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Lakshmi
Nov 28, 2006
Oh my God what the fuck is he?
I'm sure this must have been asked before, but does anybody use anything like this:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2751261#RatingsDetail

I was just wondering if you have to buy the replacement "refill odor barrier bags" every time you dump what's inside. I'm hoping you can just dump it every week or so, and then replace the bags every two months or so like it says. I'd only be using it for poop, since I don't use clumping litter. Anyone have any thoughts?

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mr. nobody
Sep 25, 2004

Net contents 12 fluid oz.

Lakshmi posted:

I'm sure this must have been asked before, but does anybody use anything like this:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2751261#RatingsDetail

I was just wondering if you have to buy the replacement "refill odor barrier bags" every time you dump what's inside. I'm hoping you can just dump it every week or so, and then replace the bags every two months or so like it says. I'd only be using it for poop, since I don't use clumping litter. Anyone have any thoughts?

I just bought one of these, and in the instructions it shows that whenever you dump it (you can dump it as often as you like but it indicates how "full" it is by the tension in the winding mechanism) you just cut it with the enclosed bag cutter. Then you tie a knot in the new fresh opening and attach it to the winding mechanism and give it a half turn.

Basically, you can empty it as much as you want, but doing so wastes maybe a day's worth of bag.

edit: I bought it because I got a second cat and had to keep him in my bedroom for about a week till they got along. No matter what I tried I couldn't seem to seal any trashcans tight enough for a middle of the night scooping to leave till morning. This solved the stink issue immediately.

mr. nobody fucked around with this message at 01:15 on Oct 17, 2008

Lakshmi
Nov 28, 2006
Oh my God what the fuck is he?
Alright, good. Because $10.99 for each refill bag is a lot if I have to buy them all the time. Otherwise it seems really convenient. Thanks!

KilGrey
Mar 13, 2005

You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? Just put your lips together and blow...

newtestleper posted:

Is there any way for us to stop our cats catching lizards? They are skinks.

It's the start of summer here in New Zealand, and the cats are catching up to half a dozen of these things every day, bringing them inside, and playing with them until they're dead (and no longer fun).

We'd rather not use collars with bells on them, but we will if we have to (and if that's effective for lizards at all).

You could bring them in the house. It would be safer and healthier for them or you really should put collars and bells on them. Kitties shouldn't be outside without identification. Even if you have him chipped, a cat having a visible collar on is less likely to be catnapped or harmed by someone thinking it's feral. My old cat hated the dangly ID tag on his collar so we got him a Boomerang Tag. You can still put a bell on that. You could also spend some time outside with your kitty and when you see him go after a lizard nail him with a squirt bottle. Not sure how effective that would be though as you can't follow him all the time.

Citizen Insane posted:

Dog appears to be finally housetrained. For three months dog is a model citizen, peeing on command whenever he's taken outside. I get lax in regards to watching him whenever he's out of his crate. After all, it's been three months, he seems to know when and where he's supposed to go and where he isn't

I'd certainly go back to your vet and have them xray for testicles. Also, go back to what you were doing 3 months ago training wise for a week then slowly start giving him more freedom.

Also, echoing that Helenna has a pretty kitty. :3:

Randomity
Feb 25, 2007

Careful what you wish,
You may regret it!

Lakshmi posted:

I'm sure this must have been asked before, but does anybody use anything like this:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2751261#RatingsDetail

I was just wondering if you have to buy the replacement "refill odor barrier bags" every time you dump what's inside. I'm hoping you can just dump it every week or so, and then replace the bags every two months or so like it says. I'd only be using it for poop, since I don't use clumping litter. Anyone have any thoughts?

My sister has one and she says it's such a pain in the rear end to use that she'd rather just scoop the poop, put it in plastic Wal-Mart bags, and take it outside to the trash.

Drunkboxer
Jun 30, 2007
[first PI post]

I grew up around a lot of cats and I've never seen this. My only cat Norman makes soup with his water before he drinks it, I guess. He picks up his food (both wet and dry, I feed him a mix of both) and drops it in his water. Then he licks at the food for a while and drinks the water. He never eats the soggy food he makes. I guess its not a big deal but its gross looking and a little weird. Have any of you seen this? Some mornings it's more like a hearty stew than a soup.

mr. nobody
Sep 25, 2004

Net contents 12 fluid oz.

