Julie Andreyev

Does anybody want to do some work?

julieandreyev — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 00:38:58 +0000

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Tom likes to rub his face in the snow

julieandreyev — Fri, 03 Feb 2012 21:24:24 +0000

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Sugi’s unsure about walking on pier

julieandreyev — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 02:26:07 +0000

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Tom objecting to Sugi laying in front of the fire

julieandreyev — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 02:23:06 +0000

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Tom’s sore back

julieandreyev — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 22:42:14 +0000

Lesson from Tom: dogs can get sore backs from over exertion. They will yawn and stretch a lot as a sign that they have a sore back.
Tom says ”I like to get a back massage”

I’d learned that a tell-tale sign for back pain is when a dog does more than usual back stretches or yawning. Also, if a dog is reluctant to go up the stairs or jump, or maybe is slower at assents than usual, he may be suffering.

In a previous post, I had mentioned that Tom has a chronic muscle spasm in his back due to an injury while doing too much jumping for a treat. He would bite and growl if we tried to touch the area on his back. We had cut down on his ball chasing and jumping, gave him acupuncture, chiropractic and massage treatments and the chronic muscle spasm and pain went away.

Recently I noticed Tom hobbling up the stairs and doing a lot of stretching and yawning. So I introduced a regular 5 minute massage session at the beginning and end of the day improves his movement.

I needed to gain Tom’s trust that I wouldn’t hurt him, so I use light touches down his spine and then increase the pressure slowly, running fingers along either side of the spine from top to bottom. I can see and feel the muscle spasms releasing. I also massage the muscles around his hips as I think these get sore from hikes and running. Now, when I ask him if he wants a massage, he comes and sits with his back facing me and seems to enjoy the sessions.

Can you say Happy New Year to Simon?

julieandreyev — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 23:32:48 +0000

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Sugi’s swollen tail

julieandreyev — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 22:17:08 +0000

Lesson from Sugi: a swollen tail can indicate swollen anal glands
Sugi says: ”my bum is uncomfortable!”

One day we noticed that Sugi’s little tail had swollen up like a balloon! I wondered if he had an injury. Maybe he sprained or broke his tail in a fall. Sometimes the leash gets wrapped up and caught in his tail. I gave him homeopathic arnica which is good for injuries. The swelling went down a bit but didn’t go away.

I remembered that the weeks before the swollen tail, Sugi was biting at his rear end as though he had fleas, and scooting his bum along the carpet. We would comb him but didn’t find any evidence of fleas. I finally took him to one of our vets, Kathy Kramer who said he has inflamed anal glands! The anal glands, also called scent glands, are located close to the anus and they release scent indicating the individual’s identity. That’s why dogs sniff each other’s butts. When she diagnosed him by sticking a finger up his bum, Sugi screamed. She said his glands were very swollen and in danger of rupturing which could cause a lot of serious trouble. She suggested trying to reduce the inflammation by using a warm compress with epson salts. The recipe is:

1/4 cup epson salts
2 cups boiled water
2 cups cool tap water to cool it down

Soak a washcloth in the above mix. wring it out and place it on the bum under the tail for 30 seconds. It should not be hotter than what’s bearable on your own face. Keep re-soaking and placing the cloth on the area for 5 minutes, 3 to 4 times per day.

Sugi seemed to feel relief from this treatment and his tail reduced its swelling. In a few days we were able to bring him back to the vet and they “expressed” his anal glands. He didn’t suffer as much discomfort this time.

The swelling went down but didn’t go away, even though we continued with the warm compresses. Two weeks later, he started the rug scooting again and biting and licking at this tail. I read a bit more about homeopathic remedies in the Don Hamilton book “Homeopathic Care for Cats and Dogs” which indicated sulphur. I suggested this to our other vet, Michael Goldberg, he prescribed 3 does of 30K, one every 12 hours. It seems to be working. We’ve stopped the compress and his tail is going down. He’s stopped licking, scooting and biting….

Tom likes to cuddle in

julieandreyev — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 01:25:24 +0000

Lesson from Tom: dogs like to sleep in a cozy place
Tom says: ”I like to curl up in a ball and sleep”

Sugi likes to go for a drive

julieandreyev — Sat, 03 Dec 2011 22:36:26 +0000

Lesson from Sugi: some dogs like to go for a drive even if there’s no destination
Sugi says: ”please take me with you!”

Recently, Sugi has been protesting my going out without him. Sometimes he runs downstairs as I’m getting ready to leave. He will follow me to the back door even though I explain to him that I have to go out and he has to stay home! I tried an experiment and asked him if he wanted to come with me while I was getting ready to drive around doing errands. He was very enthusiastic about this. (Tom wanted to stay home). While driving, Sugi purred and sighed with contentment behind me! When I made my stops, I left Sugi in the car and told him I’d return shortly. He didn’t get out of the car again until we got home. He seemed perfectly fine with this and told me he was grateful to have accompanied me for those few hours. In fact, he seemed to gloat a bit when he got home and greeted Tom. I think he felt like he got some special treatment!

Tom knows the difference between right and left

julieandreyev — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 18:06:08 +0000

Lesson from Tom: Dogs can learn directions to go right or left
Tom says: ”I like to follow directions”

When we’re out walking in the dog walking dog style or off-leash, I often use commands to tell Tom which direction to take. For about a year we have been training Tom to understand the command “to the right!” At first, he would look at us after we said this and we would point in the direction of right. He then began to understand the command in relation to direction. Tom progressed to understand the command without him having to look at me. He has now mastered the “to the right” command and is almost flawless with “to the left”!