Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with dogs

Can these two dogs learn to get along?

Ashley801 — Sun, 20 Dec 2009 06:43:31 -0800

HelpMeHelpMyParentsFilter: Can these two dogs learn to get along? My parents have recently become the guardians of a new dog. This situation, though it's supposed to be temporary, will probably last quite a long time (months at least, possibly forever).

The first dog is a 14 year old, 75 lb male Chow Chow mix who has lived there since puppyhood, and has never interacted much with other dogs. The second, new dog is a 4 year old, 15lb male Jack Russell terrier who has had a hard life with multiple homes and is extremely high strung. Neither of them are fixed. (My parents will not allow this to be done for their own inscrutable reasons).

What happens is this: the Chow Chow will stalk the Jack Russell around wherever he goes, and stare at him intensely and unremittingly. The Jack Russell may take a nap for an hour, and the Chow Chow will stare at him without blinking the whole time. The Chow Chow also likes to loom as close to the Jack Russell's face as possible to do this, and would get within millimeters if he were allowed to.

When the Jack Russell walks around, the Chow Chow starts quickly circling him as if he's trying to herd him. Within seconds, this leads to them circling each other, as the Jack Russell tries to get away while not turning his back. When the Chow Chow inevitably stumbles after a moment or two (he's got weak legs), the Jack Russell interprets this as a lunge and attacks with full force.

Recently, there was a time where the Jack Russell was only walking by, the Chow Chow made a sudden move to get up from a sitting position, and the Jack Russell freaked out and attacked. (Luckily he's got a small and not very strong mouth, and the Chow Chow has a lot of fur, so he's never been injured at all).

If the Chow Chow is near the Jack Russell and makes a sudden move at all or stumbles, the Jack Russell gets nervous and growls. If the Chow Chow is restrained from moving as the Jack Russell walks by, he strains and stares until the Jack Russell's out of sight.

The Chow Chow has never flat-out attacked the Jack Russell directly, although, very rarely, he's been seen making nips in the direction of the Jack Russell's tail or a foot when he's walking or being carried by. Apparently he has never made contact, though.

My parents have dealt with the problem this way: for the first few weeks, allowing the dogs to just do their own thing under supervision; afterwards, developing a complex system of baby gates to keep them apart. This results in whichever dog is separated by the baby gates from everyone else becoming upset and whining nonstop. Especially the Jack Russell, and his whines are extra loud and piercing, and he'll keep it up for hours.

Is there a way to improve any of this? I would like to help make the situation better if I can, but I'm at a pretty total loss.

Help me deal with my parents and their ass-eating dog.

granted — Wed, 16 Dec 2009 11:41:06 -0800

HomeForTheHolidaysFilter: Help me deal with my parents and their ass-eating dog. About a year and a half ago, my parents' 12-year-old longhaired German Shepard (Skye) was given about two months to live. My dad was heartbroken and immediately started looking for a replacement. My mother, however, was looking forward to the independence offered by not having a large dog in the house. But my dad begged my mother for a new dog, and eventually she told him, “I don’t want a dog but I can’t stand in your way either if you're willing to care for the dog.” He got a 1-year old Shepard (Maya) from a rescue shelter.

Fast-forward to the present: Skye is still alive but can barely walk (he requires a lot of care), and Maya has become a serious problem. I'm visiting for the month (usually I'm away at school), and I am finding the situation unbearable for the following reasons:

-THE HAIR: Two German Shepards shed an incredible amount and hair covers almost every surface, but my parents don’t vacuum often. I find the hair upsets my breathing a bit. Part of the problem is that they cannot brush Skye because it causes him pain. They also do not brush Maya (for reasons unknown to me). My dad is responsible for vacuuming but he doesn’t do it. Anytime I bring up vacuuming, it provokes a fight. I have tried doing it myself but I get resentful especially because the Maya ate some of the vacuum attachments, making it hard to get the hair up (and my dad won't replace them because he claims he "fixed them.").

-TRAINING: Skye is very well trained (we adopted him after his past family sent him to obedience school) but Maya has no training. My dad refuses to send her to obedience school, contending that they can train her himself. So far, he has done some haphazard clicker training but doesn’t do it often enough. Usually Maya finds a way to get to the source of the treats and eats them all in one fell swoop anyway. She has also taught Skye some bad new habits, like drinking out of the toilet. Maya has an oral fixation and typically destroys anything in reach. We now cage her when we go out but she still gets into trouble when we’re home.

