Ruthi (borrowadog)

Size doesn't matter with homoeopathy. One tablet is as good/effective as a hundred. But potency and frequency does. Unfortunately the homoeopathic world isn't agreed on the prophylactic use of remedies, so there isn't much information on what to prescribe. This isn't the place for a discussion of the use of prophylaxis in homoeopathy, and I am not an expert (but I am a trained homoeopath) Despite the fact that theoretically it shouldn't work, I have found it an effective preventative when using nosodes, which are prepared from the disease material (for example, you can get Malaria nosode, made from malaria bacteria)When using prophylactic nosodes I generally give 30c once monthly. I've never used something like Hepar Sulph like this, but for want of a better idea, I'd probably use 30c monthly too. The fun bit with a horse is to get the tablet in without touching it yourself, or allowing it to touch any food. You might be better getting it in liquid form from Ainsworth's or Helios, and just putting a drop on his nose. He'll lick it off for you, I'm sure! Hepar Sulph is the remedy used when there is an abcess which has failed to 'find a way out'. When you use it, it will either make the abcess disappear magically, or help it to find a route out. So if Loki already has some infection which you are not aware of it could go either way. It could just clear up and you never know about it, or it could drain, and around teeth that can be painful. If your dentist is a homoeopath he'll have considered Loki's constitution and have a good idea which way he might go. If he's not a homoeopath I'd suggest you consider consulting one before you go this route. There is an extremely good homoeopathic vet in Beaconsfield, and a consultation won't cost you much. ***Legal disclaimer*** Its illegal for anyone other than a vet to treat an animal (but owners must prevent suffering) so I am not prescribing, or suggesting treatment for Loki. I am just telling you what I would do, if he were my horse, and if I decided to give him the remedy.

I have friends who suffered greatly, but to be honest, it was nothing much for me. A few hot (well warm, really) flushes, a few night sweats, and that is it. However, I am even more absent-minded now than before, and I've always been a bit dotty.

You could try Berkshire Search and Rescue. They mostly look for lost people, of course, but they might be persuaded. Or any of the other search and rescue clubs in the area.

Well it did nothing for Tiger, but I didn't realise that you could 'over' dose. Maybe I should call the nice lady? Zylkene did work on him, and was great at reducing the weight of my wallet. But he got worse again when I stopped. I regret the wallet didn't gain weight.

Minnie is doing well, and much more cheerful. I am just amazed at her resilience. MY LIFESTYLE IS WRONG FOR A THIRD DOG la la la..... If it weren't I'm not sure she would have arrived at Adam and Amy's :wub:

The staffie is a little cutie, apparently she couldn't stand up yesterday for the drugs, today she just seemed shell-shocked. Anyway, she's safe with Adam and Amy now, at least for the time being. She's explored the garden, tried out the garden chairs and the sofa, and I left her sunning herself while Amy looked her out some food. Poor love didn't travel well. I've had to take out the rubber mat in the crate and hose off the puke and dribble, and I had to wipe her down too when we arrived. Her name is Minnie, and you can follow her progress on the Rescue Remedies forum.

Yes, how can I help you? Can you tell me how much you charge for dog boarding? We charge £20/day. Tell me about your dog. Its not my dog, its my daughter's, and my son is looking after it for her while she is on holiday. But its a puppy, 18months old, and its quite big and its just too boisterous for him, in a flat. Well I'm afraid we are fully booked at the moment. Well can you recommend anyone else? He just can't cope with it. Then follows the usual conversation. Eventually I said she might get it into kennels, but to be honest they are booked up too at this time of year. And then I said, 'Quite honestly, 18 months isn't that much of a puppy any more. He should have been to classes by now, and not be all that boisterous any more' The reply? Get this 'Well they can't afford it, with only one of them out at work.' I'm afraid I've not done much for Petpals reputation. I said 'The can't afford it? They can afford to go on holiday. The truth madam, is that they can't be bothered. They've got a dog, but they are too lazy to make the effort to train it. And in a year or two they will take it to a rescue saying that they don't have time for it, or their child is allergic, or their circumstances have changed. And its too boisterous for your son, but you expect to dump it on me for a week.' Now I am off to collect a dog that has just come into Staffie Rescue high on drugs. I am right off people today! Rant over

