'Firming up' a dog..

[milliardo 10]

Brilliant that's great. Going to have a raw food test run. Do I need to 'break it in' as you would changing commercial food or can I go raw straight away?

 

I'm going to take him to another vet tomorrow as tonight he has started chewing above his tail, which could be the sign of an infection in that region. He's fully wormed etc so can't be that. Sounds odd but I hope it's that so its a solvable problem!

[Evei 10]

Brilliant that's great. Going to have a raw food test run. Do I need to 'break it in' as you would changing commercial food or can I go raw straight away?

 

I'm going to take him to another vet tomorrow as tonight he has started chewing above his tail, which could be the sign of an infection in that region. He's fully wormed etc so can't be that. Sounds odd but I hope it's that so its a solvable problem!

 

I have always been told to just go for it, but only feed chicken for the first week, then add small amounts of other stuff in as you go along. Just a word of warning, my dog had dodgy tum for the first 3 days, but once through that was fine. Might be worth waiting till the weekend to start when you are around.

 

I would also wait till the vet has given his advice, not a good idea to be changing diet at the same time as having antibiotics which sound like they may be needed by the tail biting.

[MARY POPPINS 10]

What breed of dog is he some breeds are more prone to anal gland trouble, try putting a tea spoon of wheat germ on his food, the kind you get from the health food shops.

[DaisyBoo 10]

my dog has a VERY sensitive stomach was forever getting the runs and his poos were vert soft.

 

we have now changed him to raw chicken which has made a big difference. also chappie is good for dogs with sensitive stomach but my dog went off that so stopped giving it him

 

we buy a big bag of frozen minced chicken from pets at home its £4.29 which lasts us about a week or so but he's only a cavalier so doesnt eat alot

[milliardo 10]

He's a pug x cav. Thank you for the tips everyone

[H_Hounds 10]

My cocker Alice occasionally needs her anal glands emptying and she's always been on a good diet, but we do feed kibble, not raw. She always has firm poos though. She quickly learned that scooting made me giggle and got her some attention (ie me checking her) and now she does this sometimes if I ignore her, which always grosses my parents out

 

If your dog does start to need them doing on occasion, I would recommend having a groom. For what the vet charges for anal glad emptying is probably about the amount a full groom costs around here on average, which includes anal gland emptying at no extra cost (with me and some other groomers) so far better value!

[ccit 10]

Do you empty the glands via the external method? My groomer does it that way and in the past I have done this myself. The vet uses the internal method which seems to have better results. I was told by the vet that scooting is one way that the dog empties them itself (along with firm poo).

[lizrandall 10]

I,m a dog groomer and pugs and cavs have to have their glands emptied often. they rub their bottom on the floor when full.

[denlin 12]

I've had dogs all my life and never had a dog that has needed their glands doing. If fact until I came across the forum I never even knew it was an issue for dogs!

 

My past dogs have all had firm stools as they always had meaty bones at least twice a week , my present dog has chicken carcass as the main stable so plenty of gristle and bone which keeps everything in check! Some people also like to have a starve day, personally I just feed once a day.

 

You should never give dogs bones and especially not chicken bones, my old dog once snaffled some chicken with bones in it before I could stop him and it killed him

[Evei 10]

You should never give dogs bones and especially not chicken bones, my old dog once snaffled some chicken with bones in it before I could stop him and it killed him

 

It is a risk I am happy to take, my dog is happier eating food like this and all my past dogs have had raw bones and meat. Better than him throwing up, having scabby skin and antibiotics all the time to clear infections. Raw chicken bones are pretty flexible. He is also fed whole carcass so he has to tear the bones off into bite size pieces. I also checked with the insurance company and they are fine with it too.

 

If you are worried about bones the shops do sell the raw chicken carcass minced, so they still get the goodness of the bones but they are all ground up, but it is mush for the dog to eat, though it has good results the other end!

 

I would never feed my dog cooked bones, they are very hard and sharp.

Edited August 9, 2013 by Evei

[Elizabeth13 10]

My poor Whiskey just had his anal glands emptied by the Vet today, after he chewed a hole into his back near his tail whilst I was on a night shift.

 

Poor Whiskey wasn't that impressed.

[H_Hounds 10]

Do you empty the glands via the external method? My groomer does it that way and in the past I have done this myself. The vet uses the internal method which seems to have better results. I was told by the vet that scooting is one way that the dog empties them itself (along with firm poo).

 

Yes I always do it the external way. Yes, she first scooted when her anal glands were full but I'm not grossed out by it lol so I laughed at her before I checked her glands for her. So now she does it even when they're not full, just for attention, cos I still laugh and check them every time. She does anything for attention.

 

You should never give dogs bones and especially not chicken bones, my old dog once snaffled some chicken with bones in it before I could stop him and it killed him

 

Chicken bones are very dangerous when they are cooked because they will splinter but raw bones are safe and good for oral health.