Lakshmi posted:

Alright, good. Because $10.99 for each refill bag is a lot if I have to buy them all the time. Otherwise it seems really convenient. Thanks!

It is setup in the directions for maximum stench eradication/disposal. If your litterboxes and litter bin area aren't required to remain stink free constantly you could stretch the use of the bags I think. Just fill the top part till it's "full" then turn the crank to seal it off.

Evil Chick
Nov 17, 2005

My latte brings all the boys to the yard.

Meow Cadet posted:

Why do you have such a young kitten? 8 weeks minimum by law in most states, and 10-12 weeks old is the ideal age for a kitten to leave mother and siblings.

Sprays probably won't help climbing problems. Usually they are for chewing. Redirect the climbing to an appropriate place, like a cat tree. (trees must be tall, not those tiny little 12 inchers)

Helanna posted:

At "less than 4 weeks old" is he even weaned? :(

porkchoppie posted:

Chiming in with concern for the age of your kitten. If he's really that young, climbing the curtains could be the least of his (and your) problems.

Somebody found 3 abandoned baby kittens in an empty lot and the guy who lives next to the empty lot (Let's call him Bad Neighbor) told him that they had been crying there for days and he wasn't going to do anything about them. The bad neighbor's plan was just to let them die. So this guy asked him if he could keep them and BN gladly accepted.
I ended up with one of the babies. We took him to the vet today, he has fleas but he's so little the dr. doesn't want to give him any meds yet. So we're going to have to wait another month to get him deflea'd and dewormed (Yes, he has worms too, he's totally ghetto).

Syng
Jul 23, 2007

by Y Kant Ozma Post

Evil Chick posted:

We took him to the vet today, he has fleas but he's so little the dr. doesn't want to give him any meds yet. So we're going to have to wait another month to get him deflea'd and dewormed (Yes, he has worms too, he's totally ghetto).

Give him a bath in warm water with baby shampoo and go through his fur with a flea comb and squeeze the fleas to death. Didn't your vet tell you how dangerous it is to leave a flea infestation go nuts on a kitten that is so young and was taken from his mother much too early? He could develop anemia and die, it is VERY dangerous.

C.TheRaven
Nov 6, 2004

I'm the best at what I do, and what I do isn't very nice.

Syng posted:

Give him a bath in warm water with baby shampoo and go through his fur with a flea comb and squeeze the fleas to death. Didn't your vet tell you how dangerous it is to leave a flea infestation go nuts on a kitten that is so young and was taken from his mother much too early? He could develop anemia and die, it is VERY dangerous.

I've heard people say to use a little bit of diluted Dawn dishsoap, that it kills fleas without being harmful to the pet. Not sure if that is acceptable on a teeny tiny kitten though. And since we don't have fleas where I live, I have no idea if this Dawn idea is true. Anyone know if this actually works?

KilGrey
Mar 13, 2005

You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? Just put your lips together and blow...

Drunkboxer posted:

I grew up around a lot of cats and I've never seen this. My only cat Norman makes soup with his water before he drinks it, I guess. He picks up his food (both wet and dry, I feed him a mix of both) and drops it in his water. Then he licks at the food for a while and drinks the water. He never eats the soggy food he makes. I guess its not a big deal but its gross looking and a little weird. Have any of you seen this? Some mornings it's more like a hearty stew than a soup.

Yeah, kitties can be quirky. I had a cat that would use his paw to scoop food out of the bowl and onto the floor THEN eat it. If he likes his food soup maybe put an additional bowl of water down. One to play in and one for just water. Maybe think about a water fountain, perhaps if the water is moving he'll be less inclined to play in it. Does he eat the food ever or just puts it in water?

Evil Chick posted:

Somebody found 3 abandoned baby kittens in an empty lot and the guy who lives next to the empty lot (Let's call him Bad Neighbor) told him that they had been crying there for days and he wasn't going to do anything about them. The bad neighbor's plan was just to let them die. So this guy asked him if he could keep them and BN gladly accepted.
I ended up with one of the babies. We took him to the vet today, he has fleas but he's so little the dr. doesn't want to give him any meds yet. So we're going to have to wait another month to get him deflea'd and dewormed (Yes, he has worms too, he's totally ghetto).

