New Litter due February 1, 2018 and Ready for Their New Homes in April

We are changing service providers!

The transition may take more than two weeks until things are normalized.  I will let you know when everything is complete.

Good Information about spay and neutering puppies.

https://www.dogsfirst.ie/health-issues/dog-neutering/

This week at the HCA National Specialty in Asheville, NC

We couldn't leave without driving along the blue ridge parkway.  What a wonderful week we have had and the diversity seminar was very successful.  It is of utmost importance if we are to prevent the Havanese from  suffering from many of the problems other breeds are experiencing.  Some breeds lack diversity to the extent that there is no solution within the breed.

Why Title a Dog?

Food for thought?

http://www.dogsnaturallymagazine.com/raw-chicken-dogs-stopped-feeding/?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Post%3A%20Raw%20Chicken%20For%20Dogs%3A%20Why%20I%20Stopped%20Feeding%20It&utm_content=Raw%20Chicken%20Dogs%20Stopped%20Feeding&mpweb=1153-15-35640

Warnings about xylitol found in some food like peanut butter and gum

http://www.akc.org/content/health/articles/dangers-of-xylitol/?utm_source=FB-keywee&utm_medium=Social&utm_campaign=xylitol-dangers&kwp_0=326429

Spay and Neuter

A very interesting perspective on the entire spay/neuter discussion.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/canine-corner/201702/are-there-behavior-changes-when-dogs-are-spayed-or-neutered

Another new puppy

In the past little while, we have had Bailemous Pretty Fly for a White Guy known as Fawke (Fox) join us from the Netherlands, Twinkle's Indy with Sonrisas from Rose Kimber, LittleWonder Sound of Laughter (Risa) from JoAnn MacKay who lives in Nova Scotia  and now we will soon have Sonrisas Theodoro de Iscargorca (Theo) from Cuba.

Fawke

Fawke will live with Terri Fudge's (Amistosa Havanese) son and new wife as of October.  Terri co-owns him with me.

Theo will live with a friend of Terri's (Julie Campkin) and is co-own by Terri and Rose Kimber and myself.

Theo

Indy lives with Kathy McKeown in Grafton and is owned by her and co-owned with Rose Kimber of Twinkle Havanese (his breeder) and myself.

Indy

And last but definitely not least Risa lives with us and is co-owned by JoAnn McKay.

Risa

More on vaccines

Just to add a bit of information.  We do not vaccinate for Parvo after the booster at one year.  Even if an adult dog should contract Parvo it will not have the same effect as it does on puppies even if that dog has not been vaccinated and I am sure that any person reading this page has vaccinated their dog at least once or more.  Giving Mojo at 17 years of age,  a vaccine would cause more health issues than it would prevent.

Just for interest, I should also tell you that I do not use flea medication unless I actually see fleas on one of our dogs or on a visiting dog.  That has happened twice in ten years in this house and I simply gave the flea medication to them once and that was the end of the fleas.  Yes, I inspect them all the time for fleas but the few minutes that takes is far better than filling them full of poison on a regular basis. 

I do not give my dogs heartworm medication unless we have a solid week of temperatures staying over 70 degrees (the actual temperature is 70+ and the length of time is closer to 10 days, but I err on the side of caution).  It's very, very rare that we have temperatures over 70 during the night time hours here in Baltimore.  At any point in the development of heartworm larvae in a mosquito,  if the temperature drops below 70 degrees that is the end of the larvae.  It can go up to 100 the next day but the larvae does not resurrect itself.   In 17 years none of my dogs have been positive for heartworm and we lived on a 150 acre farm for five of those years where the dogs were walked in the woods on a daily basis.  (Gee, sure miss that farm)  The area around us is full of poison ivy and while it won't hurt the dogs they can carry the oils back to humans unless it's washed off after every walk.  I'm not willing to do that so I stick to walk on pavement.

Dr. Dodd's vaccine schedule

Please note that the puppy schedule calls for Parvo and Distemper only.  I've been following this schedule for years now.

We STRONGLY urge our pet buyers to not vaccinate for Lepto, Lyme or anything else other than what is in this schedule. 