-WALKS/EXERCISE: Traditionally, we’ve taken our dogs out three times a day for longish walks. But now, because Skye can barely walk, we just walk Maya about ½ block and my parents refuse to take them on separate walks. I think Maya just has too much energy. She runs out back sometimes but there aren’t any kids at home to play with her.

-HYGIENE: The dogs have just made the house super dirty, and it's disgusting. For example: Skye will take a shit, Maya will spend 20 minutes licking his ass and eating his dried shitballs, and then run around sticking her nose in everything.

-THE FIGHTING: Despite his frustration with her, my dad has grown attached to Maya. Meanwhile, my mother has grown more and more resentful. My mother's resentfulness and my father's distaste for household chores has led to a great deal of tension. "The dogs" have become a "third rail issue" meaning that we really can't talk about them honestly. We cannot have a dialogue, for example, about whether to put Skye to sleep and we cannot discuss how best to train Maya. Any suggestions I put forth cause a fight. Meanwhile, my mother refuses to do more than the bare minimum for Maya because my dad adopted her on the promise that he would take on the primary care role. To be fair, I do contribute to the tension by losing my patience with Maya and making my opinions about her odor, her behavior, and the state of the house known. I'm ashamed to say that I don't always express my opinions in the most mature way (a la, "get away from me, you stupid ass eater ")

I know there are obvious solutions to these problems, but anything I suggest turns into a fight. If I say something to my father, my mom just starts yelling at my dad, saying she hates the dog too. My parents resent my coming home and telling them how to live their lives, and they seem unable to commit any more time to the dogs (they put a lot of time into caring for Skye already - and, as I said, my dad will not entertain the suggestion of putting Skye down). How can I cope with this situation, given my physical discomfort, my resentment, and my parents' unwillingness to address the giant hairy elephant(s) in the room?

(Posting for my gf, who will respond to questions by proxy)

Sleep-peeing?

violetk — Mon, 14 Dec 2009 21:57:43 -0800

do dogs pee in their sleep? every once in awhile, my dog will pee in his sleep. the amount of pee isn't a lot—definitely a lot less than if he was outside. is this normal? should i be concerned? he's 4.5 yrs old, been house-trained since he was a baby (in fact, he rings some jingle bells hanging on the back door when he needs to go out to go to go potty), so i'm a little puzzled. i've started noticing this in the past maybe year or so.

Help me mediate this age old rivalry

pilibeen — Sun, 13 Dec 2009 16:09:32 -0800

Is it possible for a dog with a strong prey drive be trained to not kill my cat? I'm moving into a small guesthouse which is situated on another property where a large dog has the run of the place. I have an overweight, outdoor cat who I'm worried might not be able to escape if she has a run-in with the dog. The dog is amazingly well-trained and well socialized when it comes to other people, but when he sees small animals he completely loses it.

Is it possible to train out this instinct - I'm guessing not? Is it at least possible to let the dog know that this specific cat is part of the family, and not food?

Right now my only idea is to have some controlled encounters with the dog on a leash. Any other suggestions or experiences would be appreciated...

thanks!

Which breed?

Netzapper — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 21:07:05 -0800

We've decided to get a dog. I'm partial to Australian Shepherds, but would like to hear other suggestions. Help me select a breed. Growing up, my family had a revolving selection of from-the-pound mutts. Many of them were good dogs, and some of them were terrible. Finally, after years of playing rescue-dog craps, my father convinced my mother to buy a working-line Australian Shepherd (for $50). She's easily the finest dog my family has ever owned.

So now my wife and I have decided that we can commit to a dog. Right now, I'm self-employed and have plenty of time to devote to training a puppy. And in not too long, we'll be buying a house with a fenced yard (our current yard is unfenced).

I'm partial to an Australian Shepherd, but I wonder if part of the reason for my parents' dog's overactive behavior is that she doesn't have any real work to do. Consequently, because I don't have a herd of anything, I wonder if I won't have similar problems with any aussie I acquire. Similarly, I'm a lazy programmer, and so won't be taking the dog on cross-country runs or anything like that to tire it out.

So, I'm now considering other breeds (not that I'm rejecting aussies, just considering). Here's what I demand from this dog:

1) Obedient: a reasonable number of complex commands can be learned, and will be followed immediately and compliantly.

