Saturday, June 30, 2007

1 year old black Labrador Retriever with Chronic Ear Infections - part II

This is part II of an e-mail received from Eric in regards to chronic ear
infections with his 1 year old black Labrador retriever named Sammy.

To read part I of this e-mail click:
1 year old black Labrador Retriever with Chronic Ear Infections - part I

All About Labradors Answer:

Hi Eric,

The information given here is to help you learn more about your Labrador Retriever and not to replace your veterinarian's advice. Disclaimer

In regards to your response to my questions, Otomax, a combination steroid, antibacterial, and antifungal ointment is used for bacterial ear infections.

Ear infections in Labrador Retrievers can be a frustrating situation, with proper communication with your veterinarian and regular maintenance on your part ear infections can be managed.

The first thing that should be done for Sammy, is determining what and why she is getting the ear infections. Your veterinarian treated with Otomax for a bacterial infection, but the infections keep coming back. What needs to be done is to find out why Sammy keeps getting these ear infections.

From a question I answered from another reader of All About Labradors - Black Lab with Incessant Ear Infection

Ear infections can be caused by a number of different things, especially in dogs like our LabradorRetrievers with their long, pendulous ears. Because the ear folds over, it covers our Labrador ear canaland prevents air from entering and drying. This results in a warm/moist ear canal that's just the perfect for organisms to grow in.

Ear mites, ears that are not dried after your Labrador Retriever has been swimming or bathing, a build up of ear wax, allergies, and growths in the ear canal, can all lead to ear infections.

Allergies:

If the ear infections are seasonal the possibility of an inhalant allergy could be the cause. Problems with ear infections year round can also be caused by a food allergy. What kind of food are you feeding her?

Your veterinarian will be able to help you find a cause of the ear infections.

As far as what I recommend in terms of post-swimming application:

I only use the "Blue Power Ear Treatment" for gunk and ear infections in my Labrador Retriever's ears.

Follow the schedule of treatment. I would not recommend using after each swim.

For post swimming I would continue to use the swimmers ear astringent to help evaporate the water out of the ear canal. As far as a successful regimen of treatment, cleaning of Sammy's ears regularly is your best bet. Frequency of cleaning will vary, especially in the warmer months and after swimming
or bathing. A good ear cleanser can be recommended by your veterinarian. White vinegar mixed 1:3 with water can also be used to rinse the ears.

Here is the recipe for the "Blue Power Ear Treatment". I never found out who was the first with this treatment as it has been past around for years.

Remember to have your veterinarian evaluate Sammy's ear prior to treating the ear problem yourself.

"Blue Power Ear Treatment"INGREDIENTS:

16 Oz. Isopropyl Alcohol (Witch Hazel)
4 Tablespoons Boric Acid Powder
16 Drops Gentian Violet Solution 1%

Mix together in alcohol bottle and shake well. You will also need to shake solution every time you use it to disperse the Boric Acid Powder. An eye dropper can be used to fill the ear.

TREATMENT: Evaluate condition of ears before treating and if very inflamed and sore do not attempt to pull hair or clean out ear at all. Wait until inflammation has subsided which will be about 2 days.

Shake the bottle each time before using. Flood the ear with solution (gently squirt bottle), massage gently for approximately a minute, and then wipe with a cloth or tissue. Flood again a second time, and wipe again without massaging in. The dog will shake out the excess, which you can wipe with a cotton ball (never clean with a cotton swab, as debris can be pushed further into the ear canal). Be advised, the Gentian Violet does stain.

The SCHEDULE of treatment is as follows:

Treat 2 xs per day for the first week to two weeks depending upon severity of ears

Treat 1x per day for the next 1-2 weeks

Treat 1x per month (or even less frequently, depending on the dog)

All of these ingredients should be available at your local pharmacy. I like to use witch hazel instead of alcohol, as if any scratches are in the ear, the alcohol can cause burning. The Boric Acid Powder soothes the ear and the Gentian Violet Solution is an ant-infection agent. The solution appears to work well on many ear problems. I also like to warm my solution slightly, under warm water, to prevent the cold water "shock", but you can use it either way. There is also a commercial version of this solution called Gentian Ear Treatment.

