CockersOnline Forum
Cocker Specific Discussion => Health => Topic started by: Allison on March 21, 2004, 05:22:56 PM
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Hi everyone, Sally has scooted across the floor for as long as we can remember, she is now 15 months old. Over the past year the vet has emptyed the glands at every visit, over the last 6 weeks we have been to our vet 3 times as Sally had contracted an ear infection, which I am glad to say has cleared up now :) Whilst we have been to the vet we have had her glands checked out on each occasion and they were full :cry: infact the vet has now showed us how to empty them :!: which we are ok with. It concerns me that they are blocked within a week of being emptyed. Sally eats 200grms per day of JWB plus some pedigree gravy bones and raw carrot we also sprinkle a little cooked turkey mince on top of her kibbles. Her Number 2's are quite solid which we thought would help her empty her own I have even tried to put some weetabix in her food to keep the num 2 solid and help empty the gland to no avail. On Friday we went to get Sally her booster vac (thats another storey) and our vet said if we are concerned about Sals anal glands, they can perform an operation to remove them :roll: The vet informed me that there is a very small chance that the op can make the dog incontinant :oops: we really do not want to go down this route, but if the dog is suffering then I would do anything to help her. does anyone have any experience of the operation or any advice please. :)
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Sorry, I don't have experience of the op, but have you tried adding bran to her food? My neighbour does this with herdog and it's really improved the legnth of time between emptying his glands.
Shona x
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I've talked to my vet about this op and he's quite confident in the outcome as he's quite a good surgeon (and I have confidence in him), but I know some vets aren't too happy with doing this op. I guess the outcome really boils down to the skill of the vet doing the op.
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Hi Allison
You could trying giving Sally some weetabix with her kibble (just dry sprinkled on top). This does work with my boys when they have this problem.
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Allison
I have the exact same problem with Phoebe and we add bran to her food, make sure she has dried food with a bit of nature diet in it etc. Her stools are quite solid but it doesn't seem to make a difference. I'm taking her back in May to see how they are. But I'm considering having them removed as the vet nurse said she went down this route.
Does a anyone else has any more advice on what we can do?
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Hi, everyone,
You could always try giving raw chicken wings for 1 meal, that is if you feed twice a day like me. Jess is 7 months and is fed raw and I have never seen this scooting action you mention. It must be quite upsetting for you and the dog to have to go the vets and be fiddled about with like this!!!
Anyway, rather than resort to surgery it could be worth a try. I know some people are horrified at the thought of giving raw chick/wings complete with bones to their dogs but my 7 mnth girl loves them and really solid poos that obviously do the job of emptying the glands. Jess has chicken wings every single day (normally 3 per meal)
If all else has failed maybe its worth a try.
Hope this helps
Linda and jess (p.s. her teeth are sparkling white too)
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me again,
forgot to say that poo from bone fed dogs really is solid, much harder than dogs fed commercial food and its also totally odourless and very very small amounts.
Linda
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Hi, everyone,
You could always try giving raw chicken wings for 1 meal, that is if you feed twice a day like me. Jess is 7 months and is fed raw and I have never seen this scooting action you mention. It must be quite upsetting for you and the dog to have to go the vets and be fiddled about with like this!!!
Anyway, rather than resort to surgery it could be worth a try. I know some people are horrified at the thought of giving raw chick/wings complete with bones to their dogs but my 7 mnth girl loves them and really solid poos that obviously do the job of emptying the glands. Jess has chicken wings every single day (normally 3 per meal)
If all else has failed maybe its worth a try.
Hope this helps
Linda and jess (p.s. her teeth are sparkling white too)
Billy loves chicken wings but I give as an occasional treat never thought of replacing a meal with them? thats probably why he is so big :roll:
Michelle
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Hi Michelle,
All that lovely raw chicken fat full of essential fatty acids and highly bio available :lol: :lol:
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How many would you give to replace a meal? Phoebe has 4oz a day (Autarky) with and 2/8th's of a pack of NAture diet split between 2 meals.
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Hi Anita,
I would start by giving her 1 or 2 and see if she likes them. If you want you can smash them up a bit in a plastic bag with a mallet or hammer. I did this when i first started feeding Jess raw. you may remember a while back, I had problems with colitis on commercial food.