2) Intelligent: problem solving, curious, predictive.

3) Low grooming requirements: I don't mind giving a lot of attention, but I don't want to have to groom the dog daily.

4) Not yappy: this is fucking vital. The quieter the dog, frankly, the better.

5) Not going to kill my cats: again, vital.

6) Medium-sized: Cocker Spaniel to Border Collie, or thereabouts.

The aussies I've met fulfill all of these requirements, but I just wonder if I'm not missing out on the perfect breed with all of these traits plus less "requirement" for fulfilling work.

Please note: I intend to buy a pure-bred, unpapered dog. While I recognize the plight of the zillions of worthy rescue dogs, I'm really tired of the lifelong commitment to damaged goods one frequently gets when one adopts. I've been there, I've done that, and I'm not interested this time.

Am I the pack leader?

nitsuj — Sat, 12 Dec 2009 06:42:04 -0800

Am I the pack leader? We got a new dog -- a rescue from the pound -- and he's a wild one. Over the last month or so, I think we've done a pretty good job taming him: two walks daily, time out in the yard, discipline and rules, and, of course, lots of affection.

When I first started our daily walks, he was constantly pulling on the leash. Now, I've got him to a point where I can walk him with a loose leash 90% of the time, but he's still at least a few steps ahead of me, sniffing the ground. When I tighten the reigns to keep him closer and attempt to either be in front of (or at least beside) him, then he's tight on the leash probably 90% of the time.

In the house, I feel I am leading him and he acts accordingly. He normally doesn't get wild or run around like a bucking bronco as he did before. He responds to commands, knows his boundaries (and is breaking those boundaries less and less each day), and is generally a well-adjusted dog considering what he was only a month ago.

But those walks -- that's where I lose confidence.

Since he is physically leading me on those walks, is he seeing himself as the pack leader? If so, what can I do to reverse that, as I feel it is while in the house? Any other tips or tricks for this situation?

Thanks!

Dog Walkers Share Info, Please

VC Drake — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 15:38:46 -0800

Any experienced dog walkers out there in MeFi land? I'm curious how you charge? How much? What is the typical day like in the life of a dog walker? How do you usually find work? Do the dog owners have you take their dog(s) out more than once a day? If you could share with me any information about being a dog walker, I would certainly appreciate it.

What is best for my 9 year old dog? Should I bring him with me when I transfer colleges?

Anonymous — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 13:37:28 -0800

What is best for my 9 year old dog? Should I bring him with me when I transfer colleges? I was accepted to a college across the country, and I am planning to go.

All of the *logistics* of bringing him are settled (I will have adequate housing for us, I'll be able to support both of us, I'll have time for him, I've visited the area several times before, etc.)

The only focus of this question is whether being taken away from the rest of my family and his familiar environment would be too hard on him, or unfair to him.

Background info.

He's officially the family dog, but I've always liked and wanted him the most. My other family members think he's okay but they aren't that into him. They mainly just ignore him.

But, he LOVES everyone in the family, especially my brother, and he's always trying to get their attention while they usually (70% of the time) ignore him.

When it comes to his care, my mom and I each feed him and walk him about half the time. My brother walks him occasionally. I play with him and entertain him the most; my brother does that occasionally, too.

Even though he is in his later years, he's still very active and has a ton of energy.

A couple months ago, he had health problems which could have become dire if he hadn't received an unpleasant-and-difficult-to-administer treatment. I was the only one willing to administer this treatment, and I'm worried if I left him here, he just wouldn't get it if it happened again.

I'm also worried if I left him here, he'd just spend his days sitting around the house being bored and mostly ignored by everyone, except for an occasional short daily walk or two.

On the other hand, if I took him, I'm really worried that he would miss my family and wonder where they were and why he was taken away. I'm also worried he would be stressed out to be away from his familiar surroundings that he's seen his whole life, like the house, the neighborhood, etc. I'm worried it wouldn't be fair to do to him at his age.

What should I do?

how can I play with my dog?

canine epigram — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:18:42 -0800

how do I teach my dog to play? We adopted a retired greyhound from a rescue group, and he's an adorable and very mellow boy. He loves his walks (and gets very excited about going) and trips to the dog park (although he's still trying to figure out what to do with other dogs besides sniff them).

Sometimes he grab a squeaky toy out of his basket, squeak it madly and catch it when we toss it around. Then, just as abruptly, he'll be done and walk away without a second glance. If he's not in the mood, he'll just look at you quizzically.

