woof99

Hey Joe Anne! My 12 year old has started doing this about 2 yrs ago, it drives me nut. If it was her own poo she was eating I wouldn't mind as much because I know she is dewormed and on good food, but no, she eats all the stray cat poos and poos from dogs whose owners don't pick up in our local park. I get so upset! Who knows what worms they might have! I just make sure to have her dewormed regularly. I have heard something about Zucchini though, not sure if the dog needs to eat it cooked or raw... Sorry, not much help there. Good luck!

Hi Kit! Wow, that was a great reply and it certainly made me realize that I was responding a little late in the game. I have seen Hotel Rwanda and I have read the book. Improving myself as a good human being does not mean to ignore the plight of others, in fact I find that empathy is something that is lacking more and more in todays society. What I do find though is that there are many people that I have met that obcess about certain rights they have, and that these rights are very important to them and they don't want laws to come and take these rights away, when if you really look at it, the rights they are holding on to are archeic and if these new laws came to be passed, nothing would change in their everyday lives. I try to always see the point of view of both sides, but I can't in this case. Example; A man's view on abortion, I had this great (male) teacher in College (Ethical studies) that said that men have no right to decide what happens to a womans body. I couldn't agree more, it does not affect them. Obviously, it can affect their mood.. but I digress. There's a great quote I read somewhere: The more I learn of men, the more I love my dogs. I can't remember who said it though, and if I remembered it correctly, but there it is. Take care

Wow! I have just spent 40 minutes reading all the posts and have 1 thing to say. Just to stir ^%$# up, what have you guys thought of "Bowling for Columbine" As a Canadian, who has travelled in Europe and Australia, I am always fascinated by the U.S and SOME (please understand I am NOT saying that all americans are like this) of your people and the almost obcessive need to fight for things that do not affect you're everyday life. I live in Montreal, which is a very bilingual city of 4 million, we've had our 12th person killed just recently. We are anti-gun and pro choice, we drink, we smoke, people smoke weed on streets (cops will usually look away unless they are causing trouble), we are a very sexual city, they are sex shops and nude dancing bars. We have gay bars and a gay village, even a huge gay parade every year. As well as many other celebrations of all sorts of different groups of people. We have a very low sex crime rate, very low killing rate, racism is almost gone. Can't we just mind our own business and stop looking at how others live, and make judgment calls. I always say, as long as no one is getting hurt (no pets too), who cares what people do, if they are happy, I am happy for them. Wouldn't it be a better place to live if everone just relaxed a bit more?! Looking at certain european countries, I am always inspired to improve on my culture, on my environment, and on improving myself as a good human being. Peace out!

Hi! I think that the reason veterinarians will sometimes place dogs on a New protein source is dogs can develop allergies as they get older. Most dogs do quite well on Chicken meal, and it is 89% digestible, one of the highest (if it's good quality). If you place dogs early on on lamb or venison or duck diets, and they develop allergies, it's harder to find a diet they won't react to. If they're on chicken, it's really easy to try any of the novelty proteins. Which is why, the most recent allergy diets are vegetarian, because dogs react to all protein sources. Hope this helps!

OK, so here's as simple an answer as I can make it. I am a vet tech and I work in the animal nutrition field and have dealt with many of these cases over the years. Puppies and kittens will sometimes get crystals in their urine, most common causes: infection, improper diet, not enough water consumption,(so the dog doesn't drink enough, the crystals don't get flushed out because he doesn't pee enough), (also more exercise makes the dog drink more so the crystals get flushed out), holding the urine for too long... Now, there are 2 main crystals we find: 1-struvites...usually found in dogs because of infection, the infection changes the ph (makes it more alkaline) this leads to crystal formation. (more common in females because of urinary tract infection). We speak of using acidifiers in cats mainly, we CANNOT use urine acidifiers in puppies or kittens because this would stop the calcification of the growth plates...major orthopedic problems later on. Treatment: antibiotics and a good quality CANNED food for at least 4 weeks. I would honestly go with a formula your vet sells. Because they have been formulated to obtain an optimal urine ph to prevent urinary problems. After 4 weeks, go back to the Evo, I see frequent dogs with urinary problems on Wellness, the ingredients are great...the results aren't so great in vet clinics. Also, please go in for a recheck to your vet, if there is still sign of infection, you might need stronger antibiotics and if you don't go back, you could end up with antibiotic resistant bacteria! 2: Calcium Oxalates: These tend to occur more frequently in certain breeds.. small breeds. These are caused by diet and/or metabolic problems. These will eventually form stones that need to be surgically removed. Struvites on the other hand can be dissolved so surgery is not needed. You need x-rays to see if your dog has Ca Oxalates. The vets do sell diets that prevent these Oxalates, but they are not appropriate for growing puppies. These will form without infection...but can lead to infection. Phew... Also, the urine sample needs to be examined within 30 minutes of it being collected, because urine sitting on a counter will form crystals and change ph, so it doesn't give the real disgnosis. Collect the first urine of the morning and rush it to the vet and make sure they read it right away. I think this is most likely why you had both crystals in the urine. It is possible but highly unlikely. I think that what I said to do about struvites is your best bet and puppies will frequently outgrow this, so don't worry! I'd also like to mention that ash is not something we look at anymore, it has been proven that this was what poor diets contained and it ended up being blamed, not true. In fact, Friskies is one of the BIGGEST cause for blocked cats, I would avoid this diet at all costs! Just spend a bit more and buy the food that your vet sells or if you want to spend a bit more, you can get any of the better quality ones at the pet supply stores. Please avoid feeding anything sold in grocery stores or Walmarts...just read the ingredients, cats are carnivores and poultry meal should be the #1 or #2 ingredient. Dogs too need a good source of protein, the great thing about quality diets is the pets eat less, poo less and you have pets that live longer with fewer health problems, trust me I see it all the time. Well, those are my 2 cents worth! Good luck and let us know how Tempe is!!

Well, I am experiencing a similar experience with my 9-year old bc Breeze, she has been incontinent since she was less than 2 yrs old. It's hard to tell when this started but she does get a hard workout every evening, so when we'd come in she'd go straight to the water bowl and go crazy. However it has gotten worse lately, it almost seems like she needs to finish the bowl! I've actually started to tell her to stop drinking and it seems to help. I also have had a specific gravity done to check her kidney values and glucose for diabetes and all is OK. I need to bring her out to pee at 6pm, then at 8pm and again once before bedtime, and it's not connected to her incontinence, it the sheer volume of water she's consuming!! I am thinking of changing her food because it seems to have started with the newest diet. It's quite elevated in glucosamine and chondrotin and omega's. I wonder... Anyways, it's curious but I do think that it's behavioral, they do tend to suffer from OCD! CA