9 - 10 weeks of age
Distemper + Parvovirus, MLV
e.g. Merck Nobivac (Intervet Progard) Puppy DPV

14 – 15 weeks of ageDistemper + Parvovirus, MLV

18 weeks of ageParvovirus only, MLV
Note: New research states that last puppy parvovirus vaccine should be at 18 weeks old.

20 weeks or older, if allowable by lawRabies – give 3-4 weeks apart from other vaccines
Mercury-free (thimerosol-free, TF)

1 year oldDistemper + Parvovirus, MLV
This is an optional booster or titer. If the client intends not to booster after this optional booster or intends to retest titers in another three years, this optional booster at puberty is wise.

1 year oldRabies – give 3-4 weeks apart from other vaccines
3-year product if allowable by law; mercury-free (TF)

Perform vaccine antibody titers for distemper and parvovirus every three years thereafter, or more often, if desired. Vaccinate for rabies virus according to the law, except where circumstances indicate that a written waiver needs to be obtained from the primary care veterinarian. In that case, a rabies antibody titer can also be performed to accompany the waiver request. Visit The Rabies Challenge Fund for more information.

W. Jean Dodds, DVM
Hemopet / NutriScan
11561 Salinaz Avenue
Garden Grove, CA 92843

Havanese Favorite Position it seems.

This is Fawkes's (our puppy from the Neatherlands) brother.  It seems most Havanese are pretty relaxed.

From the Dynamic Duo - Merci and Charo

Waiting for tummy rubs.

An article I want to share with all my puppy owners

http://www.akc.org/press-center/news/a-frustrated-breeder-asks-why-didnt-you-call/

An interesting read about paw licking not being allergies but pain from various causes.

https://animalenergytherapies.com/2017/07/09/excessive-limb-licking-in-dogs-misdiagnosed-as-allergies/

Happy Canada Day from Surrey!

Surrey lives right here in Cobourg and we are very proud of this little patriot!

EMAIL PROBLEMS

If you have emailed me in the last couple of weeks, the reason you may not have heard back is that for whatever reason my emails are not actually going out.  Bell Hosting is working on that now.

Our little agility champ

Wow,  was it fun watching Joy run in her first ever agility meet in Erie Pennsylvania.   She's FAST and she loves it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TL-bQJek4HE


I'll post the standard run later.

Eleanore and Lusa

Congratulations to the team of Eleanore Hayes and Lusa (Sonrisas Mi Chica) was one of the two teams out of five that passed their St. John's Ambulance Therapy Dog.

Congratulations to both of you, I'm so proud!

A study about the effects of neutering

A study about the risks and advantages of neutering

Dunka and Flynn

Dunka (black and white) is from our Thanksgiving litter (Dunka, Merci, etc.) and Flynn who will be two years old soon.  Seems like they are good buddies.

Eleanore and Lusa

Here is our friend, dog sitter and mom to Lusa.  Many of you have Lusa's offspring so this Mother's Day photo is appropriate in many ways.  Eleanore is surrounded by her daughters, granddaughters and Lusa's friend (Friday).

On Sunday Lusa has her final test trying to become a St. John's Therapy Dog.  Good luck!

Joy's mom

Just in time for Mother's Day... a picture of  Sonrisas Allegro Giocoso (Allie).  She is extraordinary therapy dog and Rally competitor thanks to her owner, Jan Naigus.

Our new puppy from Amsterdam

This is Fawkes, our new puppy from Amsterdam, bred by Senija Hodzic.  We are extremely excited to introduce him to our breeding program when he is old enough.

George is #7 in the US

So proud of this guy, and he loves agility.

Another MUST read

http://healthydogworkshop.com/the-trouble-with-titers/

Just incase you don't have time to read the whole article:

"A small dog half-dose vaccine study, which supports Robb’s theory, was published in the Integrative Veterinary Journal in the Spring 2016 issue.  In this study, Dr. Jean Dodds showed that small breed dogs receiving a half dose of distemper parvo vaccine effectively responded, producing sustained increased antibody levels as measured in a titer test. A study concluding that smaller dogs have a higher risk of vaccine reactions, as well as noting other risk factors, was published in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association in 2005."

"Research published as long ago as 1998 estimates protection from distemper and parvovirus vaccines as lasting 9-15 years. Yes, years."

Tongue Out Tuesday!

This is Merci and Charo who live in Missouri now.  Maybe we will get to see them again this summer when we celebrate Mojo's 17th birthday!

Dr. Jean Dodds and a course on canine nutrition

I am presently taking this course and since several of you have written to me about what to feed you dog I thought I should share this.

https://www.myhealthydog.dog/store

Jean Dodds has lead the way in many innovative ways.  She was the first to prove that dogs do not need a rabies shot every year and that, in fact, the shot is good for seven years or longer.  She is  now doing a "smaller rabies dosage" study for smaller dogs.  Many of you may not realize that a Havanese is given the same amount of rabies vaccine  as a Great Dane puppy.  It has now been proven via her latest study but will probably take years to be incorporated into our legal system.

Again, I will add here that I am not in favor of Lyme or Lepto vaccines and they are not worth the risk.  If anyone wants more information please contact me.

New Litter

Okay, if everything goes like SeeSee's last litter, we should have puppies around June 17.  If you haven't visited us as yet please contact me so we can make arrangements for a get together.

Another Easter picture

This is Sonrisas Miss Molly out of Sonrisas I Love Lucy.  Isn't see beautiful and the wonderful dark mask like her name sake our foundation dog Molli.

Surrey's ready for Easter

An Article About the Lepto Vaccine

http://www.thedogplace.org/vaccines/leptomania-10052-jordan.asp

A Lusa Baby, Gypsie

This is a Lusa baby who looks so much like her mom, it's uncanny.

Rhumba nee Eddie brother to George and Lusa

This was the Prodigal Summer litter if my memory is right.  That was the Barbara Kingsolver novel I had just finished reading.
Here's the rest of the litter from 2008

Lusa

We miss Lusa a lot, but she is living the wonderful life with Eleanore Hayes who also happens to be our puppy sitter when we go away.  Lusa gets daily treats from Eleanore's neighbor, Barbara and weekly visits with her "family" as Eleanore likes to call us.  Lusa is a full sister to George.

Now this is a MUST read. WOW

What do you think?

http://www.genengnews.com/gen-news-highlights/dog-fear-and-aggression-genes-related-to-human-anxiety/81253083

We may soon be able to test our dogs so that we can produce dogs without fear or aggression.  The only aggressive Havanese I've ever seen was from a puppy mill and may have had other breeds behind her.  I have seen a lot of very shy Havanese which could be genetic and also environmental.

I was told by one of the original breeders of Havanese that they use to be so shy that they couldn't be shown by anyone other than the owner.  They've come a long way since then!

And another birthday girl. Love this

I wish I was better on dates but we've moved around so much and  it seems every time we do we have computer problems so I never started the tradition.

Dr. Dodds on dog food.

Dr. Jean Dodds on the dog food recalls.  My I make my own food and use kibble only as a secondary source.  Champion dog foods, the maker of Orijen and Acana still make a higher grade dog food here in Canada, but at their new American plant have down graded their food.  It's a full time job keeping tract of what is happening in the dog food business.  As Dr. Dodds warns "Buyer Beware".

http://us3.campaign-archive2.com/?u=65fe703d8ce705ddce0e30120&id=d0a42c7e4b&e=ac8c823446

Another birthday

Here's three years old Gypsie.

And happy birthday to Surrey as well.

They certainly look like brother and sister.!

Struvite Crystals

Mystery solved.  As it turns out finding struvite crystals in the urine is totally natural and poses no threat to the dog except when there is also a bladder infection.  So the struvite crystals do not cause the infection but the infection causes the crystals to form stones if left unattended.

It is very important to check your dog's urine once in a while and if there is an on-going problem then have your vet take a sample directly from the bladder to make sure it's actually the bladder that is infected.  This is especially important in female dogs.  Then put your dogs on a antibiotic for a period of time.   Joy was on an antibiotic for three weeks and is now infection free.