If she does like them i would give her 3 per meal. these are the wings from Asda or Tesco (smart price or value). Raw food is highly nutritious and highly bio available to the dog so you don't feed as much in quantity.
Make sure you supervise her when she's eating them and if she's not interested at first try exposing the flesh of the chicken by slicing through the fat with a sharp knife.
Hope this helps,
Let me know how you get on
Linda and jess
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Thanks Linda - She gets them as treats every now and then but if it helps clear her glands I'll try replacing her evening meal with them.
She does enjoy them so there won't be a problem :wink:
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Thats brilliant Anita, Your'e half way there already :lol: :lol:
I do hope it works, i'm such a raw feeding evangelist based on my own cocker's health since starting it :D :D
Hope it works for you
Linda
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Billy had chicken wings as a replacement for his breakfast this morning, not because of his glands but just for a bit of variety and he really enjoyed it, He usually only gets one or two a week as a treat but the fact that he had a bowl with 4 in :shock: He just stood there wagging his bum :D whilst crunching his way through them.
Michelle
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:lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
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Thanks for all your replies, much appreciated yet again :D Will definately give the chicken wings a go. Let me just confirm, completely raw you say as in uncooked :?: :?: :?: I might just smash 'em up a bit with a mallet and see how she goes on :D Thank you all :D Allison, Neil & Sally.
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This is going to sound silly but what about the bones?
I'd love to give Indie some but I thought we had to steer clear of bones?
:oops:
Shona x
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Paddy loves chicken wings, only problem was last time he ate it so fast he didn't chew it and it got stuck in his throat :!: he went very pale, his gums were really white............frightened the life out of both of us, so I've been too worried to give them again :(
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Yes - completey raw. Just keep an eye on them if they haven't had them before. They only become brittle once they have been cooked.
Most dogs do crunch them up ok but its worth keeping an eye on them.
Go for it.
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Yep. thats the way, completely raw :lol: :lol:
A chicken wing contains very young soft bone and is suitable to give to pups as young as 8 weeks :shock: so don't worry, just make sure you supervise them.
You can give these every single day for 1 meal. As a guide I would give 3 wings and see how they go. Most dogs love them so much they will look at you with pleading eyes for some more. :lol:
As a guide, keep your eye on their poop, it shouldn't really be white marbles, it should have a bit of pigment to it. (lovely topic)
I would be very interested in the outcome of this little feeding experiment regarding the anal glands problems so keep me posted and let me know how you all get on.
Obviously results won't be overnight but still very very interesting to see how things turn out.
Good luck
Linda and jess
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As a guide, keep your eye on their poop, it shouldn't really be white marbles, it should have a bit of pigment to it. (lovely topic)
..and if it is white marbles is that a problem?
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Too much bone can cause constipation :cry: 3 or 4 wings a day for an adult cocker spaniel is IMHO enough bone to be digesting per day.
When I first started feeding raw, I gave Jess 8 wings in 1 day and her poo was like white chalk rocks :shock: :shock:
Jess has 3 per meal now, but occasionally I'l give her an extra one for a lunchtime treat, especially if we've been on a really long walk :lol:
Like everything in life - all good things in moderation :D :D
Linda
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Phoebe had three for her tea last night. The cat nearly had one of them but gave up after a while :roll:
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So far so good Sally has had 3 chicken wings per day for the last 3 days and only scooted the once! I think that was because she was wet through as we had just showered her and maybe she had a wet botty :D It is quite funny watching her eat them as she wants to take them and hide them. :) Last night I left the door open to the front room and when I sat down to tuck into my LARGE glass of red I found a chicken wing hid behind the cushion :D Her no 2 have gone a pale colour but she seems to be bursting her anal gland as the no2 seems so much more solid :lol: what a bloody subject :lol: We will keep you posted. :roll: :roll:
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Thats great news Alison :lol: :lol: . When jess has her wings, she takes them one at a time into her basket in the kitchen to munch :lol:
Poop from bones really is a lot harder isn't it? hopefully this will be the end of her problems :lol: Really glad its going well so far :D
Linda and jess
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Hi Allison,
i was intrested in your problem with anul glands when Bramble was about 2 yrs old we had the same prob.the vet done the emptying for us but told us it could be diet related as firm stools assist the dog to empty them the way nature intended.