The most important thing here Eric, is that the cause of the ear infections need to be addressed, not just a treatment of the symptoms.

I hope this is of help to you Eric. Keep me updated on Sammy's condition, and if you don't understand something or have further questions on this or any other subject let me know.

Take care of yourself and Sammy.

Eric's (Reader) Response:

You've been helping me with regard to the ear infections in Sammy. I have just returned from the vet and, according to the information I received, she presently has yeast infections in both ears and bacterial infection in the left ear only. They have prescribed Tesaderm 15ml, 8-10 drops twice daily for 2-3 weeks, Conofite Lotion 30ml, 8-10 drops for 2-3 weeks and T8 Keto to be used to clean ears prior to application of aforementioned medicine and 2-3 times weekly for maintenance purposes.

As for causation, the vet speculated allergies. I am feeding Sammy the same food that she was receiving for the first 8 months of her life, "Naturally Complete" by Purina. The vet indicated a potential food change, away from real beef which, I see, is an ingredient of this food. Also, I noticed when first I took her in that she had sores on the tips of each ear as if ear infections had been an ongoing problem already. A food change, she recommended, may be the easiest remedy to try.

Fay, I appreciate your continued assistance. What would you recommend I do?

Thanks, Eric

All About Labradors Answer:

Hi Eric,

I hope the medication the vet has prescribed has been helping Sammy. Thank you for the great photo!

As for the food change, I would definitely recommend giving it I try. Like I have stated in the last e-mail, the cause of the infections must be figured out, not just the clearing of the infections. If the cause isn't figured out, Sammy will continue to get her ear infections.

Dog food is made up of a combination of many different ingredients. Here are some of the more common ingredients that can cause problems in a dog include:

beef, dairy, chicken, corn, eggs, fish, lamb, pork, soy, wheat, and whey.

For the food allergy, Sammy will be fed a "hypoallergenic diet" for a period of 12-16 weeks, to monitor her response. What kind of food has your vet recommended?

It is important that during the diet trial nothing else is eaten. No edible chew toys (such as rawhides or bones), no table scrapes, no teats unless they are based on the same food sources as the test diet. NOTHING

Placing Sammy on a commercial lamb and rice formula dog food is not an acceptable way to diagnose or treat food allergies.

Here are some hypoallergenic dog foods for you:

1st Choice Adult Dog Hypollergenic

Eagle Pack Holistic Select® Duck Meal & Oatmeal Formula

Hill's Prescription Diet Canine z/d Ultra Allergen Free

Your vet might recommend Hill's ZD diet, or Purina Veterinary Diets HA or LA diet

Keep me informed Eric. Let me know how the vets medication is doing, what food she goes on, and anything else that happens.

Take care and talk to you soon.

To see a photo of Sammy click: Sammy 6/29/07

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Categories: LabradorHealth_ ReadersEmail_

Continue Reading...

Friday, June 29, 2007

1 year old black Labrador Retriever with Chronic Ear Infections - part I

We received this e-mail from Eric (USA). Eric's question has to due with chronic ear infections with his 1 year old black Labrador Retriever named Sammy.

Reader's E-mail - Eric Writes:

I have a 1 yr-old black lab that I've owned for about 4 mos. She has had chronic ear infections (with small intervals of absence following treatment with Otomax. Since that time, I regularly clean her ears with Isopropyl Alcohol with a cotton swab and apply Swimmer's Ear Astringent.

I have read the FAQ under this site and am purchasing the ingredients for the Blue Powder "stuff" and will follow the regimen. My dog will swim a lot. What do you recommend in terms of post-swimming application. Blue Powder each time?

Thanks for your help.

Eric (For Sammy)

All About Labradors Answer:

Hello Eric,

Thanks for writing, sorry to hear about Sammy's ears.

Before I answer your question, I need you to answer something for me:

What is causing her chronic ear condition?

Did your vet recommend the Isopropyl Alcohol and Swimmers Ear Astringent?

Do you ever have problems with her ears after cleaning with the alcohol?

Please get me an answer for these question and then I will be able to answer your question Eric.