Isn't that illegal? Oh yes, silly me, of course it is, has been for nearly 40 years! Of course its one thing saying it is, and another going to an industrial tribunal and proving it. But if I were you the very least I would do is collect the evidence so that you can take them to the cleaners if they sack you. Oh, and I would join a union too, they would help you fight the case.

I'd still avoid them like the plague, because they've done nothing about the unqualified staff undertaking medical procedures. They can discipline as many people as they like, but it will all happen in the future because the staff aren't skilled enough. That poor red setter!

Well done that Penguin! How is Katie?

So do I! Yes we get a fair few owners who are so precious over their pooches that its a wonder the dogs aren't in nappies, but that just enables me to charge a premium price - and give a premium service. We get lots of customers who have talked to Barking Mad and refuse to hand their dogs over when they hear the terms. £5 is about right. They spend a huge amount of time and effort recruiting boarders (one of mine has come by that route too - 'What? £5 when the owner is paying £20?') and look especially for older people who fancy having a dog around, but don't want the commitment or the cost. The idea is that the fiver is just to cover expenses and wear and tear, and the boarders are really volunteers. Its not a model I would want to operate because I would feel I was cheating my boarders. And a license costs £120 round here, so I can't imagine many boarders being prepared to shell out that much if all they get is a fiver.

Barking Mad is a very successful franchise operation. I am told that the reason that they don't want you seeing where the dog goes is not that they have anything to hide from you, but that they pay their hosts very little and don't want any private deals between hosts and owners. I am also told that not only is there a registration fee, but they will charge you for taking your dog to the place you aren't allowed to see. And for bringing it back. And I am told they are very slick sales people, and its a serious business. They don't necessarily have to be interested in animals, its how good a sales person they are that counts. I've never heard of any complaints about the way the dogs are treated, however. All of the above is hearsay, by the way, so not admissible in court! I'd best declare my interest, I have a Petpals franchise. We work very differently. We INSIST that owners visit the home the dog is going to, and meet the host. If the owner won't make the effort to visit, I won't accept their dog. I also insist that the dog stays for a trial night or two before they are first left for a long time, so everyone can sort out any problems that might arise. The owner normally delivers their dog and collects it. We pay our boarders more than double what Barking Mad pay, and trust them not to rip us off. Round here we also insist that our boarders are licensed with the local authority (I have mixed feelings about licensing, but I won't ask anyone to break the law for me!). Most of my competition are avoiding licensing. But not being licensed when the local authority has not made it optional means their insurance in invalidated. I charge £30 for two dogs, but there are no extras. If there is a local-ish branch of Petpals then try them. And if your local authority says licensing is not optional (it is in some areas) then get a list of licensed home boarders from them.

Seamus, our pocket lurcher ?whippet/beardie? is increasingly reluctant to get into the back of hubby's Mondeo estate. He's perfectly happy to get into the back of my Berlingo van, though. In a month's time we are going on our holidays ooop norf, which involves a four hour car journey. I'm getting a bit worried about this! Any ideas? Seamus is 4-5 and healthy as far as I know.

So sorry. :GroupHug:

I've used one on little Darri (who hated it!). It fastens behind the head, so is really only any use on little dogs, IMHO. Personally I'd suggest you talk to a trainer, but if he were mine, I'd be walking him on his own when on lead, and distracting him with lots and lots of treats. I don't think its realistic to even try to control 3 powerful dogs on lead if one is getting upset. Ruth

Just watched it - amazing considering my needle phobia, and general squeamishness. What I couldn't understand was how they could say they weren't cruel. Half an hour to get a catheter into a distressed dog isn't cruel? No wonder they end up hating the vets! I know that Tiger is a wriggler. But I would expect them to know what they were doing and get it over with quickly - preferably under sedation. I suspect I will need lots of reassurance when I next hand my dog over to my (wonderful) vets.