We plan to take him to obedience class soon, and have started some basic clicker training (which he enjoys.) What can we do to teach him how to play or engage his mind in a small condo (or local dog park)? chase a ball? a toy?

Obviously being a greyhound, no rough and tumble games.

I'm looking for a playful way of interacting with him, rather than just filling a kong with treats and watching him go at it (still funny!).

Help me, hivemind! Bonus for grey-specific knowledge.

Names for Black Dogs? Let's give them a leg-up in the adoption process.

taz — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 06:36:52 -0800

I need great, imaginative, appealing names for black dogs! A friend operates a rescue organization for dogs and cats, and mentioned how hard it is to find homes for black dogs (see Black Dog Syndrome)... and since I was already helping her come up with names, I thought I'd come up with a special list of Black Dog names that are perhaps evocative of personality types, and that might inspire interest so that potential adopters will maybe find their curiosity/sense of whimsy piqued and stop to at least read a description on the website, instead of just passing by any photo of a black dog. Some specific considerations inside... This is in Greece, where most people speak at least some English, and are familiar with exported U.S. and British pop culture in general and pretty much any world-famous person/literary character/film character/music reference will be recognized. Non-Greek names for pets are popular, so recognizable English, Italian, German, etc. names are cool, but "sh/ch" and "j" sounds are difficult to for many to pronounce.

The names can have some reference to Black, but they don't have to. For example, I thought of "Kafka" for a smart, "intellectual" perhaps sort of "serious" boy dog... and that one just also sort of "feels" like a good name for a black dog to me. Names of one or two syllables are usually easier for dogs to recognize and respond to.

So gimmee your ideas for great Black Dog names! Gimme!

Stuck myself with a needle I just used on my dog. Should I freak out?

anonymousme — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 05:40:29 -0800

Stuck myself with a needle I just used on my dog. Should I freak out? I've had to give my dog fluids subcutaneously for the past few days.

Each needle is disposable, and has a plastic base that slides over the end of the line attached to the bag of fluid.

I just finished one of those sessions, and removed the needle from my dog. Then, I tried to remove the needle itself from the end of the line.

I think I had pushed the needle's base on too far, and it was stuck. I was kind of tugging it to get it off, and I stabbed myself pretty badly with it and drew blood.

Now I'm freaking out thinking of all the crap he tries to eat on his walks (garbage, roadkill, animal poop) and all the unknown pathogens that might be in his system.

Also the fact that his illness has, despite visits to two different vets, basic bloodwork and xrays, still not been diagnosed. One vet told me it's possible he has cancer, but that would need an MRI to diagnose, and I have to wait for the next paycheck to afford that.

So? Should I freak out? Is there anything I can do?

Wag more bark less baffles me.

mathowie — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 13:02:54 -0800

Where did the "Wag More, Bark Less" bumper sticker meme start? My own sightings of them have gone from extremely rare to many cars seen in every single trip I take. Is it a dog owner/pet store promotional item? Is it a political thing? Something on Oprah I missed?

For Dog's Sake - Help Me Start A Business!

Lipstick Thespian — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 10:07:20 -0800

What do I need to know about starting a dogwalking/sitting service? I need advice on starting a dog walking/sitting/grooming service in my town.

I've never done any kind of entrepreneurial work, and am doing this primarily as a way to build community where I live and meet a ton of cool dogs.

I'd like advice about the basics of starting a cottage business, especially from anyone whose done this kind of dogwalking thing before.

What are the pitfalls I can avoid, or some good advice about setting up a client base?

How many pugs and pug owners are there both in the U.S. and worldwide?

JPigford — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 12:24:49 -0800

How many pugs and pug owners are there both in the U.S. and worldwide? I'm trying to get a rough estimation on both the number of pugs and pug owners in the U.S. and worldwide.

Any ideas on sources for that sort of info?

My dog is getting meaner with age

M.C. Lo-Carb! — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 13:23:21 -0800

I'm afraid my old dog's mind is going before his body -- he's peeing on the floor, growls and snaps at us when we try to put him outside, and other odd behaviors. How should my wife and I handle this? Our oldest dog, Rusty, is approximately 16 (give or take a year). He's a 45-pound border collie/heeler mutt that I adopted from a rescue organization when he was about 1. We have two other dogs, both very mellow.

