I think this is just about the neatest idea ever. It might be a little beyond my sewing skills right now, but I’m going to start saving bags and working on my sewing skills, and one day I’m going to make me a cool reusable bag like that!
George and Gracie are home from the spaying and the neutering. Everything went well, except that George has demodicosis. I could explain what it is, but if you’re that interested, go read about it yourself over here, ’cause I have not the patience to explain it.
The treatment is a daily oral dose of Ivermectin, which is the medication we have to give them for heartworm, conveniently enough, so treating it shouldn’t be too big a problem (I nominated Fred to be the party responsible for treating George every day). He could grow out of it, it could come and go throughout his lifetime, it’s a wait-and-see sort of thing.
We need to re-weigh him regularly to be sure he’s getting the proper dosage.
As we were driving home from the vet – we took the dogs to the vet I take Miz Poo to, a vet’s office that is a 25-minute drive from home – I said “Now do you understand why I like Dr. Wendy so much?”
Fred said “Yeah, she seems pretty laid-back about the fact that they’re farm dogs and thus won’t be pampered. I like that she took her time to explain all the possible treatments.”
“I like her because you can tell that she genuinely likes animals, she’s not just phoning it in like (male vet we’ve used in the past) or (other male vet we’ve used in the past).”
I just wish she was a little closer, because while I’m willing to make that 25-minute drive for the problem pets (Miz Poo, mostly), it’s still easier to take the rest of the cats to the vet who lives five minutes up the road.
These past few days, Claudette has been really coming out of her shell. I wish I’d had the camera in the living room with me last night. Claudette wandered in as we were watching TV, and let Fred coax her up onto the couch with him. He petted her for a few minutes, ’til she reached her petting threshhold and started kicking and biting his hand. Then she spotted Tommy in the cat bed on the end of the couch and she flirted with him for a few minutes before she climbed right into the bed with him. He groomed her and she groomed him back, and then she kicked and bit at him a little bit. She settled down for a few minutes and he was hugging her like she was a teddy bear, and I just about died from the cute.
Remember when she was like this all the time and we thought we’d never get her to come to us for petting?
She still runs if you walk toward her, and she doesn’t like to be picked up at ALL, but when it’s on her terms, she loves to be petted, and she’ll even climb on you and snuggle up. She’s such a sweet thing.
Sun bath.
More pics over at Love & Hisses.
Spanky considers putting the smack down on me for getting all up in his face with the camera, but ultimately decides against it.
Previously
2008: Negative. Good news or sad news, I wonder?
2007: No entry.
2006: No entry.
2005: Y’all rock.
2004: So many books, so little time.
2003: Ah, good times.
2002: So, you know what I hate?
2001: No entry.
2000: I was a tad peeved.
Did the vet tell you that some dogs don’t like the taste of ivomec, even if suspended in PG?
Nevermind: She didn’t, actually. Fred asked about the taste, and she said that she wasn’t sure. And then she told us that she and the other employees of the clinic actually take ivomec every month themselves, but they’ve never tasted it straight (apparently it’s really good with Coffeemate in it). She did say that she puts it over her dog’s food when she gives it to them, and they eat it that way.
Thanks for the cute Spanky pic – he does look a bit shocked that the paparazzi has gotten so aggressive ha ha. Aww I wanna come snuggle with your kitties!
My cat Elphaba looks a lot like Claudette. She likes to have the love on her terms also. She is so shy with strangers none of my family or friends can interact with her. They see her as a blur streaking through the room on the way to run and hide. I call her not quite a calico. I love her to death but I wish she were a little more friendly to company who’d like to meet her. She is 17 months old now so I think this will be her personality. We had one other tiny black cat Guenevere who was as shy. I think my family and friends were spoiled by a tuxedo cat we had named Scarlett O’Hara. She was so friendly she greeted all visitors with a kiss on the nose. She was a very cool cat. Sadly she died at only six years old. People still mention her and she’s been gone almost ten years. Guess she lives on in fond memories.
Cute photos! Random question – what is that green thing by Claudette as she is grooming herself in the sun?
Glad to see that Miz Poo is overseeing Claudette’s grooming techniques. You would not want to adopt a kitten out that doesn’t know proper grooming techniques.
[the vet] and the other employees of the clinic actually take ivomec every month themselves, but they’ve never tasted it straight (apparently it’s really good with Coffeemate in it)
!!! Wait – the who’s in the what now?
*a little bit of Googling later*
I had no idea that humans could get heartworms. Although Wiki says it’s of negligible consequence. Still.
I shall now proceed to spend the next three months being faintly worried that this goddamn cough, for which I have undergone four separate courses of antibiotics and multiple other treatments unsuccessfully, is indicative that I have A GIGANTIC WORM LIVING IN MY HEART SLURPING UP MY BLOOD.
“Thanks so much,” Robyn! (c;
Seriously, though, do they take it to protect themselves against heartworms, since they are high-exposure, or is there some other reason for it?
*more reading*
Wiki says: “Usually the adult worms are killed with an arsenic-based compound. The currently approved drug in the US, melarsomine dihydrochloride, is marketed under the brand name Immiticide.” [bolding mine]
!!!!!!!!
My dog has a heart condition that causes his immune system to be a little depressed, so he’s gotten the demodex thing before and was treated with ivermectin. The vet never even suggested we put it on his food! After a few weeks of struggling to give it to him, I finally figured out to mix it with yogurt! He gladly lined up to take it then! The vet slowly ramped him up to the correctly calculated dosage, but it ended up being too much for his system to handle. He started stumbling around and acting, for lack of better word, drunk. We took him off of it for a week, and started back at half the dosage which he was on for about 6 weeks. He’s been good now for about 6 months. Keep an eye out for that! Hopefully your dogs are a little more hearty than my goober.
You can also treat the mange holistically. Much better than using the pesticide ivermectin, and safer for the dog. This works if the area is small, takes longer if the whole body is affected. I make a peanutbuter sammich with the viramin cocktail- never had one refused.
400 IU Vitamin E daily
1 Capsule Echinecea daily
1000 mg Vitamin C daily
1 capsule Vitamin B Complex daily
2 cans sardines per week
1 Centrum Multivitamin (like for people) daily
Should take 4-6 weeks for small areas and about 2-3 months if the whole body is losing fur.
Robyn,
We rescued a Miniature Pinscher with the same skin problem. He had a HORRIBLE reaction to the dips and looked terrible so we switched vets and he went on the liquid ivermectin for several months. That was almost 3 years ago and we’ve seen no ill effects and he is a wonderful dog. Contact the breeder and let him know. He shouldn’t keep breeding the female because if any of the pups are stressed or their immune system is suppressed in any way, the condition can develop. Good luck! Beautiful dogs.