Is your dog crying when he wags his tail or when he sits down?

This is often a case of swimmers tail or cold tail.

It happens when the dog has been swimming a lot (over use), usually in very cold water, but not always the case.

I give a bufferin (one per day) for 2-3 days and it clears up.

Never give regular aspirin, tylenol or advil to your dog.

There are other common names and reasons for this condition that

you will see in this article:

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/issues/8_1/features/15685-1.html

If you suspect something else causing the pain p1ease consult your vet.

Patty

www.snowcolabradors.com

White vinegar is a wonderful non toxic product.

Most important are the floors in your house.  

You and your dogs absorb products thru the feet/pads so its best to use none toxic products on floors.

I mix 1 part vinegar to 3 parts water for mopping.  I have also read 1/4 cup of vinegar to 1 gallon of water.

I fill a spray bottle and keep it on hand.  Its easy to spray the floor for mopping.  Or you can buy a mop (like Swiffer sp) that allows you to refill the container.  Swiffer mops don’t have this option.  You have to keep buying their refills.

More uses:

1 cup vinegar and 5 cups water to clean windows.

Use full strength to rid kitchen containers of stale food odors.

Dilute vinegar with water and boil on the stove to remove cooking odors.

Moisten a paper towel with vinegar and wrap around faucets to remove hard water deposits.

Clean your dishwasher: fill a bowl with vinegar and place on bottom rack of dishwasher with no other dishes in the machine and run the cycle, turning off the machine before the drying cycle.

I read that when vinegar comes in contact with copper or lead it van create a deadly poison, so store vinegar in glass containers or the original jug it comes in.

Patty

www.snowcolabradors.com

Rosemary and garlic biscuits

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup ground sunflower seeds

1 tspn kelp

1 tspn rosemary

2 eggs, beaten

1/2 cup chicken stock

2 cloves pressed garlic

Combine all dry ingredients and mix well.  Then combine wet ingedients until well blended.

Mix both together, adding more chicken broth as needed, to form a stiff dough that can be formed into a ball by hand.  Set dough aside for 30 minutes

Roll dough out to 1/4″ thick and cut into squares.

Place on baking sheet, they can be crowded and bake 30 min. at 350 degrees.

For firmer buscuits turn off the oven and leave them in the oven until it cools.

Yields 4 to 8 dozen depending on the size.

Whenever we have a big storm here I lose a lot of pine branches from my trees.  My one girl , Miya, always loves to lay out in the sun and ends up on top of these sap filled branches making a mess of her coat

There are a number of suggestions on the internet, most of which require bathing the area after removal of the sap:

Olive oil

Peanut butter

Mayonnaise

Butter

Coconut oil

Baby oil

Tree sap removal products : be very careful that the product you choose is safe for dogs or cats.

Here’s a better idea and one I have not tried yet, but recommended by a friend who has.

Flour or baby powder:  massage into the sap with fingers and work in well to absorb the stickiness.  Brush the area with a fine tooth comb.

No bathing needed!

Please post if you try this method and let me know how it works.

Patty

www.snowcolabradors.com

If you notice your dog squinting and eye(s) tearing it can be a sign of an eye injury or infection.

In my case my girl had a scratched cornea.  The vet does a die test and uses a black light to see the scratch.

If you have ever had a scratched cornea you know how painful it is.

According to my vet, while a human will heal very quickly from this, dogs take much longer.  Often 4 or more weeks.  This is because the blood flow to the cornea is not as efficient as it is in humans.

The treatment is a triple antibiotic ophthalmic ointment along with another ointment for pain.

My vet prescribed the antibiotic 2-3 times a day for 2 weeks and the pain ointment every 3 days.

A recheck in 14 days showed she was healing but needed more time.

We continue treatment for another 2 weeks and do a recheck again.

You can use a human antibiotic ointment for eyes if your vet will give you a prescription.

Note:  Be careful what the pharmacist gives you.  Make sure the ointment does not contain any type of steroid (some human forms do) as this should never be used with a cornea injury according to my vet.

Note: as the eyes are connected to the sinus and mouth, the pain meds can cause drooling or foaming at the mouth because they are bitter tasting.

Dogs can also get conjunctivitis and you would usually see a yellow to green discharge indicating infection and it needs to be treated by your vet.

It is contagious so be sure and wash your hands after treating your dog.  I also believe it can be passed to humans but check with your vet.

According to my vet a white or beige discharge is most likely allergies (but should be checked by your vet).  For that I flush the eyes 2x/day with warm “sea salt” water and it usually clears up in about a week.

Patty

www.snowcolabradors.com

The are two types of lupus – discoid lupus erythematosus (DLE) and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

http://www.petwave.com/Dogs/Dog-Health-Center/Immune-Disorders/Lupus.aspx

Symptoms of DLE:

“crusting, depigmentation,  redness, and ulceration of the nose. Lesions may also appear around the eyes, ears, limbs, and other areas.”

More specific symptoms of both types of Lupus are listed here:

http://www.petwave.com/Dogs/Dog-Health-Center/Immune-Disorders/Lupus/Symptoms.aspx

Treatments for DLE and SLE are given here:

http://www.petwave.com/Dogs/Dog-Health-Center/Immune-Disorders/Lupus/Treatment.aspx

Natural/holistic treatment:

http://www.naturalcanine.com/lupus.html

Patty

www.snowcolabradors.com