Dog Health

[michael94]

Post about dog health here...

All different philosophies and views are welcome whether it’s related to food, training, etc.

 

[griesburner]

Our dog is now 9 years old. Its a flatcoated retriever so not the one on my profil^^. He has not aged very much and looks very young and acts like a very young dog who will play all the time and so on. What made me wonder whats his longevity recipe is? I dont know but he has dog sisters and brothers which we see sometimes and they are the same age but not half as youthfull as our own dog. My mother is going for a walk with him every day for 3 hours + and my father gets for a walk with him later 1 hour again so he gets a lot of activity or "exercise*. And in terms of quality food he gets the standars dog food so there is nothing special. He is also very lean and muscular and my mother says its because he gets out a lot. So this is something that made me question some of peats views sometimes. It would be in favor of the calorie restriction / pro-exercise views of health.

 

[Regina]

Post about dog health here...

All different philosophies and views are welcome whether it’s related to food, training, etc.

My teach, Jennifer Boznos. She is so wonderful. Too much to list why.
I also got to study (seminars) with some of her mentors: Suzanne Clothier, Chris Bach and Ray Coppinger. As well as Patricia McConnell.
Jennifer knows how to feed dogs. One time, she handed me a rack of raw lamb ribs saying, "Here's some toothbrushes for Phin." She does not vaccinate her dogs and has a homeopathic vet in New Mexico.
Suzanne Clothier championed Relationship Centered Training. She has wonderful articles and books and her seminars leave me high for wks. One of the seminars I did w her was a 3 week intensive inside the wolf enclosure at Wolf Park, Indiana. (my picture is from that time) her most beloved book is Bones Would Rain From The Sky.
Ray Coppinger wrote marvelous book: Dogs: A New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior and Evolution. Probably the best book on dogs ever written.
Chris Bach. Unparalled. And virtually unknown unless you are a real dog geek.
Patricia McConnell is another great figure in the community. Very lovely lady. Great books. The Other End of the Leash. and For the Love of Dogs.

Ian Dunbar is a blast. Have a listen. Had many beers into the wee hours talking dogs with this cool cat.
Michael Ellis - more great work
Ivan Balabanov the King. haha seriously -probably gonna buy a puppy from him.

 

[johnsmith]

16 year old Bichon Shih Tzu, I want to slow her cataracts so she doesn't go completely blind. Any advice? Lanosterol drops close to her eyes maybe?

 

[danishispsychic]

my parents used to breed champion akitas - now that i think about it - they ate : chicken necks and rice, liver snaps cracker things, sometimes kibble but rarely, and seaweed. the pair were AKC champions originally from japan and they had a few litters of puppies. the puppies ate cottage cheese, rice and kibble. kind of a peaty diet almost. they did have dandruff issues sometimes- probably the pufa.

 

[michael94]

My teach, Jennifer Boznos. She is so wonderful. Too much to list why.
I also got to study (seminars) with some of her mentors: Suzanne Clothier, Chris Bach and Ray Coppinger. As well as Patricia McConnell.
Jennifer knows how to feed dogs. One time, she handed me a rack of raw lamb ribs saying, "Here's some toothbrushes for Phin." She does not vaccinate her dogs and has a homeopathic vet in New Mexico.
Suzanne Clothier championed Relationship Centered Training. She has wonderful articles and books and her seminars leave me high for wks. One of the seminars I did w her was a 3 week intensive inside the wolf enclosure at Wolf Park, Indiana. (my picture is from that time) her most beloved book is Bones Would Rain From The Sky.
Ray Coppinger wrote marvelous book: Dogs: A New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior and Evolution. Probably the best book on dogs ever written.
Chris Bach. Unparalled. And virtually unknown unless you are a real dog geek.
Patricia McConnell is another great figure in the community. Very lovely lady. Great books. The Other End of the Leash. and For the Love of Dogs.

Ian Dunbar is a blast. Have a listen. Had many beers into the wee hours talking dogs with this cool cat.
Michael Ellis - more great work
Ivan Balabanov the King. haha seriously -probably gonna buy a puppy from him.

When the Hund heels the Wounds heal ... : )

Our dog is now 9 years old. Its a flatcoated retriever so not the one on my profil^^. He has not aged very much and looks very young and acts like a very young dog who will play all the time and so on. What made me wonder whats his longevity recipe is? I dont know but he has dog sisters and brothers which we see sometimes and they are the same age but not half as youthfull as our own dog. My mother is going for a walk with him every day for 3 hours + and my father gets for a walk with him later 1 hour again so he gets a lot of activity or "exercise*. And in terms of quality food he gets the standars dog food so there is nothing special. He is also very lean and muscular and my mother says its because he gets out a lot. So this is something that made me question some of peats views sometimes. It would be in favor of the calorie restriction / pro-exercise views of health.

