Well these are partial results, I am still waiting on the results of their bloodwork. We spent 2 hours at the vet getting everything done, that's a new record for us (and no, it wasn't spent waiting either).

Let me start out by saying that I officially despise my new vet. I seriously think I might find a way to take them back to my old holistic vet in Orlando...I've got to figure out a way to make it work.

The good news is that everyone got a clean bill of health, all three tested negative for parasites and heartworm. And we got new HW prevention, they're going to be on Heartgard Plus now instead of Iverhart Plus (same thing, different brand).

The best news of the day is the findings on Glory's knees. Some of you may know that Glory was diagnosed with patellar luxation (slipping knee caps) in both her knees in March of 2010. Her knees were graded as a grade 2 in her left knee and a grade 3 in her right knee. For those unfamiliar with PL, the grades go from 1 to 4, 1 being the most mild and 4 being the most severe. Typically when a dog reaches grade 3 or 4 surgery is required which costs $1500-$2000 per knee. I turned to other people who treat PL in dogs homeopathically and started up a regimen of my own for Glory and her knees. As time passed I knew her regimen was working because over the months her knees were luxating less and less frequently but it was anecdotal evidence. Well today I got the proof that I needed and it's totally made my day! Glory's PL is actually getting BETTER!!! She had her knees graded today and she's now at a grade 1 in her left knee and a grade 2 in her right knee. Each knee improved by a grade and I am ecstatic! It's rare for PL to really improve and maintaining a grade is more common than actual improvement. Most people on the chihuahua forums don't listen to us who prefer homeopathic management for PL and now I've got proof that it can be effective. Anyway, that's the best news I could have asked for and I will continue what I'm doing for Glory since I have firm proof that it's working.

Faith is notoriously hard to draw blood from, always has been. Poor girl had to be stuck 5 times before they struck gold (blood). She got her leg shaved and a pretty wrapping. Look how pitiful...


Dakota turned into Satan the moment he saw the needle. I've been having his blood drawn for years at the vet and he's always been an absolute angel about it, never makes a sound or moves a bit. But today was a whole different experience that I still cannot wrap my head around. The second he saw the needle he completely freaked out, I mean full on panic and screaming like his life was in jeopardy. After a few attempts to draw blood he turned nasty, not his fault really but it was awful to watch him in such a state. And this was all from just seeing the needle, not even being stuck yet! It took a muzzle and 4 people holding him down to get his blood drawn and afterward he hid under my chair the rest of the time we were there.

Anyway, my beef with the vet is first he tells me that huskies can do just fine staying out in 110+ degree weather after talking about how my sibe staying indoors mostly during the summer months. Uh I hope he doens't advise other husky owners to leave their dogs in that kind of heat all the time. Then he tells me what I'm doing for Glory's knees doesn't work and that I don't need to give the supplements that I do because they won't do anything for her. Umm okay, this is what my holistic vet and every other vet that I know of recommends for managing PL and it's what has worked on my dog for the last year but you're right, let me stop doing what I do for her and let her legs get worse so that she can either no longer walk or needs surgery. And my tipping point was when he told me I should shave my husky before summer comes because his coat will only make him hot and he doesn't need it. What?! I wanted to get up and leave right then and there but this guy is old and set in his mindset and ways so I just kept my mouth shut, thanked him for his time and left. I wonder how many other huskies have been shaved as a result of this buffoon. Oh and my favorite, he wanted me to put my dogs on a whipworm wormer. Why? Oh it's very common for dogs to get whipworm. Sure it is, in all the years I've had my dogs none of them has ever had whipworm AND their fecals today showed they have no parasites. Let me buy some whipworm wormer right now!

So sorry, I think I went on a little too long about our visit today. I don't ever want to take my dogs back there again. I'm seriously going to see if I can manage to get my dogs back to their holistic FL vet next year.

Oh and one last, sad note. The vet said I'm the first one he's seen with all of my dogs in perfect body/weight condition. He said all of the other dogs are all overweight and said it was great to see how well I take care of my three and keep them in perfect shape. How sad is that?