One last thing Eric, with all the email questions I receive, I always ask a favor of the person writing. If you have any photos of Sammy, that you could email me, I would love to post them to the Labrador Retriever Pictures blog.

Talk to you soon,

Fay

Reader's E-mail - Eric's Response:

Dear Fay:

Thank you for your prompt response. I must say I'm embarrassed to say that I don't know what's causing them. I got her at 8 mos. of age and she had one almost immediately. She had also, almost immediately swam and other than dry her, I did nothing.

I took her to the vet and without any tests, he prescribed the medication that I informed you of on the previous e-mail. Is Ottomax for bacterial infections? I think so. But again, I don't know what his diagnosis was/is. Since the problem has been fairly chronic with only short respites, it is hard to say that she is or isn't reacting to the alcohol. The swimmer's ear astringent was, however, recommended by the vet to help prevent what we surmised (I surmised?) was a problem related to lake-water in her ears. Thanks for your help.

Sincerely,
Eric

To read part II of this email click: 1 year old black Labrador Retriever with cronic ear infections - part II.

To see a photo of Sammy, click: Sammy 6/29/07.

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

Categories: LabradorHealth_ ReadersEmail_

Continue Reading...

Monday, June 25, 2007

6 month old Labrador Retriever Cuts her Paws

This e-mail was sent in from Jen (USA). Jen's six month old Labrador Retriever puppy has a problem with her legs and paws getting cut when the visit the dog park.

Reader's E-mail - Jen Writes:

My poor pup is 6 mos old and cute as a button. My concern is that everytime we seem to go to the dog park (an all dirt park,) she comes home with bleeding paws/legs.

First, a few weeks ago, on both her back legs, about 1/2 way between the knee and the paw, she began to bleed after our dog park visit. The site looks like an abrasion. They begin to heal and scab over until the next visit to the dog park.

Now, today, her front paws, began to bleed and she cut both front pads at the dog park. These are also the pads that are 1/2 way between the foot and the elbow that began to bleed. It looks as though they were also rubbed raw.

Is this common? They don't seem to hurt her, but she leaves a mess in the car on our way home, and i am worried they will one day become infected. Thank you for your time.

Jen

All About Labradors Answer:

Hello Jen,

The information given here is to help you learn more about your Labrador Retriever and not to replace your veterinarian's advice. Disclaimer

Thank you for writing and sorry to hear about your pups injuries.

One of the most common puppy dog injuries are ones to their skin and muscles. Injuries will happen, as they are a standard part of dog ownership. From cut paws, cracked pads, to a gash on the leg, a puncture wound from bushes, thorns, glass, injures are bound to happen.

At 6 months of age, your young Labrador Retrievers pads are still very soft and are vulnerable, especially to different types of terrain. Running, jumping, and just plain fooling around on these different surfaces can scratch and/or cut into their pads, cause broken nails, and cause various abrasions to her legs and feet.

The most important thing to remember when your Labrador does get an injury is not to panic.

Examine the wound to make sure no foreign objects are present in the wound (I wouldn't recommend trying to remove the object yourself, as you could make things worst).

If nothing is present, cover the wound with a clean cloth or sterile dressing, and apply pressure to stop the bleeding.

If the wound continues to bleed, soaking through your dressing, do not remove it, simply add more dressing and continue to apply pressure till the bleeding stops.

The best thing to do from there is to take her to the veterinarian. Now this is totally up to you Jen, it’s your decision as to how the wound looks. For myself, I treat minor injuries to both of my Labradors , but as I said this is your decision.

If the wound is deep, stitches might be necessary. Any other serious injuries should also be dealt with by your vet immediately.

As for your Labradors condition now, you have to give the injury time to heal. Make sure you keep the injuries clean to prevent infections, and refrain from long walks, runs; until the injuries heal (I know this will be tough). Again I would recommend seeing your veterinarian to make sure there are no problems with her injuries.

One thing I use on my Labrador Retrievers minor injures is Aloe Vera. It doesn't have any harmful side-effects with my Labradors and I'm amazed at its soothing effects and the speedy healing process. Plus it won't harm them if they lick it off.

I have a friend that loves to take her Labrador Retriever hiking with her and she swears by the doggie boots for protection. I've had mixed results with my Labs as they seem to get pulled off, but it is something you might look into.