Hmm...you shouldn't have wait a whole month. My vet had me put flea treatment on my 6 week old kitty. It also shouldn't take that long to be dewormed either. Fleas can be really harmful to kittens, including deadly.

Evil Chick
Nov 17, 2005

My latte brings all the boys to the yard.

Syng posted:

Give him a bath in warm water with baby shampoo and go through his fur with a flea comb and squeeze the fleas to death. Didn't your vet tell you how dangerous it is to leave a flea infestation go nuts on a kitten that is so young and was taken from his mother much too early? He could develop anemia and die, it is VERY dangerous.

That's exactly what the vet recommended, we already got the baby shampoo and the $8.00 flea comb.

KilGrey posted:

Hmm...you shouldn't have wait a whole month. My vet had me put flea treatment on my 6 week old kitty. It also shouldn't take that long to be dewormed either. Fleas can be really harmful to kittens, including deadly.

We just got him Tuesday night and took him to the vet this morning (Thursday). The vet said flea meds shouldn't be given before 8 weeks. Maybe it's a California thing? Who knows.

KilGrey
Mar 13, 2005

You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? Just put your lips together and blow...

Evil Chick posted:

We just got him Tuesday night and took him to the vet this morning (Thursday). The vet said flea meds shouldn't be given before 8 weeks. Maybe it's a California thing? Who knows.

Call around to other vets and ask. It should be something they can answer over the phone without you going in. Mine had just turned 6 weeks when they dosed him with Advantage. He was just crawling with fleas. The dosage will change obviously because they are smaller. If you wait, keep checking his gums, if they turn white then call your vet again. Baby shampoo works fine, but did they have any kitten shampoo with oatmeal in it? That can help sooth the itching. Good for you for taking in the poor little thing. :(

Meat Street
Oct 17, 2004

knowin' nothin' in life but to be legit
I'm having an intermittent issue with my cat. This is probably going to be a "go to a vet" kind of question, and I want to preface it by saying that I am planning to take her in at the beginning of next week.

Every few days, my cat is nowhere to be found when I get home from work. A search of the apartment reveals her lurking under the couch or in the cabinets in my kitchen, sulking and reluctant to come out. Assuming I can coax her out, I've noticed that her rear end is almost always inflamed looking and, uh, moist. We got the cat almost six months ago from her previous owner (she's about two years old), and this didn't start happening until the last couple of months.

At first this was happening once every few weeks, now it seems like it's happening weekly which is why I'm asking/taking her in. Oh, and she's been comedically obese since we got her (18lb) due to a life of being free-fed terrible grocery store brand food. We're working on that too, but I thought I would mention it in case it was related.

Drunkboxer
Jun 30, 2007

KilGrey posted:

Yeah, kitties can be quirky. I had a cat that would use his paw to scoop food out of the bowl and onto the floor THEN eat it. If he likes his food soup maybe put an additional bowl of water down. One to play in and one for just water. Maybe think about a water fountain, perhaps if the water is moving he'll be less inclined to play in it. Does he eat the food ever or just puts it in water?


Nah he just makes a mess. He drinks the water though. Maybe he doesn't like the tap water here.

MoCookies
Apr 22, 2005

Evil Chick posted:

We just got him Tuesday night and took him to the vet this morning (Thursday). The vet said flea meds shouldn't be given before 8 weeks. Maybe it's a California thing? Who knows.

Young kittens can get super sick from having tons and tons of fleas, but they can also get sick from the flea meds. I've seen a few kittens come into the shelter just covered with fleas, and it wasn't pretty. For your vet, its a balancing act between the various risks. You can always bathe the kitty to get rid of some of the fleas; plain dish soap (Dawn, Joy, etc.) is gentle and amazingly effective. Just make sure that you keep the kitty really warm when they're drying; young animals can't regulate their body temperature as well as adult animals.

Sekhmet
Nov 16, 2001


Citizen Insane posted:

I'm praying it's a testosterone thing, since his neutered status is ... weird. No visible testicles to speak of, but the Humane Society claimed he hadn't been fixed. Vet could find no balls, but vet also doesn't have xray vision and didn't do a hormone test. So. The only change in routine was the fact that I left the Hoover in the extra bedroom, near where he likes to sit at the window. Could it have been a 'gently caress off' territorial gesture at the Hoover? I've left it sitting out before and nothing like this happened ...