Well, boredom is definitely stressful...especially for dogs which must always be working towards something and with someone... Humans too, but were much better than dogs at lying to ourselves

 

[michael94]

https://naturaldogtraining.com/blog/the-hunting-connection/

In the modern world where hunting other animals is not practical or desirable, what is "killed" is your fears and weaknesses and the dog is rewarded with prey-se ( praise ), which is only valuable after a working,emotional bond. And ones fears and weaknesses are nothing to make light of because they are very dangerous. Just like how wolves hunt animals that are very much capable of killing them... I suppose that much should be obvious but screens complicate things.

Material food should ideally be a guarantee and not a reward... this allows freedom for higher pursuits.

@danishispsychic what kind of seaweed?

 

[danishispsychic]

Hi Michael- they ate Nori flakes. My last dog - He was a pure bred American Eskimo- lived to 17 and for the last 10 years of his life ate nothing but a Vegan dog food called VDog , sweet potatoes . He looked liked a puppy until his last breath. :)

 

[Regina]

my parents used to breed champion akitas - now that i think about it - they ate : chicken necks and rice, liver snaps cracker things, sometimes kibble but rarely, and seaweed. the pair were AKC champions originally from japan and they had a few litters of puppies. the puppies ate cottage cheese, rice and kibble. kind of a peaty diet almost. they did have dandruff issues sometimes- probably the pufa.

 

[alywest]

I just got a pup from a rescue. He's nine months and seems pretty healthy, not too skinny or anything. However he almost seems to be displaying a hyperthyroid problem, just drinking INSANE amounts of water and peeing several times a day. My Peat reading has me concerned about the obsessive need to drink water, and peeing so often. I'm not sure what you would do with a hyperthyroid dog. Perhaps cruciferous vegetable powders? I don't want to hurt him, he's young and maybe he's just really stressed. But he's really intensely hyper, like panting at full speed all morning until I finally took him for an outing. Then he was super excited still in the car, yelping and panting like it was the end of the world. He has his mellow moments, so I'm hoping it's just the stress of being rehomed. He's a sweet dog who needs a lot of training and socializing, but he definitely is a good boy. I'll check out those writers that you mentioned, @Regina !

 

[Blossom]

I just got a pup from a rescue. He's nine months and seems pretty healthy, not too skinny or anything. However he almost seems to be displaying a hyperthyroid problem, just drinking INSANE amounts of water and peeing several times a day. My Peat reading has me concerned about the obsessive need to drink water, and peeing so often. I'm not sure what you would do with a hyperthyroid dog. Perhaps cruciferous vegetable powders? I don't want to hurt him, he's young and maybe he's just really stressed. But he's really intensely hyper, like panting at full speed all morning until I finally took him for an outing. Then he was super excited still in the car, yelping and panting like it was the end of the world. He has his mellow moments, so I'm hoping it's just the stress of being rehomed. He's a sweet dog who needs a lot of training and socializing, but he definitely is a good boy. I'll check out those writers that you mentioned, @Regina !

Hopefully it's just stress since he's a pup. My rescued boxer that passed recently as a geriatric dog drank nonstop if you let her when we first got her but it tapered down eventually. We were her fourth home and she had been mistreated. The vet told us to put up her water bowl and only let her drink a specific amount about 3-4 times per day. I suppose the amount would depend on the dogs size. Anyway she took to trying to drink from the toilet if you left the lid up so that's another sneaky way they can get excess water if you're not careful. Good luck, I hope he settles in soon.

 

[Regina]

I just got a pup from a rescue. He's nine months and seems pretty healthy, not too skinny or anything. However he almost seems to be displaying a hyperthyroid problem, just drinking INSANE amounts of water and peeing several times a day. My Peat reading has me concerned about the obsessive need to drink water, and peeing so often. I'm not sure what you would do with a hyperthyroid dog. Perhaps cruciferous vegetable powders? I don't want to hurt him, he's young and maybe he's just really stressed. But he's really intensely hyper, like panting at full speed all morning until I finally took him for an outing. Then he was super excited still in the car, yelping and panting like it was the end of the world. He has his mellow moments, so I'm hoping it's just the stress of being rehomed. He's a sweet dog who needs a lot of training and socializing, but he definitely is a good boy. I'll check out those writers that you mentioned, @Regina !

