Cody's pop

Okay,after 2 months on a raw diet,frontline used for fleas,Cody still has the itch!His coat looks much better,shinier and not dry looking,but he still digs constantly at his back legs and stomach and around the base of his tail.must be a grass allergy,ya think?

and the cycle begins again...... I wonder how many of these dogs we'll see in rescue, or on the nightly news in seizures. This just strengthens my very low opinion of both government AND most human beings. How could they......

Jennifer,do you have a contact number or e-mail address for the person who determines their placement?

Any further news on this situation?

Up until 3 years ago I played in a Bluegrass band that was sponsored by ProPlan.We got free food for our dogs and lots of food and treats to give away at our concerts,heck our banjo player would even munch on pro plan biscuits on stage while we were plugging them.(tells ya a lot about banjo players)Now I wish I hadn't been involved,I see that it was not really in the dogs best interest but just a marketing vehicle.I fed my dogs the food and they seemed ok with it,but since I started with raw I am seeing a much better response.I will say that Purina is Very supportive of the canine community here in St. Louis.Our herding club and agility club both work out at Purina Farms and they have regular competitions for both as well as flyball and will be hosting the Border Collie Specialty Oct 10-16.They are very big on Border Collies.Also the finals of the Incredible Dog Challenge every fall here in Forest Park.Also Long Meadow rescue ranch.They do a lot,but they sell the whole time,so take it for what it is.

I can foster a couple and would adopt a couple if necessary.The 10 week old pup I was going to get from a local vet was adopted by his housekeeper,so I'm open for an adoption or two.I'm about 30 mi. southwest of St.Louis,about 2- 2 1/2 hrs away by I44.

IronHorse,I'm a fellow missourian(Dittmer) and if you need any help with rescue,fostering,whatever it takes to help these dogs,just let me know,I'm up for anything that will save them.Just the thought of that beautiful dog lying there to rot sets me off! This should be nicknamed the Puppy Mill state,rather than the Show-me state.They have been trying to pass legislation making it a crime to photograph any animal breeding facility here in Mo for years now,even claiming it would deter terrorism!The cruel and inhumane treatment are widespread,as the nightly news proclaims a large rescue almost monthly.Cages stacked atop each other with the waste dropping through,dogs who can't walk,they have not been out of their cages since they were weaned,blak water to drink and rotten moldy kibble to eat.NO affection,limited human contact,bred till they drop dead and then left to rot,or fed to their starving kennelmates.Only human beings are evil enough to do these things.

I'm on my second week of Raw with my Cody Blue,and he is definately looking much better already,the hair loss,skin irritation and itching I thought was mange is practically gone now and his coat seems to be thickening back up.I've been feeding him Turkey drumsticks I got for .69 per lb. and some beef rib tips I picked up for .99 per lb.,along with some chicken livers and an omega-3 supplement.Anyone feed Bil-Jac? I used this food as a treat when he was puppy training and he loved it.I seem to remember it being a meat food rather than a grain product.Is it ok to feed?

Well, no mange,it's definately an allergy,could be grass,fleas,or a food product.Now comes the fun part figuring out what he is reacting to.

Cody visits the vet tomorrow so we should be certain what his affliction actually is soon.I'm still not certain whether to change vets or not,we use the ones we have because we have a horse farm and it is nice to get the dogs vaccinations every year at the same time as the horses get theirs,during a house call from these vets.We really like the vet we use.There are four that work out of this facility,and the fact that they only go there for treatment that is out of the ordinary annual checkups and vaccinations.I guess what I mean is I'm going to see how they handle this situation and determine then who will treat my dogs.I could get lucky and have it be a food or flea allergy,but it's not likely.He was on Natural blend for over a year with no reaction and has been on frontline since he was old enough and has never had a flea problem.I did change his food to Chicken soup when the itching started getting bad as I suspected a food allergy,about two weeks ago. I'm going to have them check for lyme,but he seems just fine other than the classic itch,hairloss,flaking and scabbing of sarcoptic mange.My biggest fear is that the other dogs are infected and we have an epidemic that will be a struggle to resolve.So far none of the others show any sign,two more BCs, a Pyr and a lab/beagle mix.