I hope this is of some help for you Jen. Please keep me advised of your Labradors condition. If you have further questions on this or anything else, please don't hesitate to ask.

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,


Categories: LabradorHealth_ ReadersEmail_

Continue Reading...

All About Labradors available in different languages

Hi everyone. Thanks to all who resent their e-mail questions. Just wanted to advise everyone that All About Labradors can now be read in twelve different languages.

To translate any page, visit the left sidebar on the All About Labradors where it states "Translate this Page". Select your language and click the translate button and Google will do the rest. Hope this feature is helpful.

Thanks for reading! Take care of yourself and your Labrador Retrievers.

Technorati Tags: , , , , , ,

Categories: General_

Continue Reading...

Monday, June 18, 2007

Black Lab losing her Hair

This e-mail is sent in by Rita (Canada) in regards to a problem with her black Labrador Retriever named Sammy, who is losing her hair.

Reader's E-mail - Rita Writes:

Hello; my 9 year old black lab Sammy has been losing her hair in small clumps for awhile now. She has always had a beautiful black shiny coat but now she is losing her lovely hair. I took her to the vet who thought she had an allergy. She was given an antihistamine and a antibiotic shot and put on antibiotics, an omega 3 fatty acid supplement and a special shampoo. We also changed her diet to an expensive non-allergenic dog food. So far her hair keeps falling out. She is not bothered by the hair loss. She does not scratch at all. This has been going on for at least 6 weeks and I am not sure where to go from here. Any ideas? Thanks , Rita (Sammy’s owner)

All About Labradors Answer:

Hello Rita,

Thank you for writing and I'm sorry to hear about the condition in Sammy.

I need you to answer a few questions for me to be able to try to assist with the problem.

How long has it been (one week ago, three weeks ago, etc.), that Sammy has had her antihistamine, antibiotic shot and taken antibiotics? Also the same for the new food and supplements.

Where is the hair falling out (one place or all over the body) ?

Is the hair falling out in circular patches?

How does the skin look where the hair has fallen out (blisters, sores, redness, crusty, etc.) ?

Any dry, flaky skin?

Greasy coat?

In the areas that the hair is falling out; is there no hair at all or is the hair remaining course and brittle.

Any other medical conditions, now or in the past with Sammy?

Rita, please get back to me with the answer to these question at your earliest convenience.

One last thing I ask of a favor to all the folks who e-mail me questions. If it's possible to e-mail me picture(s) of Sammy it would be greatly appreciated. I love to put the face to the problem and also like to post the pictures to the blog(s) as well as the questions. Thanks.

Rita's Response:

Continue Reading...


Hi Fay – thank you for answering my e-mail.

Sammy started losing her hair soon after Christmas. I took her to the vet on January 11 and that was when they gave her the shots and she was started on the oral antibiotics. We started her on the supplements and food ever since. It doesn’t seem to be improving at all and her hair is mostly falling off her back. The little clumps of hair are attached to a flake of dry skin. The bare skin in just quite flaky. She does not scratch anywhere at all. Her hair may be thinning a little bit on her legs but not falling out. Her coat is not greasy and still feels soft. She has been very healthy though she was backed over by a truck last summer and broke her pelvis. She was also very gassy with putrid smelling dog farts. This has improved somewhat since changing her dog food to non-allergenic.

I have attached a picture which I hope helps. Please let me know if I have missed anything. I appreciate your response as I am not sure whether to take her back to the vet since nothing has improved except maybe the gas thing.

Thanks again, Rita

All About Labradors Answer:

Hi Rita,

The information given here is to help you learn more about your Labrador Retriever and not to replace your veterinarian's advice. Disclaimer

Thank you for your responses to the questions and the photos. I seem to be getting this same type of question (hair loss) very frequently lately.

Sounds like your veterinarian is trying to determine whether or not a food allergy or intolerance is causing Sammy's problem. He/she has put Sammy on a special diet "hypoallergenic diet", which is fed for a set period of time to see if Sammy recovers. I have read in Labrador Retrievers it can be up to 10-12 weeks of the trial diet before showing a response. Remember, Sammy should not be fed anything else (table scrapes, treats, etc) for this to work.