He does not sound hyperthyroid. He sounds stressed. You have plenty of time to train him. But socializing is important. You might try some pregnenolone. I bought some from HealthNatura because it is easy powder to dose a dog. I put a little on the end of a butter knife and wipe it on my dog's tongue. My picky dog seeks it out like a treat.
It is absolutely stressful to be re-homed. Remember, we bring another species into OUR world. You bet that is an existential crisis.
And, this guy did not get a lot of early thoughtful attention.
I would focus on bonding, trust, constancy and consistency at this point. Suzanne Clothier says to ask the dog, "How is this for you?" Her articles are amazing and her presence in seminar leaves you high. She works magic on animals. But then, you go home. And if you have a difficult dog, like my Phineas, you can lose hope. For most pet dogs, Suzanne's work (or Ian Dunbar's) work is perfect.
I've owned and trained many many dogs (and horses) but Phineas forced me to dig much deeper.
Most rescue dogs I have worked with blossom with bonding, trust and constancy. Mom is reliable. The dog feels "Mom's got this."
But Phineas required very clear communication. He HATES ambivalance. He HATES wishy washy. He's intensely anxious fear aggressive dog (only a mother could love. lol) control freak german shepherd/border collie with a bad upbringing. This is NOT a dog you can lie to. I competed agilty and flyball with him but he was still a raging reactive aggressive dog. I was stumped and defeated. It was not until I went to Jennifer Boznos, who understood Phineas the second she met him. He was raging at the end of his leash barking and roaring at her. I was so embarrassed. I said sorry and she said, "Oh, this. You mean the barking? This is nothing at all." She grabbed him and worked him privately for about 5 minutes and said "he should compete in Competition Obedience at the national level. Great dog."
Anyway, I learned her method and brought many dogs through her program and out to her farm to herd sheep or attend her intensive camps.
Depending on your needs. Downtown Chicago dogs need to be able to walk on a leash past other dogs, screaming kids on scooters, wheelchairs, people who hate dogs. They have to poo n pee while on leash in blizzards. They can only be offleash in dog parks with lots of strange dogs. You have to be able to call them off scuffles and play with their favorite buddies. The dog has to know what you want and needs to learn the rules of living in our weird human city world.
Typical rescue dog might look like this one. This clip doesn't look like much but there's incredible technique and adherence to knowing what works, how she is shaping his behavior, how she is ignoring "bad" behavior whilst being a stickler on other things. Phineas needed methodology.
With all dogs now, I use a combo of Jennifer Boznos method and Suzanne Clothier bonding. Food is just used early on in teaching vocabulary. Once you have the bond, you just need to be consistent in your relationship. I learned that all dogs LOVE clarity.
In cities it is important to learn that "socializing" doesn't mean "friendly". Jennifer is good at showing a dog that strange people are just part of the environment and MOM is the better choice.
Once the puppy establishes this habit, you don't need food. These are calmer dogs who are comfortable knowing that MOM facilitates my safety and pleasure. These dogs are fine offleash. I can walk offleash along the vast parks on the lake in Chicago even with crazy Phineas. He's fine. I know I can call him off anything. He's allowed to have his exploratory time and I can say, "Let's go" and he is like a missile returning to me. He has a command to go chase the geese and a command to missile back to me. His "leave it" is rock solid.
I am over the people that say dogs are just wolves, blah blah blah.
That's all good and nice and makes for earthy reading but most people need practical advice.
I want to give my dog as much freedom and pleasure as I can in Chicago city. I don't have to go to dog parks. I unhook the leash the second I am off the sidewalk and I know he won't do anything that will get the cops on me. Chicago has discarded hypodermic needles and human feces all over the parks. You'd better have a rock solid "leave it!"
Anyway. Your not dog is NOT hyperthyroid.
Oh, here's another adorable clip of Jennifer working a puppy. This work is relevant for city dog owners. This behavior is far more preferable to Phineas' previous roaring up a biting the strange person's face.

 

[Regina]

Great session with Ivan - the King. People like Cesar Milan should be ashamed with their retarded "alpha" , er, method? There is no method at all. Ivan lets motivated dogs blossom.

 

[michael94]

@Regina Wolves are misunderstood, and so is the concept of "alpha"... The alpha is the one who is most capable of leading towards whatever goal there is, this is often misinterpreted as simply the "strongest" or the one that is able to yank and crank the others into submission (hence "dominance" ). Very important distinction. Dogs were bred to be more "wolf-like" not less, because what separates pack animals from others is the emotional connection and lack of aversion to danger. The last part might surprise people but its true for quite a few breeds. Of course when people hear wolf they associate that with more "aggression" etc. which is true relative to most dog breeds living in the people world but thats an unfair comparison really.

Ceasar is not really a dog trainer, there are trainers that do the training for his shows. He is like a "behaviorist" or whatever

I will have to look into Jennifer Boznos, she sounds very talented.

