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The doghouse

If you're worried about your pet's health, please speak to a vet or qualified professional.

Original poster

General dog chat

993 replies

BiteyShark · 20/01/2018 13:29

Anyone fancy a general dog chat thread?

BiteyDog is now almost 15 months old and it's about time we ditched the puppy survival thread for general chit chat but it's still nice to chat about our doggie dilemmas and days so if anyone wants to join me in wittering on saves BiteyDog having the listen to my incessant talking at him then welcome aboard.

How's all the dogs coping with the snow in the northern parts? I am sick of the rain and I guess fortunate enough that BiteyDog doesn't like it much either so apart from a 20 min ball run we are snuggled up in the house today.

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Soubriquet · 27/02/2018 11:31

Yep. I'm aware. Gonna give him a kick up the bum.

Who are you with?

Original poster
BiteyShark · 27/02/2018 11:48

Petplan life cover up to 4K per year. Given what I know now I would have gone for the 7k per year but hey ho hindsight is a wonderful thing Grin

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Soubriquet · 27/02/2018 11:55

Yeah I mentioned pet plan and got shouted down because it was like £16 a month and too expensive

I've seen Sainsbury's and they are £9 a month plus I get 5000 nectar points which is good

Original poster
BiteyShark · 27/02/2018 11:57

He wouldn't like ours then at nearer £40 per month but I think it will now be a few years before the premiums outweigh the claims Sad

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noitsnotteatimeyet · 27/02/2018 12:32

Whatever you do don’t go with petprotect - our premiums were hiked up massively after teatimetoller’s emergency dash to vet hospital two years ago and they’ve changed their conditions so that there’s a £750 cap on scanning and cruciate repairs. Don’t just go on the initial premium as once you’re with a company you’re stuck with them if you’ve ever taken your dog to the vet for anything...

Oh and get as much lifetime cover as you can afford ... if your dog ever has an accident, vet bills quickly spiral into thousands

Soubriquet · 27/02/2018 13:34

Thanks for the heads up

Wolfiefan · 27/02/2018 13:55

Also worth asking your vets which companies they are happy to claim direct from. Ours won't deal with Animal Friends so if we were with them we wouldn't have to pay every bill and then try and claim some back. (Avoid them anyway!)

AvocadosBeforeMortgages · 27/02/2018 15:05

I'd love to only be paying £16 for PetPlan. As a young crossbreed PestDog is costing me £47 per month for his lifetime insurance!

Mind you, I tested it with my parent's postcode and the cost halved Confused Can't imagine what is so risky in north London. Perhaps they're concerned he might overdose on smashed avocado on ryebread Shock

Original poster
BiteyShark · 27/02/2018 15:15

Yes £16 does seem very cheap. We must have expensive breeds in an expensive vet area Avocados.

[boak] bad smells coming again from BiteyDog. The things we put up with for love Grin

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pigsDOfly · 27/02/2018 17:22

Joining the discussion rather late but just to say I'm with Pet Plan and although I'm paying just over £53 per month - life time policy, expensive area and dog is nearly 7 years old - every time I've claimed they've paid out in full without a quibble, so pretty happy with them.

They also cover teeth, not cosmetic, so not for just cleaning but if dog needs teeth removed they will pay for it - thankfully not needed that yet.

Pretty certain it will rise as the years go on, but I'm prepared for that and it's something I wouldn't be without.

Floralnomad · 27/02/2018 17:55

Well stupid dog has managed to contaminate the snow on my patio by ripping out a toe nail whilst acting like an idiot so I’ve now got red snow and a dog with a pressure bandage on his foot .

Soubriquet · 27/02/2018 18:34

Looks like it's ditch the raw for madam

Vets have basically said because she isn't eating, she's being sick with bile and because she is only having chicken, there's no fibre so is having diarrhoea.

So tonight she's had piccolo biscuits with Lily's kitchen wet food and has eaten every scrap. The bowl was licked clean

Wolfiefan · 27/02/2018 18:42

At least she's eating. Hunger pukes are horrid. With raw they need to be on a few different proteins (so not just chicken). Not sure about the fibre comment. A proper raw diet would give everything they need (if they eat it! Grin) but some vets are very anti raw. It doesn't suit every dog though.

