed together unsupervised for some time yet. The rest of the time they are taking it in turns to have exercise. Jack has just gone to bed and Tilly is investigating her new bedroom .

She is too little to have babies yet but even so i am taking no chances. They are supervised when together which i am letting them be for short periods on neutral territory (i.e the bathroom) in order to bond. The bonding period can take a while anyway although things are going well so far so they won't be allowed together unsupervised for some time yet. The rest of the time they are taking it in turns to have exercise. Jack has just gone to bed and Tilly is investigating her new bedroom .

I said when i took Alan that Birdie Towers was now full and had no vacancies?? Well i have managed to fit another little one in This lunchtime Andy and I popped into Leeds town centre and went to the indoor market. Not my favourite of places but the only place i knew there was a pet shop and we needed more poo bags. You get through quite a lot with five dogs. The last time i got some i bought 800 but they have all gone Anyway the pet shop i knew was there had closed so we walked round eventually coming across another by chance. I bought Alan some liver squares and the poo bags. Meanwhile Andy was round the corner in the shop looking at something and when i had paid he called me over. Well i was a bit shocked to find they had 2 rabbits for sale, 3 guinea pigs, some budgies and a ferret!!! It upset me as i don't think a market is the place to have animals for sale and fear most of them would be bought on a whim Anyway Andy pointed out one rabbit in particular. A rather pretty grey Netherland Dwarf. I immediatley melted Foolishly i asked Andy to ask the shop keeper what sex the rabbit was as i knew if she said male my mind would have been made up as you can't bond 2 males. She was a girl Now i am a great beliver in fate and we had talked about getting a friend for Jack. Benjamin was an only rabbit but he lived with us and the dogs all the time apart from bedtime as he stayed up later than us Grace's arrival kind of coincided with Benjamins illness so he came to live upstairs in the study although as his illness progressed he slept in bed with one of us in the spare room. When Benjamin died in March at the age of 11 1/2 i was devastated which is why Andy suprised me at Easter with Thomas who sadly passed away after only 3 days here. The lady that Andy had got Thomas off was so upset knowing how much i had loved Benj and was so pleased to have Thomas that she offered me Jack who i think she was going to keep for herself. I was going to say no as to be honest i had found loosing two bunnies so close together too upsetting. Anyway i decided in the end to accept and Jack came home. Because of Grace Jack has to live upstairs tho. Whilst Andy works from home and spends probably 4 hours a day in the study and i come in on an evening to come on the forums i felt he was probably lonely on his own and would never be able to have the same life that Benj had. So the end of the story is i now have a new little girl Initial meetings went well although Jack got really exited and kept squashing her and i think he was getting the horn . We decided to let them get to know each other in the bathroom as that is neutral territory. Jack was much calmer and they were sniffing each other then she started washing his face It will take some time to bond them properly but i know i have done the right thing. Jack is now old enough to be neutered so he is booked in for the 17th. She can't be done until she is 6 months old and she is only 11 weeks. Fortunaltey we have 2 hutches as we bought an outdoor one for Jack to go outside in in summer so the girls would get used to seeing him. We have brought it in and she is sitting in it behind me waving at Jack who is trying to chew through the wood to get her out to play with I do love a happy ending Oh and by the way we think she will be called Tilly