I'll update again when I get their bloodwork results. Thanks for listening if you've read this far!

Ugh run AWAY from that vet!!!!!

Just curious, what ARE you doing for Glorys knees? So great she made improvement!!!

Yay Glory!!

And holy cow... that sounds horrible! SHAVE YOUR HUSKY? This is AFTER he told you that he was perfectly fine to remain outdoors in 110* heat? Wow... talk about a barrel full of CRAZY.

So sorry today was such a rough experience I don't blame you for wanting to go back to your old vet!

I know, I don't think I'll ever be going back there unless I have an emergency...even then I might seek out a different place locally.

arooroomom wrote:

Just curious, what ARE you doing for Glorys knees? So great she made improvement!!!

With Glory it's a combo of things. I keep her on the lean side to keep pressure off her knees as much as possible. She gets a lot of exercise to keep her leg muscles built up to help keep her patella in place. We made a diet change as kibble either wasn't helping or was making her worse, seriously certain kibbles actually did make her luxate more than others. Feeding a partial raw diet helped tremendously. Other people who manage PL homeopathically say feeding raw helps so that's why I feed a partial raw diet (Honest Kitchen + raw), and it DOES help. I also give a lot of supplements. For supplements she gets Nupro Silver with Joint Support (daily), Glyco-Flex II Intermediate Joint support (daily), Ester C (twice a week), and MSM (twice a week). We also do hydrotherapy occasionally but not very regularly. I don't care what the vet says, I'm keeping this up since it obviously works. Before I made these changes she luxated several times a week, now she luxates once every other month or so, it's a huge improvement!

Keep it up Val!

They told me Seamus would need surgery to help his knees/hips but now that he's been on raw for a year, lost 20lbs, keeps on the skinny side, and supplementing with fish oil and Dasuquin... he's able to do much more for much longer. Also, when I can see him getting tired it's only a very slight limp and I no longer feel much griding when I manipulate his knees.

That's wonderful news! It's amazing what some simple changes can do to improve their lives.

As I was getting ready to feed the dogs I noticed a spot on Faith neck. Looked a little closer and found this...



Goodness gracious you can see two holes there from the needle and they didn't even tell me about this! They told me about shaving the leg and drawing from there but not about shaving her neck and trying there too! Poor thing, those are big holes! I've never had such a horrible vet experience. Never going back there again, ever.

Aww... poor Faith!

omg what a complete idiot poor Faith

I'm kind of curious what a shaved husky would look like.

Poor Odin

OMG. The horrors of holes in chi's and shaved huskies... I'm gonna need a barrel of brain bleach here. Oye. Poor Faith, poor Odin. *extra loves and snuggles to them*

what a HORRIBLE experience!
i bet you could teach him a thing or two or even three!!!!!

i'm with kristina: RUN AWAY from the vet and NEVER go back! run far away!
Run, Val, Run!!!

Oh my gosh, poor Odin! I didn't know he had been shaved, poor thing. Was it for medical reasons or just an ill informed owner? I've seen shaved huskies before and it's not pretty!

I'm just glad our experience is over and we don't have to do this for another year, barring any problems that might pop up unexpectedly. Either way, we'll have to make something else work. I feel sorry for all the other dogs that go to that vet. *shudders*

Dakota and especially Faith have been getting lots of extra attention, lovin' and treats for the rest of the day. I'm not putting Faith's collar on for a while until she starts healing a bit, it's just right where her collar would sit and I don't want it bothering her. I keep having this thought, Dakota has never fought any vet over getting blood drawn before and never had a bad experience, maybe he put up such a fight because he knew we were in a bad place. Maybe I'm just over-analyzing. lol

Wow! Imagine how many people who go to this vet and do not know any better to question. That's aweful! I have a much older vet but he has been wonderful and he does not overcharge. I dread the day he retires. He also kept commenting to me about how good and strong Dakota's heart was and he asked what I did for exercise with him. My reply was we walk him daily and have nightly play sessions. It's was obviously to me that he didn't see very many "excersiced" dogs. Very sad....