Cody is a red and white Split-face border,and generally very healthy.I do have trouble with his weight,he seems thin to me,though he gets as much food every day as my Great pyrenees.(about 4 cups)He is very active and just runs it off.I worked as a veteranarian assistant about 35 yrs ago while in high school and we had this problem often,treat one dog at the clinic and a half dozen pick it up there and come back.I hope it will not take a lot to get rid of this mange,we pay a lot of attention to him and it really isn't too extensive yet.Dips are definately a last resort.So far the other dogs show no evidence of contagion,they are being bathed weekly with a good oatmeal based shampoo,but this weekend's baths will be with a medicated anti-mange shampoo.I will definately be sending you an e-mail Urge to herd.Any info I can get is greatly appreciated.

Looks like Cody Blue,my 2 1/2 yr old BC has a case of sarcoptic mange.Not sure yet,he goes to the vet on Friday.Problem is I believe that is where he got it in the first place.I have 5 dogs,all living inside the fences on our farm.The only dog affected is Cody,and he is the only one who has been off the farm when he went to the vets for the day to be neutered about 5 weeks ago.Shortly after he started itching,and I checked for fleas,none found he is on frontline.So I changed his diet from Natural Blend to Chicken Soup and started a coat supplement with Omega-3 and use olive oil on his food about two weeks ago>last night he got his weekly bath(oatmeal shampoo) and for the first time I noticed how thin his hair was getting on the back of his legs and on his side near his belly.Also some small scabs and irritation.I'm really ticked as I truly believe he picked it up at the vets,who actually specialize on horses more than dogs.They claim coyotes gave it to him,but we don't have that problem inside our double 6 ft fences,with horse paddocks surrounding our home that the coyotes can't get through.Add 5 dogs that patrol the area and you get the picture.He was crated the entire day at the vets when he was neutered,and I blame them,they are really much more horse oriented than dog or cat,thats where the big money is in this area for a vet.Their "Equine Hospital" is not really the cleanest in the examining rooms they use for dogs and cats.They are also talking about the dip procedure and I think it may be unnecessary and just a way to pump up my bill,they haven't even seen him yet.Any Opinions on the whole mess? :mad: :eek:

Twice a day I give my Shadow her epilepsy meds rolled up in a small ball of braunschweiger.Works every time,and she actually looks forward to getting her meds.

Check the Border Collie Museum website,the site owner had a dog with epilepsy that was progressively getting worse and out of desperation tried vitamin E when the dosage of phenobarb was raised so high it was damaging the liver.She says her dog never seized again and lived for years after,gradually being weaned off the phenobarbital altogether.I have a 9 yr old BC with epilepsy who currently gets a combination of phenobarb and vitamin E and she has been seizure free since I started giving her the E,about 3 months now.She still gets her phenobarb,butI will try to wean her off slowly if she makes it through a year seizure free.She came to us as a rescue due to her owners being transferred,and they had dealt with cluster seizures for 3 yrs with this dog.

Sorry,had a tough time finding the reply button! I have 3 bc's,a Pyrennes,and a lab/beagle mix.I love them all dearly,but the bc's,especially Cody Blue,our 2-yr old red and white,are just plain awesome.He's my constant companion and best friend.Shadow is a 9 yr old bc with epilepsy we rescued recently and Gypsy is a 5 yr old smooth coat.Our Pyr,Duke is the sweetest,most gentle boy in the world,but not as biddable or easy to train as the bc's.He keeps intruders off the farm with just a look,if they only knew how loving he is!Cassidy is the lab/beagle and she grew to be a sweet,happy girl from the most ornery,stinky pup you ever saw.We are probably bc snobs now,any new dogs that come here will definately be Border Collies,ther is just no other dog breed like them.