Crawford Dogs

It was up there back in December when I'd been on her page. I'm guessing she has changed her page since then?

If you want some amusement go to darnfar's website and click on the link that says "health guarantee." It is a long rant about why they don't provide a guarantee and mentions cryptorchidism quite a bit. I know for a fact she has sold cryptorchid puppies. . . as "breeding quality." Need I say more?

I was taught that white factor for the head is controlled by different genes than the rest of the body. My Rose (from an animal shelter) is extreme white factored on her body (just a little black ticking and one small black patch on her back) and white factored on her head (split face, white on ears). Rose has, IMR/SARDs, an autoimmune disease (Rose still has some vision due to a year long treatment of immunosuppressants). There is a strong correlation and believed to be a genetic link between white factoring on the body and autoimmune diseases. Also Rose is suspected to be deaf in one ear as she has issues figuring out the direction you are calling her from when she's out and about. She doesn't have the common issue of sunburns around her eyes however I got her when she was older and many outgrow that trait (usually when they develop black pigment around their eyes). There is a lot of research out there on white factoring and health issues in Border Collies. You might want to message Liz P., she has a lot of studies and information regarding this topic.

Heard back from Loki's veterinary chiropractor and she is going to look into physical therapy options. He may end up with one visit with a veterinarian certified in physical rehab and then do exercises at home thereafter. It may take a few weeks to get all our ducks in a row. Hopefully he'll soon be getting the care he needs. His chiropractor thinks that until he becomes symptomatic (they'll be doing another thorough exam before starting physical therapy) he can continue with normal activities although we may need to start cutting back on jumping and take some breaks on our longer hikes and herding lessons.

Loki does have a phone consult with his chiropractor on Monday (she's reviewing the rads) and she may be sending him back to the vet who did his physical rehabilitation a few years ago (shoulder injury). I'm hoping most of the physical therapy can be done at home as I have yet to win the lottery. Finally it's Friday and we've got herding lessons planned this weekend!

My 5 yr old Border Collie Loki went to work with me at my weekend ER job (I'm a registered vet tech) because he was vomiting blood. Luckily it was simple gastritis. However the radiographs showed an advanced stage of lumbosacral spondylosis. The vet was suprised that Loki didn't have any neurological signs and was able to walk. I was cautioned not to let him jump etc. Obviously, there is no way my active 5 yr old is going to be careful. . he is called the "red rocket" and "wild child" for a reason. I was told his condition is most likely genetic due to his young age and it's advanced stage. Ugh. . Loki is still busy being a normal dog and we're waiting to find out what we can do to support his spinal cord (supplements, physical therapy). I'm not considering surgery at this time as he is still asymptomatic although it may lie in the future. Has anyone else had this happen to their young dog and how quickly did it progress? I do not plan to stop Loki's favorite activities as he lives to work stock and hike in the timber. Yes, I'll cut back on things according to the vets recommendation but I think Loki would rather do his favorite things than live a little bit longer. Bethany, Rose, and Loki-mon

"On the other hand, I hope we are going to go far beyond where I've gotten with any of my other dogs, and when we get there, we will face our challenges, too. We will hit our brick walls!! And I'm cool with that." Isn't that what we always hope to achieve? Achieve more with your next dog than you have with previous dogs and hit that brick wall(s)? I always smile when we finally get beyond what I've done with previous dogs and have hit the new challenges. The challenges may seem impossible but what you learn is unforgettable! BTW, I want to hang that blog post on my wall and post it on my car windows. Yeah, Border collies are easy to train if. . . a, b, c, d, and e line up in perfect synchrony.

Banner, I think you hit the nail on the head. Why should intelligent, hardworking dogs like Border Collies put up with doofy dogs?

You hit the head on the nail. Of course, I understand that people want to feed their dogs the best food (I do too!). Sometimes I think we get too worked up about the hype, forget the science, and forget that people have to feed what they can afford. I personally have no respect for BLUE simply because their ads trash other companies. And well, it turns out people have been paying for something equivalent to Special Kitty cat food. If I'd bought that food I'd be looking for a refund because their entire sales pitch turned out to be a lie.

Hey guys, Didn't know if it had been posted before but an epilepsy database is up at: http://bcepilepsy.weebly.com/ and is being updated often. I think their is another epilepsy database as well??

If you go to Dr. Zink's webpage you can find copies of all her articles with citations and also links to studies.

I work at 2 vet clinics in Iowa. The low cost clinic does bare basics such as exams ($20), Rabies vacc ($15), and neuters (example: cat neuter $45). I also work at an emergency clinic where an exam is $70, IV catheters run $75, radiographs around $250, and surgeries $2-5,000. There is quite a variation depending on the level of care you want. At a low cost clinic it's pretty cheap but you don't get a lot of time with the vet. At more expensive clinics you get a lot of individualized attention and pay more. You do get what you pay for in medicine.