There are many reasons for hair loss, and with no itching going on with Sammy, the cause is likely to be a result of an allergy or nutrient deficiency. The loss of hair can also be tied to hormonal imbalances. Hypothyroidism, a condition in which the thyroid gland does not produce a sufficient amount of thyroid hormone, could also be a possibility. There are many different symptoms to hypothyroidism with one being chronic skin disorders, such as dry skin, thinning of the hair coat, excessive hair loss. Laboratory tests for this can be done by your veterinarian.

Here are some websites with further info on Canine Hypothyroidism:

http://www.clumbers.org/CSCAhypothyroidism.htm

http://canadiangoldens.com/page.cgi?page=thyroid

You can also do a search on Google to produce hundreds more.

Other allergy test may be done, such as blood tests or intradermal skin testing. The better allergy test is intradermal skin testing, which is usually done by a veterinary dermatologist. You may want to visit a veterinary dermatologist (you can ask for a referral from your vet) if he/she is not one themselves. Veterinary dermatologist are specialists that tend to see chronic and odd cases, and often recognize unusual syndromes a general practitioner may miss.

These allergy tests are usually done after other potential causes of skin problems are performed and after the “hypoallergenic diet” are complete.

For the dry skin: An occasional cool bath can be very soothing, especially if you use an oatmeal shampoo (helps relieve dry irritated skin) or add a little colloidal oatmeal (like Aveeno) to the water. You can also apply some Aloe Vera several times a day (100 % pure kind, from health food store). A Hydrocortisone Shampoo (like your vet has prescribed) can also be used (they have Hydrocortisone Shampoo with Aloe Vera Gel in them). After shampooing make sure you rinse completely!

All dogs can have a touch of Dog Flatulence (farts or gas) from time to time. Sometimes it occurs as they get older also. Certain foods can cause gas with your Sammy just as it can happen with you and me. A low quality diet, such as cheap dog food, treats, table scraps, can also be a cause. Another cause can be if Sammy eats extremely fast, she will swallow too much air and cause the gas. If Sammy does eat to fast you may want to feed her smaller amounts during the day. Instead of feeding her 1 or 2 portions of food per day, you can divide the same amount into smaller portions and feed the dog more frequently.

What I would recommend is to give your veterinarian a call and tell them that it doesn't seem to be improving. Remember though you are only about eight weeks into the "hypoallergenic diet" test so they might want to give it a few more weeks, but at least give them a call anyway as they might want to start other testing. Continue your bathing as prescribe by your vet, you can also use the Aloe Vera. You may also want to think about a veterinarian dermatologist.

I hope I have been of some kind of help to you and Sammy. Please keep me up to date with her condition, and anything else the vet says or does, as it is beneficial to me and the readers of All About Labradors blog. If you notice other changes to her, please let me know also. If you have any more questions on this condition or any other conditions don't hesitate to send me an e-mail (even if you have to send hundreds of them - I don't mind).

Take care of yourself and Sammy

Technorati Tags: , , , , , ,

Categories: LabradorHealth_ ReadersEmail_

Continue Reading...

All About Labradors - Back on track

Hello to all the readers of All About Labradors. Sorry for the delays in posting, as I was without a computer since the end of May. After my last posting on 05/31/07, my computer decided it was time to end its life.

Posted once on my sisters computer and then had her try to help post for me, and she caused me even further problems, by wiping away some of my e-mail questions, and some of my saved e-mails from the past. Not to mention some of my precious photos of all the Labrador Retrievers sent in by all of you.

I am now back online with my new speedy Dell notebook computer and have wrote to some of you who's e-mail questions I still have. Below are the names of the other e-mail questions I also have, and you will be receiving an answer shortly.

E-mail names:

Ronnie D.
Steph L.
Derek R.
Andrew O.
Jason D.
Gary S.
Mina C.
Dawn C.
Erik J.
Sal A.
Gregory L.

I also have a question from Caroline in regards to Marley and shedding, but don't seem to have the full question, if you could resend it, that would be great.

For those of you that have sent in e-mail questions and have not received a response or who's name is not listed above, please except my sincere apologies. Please resend your question(s) and I will try to be of help to you.

