I never use stripping knives - unless used correctly they CAN break the coat and are not in my opinion for the novice. And it will take about one year for a coat to recover if its clipped - depending on the quality of the coat however and if the dog is neutered - neuters often take longer to recover.
Always strip a dirty coat its easier - using thumb and finger pull out the longer hairs - if it wont move its not ready to come out you can roll the coat by doing a bit every few days ( you will have to do the whole coat first then as it grows keep pulling the longer hairs as they grow rather than leaving it for 6 months then having to do the whole coat - this way the coat stays neat and tidy all year round) I never bath after doing a full handstrip in my opinion it leads to skin infections - wait for a couple of days then bath.

I am going on the Friday - we book so far ahead at work i have no choice but to organise asap - me and my boss and my workmate all go together - just to shop get some handy tips on grooming (can never learn to much!) and look around i cant wait!

Just to let you know - i know people who have had trouble keeping wieght on their dogs with burns - and dont overfeed it - they actually do better on the amount suggested

I feed raw and part of my dogs diet is raw lambs liver - but only once a week i dont think they need it any more than that - i wouldnt be feeding it everyday

we groom a crossbreed who weighed in at 50 kilos - he should be in my reckoning about 22kilos at the most hes a smallish collie lurcher cross - his owner said he was the right shape for his breed    she did however take on board what we said and when she came back he had lost 10 kilos- hes got a long way to go - he will get there!

yes there is plenty you can do for him - without resorting to conventional medicines just yet, just remember dont give the st johns wort with any other conventional medicines. My dog ha early stages of arthritis which we aremanaging well - and she isnt on any conventional medicine - nor has her walks have to have been reduced - shes doing well so keep up the light exercise and let us know how you get on .

try some nature diet - it tends to be very appetising for many dogs - or tripe lots of dogs like tripe just mix some mixer with it.


Have you also thought about some natural pain relief - St  Johns Wort is very good and i beleive many people have used ti for the depressed dog - which as has been said he may well be.

Well if they know how to walk nicely then your main problem is getting them out the gate - is it possible for you - if they start to pull to turn around and go back indoors again? They really need to learn that they are going NOWHERE unless they are walking nicely? I appreciate this isnt always something everyone can do - so a halti or canny collar are good - just make sure you have the strap to attach it their collar as well so they dont slip the headcollars. We have one for our collie who also walks nicely on a lead but my mums bad back means she cannot rish even a slight pull - he wears it when with her just to be on the safe side - although well trained accidents can happen - its great and works very well for her.

Ok there should be no need at all to stop his walks - infact a few short walks a day are often better than no exercise at all - it seems vets have varying views on this - but at 11 years old your dog has a few years in him yet - to deny him the one thing he loves seems cruel - good on you for starting the walks again. So i would do ten minute walks three times a day

Also is he on any pain medication - the glucosamine is great - but it isnt pain relief - if hes in pain this may well affect his appetite! He may also have a reduced appetite due to less exercise.

So whats he eating now and what is his eating routine how many meals the times etc?

If shes eating the yummy stuff there is nothing wrong with her. Shes not eating the kibble because shes holding out in the hope she gets given the yummy stuff - which i bet you do? Give her her food leave it down for 15-20 minutes and take it away if she doesnt eat it - then no food until tea time. She will soon eat it - she wont starve. You can change her food but it may just encourage her to be an even more fussy eater  

At nine months hes possibly cutting down on the amount he needs - feel pleased he isnt bolting the lot!! I would cut his food down a little until hes eating all your giving him and no dont leave his food down all day - if he eats all his evening meal then there is nothing worng he just isnt hungry (odd for a lab i know but hey!!)

You think - dont be so naieve - this breed needs just as much training - an untrained shiddy can be a nightmare.



and you know this how? from a couple of posts you have read and taken in the wrong context. I will deal with the clicker training comment first - I MYSELF had the problem with the clicker not the dog - i didnt enjoy teaching her new things this way end of story.
And the Honey and Tigger situation - dont comment on what you dont know anything about - i was dealing with a dog who had already been rehomed due tohis aggressive behaviour towards another dog in his household. I was seeking alittle extra help to ensure everything went smoothly - shoot me for caring!



And you know i cant do anything with my dog how???? My dog has learnt agility - she is a qualified PAT dog - i have done a LOT of training with her she has a 100% recall at all times - i see you didnt put anything about the post i did on getting a perfect stop with her when she was frightened out of her wits by fireworks - something that is often hard to train and even harder to get when the dog is scared witless. She knows many cues and will respond very well to all - all this with a rescue dog i got at 11 months who was scared of a lot and had had no training.

Finaly do not tell me what not to do when you do the same thing yourself - i was not at ANY point rude towards Nipper while your post has been nothing but offensive and filled with a couple of quotes concerning stuff you know nothing about.

Get down of your high horse - i gave advice so that the person could see the other side of the picture - i had my opinions which i gave - you cannot tell me that i shouldnt say anything against what Nipper said then do the very same thing to me.

Please dont comment so rudely on my dogs training again - it was out of order and everything you said about her was wrong. I was very sad to read such a post id found this site very good up to now.

At this stage there is no need for a spray collar- IF you HAVE to use one let it be a last resort

He needs to learn the come cue at a low criteria that means at home no distractions etc - and the cue is come - not comecome here here dogs name etc etc!! when hes got it right move it on a bit - add some distractions  and do it in the garden - then try at someone elses house and garden - when you think hes ready move it to the big outside! on a long line so he cant run.

Use something he loves to reward him - and think about getting the cue on whistle too - this takes longer but he will be TRAINED that is what you want - there is also less chance of an extinction burst in my opinion -.

But you mustnt move him on to the next criteria until hes 100% reliable at the lower criterias  good luck.

I dont like collars for the recall - it gives it a bad association .

If hes in a lot of pain then ST.Johns Wort is very good  - or some arnica which will help bring out the bruising etc.

recently taken on a couple of young uns at the groomers- lovely cost each owner about £2000!!!!!! one is having to have a face lift i find it very sad his face has been bred to be so wrinkly he is having major problems. Gorgeoous dogs - not a breedid own but such characters!!!