Rusty has always been high-strung -- he actually bit a couple of people when he was 2 or 3 (one was a landlord, the other an acquaintance, yes, it was a big hassle and animal control had to come check him out in both instances), has had epic fights with other dogs (he doesn't start them, but responds viciously to any attempt at domination), and has reliably gone berserk at the vet's office, crapping and growling and biting, that sort of thing. As a result, he has had a minimum of veterinary care, only emergencies. Unlike our other two dogs, he's never had his teeth cleaned, regular shots or anything like that.

I've tried all sorts of training programs and a couple canine anxiety meds over the last 15 years, and none have made any difference. A decade ago, I basically adapted to the fact that he's just kind of crazy, and have sought to keep him out of bad situations. He has always gotten lots of exercise, and physically is in very good shape, despite his age.

But recently, it appears his mental condition is declining. A few months ago, he stopped going outside in the mornings. After he eats, he slinks back to his bed or a favorite corner and won't listen to a word we say (he has previously been very obedient). If we try to pull him by his collar, he will snap and growl menacingly.

For a while, we'd trick him to get a leash on him by telling him we were "going for a walk," but it didn't take long for him to figure this out. My wife is understandably frightened of him at this point, and it's becoming an issue between us.

He is also pacing around at night and peeing and defecating all over the house, about every other night. I usually clean this up quickly, but it's damaging our wood floors, leaving stains, etc.

Rusty has always been an indoor dog, and I think just leaving him outside at night while the other two are inside would make him really sad. But I don't want him to bite me or my wife either during the morning ritual of getting him outside.

All this aside, he still enjoys his walks, playing fetch, barking at the mailman, etc. His quality of life does not appear diminished.

tl;dr -- So I guess my question is: at what point do you start considering putting down an otherwise healthy geriatric dog that is becoming frighteningly obstinate? Obviously, if it got to the point where he injured one of us, that'd be it, but I'd rather avoid that.

What would you do in this situation?

Help me give relief to a friend's dog.

Pseudology — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 22:28:32 -0800

I have met some new friends recently and they have a 10 year old golden retriever who is suffering from a list of allergies so long it could fill a book. Removing the exposure to allergens is impossible. I want to help them reduce the strength of the symptoms. So from what I've been told the dog is allergic to pretty much any and all food as well as grass and cedar (which is *very* common here). It would probably be shorter to provide a list of what the dog isn't allergic to.

They tried an anti-allergy medication for dogs and the side effects were so serious the dog had to be taken off of it.

Right now they're trying to feed the dog raw food. This provided noticeable relief initially but the symptoms have returned.

I recommended keeping up the raw food because the latest hypothesis on allergies is that they're the result of an underused immune system. I also recommended mixing their own food to see if they could actually feed their dog with stuff that it's not allergic to. Even if removing all allergenic exposure is totally unrealistic then at least taking it out of its food would help.

Google has also recommended vitamin C and E to reduce allergic reactions but I'm a little out of my depth with this.

Personal recommendations for pug breeders in California?

fishfucker — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 07:59:20 -0800

Personal recommendations for pug breeders in California? We are looking to add a pug puppy to our family (currently have one 5 year old female), and are having a heck of a time finding a breeder online. We live in Oakland but would probably be willing to drive anywhere in CA to pickup. Have you had personal experience with any pug breeders in California? Online dog breeding seems to be a part of the commercial sector that has yet to move online. We've done plenty of googling, and either found a) sketchy craigslist-type ads, b) dead tripod/geocities sites and bad email addresses, or c) breeder "searches" that are behind pay-walls (which look to be the work of a single company, and most likely contain fake adverts).

What we're really looking for here is a word-of-mouth recommendation for a breeder. Hopefully they have at least a email address or a phone number (website is a big big plus, photos would be just about unbelievable!). I've tried emailing a few California pug clubs for breeder recommendations with no results (either bounced emails, or in one case was told to attend an upcoming event they were having, which we missed). We've been off-and-on googling for at least a year, and haven't found any breeders that look promising.

We've had some (mostly minor, but still emotionally and financially costly) health issues with our current pug and want to maximize our chances of having a healthy dog, so we're looking to get a dog from a breeder who knows what they're doing. To me, this means one that is breeding registered show dogs. We don't necessarily need to get the pick of the litter -- we'd be more than happy with a 'companion dog', but we don't want to buy a puppy from some dude on craigslist that found two pugs in an alley.