For those of you that have sent in pictures of your Labradors, and I haven't sent you an e-mail yet, please resend them if you would like me to post them to the Labrador Retrievers Picture blog.

Once again my apologies for the delays and we are rolling again with the new computer!

Categories: General_

Continue Reading...

Monday, June 11, 2007

My six month old Labrador Retriever Bites - part II

This is part two of a two part e-mail in regards to Ace, a six month old Labrador Retriever / Terrier mix who has a problem with biting.

To read part I of this e-mail click: My six month old Labrador Retriever Bites - part I

All About Labradors Answer:

Puppies need to learn what we call "bite inhibition". - the amount of mouth pressure that can be used without causing pain or harm. A puppy learns "bite inhibition" from their mom and littermates. If you watch a litter of puppies playing with each other, you see them biting one another all the time. When one puppy bites another one too hard, the hurt puppy will yelp and stop playing. Gradually, with repetition, the puppies learn not to bite too hard so that the play can continue.

How old was Ace when you got him?

Where did you get him (pet store, rescue, etc.)?

Are there any patterns of when the biting or mouthing behaviors start (Certain time of day, overexciting, rough housing)?

Does Ace get plenty of exercise?

How does Ace act with the veterinarian?

You stated he tries to bite when someone pets him. Are these people strangers or family doing the petting?

Without me seeing Ace in action, I can only go by what you tell me. I have seen plenty of pups continue to mouth, nip and bark when corrected and with proper training they turned out fine.

In your opinion, do you think Ace is being aggressive and/or do you feel threatened by him.

Get back to me when you can. I will be here to help all I can.

Karen's Response:

Hi again and thank you for helping us out! Ace was 6 weeks when we got him......although our vet thinks he was more like 4 weeks. We adopted him from the North Shore Animal League, which I believe is a rescue facility. Ace seems to be biting in a play manner but he is very strong and it hurts! It doesn't seem to phase him to yell "Ouch" or say no bite...he just continues. Sounds weird but he is worse with females.

Continue Reading...


We don't fear him but we do react in a scared manner when he does this simply because he really hurts. In the last few days out of nowhere, he has started to go for your feet while you are walking....either with him or without him.....again it is painful! I am just looking for the correct way to teach him NOT to do this....that it is unacceptable! If I put him in the crate when he does this, he will be in there forever during his play time. We can't sit on the couch or floor to play with him without him doing this.......giving him a rawhide seems to help.

Whenever someone comes to pet him he is happy to see them but rather than lick he mouths. First he'll jump, then grab for a hand.

Again, any advise you can give us will be greatly appreciated!!

Oh I forgot to mention, I walk Ace only one a day for about 15 minutes, cause that's all the time I can fit in. You asked how he acted with the vet, well he was younger the last time we took him and he was not doing this.

Karen

All About Labradors Answer:

Hi Karen,

Thanks for answers to my questions, as sometimes certain answers can help me in identifying a certain problem or condition with your Labrador Retriever.

I know you feel Ace might be in the cage for a while, but I still believe you have to try the cage/ignoring method for a while. When he does bite, say "no" or "ouch" in stern voice and then place Ace in his crate for ten to fifteen minutes. If he persists in the behavior upon release, repeat the discipline again. This will teach him that he will not have anyone to play with if he continues his biting and nipping.

If you don't want to go that route, try holding his mouth closed when he does bite. Simply hold his mouth shut for fifteen seconds (start with five seconds and work up to fifteen seconds) while saying something like "No Mouth", "Good No Mouth". You do have to be consistent and stay with this over a period of time to get really solid results. You must also maintain this consistency every time Ace puts his teeth on you or another. You can't think "well he didn't bite to hard, so I will let him slide".

Remember Karen like a child, a dog will test the limits and to see who's boss. You have to establish yourself as the head dog in the pack. Read this Who's Leadin Who? Becoming the leader for a better understanding of what I mean (scroll down page to find Who's Leading section). There is also a piece on jumping which you can use with Ace. There is also another good article here Who's in Charge Here?

Once again, make sure he has plenty of physical exercise as well as mental exercise. I know you said you only have fifteen minutes to walk him, but maybe someone else in the house can help out, or possibly a friend.