I was amazed at the ammount of different foods your dog gets.
Bramble is on Hero lite available at Asda she has two handle fulls daily and a treat on Sundays with dinner and she is fine.
I would try your spaniel on the all inclusive diet and persivere with it.
Its hard at first but this food has all the nutrients that they require.
a regular diet and feed is better than a mixed one give it shot and see if your problem goes away.
Best of luck.
Dollar and Bramble :lol:
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I would try your spaniel on the all inclusive diet and persivere with it.Its hard at first but this food has all the nutrients that they require.a regular diet and feed is better than a mixed one give it shot and see if your problem goes away.
Best of luck.
Dollar and Bramble :lol:
Not necessarily Dollar - all in one complete foods suit some dogs & not others & many owners find feeding a more varied, natural diet results in a healthier dog. The complete foods do contain all the required nutrients but often they contain additives like artificial colourings & preservatives which aren't so good :wink:
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Hi I totally agree with you jane, I have fed scoobie on complete dog food and he was never satisfied and always had ear infections since changing over to raw 6 months ago I have never looked back but like you say it's
what suits your dog and what makes him/her healthy and content
bye for now Edith and scoobie
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Hi Edith,
I also feed Jess a raw diet as she had colitis as a puppy :( Since changing her over ive had no probs at all and every meal is scoffed down with real enthusiasm and enjoyment :lol: :lol:
Nice to meet another raw cocker feeder :lol: :lol:
Linda and Jess
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Right, I'm getting some tomorrow. I have a Safeways here, chicken wings, raw, give the whole thing?
Indie would love it I think.
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Hi Linda yes it is nice to meet another raw cocker feeder and really glad that your jess doesn't have that nasty colitis any more.
Scoobie also enjoys his food now every time he eats a wing he eats it's as though it is something new sometimes he gives off a scream of excitement just waiting for me to give them to him!! When I first gave him a wing he ate it that fast that he brought it back up in the same way that it went in but once he learned to munch and crunch he's got things off to an art. I know a lot of people think raw feeding is UGH to say the least and a year ago I was one of those people. Like I said scoobie had endless ear infections for 18months on and off living on steroids antibiotics and even resorted to having an op last year to remove part of his ear canal in both ears and only to find that the op didn't work (poor little scoobs)ah.. don't want to even remeber it because I thought I nearly lost him at one point. Anyway through researching the net I found loads about raw feeding and decided to opt for that route and will never go back to commercial again. Scoobie has supplements added to his processed veggie and flax oil with his raw minced meat mix plus 3 wings and for treats he has carrots and dried liver treats. People may laugh but after what he went through I want to know what is going into his system and by the way Linda scoobies ears are clean and pink and lovely and I also swear by using thornit now and again .
all the best Edith and scoobie
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Ok, my local Safeway had thighs, drumsticks and breasts, but no wings!
Maybe I should have looked on the frozen section, but it's not something I recall seeing actually. We have an Asda and a Sainsbury nearby, where do you get yours?
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Hi Shonajoy
I buy mine from asda they cost £1.12p for a large pack I usually keep some fresh for a few days and freeze the others as I usually buy a few packs at a time sainsbury also stock them if that's handier for you they cost a few pence more
Hope this helps
Edith and scoobie
p.s If I forget to take wings out of fridge I usually run them under a hot tap just to take the chill off this can avoid a poorly tummy
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Hi, Shona,
I get my wings either from Asda or Tesco. They are about one pound twenty eight for 12 - 14 wings depending on size. Sometimes the wings are bigger some weeks than others :lol:
I'm sure he'll love them, let me know how he gets on :wink:
Linda and Jess
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Hi Edith, you beat me to it, we must have been typing a reply at the same time :lol: :lol:
I'm glad scoobie's problems have disappeared, you sound like you've been through a hell of a lot with him :shock: :shock: jess had terrible colitis when she was younger and she had steroid injection too. The vet also gave me Hills tinned i/d food which cost an arm and a leg and still didn't work :shock: I decided to do my own research on what goes into commercial dog food and I was totally horrified :shock: That's the power of advertising for you :wink: Anyway I too do my veggies in the juicer although she doesn't have that many veggies she has the amp mince and I also feed 3 chick wings per day :lol: I give Jess fish body oil 1000mg and 400ieu vitamin E and garlic capsule and also Keepers mix from dorwest herbs for the kelp and alfalfa content. I also give raw egg yolks once or twice a week and tuna or sardines instead of the raw mince.
