Round 1 Welsh Junior of the Year
Vestibular Disease
Merlin has been diagnosed with vestibular disease this morning, after having a prolonged and ongoing neurological episode. As this is something I have not come across in my dogs before, I figured I'd put all the information here so we have a record in case (God forbid) any of the Tatoes ever develop it in their senior years.
Causes of vestibular disease include middle ear or inner ear infections; drugs that are toxic to the ear; trauma or injury; tumors; and hypothyroidism. When no specific cause is found, the condition is called idiopathic vestibular syndrome. Idiopathic cases are distinguished by the sudden onset of clinical signs and the subsequent, rapid improvement with little, if any, medical intervention. Merlin is being treated as idiopathic, as we have no clue what has triggered it.
The criteria for diagnosing canine idiopathic vestibular syndrome are:
*older dog
*sudden onset of peripheral vestibular signs
no detectable cause (i.e., no signs of external or middle ear infection, ototoxicity, head trauma, hypothyroidism, infectious disease, etc.)
*signs resolve on their own over several weeks
Most dogs present with a sudden loss of balance, disorientation, head tilt, and irregular, jerking eye movements called nystagmus. Many dogs will become reluctant to stand or walk. Most dogs lean or fall in the direction that their head is tilted.
The clinical signs associated with vestibular disease are often most severe during the first 24 to 48 hours. Many pets begin to improve within 72 hours. The head tilt and stumbling often improves over a 7 to 10-day period. Most patients are completely recovered within 2 to 3 weeks, although some will have residual symptoms, such as a head tilt or mild "wobbling" for life. Dogs who have had an episode may be prone to recurrence.
Treatment varies based on type of VD - for Merlin is is anti sickness injections, and rest. The video below shows you some of what he was like Monday morning before we saw th
Yesterday as you know, we completed the handover of Dora and Lottie to their new home. Caitlyn has been heavily involved with taking care of the girls, and Dora in particular has really grown fond of her.
This time, Caitlyn decided that she wanted to be part of the final step in the journey, and come with me for the handover. Now, we never push for her to be involved, everything she does is done at her pace, and because she wants to do it.
I won't lie guys, I was worried about how she would manage, because this is always an emotionally charged moment for the adults, never mind a two year old.
Honestly? She was amazing. She helped me load the car, she asked lots of questions about where they were going and who they were going to, and if we would see them again. When we got there, she helped carry everything, settled the girls into the new car, praised and reassured them, and gave them a kiss. She waved them off happily, and got back into the car quite content. She's amazing. She nailed the whole process, and understood exactly what we were doing and why. Her main concern was settling the girls down and telling them it was all going to be ok. I am so proud of her.
We should all be a bit more Caitlyn.
Let's talk foster dogs.
As our long time followers know, we are a foster home for Mini SAS. We have had multiple dogs in our care as part of their rescue and rehome service.
Since the birth of Caitlyn almost three years ago, we have only fostered once, because adding unpredictable, anxious and frightened dogs into our home is a real risk. If you recall Isca and Emrys, you will remember that Caitlyn was an absolute natural with them both.
Today I went and picked up Lottie and Dora, two older ladies who have never been exposed to children. Alex and my mum came along for the ride, and while we were at their home, Lottie was clearly unhappy about the presence of Alex. She didn't know what he was, or how to deal with him.
Knowing what Caitlyn is like with her all encompassing love for dogs, it was very important that we laid down some ground rules for her and the girls.
*She was not to approach the dogs without express permission
*She was not allowed to hug or kiss them like she does to our own dogs
*She was to give them space at all times, especially if they growled or moved away
*She was to ignore them if they didn't want to engage with her.
Literally five minutes after she got home from nursery, this was the scene in my dining room.
Lottie is still unsure, but feels safe enough to take food directly from Caitlyn. Dora has come for some affection and is actively looking to engage with Caitlyn on her terms.
Obviously every interaction is heavily monitored, and we have our own dogs in the mix so our newcomers can see how we interact and treat them. Our aim is to make our houseguests feel as loved, confident and at home as possible, and Caitlyn plays a huge role in that.
Let's talk babies.
So, our last post focused on how good Gatties is with Caitlyn, and the need for him (and the others) to deal with high energy and exuberance. This time, let's talk about Baby Alex.
Alex is now 8 weeks old, and growing fast. He's been accepted lock, stock and barrel by the whole clan, especially MotherBear (which suprises nobody!). He's a pretty chill baby, except when he has colic. The dogs are used to him making all sorts of strange noises!
As you can see here, I use the dog beds as somewhere comfy for Alex to chill out while I'm doing things (in this case, putting the washing on the airer). This end of the dining room is the dog end, next to their sideboard, and where all the dog beds end up being dragged by Gats. It is undeniably their space. Alex uses it when they are elsewhere, but generally as soon as I pop him down, they appear.
Their body language here is relaxed and happy. Gatland has no issues lying next to Alex while he wiggles and chats away. Huzzah is watching, the girls are more interested in the biscuits Hope stole from the table. We have built up to this level of trust over the last 8 weeks, and with Caitlyn before him. The dogs have been in close contact while in the shared spaces of the house, and if they had shown any sort of discomfort or stress, Alex would not be in their space right now. If any of them so much as twitch an ear to show they are not happy, Alex is out of there. Constant, positive exposure, with plenty of downtime to decompress is how we make this happen.
Temperament is key. Breeding for good, solid temperament, and then appropriate ongoing socialisation is crucial. This is why it is so important to discuss the temperament of the parents and grandparents with your breeder if you want to bring a puppy into a home or family with Small children. And the training, desensitisation and socialisation never stops. If you don't put the work in, and keep going over it with them, you simply cannot foster the right
Let's talk temperament and toddlers.
As you all well know, Caitlyn and Gatland have been the best of friends since she was old enough to interact with him. We have always closely monitored their interactions and she is growing up with respect for her canine companions. Toddlers however will play with anyone and anything that sits still long enough. Her favourite game is Caitlyn Vet. Gatland is her willing victim...I mean participant. He let's her do anything to him, from checking him with the stethoscope, to giving him pretend injections.
Gatland is from our first homebred litter, out of Zeeva. He was born just before lockdown in 2020, and was four months old when Wales went into a significantly tight lock down for an extended period. That meant he missed a lot of socialisation during a crucial period of his development. This had the potential for Gatland to come out into society at the end of the pandemic as a nervy, anxious mess, like many of the lockdown puppies did. As you can see, Gats is a well adjusted, if long suffering, young male.
We breed with temperament high on our priority list. Not every dog we breed will end up in the show ring, but every dog will be a family pet. That's why a solid, happy, bombproof temperament is vital to us. That is one of the reasons we chose Zantanas kennel in Sweden for our foundation b*tch. Mona and Lasse breed some of the most even tempered dogs I've ever known. Zeeva has been sunshine on legs from the moment she arrived in our lives. A trip from Sweden to Wales, via Belgium didn't cause her to bat an eyelid at 16 weeks old. Zee has passed that rock solid temperament down to each of her puppies. We have worked hard to build on that solid genetic foundation to give our dogs and our families the best possible start. We use all available children in the village and our social group to desensitise the puppies and expose them to children of all ages. Going forward, this is something we want to work with even more, and will be a