Your vet didn't offer the possible explanation of the dog being cryptorchid and scheduling some kind of hormonal test or exploratory surgery? Animals with an undescended testicle are far more likely than normal to develop tumors in their testicles, as well as anecdotal reports of increased testosterone effect on behavior. If your vet is unwilling to pursue this you should ask for a referral to a specialist who might want to.

Bengi66
Jun 11, 2008
My dog keeps chewing things.

Whenever he is left on his own he will either chew the walls/wallpaper, table/ chair legs etc or even his own bed. I now leave him in the kitchen with the back door open so he can go into the garden whenever he wants, but yet when ever i come back something will have been chewed/destroyed in the kitchen.

He is roughly 9months old and is a mongrel, any advice on how to stop this would be great.

SubponticatePoster
Aug 9, 2004

Every day takes figurin' out all over again how to fuckin' live.
Slippery Tilde

Drunkboxer posted:

[first PI post]

I grew up around a lot of cats and I've never seen this. My only cat Norman makes soup with his water before he drinks it, I guess. He picks up his food (both wet and dry, I feed him a mix of both) and drops it in his water. Then he licks at the food for a while and drinks the water. He never eats the soggy food he makes. I guess its not a big deal but its gross looking and a little weird. Have any of you seen this? Some mornings it's more like a hearty stew than a soup.

If he's not just being weird (very normal for cats :3: ), you may also want to check the condition of his teeth and gums. It could be that he has a sore or abcessed tooth, and by soaking his food he makes it easier to eat.

MockTurtle
Mar 9, 2006
Once I was a real Turtle.

Bengi66 posted:

My dog keeps chewing things.

Whenever he is left on his own he will either chew the walls/wallpaper, table/ chair legs etc or even his own bed. I now leave him in the kitchen with the back door open so he can go into the garden whenever he wants, but yet when ever i come back something will have been chewed/destroyed in the kitchen.

He is roughly 9months old and is a mongrel, any advice on how to stop this would be great.

If he does it when you're home keep a better eye on him or try keeping him tethered to you. If it's while youa re gone/sleeping, get a crate. A lot of people think it's mean but it really isn't- it gives your dog his own place to chill out and keep him out of trouble. I will try to dig up the crating faq here in a minute for you.

Edit: http://www.lunarprincess.com/pi_faq/newpuppy-Salival.txt there it is!

MockTurtle fucked around with this message at 20:01 on Oct 17, 2008

Bengi66
Jun 11, 2008

MockTurtle posted:

If he does it when you're home keep a better eye on him or try keeping him tethered to you. If it's while youa re gone/sleeping, get a crate. A lot of people think it's mean but it really isn't- it gives your dog his own place to chill out and keep him out of trouble. I will try to dig up the crating faq here in a minute for you.

Edit: http://www.lunarprincess.com/pi_faq/newpuppy-Salival.txt there it is!

Thank you very much, I am one of those people who thinks its mean im afraid, after all he has had free run of the downstairs for the past 4 months (when we got him), but has only been chewing things the past 2 months. Is there any other method that could work to stop him chewing things? if not I will try the crate.

MockTurtle
Mar 9, 2006
Once I was a real Turtle.

Bengi66 posted:

Thank you very much, I am one of those people who thinks its mean im afraid, after all he has had free run of the downstairs for the past 4 months (when we got him), but has only been chewing things the past 2 months. Is there any other method that could work to stop him chewing things? if not I will try the crate.
They make sprays that you can put on non-chewables but I don't know that you'd want to cover everything you own in it.

Honestly I think the crate is the easiest and most foolproof. Someone on here had a dog that they left in an empty room and it literally went to town on the drywall/linoleum. They will find something to get at if they possibly can.

Crating is only mean if you go way overboard, like locking him in there 24/7 while you don't pay any attention to him. Think of it like a bedroom or a cave, he can chill out and have his own private space when you are away and it's better for everyone since you don't get your crap eaten and he doesn't choke on something, eat something poisonous, etc. A lot of dogs will even go in there on their own during the day when they want to rest.

It might take some getting used to for the first little while, but please remember that a dog is not a person, so he's not going to be laying in there thinking about how mean you are and wishing he was out playing like in the good old days.

You could even invest in some Kong toys which can be stuffed with frozen goodies so that will keep him busy with something until you can come home and play.

MockTurtle fucked around with this message at 20:27 on Oct 17, 2008

Encryptic
May 3, 2007

Lakshmi posted:

I'm sure this must have been asked before, but does anybody use anything like this:
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2751261#RatingsDetail

I was just wondering if you have to buy the replacement "refill odor barrier bags" every time you dump what's inside. I'm hoping you can just dump it every week or so, and then replace the bags every two months or so like it says. I'd only be using it for poop, since I don't use clumping litter. Anyone have any thoughts?

Sounds like a glorified Diaper Genie with the special bags and all. I imagine the cost of replacing those bags might add up after a while as well.

Jenkin
Jan 21, 2003

Piracy is our only option.
One of the stray cats I've been feeding has something weird going on with about the last inch of the tip of his tail- it's wet and dark and the fur is stuck right on it and it has been for some time. Is this serious? Can I do anything about it? I apologize if this is an extremely stupid question.

porkchoppie
Jan 7, 2004

I will kill in a second.

Jenkin posted:

One of the stray cats I've been feeding has something weird going on with about the last inch of the tip of his tail- it's wet and dark and the fur is stuck right on it and it has been for some time. Is this serious? Can I do anything about it? I apologize if this is an extremely stupid question.

Sounds like he may have gotten into some tar or motor oil during his exploits. It could be harmful to him if he ingests it--have you noticed him licking it?

Jenkin
Jan 21, 2003

Piracy is our only option.
I can't say that I have, but I'll keep my eye out. I tried to wipe it off with a towel but nothing comes away.

Hopefully we'll be able to scrape enough to take him to the vet soon. The poor thing was a housecat whose owner died, and he's living outside and declawed and is thin as a rake.

RazorBunny
May 23, 2007

Sometimes I feel like this.

Meat Street posted:

Every few days, my cat is nowhere to be found when I get home from work. A search of the apartment reveals her lurking under the couch or in the cabinets in my kitchen, sulking and reluctant to come out. Assuming I can coax her out, I've noticed that her rear end is almost always inflamed looking and, uh, moist. We got the cat almost six months ago from her previous owner (she's about two years old), and this didn't start happening until the last couple of months.

Hiding is generally a huge sign, and with the unhappy-looking anus she should definitely see a vet.

KilGrey
Mar 13, 2005

You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? Just put your lips together and blow...

Meat Street posted:

I'm having an intermittent issue with my cat. This is probably going to be a "go to a vet" kind of question, and I want to preface it by saying that I am planning to take her in at the beginning of next week

...

At first this was happening once every few weeks, now it seems like it's happening weekly which is why I'm asking/taking her in. Oh, and she's been comedically obese since we got her (18lb) due to a life of being free-fed terrible grocery store brand food. We're working on that too, but I thought I would mention it in case it was related.

Is she spayed?

Bengi66 posted:

Thank you very much, I am one of those people who thinks its mean im afraid, after all he has had free run of the downstairs for the past 4 months (when we got him), but has only been chewing things the past 2 months. Is there any other method that could work to stop him chewing things? if not I will try the crate.

It's not mean and can honestly be a comfort to an animal. A dog should view their crate as a happy safe place. Get one and get him used to it by putting him in with the door open and playing with him in it, give him treats, make a soft bed for him. Include a old t-shirt or sweatshirt you've warn in it so he can smell you. Have a toy that he only gets if he's in the crate. A kong filled with the spray peanut butter works really well for this. My moms dog will often go into her crate and stand with her head peaking out expectantly because she knows there when she gets a kong. At bed time, she jumps right in to the crate and goes to sleep even though the gates open and she doesn't have too.

Dogs usually become destructive because they are bored and under stimulated. How much exercise does he get? What sort of breed is he? Different dogs need different amounts and kinds of exercise and stimulation. Breeds like Jack Russells need constant mental work or they go crazy whereas something like a Whippet needs far less. Sometimes a back yard isn't enough and they need to go on long, brisk walks.

Meat Street
Oct 17, 2004

knowin' nothin' in life but to be legit

KilGrey posted:

Is she spayed?

Yes, she is spayed. Today was slightly better than yesterday, she came out of seclusion and I got to play cat wrangler to clean her butt up a bit. I'm still going to take her into the vet on my next day off; I have a vague hunch that her anal glands are irritated or something similar since she's really too fat to lick them, unlike any of my previous cats. Is that totally off base?

Bengi66
Jun 11, 2008

KilGrey posted:

It's not mean and can honestly be a comfort to an animal. A dog should view their crate as a happy safe place. Get one and get him used to it by putting him in with the door open and playing with him in it, give him treats, make a soft bed for him. Include a old t-shirt or sweatshirt you've warn in it so he can smell you. Have a toy that he only gets if he's in the crate. A kong filled with the spray peanut butter works really well for this. My moms dog will often go into her crate and stand with her head peaking out expectantly because she knows there when she gets a kong. At bed time, she jumps right in to the crate and goes to sleep even though the gates open and she doesn't have too.

Dogs usually become destructive because they are bored and under stimulated. How much exercise does he get? What sort of breed is he? Different dogs need different amounts and kinds of exercise and stimulation. Breeds like Jack Russells need constant mental work or they go crazy whereas something like a Whippet needs far less. Sometimes a back yard isn't enough and they need to go on long, brisk walks.

By crate do you guys mean a cage? He has been neuted and is a mix of alot of breads, he looks abit like a bearded collie but is slightly smaller. He gets at least an hour walk every day in which time he runs around with my other dog all over the place. He is also not the brightest dog in the world either, so I doubt he could be understimulated (he can play for hours by himself, throwing a plant pot in the air and running after it).

MockTurtle
Mar 9, 2006
Once I was a real Turtle.

Bengi66 posted:

By crate do you guys mean a cage?

Essentially yes. It's either something like this made of wire (I know it looks mean but remember the den):

You can get all kinds of suave covers for them too so they aren't so ugly.

Or some people use the carrier type like this:


Even if you do crate him though, be sure to try and wear him out as much as you can before he goes in so he doesn't get all antsy in there, he will just conk out and go to sleep for a while :)

KilGrey
Mar 13, 2005

You know how to whistle, don't you, Steve? Just put your lips together and blow...

Bengi66 posted:

By crate do you guys mean a cage?

Either works. My aunt has a cage but I always used crates, whatever your preference is.

Bengi66" posted:

He has been neuted and is a mix of alot of breads, he looks abit like a bearded collie but is slightly smaller. He gets at least an hour walk every day in which time he runs around with my other dog all over the place. He is also not the brightest dog in the world either, so I doubt he could be understimulated (he can play for hours by himself, throwing a plant pot in the air and running after it).

Sounds like he has some working dog in him if he resembles a bearded collie. Those sorts of dogs need a lot of exercise as they are happiest when they are 'working'. I'd take him for more walks, especially right before you go to work. Get him as tuckered out as possible then put him in the crate with a Kong. Try to go home on your lunch break for a little bit of play and to be let out to do his business and see if it makes him less destructive. If you are taking him out on walks and he's running around with the other dogs, are they not on leads? Is he only downstairs when you are gone or is it all the time?

pubic void nullo
May 17, 2002


Dear Pet Island, there is a budgie here who belongs to my landlord, but I guess his family doesn't want it or something so it lives downstairs with my friends and me in our living room. The living room is usually dark and I feel that this is not beneficial for the little guy. Also sometimes they forget to change its food and water and clean its cage so I do it. Also the budgie is afraid of me. What can I do to make its life better?

Please advise,
Basement Budgie

Dr. Chaco
Mar 30, 2005

Meat Street posted:


Assuming I can coax her out, I've noticed that her rear end is almost always inflamed looking and, uh, moist. We got the cat almost six months ago from her previous owner (she's about two years old), and this didn't start happening until the last couple of months.



I'm having a very similar issue with one of my cats, who is also about 18 lbs. I don't know if it's been a chronic issue with her as I just adopted her 3 weeks ago, but it sounds very similar as far as the inflamed, gross-looking anal area. In her case she can reach the area and was licking it so much she had it all raw and inflamed, and it was getting pussy and nasty so we went to the vet and they couldn't find any anal gland issues, though that was one of their initial suspicions. In her case they decided the likeliest answer was that she was irritated enough from a short bout of diarrhea she had recently that she just licked herself raw, like a hotspot in dogs, and was continuing to make it worse. She's been in an e-collar for a couple weeks now and we're working our way through a bottle of antibiotics. The vet also had me bathe her butt and then wipe it daily with medicated wipes. It's looking better, especially since she can't lick it.

The vet said anals can be an issue with fat cats, but that also dermatitis issues like this might be more common just because all the fat comes together in that area to make it easier for it to stay moist and gross. I can definitely see how that's possible with all the fat my girl seems to store in the base of her tail.

Bengi66
Jun 11, 2008

KilGrey posted:

If you are taking him out on walks and he's running around with the other dogs, are they not on leads? Is he only downstairs when you are gone or is it all the time?

I let both my dogs off the lead (i live near a few massive fields) I now leave them both in the kitchen with the back door open so they can go outside (back garden is all fenced in) but he still chews things, I dont think he needs more exercise as he always goes to sleep after a walk (but im gone for like 4 hours at a time) my other dog is fine and doesnt chew anything. I am going to buy a cage for him, but im wondering could he hurt himself if he tried to get out of the cage/bite it?

Women's Rights?
Nov 16, 2005

Ain't give a damn
Alright, here's a reverse of the normal ringworm question - I picked it up from my boyfriend who got it from his cat. I'm off to Redi Med tomorrow to get some cream, but what can I do to prevent my own kitties from getting it? Or should I just call up the vet and see if they can get me some ointment for them? I read on wikipedia that it's contagious before you get any symptoms so they might already have it :(

Edit: Nevermind, they got it. I checked this morning and poko has a splotch on his tail.

Women's Rights? fucked around with this message at 14:26 on Oct 19, 2008

tugnutt831
Oct 17, 2006

WTF? you may ask...well you don't want to know...and I don't know.
This may be a bizarre question, but I'd like to make a perch that both our cat and for our Pekingese could use to look out of our lanai. It would need to be somewhere around 3/3.5 feet tall. I'm not sure if anyone has done anything like this before and figured I'd give this a shot before designing my own and with search disabled, I couldn't find much.

Any words of wisdom would be much appreciated.

Silly Hippie
Sep 18, 2007
Okay PI, I know you can do this!

Can anyone point me to some good, legitimate, non-biased articles about aggression ( or, hopefully lack thereof ;) ) in pit bulls and German shepherds? My boyfriend's family is looking at shelter doggies right now and he's fallen in love with a pit/shepherd mix but his parents are concerned about aggression. She's been tested and described as friendly, well trained and good with cats. She's absolutely adorable, it'd suck for her breeds to get in the way of her being adopted!

Noumena
Mar 18, 2008

Two quick questions about my 6mo Maltese, Poe!

This may sound a little silly, but I was curious if anybody here knows why he squats to pee, like a female dog, instead of doing the whole iconic lifting one leg stance. Obviously I'm not concerned that there's something wrong with him, but it's something I've been wondering about. Does lifting the leg have anything to do with a dog swinging his testicles out of the way? I had Poe fixed when his testes were only partially descended, so would that have anything to do with it?

As for my second question, is there any way to coax him into pooping more quickly? I only ask because when we go outside, he takes a whiz immediately but then wanders around for about twenty minutes before pooping. Again, it's not really a concern of mine, but I've seen many other dog owners come in and out of their apartments, and their dogs always eliminate within a few minutes like pros. I take him out every six hours, so I've always figured he's just raring to go (so to speak), and yet he takes his time nosing through the grass and trying to eat acorns. Are there any tricks I can teach him to keep him from getting distracted and focus on the task at hand, or should I just let my easygoing pup take his time?

Thanks!

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Cow Bell
Aug 29, 2007

So when shopping for my kitten's food, I went to PetSmart and tried to pick out the best type of food by what minimal amount of knowledge I knew, since none of the "Good" foods from the FAQ, I got this: http://bynaturepetfoods.com/ for the little bastard.

Please tell me I'm not slowly killing her. :(

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