I too use thornit now and again for her ears :lol: :lol:
Lovely to hear from you Edith, I know what it's like sometimes when you tell people you feed your dog raw meat and bones, they do look at you as though you're an alien :lol: :lol:
Take care, best wishes from Linda and Jess
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LInda, those supplements that you mention - is that per day? And do you split it over two meals or just give it in one? I've managed to get Vegas about 3/4 of the way to natural feeding but the confusion over supplements has stopped me going the whole hog. He'll be over the moon when he hears that he gets chicken wings every day - at the moment, they get one each every other day. What a mean mummy I am :twisted: :lol:
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Hi Linda thanks for your message and you sound as if you feed jess more or less the same as I do cos I give a raw egg now and again and tuna or sardines instead of mince I also give muscle meat a few times a week ( a little diced up lamb or beef. )Scoobie loves this food and like you , I feel very strongly that you are what you eat. We have a choice what we eat - our pets eat what is put down in front of them. Like I say I had thought long and hard and it certainly was'nt an overnight decision to feed raw in fact it took me six months before I decided to take the plunge! only wish I had made the move sooner never mind I've discovered what suits my dog at long last!
Sooooooooo glad that jess enjoys it too
keep in touch cos it's lovely to speak to someone on my planet
Edith and scoobie x
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Hi Gill I don't think your a mean mummy at all you just need time to get used to a new way of feeding
Good luck
Edith and Scoobie
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Hi Gill,
She gets the fish body oil and vitamin E and keepers mix daily. These go into her mince and veggie meal. My kids love the orange chewable vitamin c tabs and she also has one of these a day too, she loves the sharp taste of it :lol: :lol:
Vegas will think its his birthday every day from now on Gill :lol: :lol: Chicken wings are an almost complete food for dogs. Theres not a lot missing from them that cant be made up with mince and veg, fish and veg and a good vit and min supp. I like keepers mix cos its got kelp and alfalfa in it. :lol: :wink:
Edith, I have to agree with you, its the best thing i've ever done, certainly as far as Jess's digestive system is concerned :lol: :lol:
Linda and Jess
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Ok, my local Safeway had thighs, drumsticks and breasts, but no wings!
Maybe I should have looked on the frozen section, but it's not something I recall seeing actually. We have an Asda and a Sainsbury nearby, where do you get yours?
I found it difficult to get mine too and eventually have found a butchers on the market to told me he has them 99.9% of the time
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Penny. do you live near Tesco or Asda, they always have them there :lol:
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Don't have a car so often get my big shop via tesco direct who didn't have them at the time unfortunately and its a 25 min hike along the river to get there myself so the market in Cardiff is probably my best bet now.
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Hi,
I have a herbal remedy from my herbal dog book that you may like to try. All the herbs can be bought very inexpensively from a health store in your town centre.
1. You can make a brew of dandelion (leaves and / or flowers); also, soak fenugreek seeds in warm water, 2 tablespoons to one cup or more, for 24 hrs, then give the liquid as a drink, and feed the seeds mixed into a cereal feed.
2. Give linseed tea, strong infusion; also apply the tea externally.
3. In severe cases, make suppositories from pulped, raw dock leaves and insert in the anus. Also apply diluted witch hazel.
Hope this helps
Karen
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csj foods do a range of herb supplements as well for when your dog is below par (I used the 'come on' for Wilf when he was going through all that surgery last year):
http://www.csjk9.com/ (http://www.csjk9.com/)
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Personally, I don't feed any grains at all, they don't agree with my girl :lol: :lol: