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The Importance of Blood Work

Basenji Health Issues & Questions

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    nobarkusN
    @Lysh: Sadie, how are your dogs going today? would love to see an updated photo of them. xx I'd like to see updated pics too.
  • Blood in stools

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
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    M
    My Basenji had this problem on and off for years before I finally found a good solution. I actually just posted about it elsewhere in here so I'm going to attempt to quote it in here. Let's hope it works lol. @mandi2doors: Copper, my oldest, has always had a sensitive stomach and would get diarrhea out of the blue all the time, so badly that he would have blood dripping from his rear. It freaked me out the first few times it happened! The vet always tried to prescribe an antibiotic but it never helped. The way I always got rid of it was to cook a pound of ground beef (rinsed), mix with a cup of cooked white rice, a cup of cottage cheese, and a cup of plain yogurt. You feed it for about 3-4 days (I always gave him about a cup and a half a day) and then start introducing their dry food back in. A friend on another forum gave me this concoction years ago and it worked perfectly for years. Almost two years ago he got diarrhea and any time I would stop feeding the mixture it would come back. I finally consulted a holistic vet and she said I could continue feeding the mixture but needed to add some veggies to it for fiber, or I could change his dry food. She said to avoid chicken, wheat, soy, and corn. She also recommended feeding a probiotic/prebiotic several times a week in addition to two other supplements, Gastriplex and Moducare (both by Thorne). He's been on Taste of the Wild now, which is grain free (I buy the fish variety but they also have a bison/venison as well as a lamb), and and has had no problems. I'm very careful about the ingredients in the treats I give him now and have had NO diarrhea problems since changing his diet, which is absolutely wonderful! Here are the links for what I use: http://tinyurl.com/27jaroe http://tinyurl.com/2adwtqn- 1 capsule 2x per day http://tinyurl.com/276rn24 - 1 capsule 1x per day http://tinyurl.com/2g47lsp - 1 capsule about 3x per week (I give it on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays) Good luck!!
  • 0 Votes
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    nomrbddgsN
    There are two sides of the coin here. While we may trust that the vet has the knowledge, we also know our dogs. It is ultimately up to the owner to decide the right course of action. Not everyone gets it right the first time either. Neither the vet nor the owner. I have had a vew encounters with vets who think they know my dog better than me-even with test results staring them in the face. On more that a couple of occassions, I have had to step in and say, "No, this is the route I want to take." But with that decision comes education as well. I think that the consumer, as they grow with knowledge, becomes more adept at reading things on their own and the vets should start to listen and have more open minds to the owner. Just MO. Glad to see, though, that things are on the move for your baby!
  • Blood in urine

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
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    tanzaT
    I just use human cranberry pills.
  • What works for allergies ?

    Basenji Health Issues & Questions
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    BasenjimammaB
    I did have a Westie in the past that had severe allergies to….storagemites, which is in every dogfood that has been stored for a few weeks or more, i.e every food known to man, so he was on the raw diet, did great, he was also severly allergic to fleas, or the saliva from the fleas and to mold/mildew, which living in houston Tx there is a lot of. Poor guy was miserable, until we did the raw diet and decided to keep him inside all the time, when the other dogs went out to play he had to stay in..and it is funny he wanted to go out and the other dogs wanted to come in...figures. The few foods out there that are supposedly good for allergies according to my vet is grainfree ones, Dick Van Pattens sweet potatoe and duck, I believe was one of the ones he recommended. Try to keep the ingredients list as small as possible, cleaner food means less irritants. Just like our food, the less junk we eat the better we feel... Good Luck, I know how hard it is with a dog that clearly is bothered by something and you don't know how to help it. I do know that Petco and Petsmart here in Texas will take food back even though the bag has been opened, which is nice if you are having to try various/numerous different brands until you find what works. Basenjimamma
  • Important Basenji Health Tests

    Pinned Basenji Health Issues & Questions
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    tanzaT
    Perm records for hips/elbows are after 2yrs of age, so Oakley is too young. Some do Prelims but that is usually in the case of a male that is going to be used at stud before 2yrs. Keep in mind for hip and/or elbow results that unlike Fanconi testing it is Optional to post the results if they are not Excellent, Good or Fair - Owner option.. same with Thyroid. There is a place on the forms to mark if you want the results posted regardless of the outcome. Many people DO NOT CHECK this box… therefore if the dog is dysplastic, the results are not shown. So read that into the results.... and I know of Dysplastic Basenjis that are NOT in the data base. That said, hips are not a huge concern as in other breeds, but there are problems out there.... IMO, I would have the hips done... elbows, would not worry about that too much... Sedated? Depends on your Vet... some Vets will do without, some will not do hips without. My two girls were just done, both without, we have a mobile Vet that does testing and they go to most all the shows, makes it really easy and no sedation. I have had both ways done on my Basenjis over the years.