We're not considering rescue at this time, due to the aforementioned health issues that often afflict the type of pure-bred pugs you'll find at rescues, and we're not considering other breeds, thanks!

tl;dr: I am looking for recommendations for professional pug breeders in California that you or someone you know has had experience with. Due diligence has been done, so google results are unlikely to be useful to us (however, if you're a pug insider and have website recomendations, lay them on me!). We are not looking at rescues or other breeds.

Pooch finder

sequin — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:30:02 -0800

Trying to find the right dog/breed for my dear mum. Should possess the following: Mid-sized, good temperament, smart, minimal exercise, barking & grooming. My mum lives alone & recently has had a few health scares. A dog will be such a great companion. She initially wanted a lab or golden retriever but realizes that these will be too large for her. I am thinking 20lbs or lighter. She owns a nice sized house with backyard and has neighbors either side. (hence no unreasonable barkers) She can manage two 15-20 minute walks a day. She does not want a lap dog. We have looked at the local shelters (my mother lives in Ireland) in her area & unfortunately they all tend to be larger mixed breeds. Unsuitable for her age/health/physical ability. I'm a dog owner myself but not familiar with the many different breeds/ temperaments out there. She is willing to train a puppy or adopt.

Any suggestions?

How did a dog trainer intimidate my dog so thoroughly?

invitapriore — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 19:20:48 -0800

What do dog trainers know that I don't? This question is based on an early childhood memory of mine, so I apologize if it turns out that I've just got the details wrong and what I describe is impossible.

What I remember is that my mom brought in a dog trainer for a session with a poorly behaved dog of ours, and from the moment that man had my dog on the leash, the dog became utterly submissive, even to the point of looking scared. I was surprised because, other than putting the dog on the leash, the trainer had done nothing unusual to the dog that I could see. That was his first session with us, and I don't think that the trainer had spent any significant amount of time with my dog before leashing him. How did the trainer communicate dominance to my dog, a large and self-confident rottweiler mix, so effectively?

Picking up girls with my dog

isoman2kx — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 21:17:23 -0800

General low-down on picking up girls with a dog I'm really surprised this isn't on google more than like the 3-5 poorly done articles on it. I've always wanted to use my dog as another aid in getting to know girls at parks/public places better. How best to do this? Are there any sort of general strategies/tips on what to do and where to steer the conversation after first contact? My dog is a 2 year old girl that's a mix of German Shepherd/Retriever/Chow.

Thanks for any help :)

Parvovirus: odds of a puppy getting it?

zippy — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 23:34:45 -0800

I understand the danger parvovirus poses to puppies, but what are the odds of a puppy contracting the disease in the US (specifically Alameda County, California)? I have been reading about parvovirus in dogs (including this discussion), and understand how serious the illness is.

What I can't seem to find is any indication of risk or prevalance. What are the odds a dog will get parvo, and how many cases of it are there a year in my area?

The more mathematical and bounded the answer, the better. I know I can't be assured to the fifth decimal place about anything, but I want to know: Parvo, this terrible disease, are the odds 1%, 10%, or 100%?

More details below, in the hope that they may allow more exact bounding of the answer.

My dog is five weeks old. He was one of the larger dogs in the litter (with two or three brothers and a sister), which I understand tends to confer longer maternal immunity. I intend to start him on a full vaccine series for parvo.

He's 3/4 Australian Cattle Dog, 1/4 Fox Terrier. He was born in a remote rural area of Humboldt County, California, and as of a few days ago now lives in a semi-urban area in Alameda County.

I keep him mostly indoors, with trips to the back and front yard for exercise. I understand that completely preventing exposure to parvo is impossible (as the virus hardy and survives for long periods in the soil), but also that minimizing exposure to parvo greatly reduces the chances for infection.

I would like to know:

How common is parvo in Humbolt County and in Alameda County? Or, if these specific numbers aren't available, then whatever numbers are available for California or the US. A link to numbers of cases per year would be ideal.

What are the odds of a puppy getting parvo between the ages of 5 and 16 weeks if he's allowed to socialize with a: known dogs (with shots), or b: occasionally visit parks and meet other non-wild dogs.

Links to scholarly papers are fine, and links to the dog equivalent to the CDC would also appreciated.

If this is too specific, or if there isn't enough information, please let me know. Also, I do know how bad the illness itself is.

