Anne Grose

OK - the same treatment as I am giving Barty for his bulging disc. He has acupuncture and a herbal medicine. Was interested in case there was something else I was missing. Barty did his disc in when he was about 4 - he is nearly 8 now and with his other physical problems will be lucky to make older bones than your girl,

what treatment have you given your girl blackmagic for the disc problem????

It sounds like he has developed a little arthritis in that shoulder so a supplement like Cortaflex - which is a glucosamine/Chondroitin/MSM supplement - would probably do him some good. If it gets worse you could ask your vet about a course of Cartrophen injections - which helps the cartiledge around the bony surfaces, (Not carprofen which is is Rimadyl). Also known to be very good. HTH Anne

She looks absolutely wonderful, I am so jealous, would love another little collie

Sounds like something stuck in his teeth or gum to me. Fact that he is peeing and poohing without problem doesn't really reflect a stomach problem. Get your regular vet to check his teeth properly on Monday. The emergency vet was probably too scared of being bitten to check them properly

Fantastic , this will be just the start and I promise you, you will never go back to feeding prepared foods. The health of both your dogs will improve and they will both be so much happier. Good luck and if you need any more advice you know where to come

The Bristol vet school also gets very good reports - if you remember Flora that is where she went for her THR

Poor Jumble, Barty sends his love and woofy licks. What supplements have you got him on - I have Barty on Cortaflex which does help him greatly. I have to beg to differ about nature ruling out a surgical option for the dear boy. It is possible to get around it and an FHO might give him a better long term quality of life than leaving him on Metcam for life. Metcam, as I am sure you know, isn't without long term health risks to liver and kidneys and I would urge you to at least ask for a referral to a top hip specialist. If you are anywhere near Nottinghamshire I can thoroughly recommend Barty's old specialist - Graham Oliver. Anyway more love and hugs sent as I know how hard it is to watch our special "hipless" boys struggle

Actually this is a good source - I used to use them all the time when I was in the UK. They are based in Rugeley and you can go and collect what you want from them - no minimum order if you collect. they don't do the more exotic stuff just the basics but you would be able to get chicken and tripe from them and they do a mix chicken and offal too Anne

Perhaps he is allergic to the Rice rather than a meat source - personally I would eliminate that before I started eliminating meat proteins

It sounds like he has become more allergic to either his food or something in his environment. How old is he? When did he last have his vaccinations?? Any other changes in his life?? Gas in the gut suggests that he isn't digesting his food properly. Burns is made from a great deal of brown rice which tbh dogs aren't designed to digest - I would look at some other form of food. If you don't want to home cook how about NatureDiet or natures Menu?? Anne

DAF get really good write ups from my raw feeding list - so if you are in the NE and their delivery area it would appear they are a good choice. Anne

Griff feeding a home cooked diet is extremely easy. Use the ratio of 70% meat to 30% fruit and vegetables - no need to add potato unless you really want to. Then add a bit of bone meal and a good multi vitamin (I used SeaFeed) when I home cooked and job is done. I used to put the veg in a food processor and mush them down and then lightly cooked them. I used ready made mince and then mixed it together when it again had been v lightly cooked. Try not to overcook it as you will lose all the goodness. I made large batches and then froze in portion sizes so I only had to cook every now and again. If you are willing to give raw feeding a go then that is even easier as you are not killing of the vitamins and don't need bone meal or a vitamin supplement, unless your dogs are really old. If you want more help - pm me and I will be more than happy to give any advice I can. I haven't fed commercial dog food in 18 years. Anne, Barty & Chloe

I don't know whether it is OK but I think it is a very kind offer - Barty's PLT tablets cost a lot of money every year so I am sure someone will appreciate this. I won't ask for them as I am in France and that is too far to post them but I am sure someone else will appreciate the offer Anne

Cher I am devastated to hear this - I know how much she meant to you.

So sad at this time of year when they leave us. Give yourself a big hug and know that everyone is thinking of you. Anne, Barty & Chloe

Sleep well Grace - Rainbow Bridge has welcomed another star - hugs to your mum who must be hurting a lot today

My sympathies with Lynn, Todd was a lovely little man. He will be sadly missed

Oh Billy I know how much that means - WELL DONE YOU AND KIERA - and yes I am shouting from the rooftops you are BRILLIANT. Anne, Barty & Chloe

Well since we moved to France - I have been teaching my two the basic commands in french !!!! The most important one being va-t-on which means p*ss off in French or seriously go away. Thought the dogs might need to know what that meant. However on the positive front - they both know assis and viens ici which means sit and come - working on descends now or down. Great fun and both dogs are enjoying their new training. Anne, Barty & Chloe

Happy gotcha day beautiful boy from all of us here

No you aren't missing anything - my collies have all rather died than wear a coat. Barty my lurcher will only wear one when the temperature drops beneath 0C and then he refuses to go out without it. Each to their own Anne

Barty has courses of PLT for his bulging disc problem and has been having them for a couple of years. They contain about 1mg of prednisolone so it is a very low dose of steroid but he does still have slight side effects - gets very hungry and drinks a little more. Rimadyl also has what can be severe side effects and they do have a long term effect on the liver/kidneys. I think PLT is frowned on nowadays because it is supposed to be old-fashioned. The NSAID's were supposed to be a wonderful saviour of our dogs but tbh they aren't and I actually prefer to give PLT than Rimadyl. Anne, Barty & Chloe

Run free Smudge - Rainbow Bridge has welcomed another beautiful soul today

Glad things are improving - bless him. They hate not to be clean. Hugs all round