How old is your Phineas?

 

[michael94]

By the way you are so right, pragmatism is a virtue in dog training especially when so many dogs are being put down or relegated to a limited existence. My posts up above are just the way I talk about everything. Not necessarily practical.

My favorite dog trainers are very different from yours in certain ways so theres a lot for me to learn. I like Rob Masters, Peter Caine ( very rough around the edges but great at training service dogs ) and Kevin Behan.

 

[Regina]

@Regina Wolves are misunderstood, and so is the concept of "alpha"... The alpha is the one who is most capable of leading towards whatever goal there is, this is often misinterpreted as simply the "strongest" or the one that is able to yank and crank the others into submission (hence "dominance" ). Very important distinction. Dogs were bred to be more "wolf-like" not less, because what separates pack animals from others is the emotional connection and lack of aversion to danger. The last part might surprise people but its true for quite a few breeds. Of course when people hear wolf they associate that with more "aggression" etc. which is true relative to most dog breeds living in the people world but thats an unfair comparison really.

Ceasar is not really a dog trainer, there are trainers that do the training for his shows. He is like a "behaviorist" or whatever

I will have to look into Jennifer Boznos, she sounds very talented.

How old is your Phineas?

It's difficult for me to have my findings come through in this forum. I think Ray Coppinger 's observations wrt to the evolution of Dogs is the most informative. He's kind of Peatarian in his working understanding of function, structure.

Phineas may be around 12. He was maybe "2" when I adopted him. I was volunteering training at a factory shelter in Chicago. I wisked him from the grips of euthanasia. He had an embedded pinch/choke collar that had to be surgically removed and was/is full of birdshot. Problem is he raged and bit everyone in the face or the back of the neck. He was a wild boy. The behaviorist there (who used to be my private teacher) said, "Don't be crazy. You don't want this animal. You can't save them all. ...."
Before you accuse me of being a saint, I must admit that my decision to adopt him was only some parts compassion and the other parts curiosity. I thought, "wtf, noboby wants him. Let me give him a go."

So it can be great. You get a dog like Phineas and he shatters all your assumptions. He makes you discover someone like Jennifer. Jennifer accompanied Ray Coppinger as chief scientist to Eutheopia and Mexico City to study dump dogs. Coppinger himself won many iditrods with village dogs.

Everyone idolizes Suzanne Clothier. And she's great! And Ian Dunbar. Also great! And of course, Ivan mints money selling protection dogs. And he's great.
But Jennifer is like all of them, plus Coppinger. Awe-inspiring lady.

 

[Regina]

By the way you are so right, pragmatism is a virtue in dog training especially when so many dogs are being put down or relegated to a limited existence. My posts up above are just the way I talk about everything. Not necessarily practical.

My favorite dog trainers are very different from yours in certain ways so theres a lot for me to learn. I like Rob Masters, Peter Caine ( very rough around the edges but great at training service dogs ) and Kevin Behan.

I am not familiar w these guys but I did a quick google search and they seem to have plenty in common with my list of pet dog trainers: Ian, Jennifer, Suzanne and Michael Ellis doing similar stuff. It's just maybe Ivan is more super duper performance focus. And Coppinger is too, but he is into more specific experimental work. These are just big names. There are first class trainers everywhere.
I think it was Ian that brought the whole pet dog training concept to America.
Anyway, irrespective of what ones plans are for dog ownership, training and bonding efforts are integral to the dog's health.
I cherry pick.
And, you know, if you don't want a performance or sport dog, Turid Ruggas is great. Her little book on Calming Signals is a gem.

Yikes, Peter Caine, looks like a bit of a hack. There's better out there.

 

[mr_mercer]

Post about dog health here...

All different philosophies and views are welcome whether it’s related to food, training, etc.

I find the meat is best if you pick out the two year olds. Careful night time selection avoids complications with the neighbors.

 

[Regina]

I find the meat is best if you pick out the two year olds. Careful night time selection avoids complications with the neighbors.

 

[alywest]

Hopefully it's just stress since he's a pup. My rescued boxer that passed recently as a geriatric dog drank nonstop if you let her when we first got her but it tapered down eventually. We were her fourth home and she had been mistreated. The vet told us to put up her water bowl and only let her drink a specific amount about 3-4 times per day. I suppose the amount would depend on the dogs size. Anyway she took to trying to drink from the toilet if you left the lid up so that's another sneaky way they can get excess water if you're not careful. Good luck, I hope he settles in soon.

Yeah, I agree, I was thinking that giving him water 3-4 times a day and letting him have as much as he wants is probably the way to go, and he has already gotten into the toilet! He's probably about the same size as your dog that just passed (sorry about that, by the way. So sad...)