Just had to show off the new additions..not a snake!

[MegF.]

Just had to show everyone my new puppies. They will be coming home in four weeks. The one in the picture with my husband is the Rhodesian Ridgeback I picked out. Her name is Akilah, which is African for intelligent, one who reasons. The other is the ridgeback my husband fell in love with. She is ridgeless, but the most loving critter ever. Since she chose him I'll let him figure out a name for her.

[Tiffy]

Oh my gosh, that is so cute!!! Im such a sucker for puppies, and am jealous, because I havn't had a *true* puppy since my now 11 year old dog was one..*sighs*

[MegF.]

Glad you like them. I have a 13 yr. old lab now. She's been very lonely since we had to put down our other ridgeback who was 13 1/2. She'll have lots of friends now. Here's my lab.

[Tiffy]

awww, all grey and stuff, lol...my lab is the same...hang on ..he looks young, but he has a REALLY gray chin..

http://img34.photobucket.com/albums/v102/xXxBloodLustTiffyxXx/100_1312.jpg

[MegF.]

That is so cute! I love his little matching teddy bear! He looks in good shape.

[Tiffy]

He has bad arthritis and has to take pills for it twice ad day, but otherwise, he's fine ^_^ lol

[MegF.]

Mine takes Duramaxx once a day for Arthritis too. She's doing pretty good. Has a few lumpy bumpies from lipomas here and there on her, but the vet says not to put her thru surgery to remove them unless they become a real problem. They are benign.

[Tiffy]

Yes, my dog has a few bumps too, but it's not...dangerous or anything, the doctor says it's just him getting old....*shrugs*

[SexyHero]

He has bad arthritis and has to take pills for it twice ad day, but otherwise, he's fine ^_^ lol

We have a dog that has arthritis. we give her glucosamine, is there anything else that we could try that is not too expensive. She has gotten to where she doesn't even want to get up to go out, she just pees in the floor. It's sad.

[CptCupcakes]

:cheers: This is my corgi when he was a puppy :) hes a year old now

[MegF.]

I would definitely try getting into the vet and trying out the Duramax. It's not overly expensive, and it seems to be working well. You can also try something like MSM, but I would start with a low dose as it's sulphur based and makes for a stinky dog if they're not used to it.

[SexyHero]

Thanks! It's my fiances family dog, and his mom took her to the vet and the pills there were too expensive....this may sound dumb, but what is MSM? I've never heard of it? Is it over the counter?

Oh and....everyones dogs are too cute...I have 2 cats
(can't figure out how to get pics on here)

[MegF.]

MSM is short for Methyl-Sulfonyl-Methane. It is an over the counter supplement found in most vitamin sections in the area where the Condroitan and Glucosamine supplements are.

[babbaloo99]

Meg, congrats on the additions to your family. So let's see, that's three dogs, two snakes (a horse?), what's next? They are adorable. It's good to see your black lab has an interest in gun values. I can't seem to get my labs to read anything these days! :)

[babbaloo99]

MSM is short for Methyl-Sulfonyl-Methane. It is an over the counter supplement found in most vitamin sections in the area where the Condroitan and Glucosamine supplements are.

(sorry about the red, but I haven't figured out yet how to insert a quote)

Does anyone know if the MSM or Glucosamine are good for pain caused by hip problems in dogs? My brown lab is only 7 years old but the vet said his hips are bad. Seems like he has a hard time getting up sometimes.

[MegF.]

I have heard that both are good for the condition. Companies like Springtime sell tablets called "Fresh Factors" that are for dogs, and people for that matter. They contain almost pure Glucosamine. I don't know how effective it will be on your dog. I know the prescription stuff is working real well for my lab. There's Rimidil and Duramax by prescription, but Duramax appears to be less toxic to the liver.

[SexyHero]

Thanks Meg! I love how everyone on here is not afraid to help a fellow member! :crazy02:

[MegF.]

No problem! It is a good site. Babbaloo: It's 3 dogs, one cat, 3 horses, 2 snakes with 2 on the way. Getting a couple more Okeetees. If the breeder I got my original ridgeback from has a litter, we might end up with one more puppy in a couple of months......gads....it's a herd!

