Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Dave, how is Kaia doing? Has he adjusted to his new diet? Have youadjusted to his new diet? I hope it's not too difficult to keep things he shouldn't have away from him, when the others can have them!

You are in my thoughts and prayers.

Mom, you forgot to ask him if he's giving Kaia baby carrots! They are just soooooooooo yummy!
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Anne, Bill, and Murphy

Just weighing in my own concern as well. My guys love baby carrots!
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If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.

I always get a laugh when I tell people that Beni and Kari love, not the big, but the baby carrots....I thought it was a bit odd, but now I know it's just a Shiba thing,
(or a dog with good taste thing). It's a treat that we can all enjoy... Have a great evening!

Patty

Every evening, about 9:00 PM, Murphy's 'appestat' goes off. He will stand and look at me, until I realize it's 'that time again'. He gets two of his kidney safe bisquits, served one at a time, for a high five and then a hand shake. These are followed by 4 baby carrots which he gets with no special action on his part, but again, one at a time. After this nightly ritual, he will settle down for another hour until bedtime.

Sometimes it sure takes you a long time to notice it's "that time", Mom!
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Anne, Bill, and Murphy

Artemis won't eat them, but she will attack them. . . .

I love those snarly teeth!!!
It reminds me of Beni in his "tweezer" mode...
I have more pictures to update, but now have to learn
how to resize them so they can go through....Once again,
any advice will be appreciated.

P.S. I plan on getting Beni and Kari checked for heartworm this weekend...
One question - is heartworm passed from one dog to another? - Beni is
AWFUL at the vet, and always screams and fights when the vet comes close - I'm
hoping that he can check Kari and see if there is any risk to Beni...please
let me know the EASIEST way to get Beni checked

Both Beni and Kari need to be checked. It is done with a blood draw. All I can suggest is possibly a muzzle on Beni, and just let the vet deal with him. Maybe others have better suggestions?

Beni, it's not so bad 'n it really doesn't take very long!
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Anne, Bill, and Murphy

The very easiest way to get pictures the right size is to change the resolution on your digital camera. 640x400 will usually do the trick. If you don't have that option there is a terrific and free utility called Irfanview. I have used it for many years. It is simple to d/l and install and you can do many things including resizing pictures with it. If you decide to do this be sure to also d/l and install the plugins that are there as well.

www.irfanview.com/

As for Beni and the vet... you might have to go the muzzle route. Shibas have sort of a bad rep with many vets.

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If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die I want to go where they went.

Hopefully the vet appointment went ok. I too have a good vet dog (Kita) and a bad vet dog (Taiko). With Taiko I just have my own muzzle fitted right to him and put it on in the car before ever stepping foot in the place. With all the PT and other stuff we dealt with for his shoulder injury recently he's gotten so much worse that we get on the street of the clinic and he's panicing. Kita- she's wagging her tail with anticipation for the cheese treats and feeling great from the acupuncture. Shibas- dogs of extremes.
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Chelle and the rest of the crew including, but not limited to Kita and Taiko (the shiba inu wrestle maniacs), Adi (reserved and dignified tabby cat), and all 28 reptiles www.freewebs.com/performanceshibas

Chelle
I plan on going to the vet this weekend, and I'm nervous. Where did you get your muzzle? Our vet, who is wonderful, always wants me to put the one they supply on Beni, but it's useless - Somehow, Beni always paws it off... I know they dread (with reason) when Beni comes in because of his dramatics, (he has actually cleared out the waiting room because of his screaming/fighting). I can only imagine what his early life experience must have been like, and why he is so petrified of the vet...or, maybe... he's just a big puppy...Once again, any info or advice is greatly appreciated!
Patty

I just got a size 2 muzzle at Petco and fit it to Taiko at home with a TON of treats. He doesn't love the muzzle, but he walks right into it when I ask. By putting it on in the car in the vet parking lot we get rid of one level of adrenalin. He's actually a bit calmer with it on. It's still a struggle, but the drama for everyone concerned is less. When those around him are not nervous, he stays calmer. I'm guessing that's because it uses the same pressure points the Gentle Leader uses. I've also used sedatives with Taiko at clinics before. I have a very good relationship with my vet and depending on what we are doing, she'll let me pick something up at the clinic the day before and give it prior to getting there. I would love to get him better about the vet, but sadly, that's just not his personality. Thankfully I've got Kita to show them the exact opposite end of the spectrum. Vets understand nervous animals. One thing I did learn with Taiko was he's better if I'm not around which is the exact opposite of Kita who needs me there in order to be good. Talk openly with your vet and trouble shoot. Be open to their recommendations and don't get defensive about it. It's nto a reflection on you- it's just what it is- a nervous animal that would prefer to be somewhere else. Good luck this weekend!
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Chelle and the rest of the crew including, but not limited to Kita and Taiko (the shiba inu wrestle maniacs), Adi (reserved and dignified tabby cat), and all 28 reptiles www.freewebs.com/performanceshibas

Well, if anyone heard high pitch screams on Saturday I'll take the blame...
It took over an hour to give Beni the shot for heartworm...The screaming, twirling, and snapping began as soon as he left me and never waned - We tried to get the muzzle on, but to no avail...(Chelle, I'm taking your advice and buying a muzzle to put on Beni before we go to the vet next time). I swear, if he could get the pitch right, Beni would be a fierce contender on American Idol - he has serious power! Kari, of course, was the perfect patient....I think she's the only reason we aren't kicked out of our vet's office.
Well, Beni is fine, but Kari came out with some type of tick disease so she is on meds for the next 2 weeks,,,She has been on Frontline without missing a month so I'm not sure what to do to prevent this from happening again....My vet said that the tick might have affected her before it died. Also, I asked if I should give Beni and Kari heartworm meds and was told that it's not prevalent in our area so it's not necessary - just get it checked yearly....I'm open to any extra info on what you all think is best- whatever I can do to make Beni and Kari happy and healthy is my main goal! Hope to hear from you soon...