Usually a company puts the job out with a guide salary. However if they are large they may have one or more agencies working with them regularly, and if they often have lots of similar vacancies the agency will put someone forward, even if they haven't been told specifically that there is a vacancy. And yes, they are definitely competing. Relatively few companies set up real partnerships with a recruitment agency. That's because they are acutely aware that recruitment is a sales function, and that anyone will sell them anything. My advice is to wait until the company asks in the second interview what you are looking for, then say that you've seen the job advertised at 15 and you think that is fair to start. If they are only prepared to offer less, then they will justify that to you - maybe the other advert is actually for a different job. Try not to let the agency negotiate the salary. If its not come up by the end of the interview, then say you'd like to talk about salary. Its much harder for a recruiter to say no to you directly, or lower the offer, than to use the agency to beat you down! Most companies are prepared to pay a fair rate for the job, because they know that they will lose you if they are paying you 20% under the odds! But its a good idea to do as much research as you can about pay rates in the industry, so if necessary you can quote what the competition is paying. And, of course, you can quote the agency that says the job pays £15k. Ignore the ones that are claiming its too much. Remember that agencies don't work for you, they work for the employer. So they will do their best to drive you down if they think that will get them more work from the employer in the future. Have worked briefly in recruitment, but I couldn't stand the hard sell. Most of my experience is as a career coach. I'm not keen on agencies, they generally muddy the water, and are in it entirely for No 1. But in some industries its the norm to use them, so you have no choice but to work through them. ETA, the cut the agency gets isn't related to your salary, its just a cost of recruiting to the employer. Your chances are only improved by being put forward by several to the extent that they will each write you up differently, so you have a higher chance of catching their eye. But since you are in the interview process now, there is little point in being put forwarded by more agencies.

O B****r, screen's all blurry again! :bigsmiley: :bigsmiley: Well done Murf!

Your poor mum must be having such a hard time watching your distress, let alone loving Murf herself. Don't be too hard on her! I do agree with everyone else, he WILL tell you!

I think you will find that different local authorities interpret the law in different ways. As a home boarder(and I think its all the kennels too), if I have a kennel cough outbreak here, I have to be shut down for 2 weeks for KC. 5 miles away the local authority doesn't even bother with home boarders - they can have 10 dogs in a cottage if they want to.

So sorry, Clare. Its such a nightmare for you, with it not being clear cut what to do. Lots and lots of hugs. :GroupHug: :GroupHug: for you both Ruth

:GroupHug:

Oh Clare!! :GroupHug:

Oh Marmite! I had hoped that Kynoch's would get you sussed. Lots of healing munchy thoughts, pretty girl. Ruth

The trouble is that this man is clearly not able to see his own part in the disaster - and if the dog had been his own he'd have reacted in the same way. Of course walking lots of dogs you don't know well increases the risks, because its difficult then to watch them all. To be honest there are loads of folk out there who shouldn't be in charge of a dog, let alone four. I have them applying to me for jobs all the time! One little Bichon and they think they know about dogs! Its possible that we wouldn't need full regulation, just a professional association that trains and self-regulates. If we can get the owners to the point that they are asking - are you a member of the 'Association of Professional Dogwalkers?' - but that is probably pie in the sky. I, for one, haven't got the time or energy to start it! Dogwalking is not a high profit business (unless you do it irresponsibly) because owners aren't really prepared to pay enough for the service. But if we don't uphold standards we just hand more ammunition to the anti-dog brigade. Oh, and it wasn't a disabled child that hit our dog. It was a full grown man in the company of a carer who refused to take the stick away from him when requested saying 'He won't do anything'.