[Tiffy]

We have a dog that has arthritis. we give her glucosamine, is there anything else that we could try that is not too expensive. She has gotten to where she doesn't even want to get up to go out, she just pees in the floor. It's sad.


My dog also takes Glucosamine...but he's not to that point yet, if he gets to that point, we're going to put him down..we've all agreed on it..

[MegF.]

I'm with you Tiffy. When quality of life goes, it's time to let them go. That's what we had to do in April for our Ridgeback. I figure it's one gift we can give them. A dignified exit.

[moonshadow]

you guys should talk to your vets. glucosamine helps but in the long run they ussually need something else. ask your vet about Rimadyl (carprofen) or Metacam (meloxicam). They work wonders for some animals. not cheap though... but there's a lot of options out there and they keep coming up with new drugs that help a lot more than the old ones.

[MegF.]

I prefer the Duramax over the Rimadyl. It seems to have less toxic effects on the liver, and works as well.

[moonshadow]

Yeah, Duramax works well too. But since you'd already mentioned it I just figured I'd throw out a couple more options. :)

[MegF.]

Rimadyl's been around for a while, but I know they've had some problems with liver toxicity. I'm not familiar with Metacam.

[moonshadow]

Metacam is fairly new. I know some vets who swear by it and others who are only lukewarm. It doesn't always work, but when it works it seems to work really well, and we haven't seen any bad side effects from it yet. It made a couple of dogs nauseous, but then you just switch them to another drug. And yes, rimadyl can potentially cause some serious liver side effects, but so can deramax. both carprofen and deracoxib can cause severe kidney, liver and gastrointestinal problems. They are very similar drugs that work in much the same way. Dogs on these kinds of medications should always be monitored carefully. But, having said that, we have't seen any serious side effects with these. We did see a couple of dogs come in with gastric problems, but these were very old dogs who had been on rimadyl continuously for years. anyhow meg, you sound like you've done your research and are taking great care of your animals! :wavey:

[MegF.]

Worked for a vet for a while, and having geriatric animals, you get info here and there. I figure by the time any sort of liver problems manifest themselves in my 13 year old lab, she'll have other age related problems. I certainly don't think the Duramax will cause her enough problems to worry about at her age. She's going to be a "nanny" for our two new pups coming in two weeks though.....I'm hoping she'll keep them in line :)

[Skye]

nicely put Meg,

Skye

[MegF.]

Well, they came home yesterday. Here are the little terrorists at the house. The one with the ridge is named Akilah, and the one without, is named Ona. My poor lab, and cat have not decided if the two are worth the trouble or not!

[marg]

hiya :wavey:

My husbands black labrador has exzema and it affects her ear too...........she has had steroids and ear drops in the past but the last few weeks she seems to be itching much more all over and her ear is too sore to touch. last time she went to the vet he said there wasnt much more than the usual treatment.... has anyone any suggestions??? apart from seeing a different vet ( which I am considering) she hurts herself with scratching.

thank you

[moonshadow]

Meg they are gorgeous!!! :cheers: And I know your lab will be a great nanny!

[moonshadow]

oh yeah, to marg, I am only a tech and not a vet so I don't know what to tell you. maybe try a different vet? :shrugs: perhaps, someone else has some advice.
BTW what is your "usual treatment?"

[MegF.]

Thanks! Ona has decided that emptying the cat's water bowl all over the kitchen floor is great fun. Evil little child!
Marg: My old ridgeback had allergies too. Same problems. I used to wash her ears out with ear wash, and then use a boric acid/goldbond powder mixture after they were a little dry. The boric acid can be toxic (don't inhale the powder and wash your hands after use), but it is safe to use as an ear powder. Most commercial ear powders have it in there. It dries everything real well, and the goldbond has menthol in there that gives it a cooling and itch relief property. Not much more you can do except keep the ears as clean as possible. Desitin ointment works well to heal the cuts and scratches in the ear too.