Patty

Patty, do you have mosquitoes in your area?

Sorry, Beni's heartworm test was such an ordeal....this was a blood draw, right?

It's good that they caught Kari's infection and that it can be treated.
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Anne, Bill, and Murphy

What are aare you in?

Heartworm wasn't prevelrnt here either - then KAtrina happened and southern dogs (where heartworm is rampant) were transported all over the country with little to no vetting. My vets heartworm patients tripled.

And 2 years ago we adopted a HW Shiba from Ohio - once she was here who knows if she got bit by a mosquito or how many times or where that mosquito went.

All it takes is one HW dog to start the spread in your area.

I would do heartguard every 6 weeks for the wamrest months of the year at least. I say 6 weeks because it actually dows work for that long - the comapny jsut doesn't think pwoplw are smart enough to remember to admister it 6 weeks apart so they say the 1st of every month.

Oh and ttoally muzzle Beni at home happy muzzles has some very cute ones so they don't make people think you have a "bad dog". I would take the muzzle on and off at home randomly use it for a bit here and there so that he doesn't think vet time everythime he sees it at home.
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Alicia,Owned by 2 Shibas, Niko and Avari, 3 cats, Miss Kitty, Mr. Grobbles and Al E. Cat and 2 beautiful daughters, Gwen and Penelope

I bet you're all glad the vet ordeal is over!

I use Interceptor (to prevent HW) and Frontline with Artemis.

Hello All,

I will DEFINITELY go the muzzle route next time....not only for the sake of the vet and aides, but for Beni's safety, as well. Whatever I can do to be the best human possible for my pups is what I'll do. As I write this, I look over at Beni and wish that everyone could see him as he usually is - a calm, loving, totally devoted Shiba - very content - the real Beni....and my Kari close at hand. I thank you for the muzzle advice and will begin our training this weekend - any additional info to make this a successful experience is welcomed - I have a feeling I will need every available trick of the trade to train my big boy.

To Lisha,
I live in Southern California - between Los Angeles and San Diego. We have dry heat in the summer and an "outdoorsy/short sleeve" climate year round - very moderate and pleasant. It's very nice, but we do miss experiencing the beauty of the seasons.
In general, we do not have a mosquito problem - so...do you think I should still put Beni and Kari on some type of heartworm medication and keep them on Frontline, as well?

I would love to hear from all of you...in the meantime have a great week!

Patty

Scared dog at the vet- not fun, but it happens. If a regular cloth muzzle doesn't seem to be helping out, you can try a basket muzzle. It allows you to treat your dog easier once the muzzle is one. Granted, I've found very little to treat my dog for when I have to muzzle him. I just try to make the experience short. Most of my training with a muzzle involved me not chasing him to get it on. He sees muzzle, he gets a treat. He calmly lets me put it on- another treat. The trick- not to make it a battle if you can. If it becomes a battle, then things kind of slide downhill.

As for Frontline and Interceptor. If you are going to skip a med- Frontline is the one to skip in my area. Frontline controls fleas for up to 3 months (since we don't tend to bathe our shibas too often) and ticks one month. Although the effectiveness of it against ticks can be argued a bit. I tend to do one Frontline dose in the spring when ticks become active and then another in the fall when they are as well when they are active again- depending on if I'm seeing activity or not with what we are doing. Still, I wouldn't personally try any of the other tick meds out there. The chemicals are quite severe. I use heatworm meds on the every 6 week dose. I also don't use it all year long because we do have harsh winters.

Each area is different though. It may be good to ask around at dog classes and see what others do in your area. I can email some agility people in CA and see what they do. They tend to be in the know about such things.
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Chelle and the rest of the crew including, but not limited to Kita and Taiko (the shiba inu wrestle maniacs), Adi (reserved and dignified tabby cat), and all 28 reptiles www.freewebs.com/performanceshibas

I agree with Chelle - ask around about heartgard - which in reality is not heart worm preventaitve but kills off heartworms once your dog has them.....

I am all for not giving chemicals in insecticides to my pets, so if it is something you think you can do without and just test for yearly awesome! It is just something that I have become more concerned about with my area in the past few years.

Since both my dogs have had lyme and Niko got Erhlichiosis, I do use frontline all summer - but I wish I didin't have to!
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Alicia,Owned by 2 Shibas, Niko and Avari, 3 cats, Miss Kitty, Mr. Grobbles and Al E. Cat and 2 beautiful daughters, Gwen and Penelope