Odin was found as a stray already shaved walking around in Homestead, Fl. Thankfully though it's coming back in

I don't doubt that Dakota acted out because of those particular vets, Val. I'm nearly sure of it.

Get away from that vet!! Away!!!!

Poor baby =( I can't believe they didn't tell you about the neck holes... like... why wouldn't they want you too keep an eye on them??? They ARE huge.

I've been told lots of times to shave my husky and I never could but... I've never been in 110 degree heat. I think owning a husky made me a night creature, though. When I lived in So. CA I'd let my girl sleep during the day and then we'd tear up the beaches and streets at night. It was awesome.

So... it doesn't do anything bad to their coat or skin to get shaved, right? If I ever move to a warmer climate again I may not be so reticent to try it if it was perfectly safe...

From what I have read, the coat acts as a protective layer from the sun. If you shave off the coat, they are highly exposed to the sun. Also their coat allows the breeze to get through, and protects from biting insects. I also read that continuous shaving will do harm to the coat and mess up the shedding patterns.

But this is all just stuff I read, it could be incorrect. But I don't think I would shave unless it was a medical issue..

j.gabriel wrote:

From what I have read, the coat acts as a protective layer from the sun. If you shave off the coat, they are highly exposed to the sun. Also their coat allows the breeze to get through, and protects from biting insects. I also read that continuous shaving will do harm to the coat and mess up the shedding patterns.

But this is all just stuff I read, it could be incorrect. But I don't think I would shave unless it was a medical issue..

Correct on all accounts. Unless there is a medical reason (fleas, rash, mites, a surgery, etc) NEVER shave your husky. The coat insulates, which means it regulates his body temperature. As much as it keeps him warm in the winter, it also keeps him cool in the summer.

Also- besides the risks associated with ingrown hairs, etc, shaving the coat brings the danger of it NEVER growing back in properly. The husky coat is not meant to be shaved. One of the benefits to owning a husky is the upkeep. Besides brushing for the shedding, a husky coat needs very little in the way of maintenance. Don't mess with a good thing!

Nush wrote:

Poor baby =( I can't believe they didn't tell you about the neck holes... like... why wouldn't they want you too keep an eye on them??? They ARE huge.

I've been told lots of times to shave my husky and I never could but... I've never been in 110 degree heat. I think owning a husky made me a night creature, though. When I lived in So. CA I'd let my girl sleep during the day and then we'd tear up the beaches and streets at night. It was awesome.

So... it doesn't do anything bad to their coat or skin to get shaved, right? If I ever move to a warmer climate again I may not be so reticent to try it if it was perfectly safe...

I really hope ur kidding about the shaving part, but if ur not it is a VERY BAD thing to do! Do not ever shave a husky, their coat helps them stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer, they should never be left in extream heat for any extent of time. All exicersie should be done in the morning or at night when it is cooler out.

Please don't shave your Husky. I can tell you that Odin has an extremely difficult time being outside at all with his fur shaved. When it's hot he's the first one to be tired and the first one to come inside. When it's cold he doesn't even want to be out there! The others may not particularly love the heat but Odin suffers in it.

It should be a sticky on the home page....NEVER SHAVE YOUR HUSKY!

Lordbroll wrote:

It should be a sticky on the home page....NEVER SHAVE YOUR HUSKY!

HA! I could make it part of the scrolling banner for a while, but I think that might give off the wrong impression

Koda wrote:

HA! I could make it part of the scrolling banner for a while, but I think that might give off the wrong impression

LOL! I can see that.

Yikes.... I was merely asking how safe it was, not saying I was going to do it or ever intended to do it. I had a husky in souther cali for quite some time and never (despite people suggesting it often) shaved her nor do I ever intend to shave a husky BUT, if I was ever in serious heat, I just wondered if this is something people do/can do.

I thought my comment stated all of this...