Soubriquet · 27/02/2018 18:48

Yeah she was eating just chicken. No offal, no bone, no other protein either.

She was eating it with the bella and Duke and then one day didn't...

She was doing brilliantly on it too. Lovely shiny coat, small non smelly poo.

But I'm not going to fight her. People say a dog will eat when it's hungry...not it bloody won't. It will starve until they are sick Hmm

Original poster
BiteyShark · 27/02/2018 19:00

Floralnomad they are stupid things aren't they. I have had BiteyDog running about like a loon in the garden as it's the first time he has seen snow. Great, just what he should be doing so soon after his endoscopy ShockSad

Hope FloralDog is ok Sad. I bet that hurt.

Soubriquet is it ditch it for good? Personally I wanted to feed BiteyDog kibble as it's more convenient and wet used to make me gag as a kid feeding my parents dog but wet seems the best for him and I hold my breath when I feed him

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Soubriquet · 27/02/2018 19:13

It's definitely ditch it for now

It isn't cheap to buy. With Bella and Duke I've got to buy a minimum of 4kg. With the benyfit I can get individual tubs but this was the stuff that put her off in the first place

Floralnomad · 27/02/2018 19:14

He is a bit miffed that I’ve stopped him playing outside , it’s the first good amount of snow we’ve had since he was a puppy and was thoroughly enjoying it .

Wolfiefan · 27/02/2018 21:20

I'm dreading the snow! It's due to hit here Thursday/Friday.
Soubriquet she would be better off on a complete food than just chicken. They do need different protein, offal and bone too to be healthy on raw. (Can't remember the proportions!)

Squirrel26 · 27/02/2018 22:06

We have a very small amount of snow... SquirrelDog is entirely indifferent to it.

I think he's cold though...so am I, my stupid house is freezing and impossible to heat up properly. I might have to put his Christmas jumper on him (that'll please him, he bloody HATED his Christmas jumper Grin )

thegirlsallgrowedupnow · 27/02/2018 22:11

Raw didn’t suit my little missy, I compromised wanting her to have good quality wet food, Naturediet and good quality kibble, Gentle, half and half. But she didn’t drink enough and got constipated. Now on Gentle kibble am and pm with plain cooked turkey or chicken treats, raw carrot and kongs/ busy buddy with sweet potato and broccoli and the odd raw marrowbones. Seems good .

thegirlsallgrowedupnow · 27/02/2018 22:19

We also had a good time at the beach and cafe. Sporting her equafleece jumper, horrendous colour, she kept running in the sea to cool down I think but seemed happy enough in it, channeling whippets I think!

General dog chat
Floralnomad · 27/02/2018 23:12

Mine will only go out in the snow with his Equafleece on , we have had quite a bit more snow tonight , but tomorrow it’s going to be toilet trips only for Floraldog . We also tried raw feeding at one point but unfortunately it had dire consequences for his teeth so now he’s on Millie’s kibble and Natures menu pouches .

Soubriquet · 28/02/2018 05:33

Madam took one look outside this morning and promptly came back in Grin

Physically took her out and she refused to do anything....not that I could blame her since she was sunk down in the snow to belly level

Original poster
BiteyShark · 28/02/2018 07:20

At least you won't lose Cocodog in that jumper Grin

BiteyDog is going potty in the snow. I think he likes it because he's acting like a puppy again diving in it and burying his nose. I think he is confused though that if he digs he finds the usual stuff underneath.

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thegirlsallgrowedupnow · 28/02/2018 14:03

No, it’s certainly bright but I did notice a couple of dog owners on the beach looking rather anxious at her being off lead. Yellow is the colour for reactive dogs isn’t it😏 Didn’t think about that.
Snow hasn’t hit here yet, we are in Somerset but it is bitterly cold. Coco will sit or potter outside in all weathers even teeming rain but I am only allowing her out for short bursts with a longer walk in the afternoon.