I'm guessing she has patent ductus arteriosus? Hopefully she's able to recover and live a full life.

Thanks for the tip. Luckily, I did check the city ordinance a while ago. It's written pretty strangely but it looks like I should be fine with a small flock. I even called animal control to find out how they interpet the rules. If you keep poultry (chickens or ducks) as pets you can only have 2. However if you have them for other purposes (eggs, meat, stockdog training) you can have 25 but they have to be in a pen/coop. Animal control said that I'll be fine with what I'm planning and just need to build my housing once they are old enough to go outside. It is acceptable for me to keep them in a pen/coop and allow them to forage in the fenced yard as well. They'll be set up in a brooder until they are older and by then I'll hopefully have an idea of how I want to do their outdoor housing.

I raised ducks for 12 plus years as a child and after a long break am planning to get some again. Since I live in town I plan to get Cayuga hens as they are quieter. When I was a kid I kept adult ducks in a pen with straw-filled barrels and old dog houses raised off the ground a few inches. Has the recommended housing for ducks changed over the years? I've looked it up in several books and housing never seems to be mentioned for ducks. Thanks! Bethany

I don't know about all of the colors but red, tricolor, and primarily white Border collies are the result of recessive genes. You can find entire pages dedicated to color genetics however I don't know which pages are truly accurate.

My Rose has a completely white tail. Well, the rest of her is primarily white so no suprise there. It's sad that anyone would purposefully produce primarily white Border collies but I guess it takes all kinds. So now that I've given my disclaimer (don't breed this at home) I can show off photos of the pups. Strangely enough they look nothing alike, most people ask me which breed they are and when I say BC they ask, which one? https://www.flickr.com/photos/crawforddogs/sets/72157633249654264/

Revolution is only listed as effective against the American Dog tick and may not be effective against other tick species. It's usually not recommended for use if your pets go into tick infested areas.

Wait, people have actually been kicked off the boards? Wow, I bet that takes talent and perserverance. Pam Wolf, I so agree. I plan to marry my brother so I can find out what genetic defects I am carrying. I'm only aware of a few of them but in order to flush out the rest. . .

I can't stop laughing! I'm so glad I asked the weird question about nicknames that started this topic. Speaking of inappropriate nicknames when I was kid my parents had a dog named Pee wee. My dad is deaf and can't articulate well. . one day my dad was out chasing down the escaped dog and calling his name. A few minutes later the police arrive because some lady joggers had called saying my dad was outside screaming inappropriate things at them. This same dog was down as "Dog" at the local vet clinic as the veterinarians were old-fashioned females and refused to say his name or put it on medical records. My Loki has abandoned his nickname "Sir Poops a Lot" in favor of me singing, "will the real Loki please stand up" everytime I see him coming (to the tune of "will the real slim shady please stand up"). He shocked me with his self control and thoughtfulness on stock this weekend to the point that I asked his breeder (our instructor) Mary where had my real dog gone? And can I keep this one? Bethany, Rose the amazing cone head, and Loki-impersonator

Kieran is clearly more discerning than mine. Loki does answer to Mr. Poofy, Stinky, and Red Man. Rose answers to anything. I wonder if part of the issue is that Kieran doesn't want to be called Biebs? He may think you are calling for Justin Bieber instead.

Do your dogs get weird nicknames from you? My guys have quite the list and a few people have told me that I'm really weird. Ok, I admit I'm pretty strange. Loki (my red, curly border collie) is currently going by "Sir Poops A Lot" because he had explosive diarrhea in the back seat of my car (sadly the car seat cover was in the wash) on Tuesday. He is also called: Stinky, Mr. Poofy, McCurly McFluffers, and Red Man. Rose (white, vision impaired border collie) is called Blondie by a friend who says her blonde roots go too deep (Rose is very weird and a bit nuts). I regularly call her: Girlie, White dog, and Damn it what are you doing!? What strange things do you call your dogs? And do they answer to it? Bethany, Rose, and Loki

I had thought that they didn't have enough data and perhaps should have defined the parameters better. The paper was published last year so I didn't know if any of it was new. Thanks for telling me!

I don't know if this has been posted yet on the boards but I thought people might find it interesting. http://www.cgejournal.org/content/pdf/2052-6687-1-6.pdf Bethany

I agree with Liz P. You might also want to look for a positive training class or private lessons with an experienced positive trainer. Correcting Bogey will only exacerbate the issue so avoid trainers that think correcting the issue will help. Good luck, I know you can help Bogey deal with his issues. Also, you might want to buy and read the book, "Click to Calm" by Emma Parsons. I highly recommend reading the intro and first chapters. Of course, the rest of the book is helpful too. Bethany