As for mental exercise a simple game of fetch, basic training commands such as sit and lay all help with mental stimulation. I find the Kong toys to be quit helpful. The Kong will keep him occupied while it helps him figure out how to get his treats out of the toy.

As far as nipping at feet, Ace sees your feet as a play toy. Your feet are right at his level and they are "in motion", creating what he believes to be a great play toy.

If you are having trouble teaching Ace to stop nipping and biting, you feel that he has become overly mouthy, or you and your family feel threatened, I would look to seek some professional help. Consult with your veterinarian or you can even ask me and I will try to recommend someone for you.

Please keep me updated on how it's going and write with any other questions you may have.

Fay

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Categories: ReadersEmail_ Training_

Continue Reading...

Thursday, June 07, 2007

Free Blue Buffalo Dog Food Sample

Hello to everyone. I have recently come across a free sample of dog food from the Blue Buffalo Company.

I have heard of their company before, but can't tell you much about them. Many different dog food companies seem to be offering free samples of their foods after the dog food recall.

They do offer an interesting detail comparison of the nutritional value of their dog food versus some other popular dog food companies.

Quote from the Blue Buffalo Company Website states:

"Unsurpassed Nutrition

Each package of BLUE Life Protection Formula with LifeSource Bits promises that your dog or cat will receive "Unsurpassed Nutrition," and that's exactly what we mean.

Ultimate Protection

A precise blend of nutrients and antioxidants, BLUE's exclusive LifeSource Bits compliment our Unsurpassed Nutrition by providing the extra protection that dogs and cats need at a time when cancer and environmental toxins seem to be increasing at an alarming rate"

If you are interested in trying their dog food, when you get to their website, click the compare dog food box under Take the True Blue Test, bottom left corner. After comparing food you can click the Try Blue Go button to request two free 4-oz. sample of BLUE Life Protection Formula.

Blue Buffalo Sample

No one here at the All About Labradors blog is in any way an affiliate or associate for the Blue Buffalo Company.

If anyone does use their dog food for their Labrador Retriever(s), please send me an e-mail or leave a comment to let us know more about them. Thanks.

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Categories: Freebies_

Continue Reading...

My six month old Labrador Retriever Bites - part I

This is part one of a two part e-mail that was sent in by Karen (USA). Karen wrote, asking for help with her six month old Labrador Retriever/ Terrier mix who has a problem biting.

To read part II of this e-mail, click: My six month old Labrador Retriever Bites - part II

Readers E-mail - Writes:

My 6 month old lab bites! At first we thought it was just from teething and we always try to offer lots of toys and raw hides. Now at 6 months his jaw is much stronger and he goes to grab at your hands....mostly with us girls in the house......he almost seems fierce when he does this. I am very upset with it, and he really hurts! what can i do to help him STOP that?

All About Labradors Answer:

Hi Karen,

Thanks for writing.

There's an article on the All About Labradors blog titled "Labrador Retriever - Training your puppy to stop biting and nipping," that should be able to help you correct your Lab puppy's (what is his name) biting problem.

Do you own a dog crate. I firmly believe in crate training and would advise you to purchase one (if you don't have it already) as it will aid you in all forms of training for your Labrador.

You stated " he almost seems fierce when he does this." What exactly does he do to make him seem fierce?

Read the listed article and start applying some of the training procedures. Be consistent with your training every time he bites. Keep me advised on the situation and email me with anything you don't understand.

Talk to you soon.

Fay

Karen's Response:

Hi thank you for responding! His name is Ace. He is a six month old lab/terrier mix.

What I meant as fierce is that he will grab for your hands or grab onto your shoe and be persistent about biting it...if you scold him, he seems to get worse...and bark back at you and then continue. We do crate train him...but it seems that whenever someone tries to pet him he pulls this behavior........it feels as though he would always be in the crate for correction.

Technorati Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Categories: ReadersEmail_ Training_

Continue Reading...

Blog Archive

dog videos, cat videos, puppy videos, kitten videos, pet videos

Followers

Syndication

  © Blogger templates The Professional Template by Ourblogtemplates.com 2008

Back to TOP