How much did it cost to treat your dog for canine influenza or shelter cough when you adopted?

itsonreserve — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 07:49:57 -0800

How much did it cost to treat your dog for canine influenza or shelter cough when you adopted? We are currently looking to adopt a dog, and one with either canine influenza or shelter cough (the vet will have the answer by Thursday next week) has fallen into our laps. Essentially, it needs a foster home immediately so as not to infect other dogs, and we would intend to adopt the dog after fostering it when it was better. I'm just wondering what the treatment entailed and how much it cost for you, since Googling has had answers ranging from warm baths and baby aspirin to antibiotics, and seems to be of little help.

Practical and quality-of-life concerns with our dog's medical treatment

davejay — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 01:23:16 -0800

My dog's been diagnosed with Cushing's Disease, and our vet (whom you are not) wants to do an MRI to determine the course of treatment. I have two questions about this. To get it out of the way, here are the three pieces of info you're probably curious about:

First, he's a small dog, about fourteen years old, and every vet (including the current one) is always shocked by his good health, saying that if they didn't look at his teeth and see certain age-appropriate behaviors, they'd swear he was [half his current age].

Second, his symptoms are sudden, rapid weight loss, and some peeing in the house, but otherwise he seems in good spirits and does the things he normally does.

Third, we are indeed getting a second opinion from another trusted vet who has a history with our dog, before proceeding with treatment.

Now, then: the diagnosis of Cushing's Disease due to a pituitary gland tumor is a confident one, and the next step is an MRI to assess tumor size and whether it's operable.

My two questions:

1. Is $750 for such an MRI an unusually high fee? I just want to sanity-check the cost before we commit to having it done at this facility.

2. If you have been through this with your dog, what treatment did you pursue and what was the outcome, with specific interest in your dog's lifespan and quality of life moving forward from the treatment selection?

Ultimately we know he's an old dog, but that doesn't mean we're not going to aim for giving him the longest high-quality life possible. Thanks for any assistance you can provide.

Films about dogs for adults

K.P. — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 11:34:42 -0800

Can you help me find more films like Marley and Me--i.e. films about dogs, but made for adults. For the purpose of this search, Marley and Me is the ideal film as it contains

1. A dog (first seen as a puppy) no bigger than a lab, and does not exhibit human-levels of IQ--nor cause anything beyond normal, realistic dog-related mayhem and

2. A plot/script aimed at adults, with children either absent or almost inconsequential.

I'd like to find more films like this.

I would like to avoid what are most definitely children's films, the kind that parents simply endure while the kids laugh. The sort where the precocious child or children "save the day" and the adults are all incompetent imbeciles, only present to be on the receiving end of tedious slapstick. "Home Alone plus a dog" type films.

In between these 2 extremes are films with children and dogs, but without imbecilic adults, dogs that are extra-brainy and "save the day" (or go on "an incredible journey"), dogs that talk, and people resurrected as dogs. I'm not looking for films with a premise like these, unless you think they're especially good. Or films that seem to promise lots of onscreen dogs but don't deliver (does Must Love Dogs actually have lots of dogs onscreen?)

K9 is a borderline case, but Turner and Hooch is not (Hooch is too big and slobbery). The Truth About Cats and Dogs would be ok if it had two or three times as much screen-time for the dogs.

The Year of the Dog looks like it fits the bill, and so does My Dog Skip and Dog Park. The Shiloh trilogy looks like an acceptable borderline case. Old Yeller is, of course, already on the list.

So....what are some other good films about dogs that are made for adults instead of children?

A career training service dogs?

reticulatedspline — Sun, 23 Aug 2009 15:47:27 -0800

Need info about a career training service dogs. A friend of mine is convinced that a career training service dogs is what he really wants out of life. I remain dubious for a number of reasons both general and specific to him, but told him I'd query the hive mind for more info.

A few questions he had about it:

a) How does one get started in this kind of career. What training/education do you need and where do you get it? Where would you go to look for job openings?

b) Any insights into what it's really like on a day by day basis? He is interested because he loves animals. Is it really a fun get-to-hang-out-with-dogs-all-day sort of thing, or more boring and repetitive? Having trained 3 of my own dogs I can honestly say that if training service dogs is anything similar, it's definitely not my idea of a good time.

c) What's the pay like?

d) Is it an easy career to find a job in?