There is no need to change the diet although I have started making dog food again. The dogs still have access to Acana in the evenings.

Happy Birthday, Charlie!

10 common human medicines that are not good for your dog

http://www.akc.org/content/health/articles/the-10-human-medications-most-dangerous-to-dogs/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=health-20170321

Lyme Vaccine - is it worth the risk?

Lyme Vaccine – Yes or No?

Choosing the Lyme Vaccine for your pet needs to be weighed heavily. First, you should consider the documented case risk for Lyme disease in your area. Second, you need to assess the exposure risk imposed by your lifestyle. Even in high-exposure risk areas, I would lean to not automatically vaccinating for Lyme disease, because preventative and treatment measures are easily available and reliable. If relevant clinical symptoms do occur, accurate diagnosis is important.  Others have similar views.  

University of California Davis Veterinary School of Medicine says:

The incidence of Lyme disease in California is currently considered extremely low. Furthermore, use of the vaccine even in endemic areas (such as the east coast of the US) has been controversial because of anecdotal reports of vaccine-associated adverse events. Most infected dogs show no clinical signs, and the majority of dogs contracting Lyme disease respond to treatment with antimicrobials. Furthermore, prophylaxis may be effectively achieved by preventing exposure to the tick vector. If travel to endemic areas (i.e. the east coast) is anticipated, vaccination with the Lyme subunit or OspC/OspA-containing bivalent bacterin vaccine could be considered, followed by boosters at intervals in line with risk of exposure. The UC Davis VMTH does not stock the Lyme vaccine or recommend it for use in dogs residing solely in northern California.

Ronald Schultz of University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine says:

There may be select areas in the state, “hot spots” where infection is very high and vaccination would be indicated, but dogs in most parts of the state would probably not receive benefit and may actually be at risk of adverse reactions if a large-scale vaccination program was initiated.

For instance, Wisconsin has a much higher risk of Lyme than a state like Maine. However, at our Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital (VMTH), we have used almost no Lyme vaccine since it was first USDA approved in the early 1990’s. What we have found is infection (not disease), in much of Wisconsin, is low (< 10% infection). As you know, infection does not mean disease. About 3 to 4% of infected dogs develop disease. In contrast, in Western and Northwestern parts of Wisconsin infection occurs in 60 to 90% of all dogs. In those areas, vaccination is of benefit in reducing clinical disease. However, whether vaccination is or is not indicated, all dogs should be treated with the highly effective tick and flea medications available today.

Also, vaccinated dogs can develop disease, as efficacy of the product is about 60 to 70% in preventing disease, thus antibiotics must be used in vaccinated dogs developing disease, just like it must be used in non-vaccinated diseased dogs. Therefore, in general areas with a low infection rate of < 10% infection, the vaccine should not be used – as the vaccine will be of no value and may enhance disease (e.g. arthritis) directly or in some dogs that become infected. In areas where infection rates are high (> 50%) then the vaccine will be very useful.

Based upon these and other expert opinions, it can be considered irresponsible to suggest that all dogs in low-risk exposure states should be vaccinated for Lyme disease. Veterinarians should know, based on diagnoses in their clinic and other clinics in the area (town), how common the disease would be and then should base their judgment to vaccinate upon risk factors, and not on a statement that all dogs in a particular low-risk area need the Lyme vaccine!

W. Jean Dodds, DVM
Hemopet / NutriScan
11561 Salinaz Avenue
Garden Grove, CA 92843  

References

“Canine and Feline Vaccination Guidelines.” University of California Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, Nov. 2012. Web. 13 Mar. 2017. http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/vmth/small_animal/internal_medicine/newsletters/vaccination_protocols.cfm.

McQuiston, Jennifer, DVM. “Ehrlichiosis and Related Infections.” Merck Veterinary Manual, n.d. Web. 13 Mar. 2017. http://www.merckvetmanual.com/generalized-conditions/rickettsial-diseases/ehrlichiosis-and-related-infections.

“Ticks.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 16 Aug. 2016. Web. 13 Mar. 2017. https://www.cdc.gov/ticks.

Poison First Aid Supplies

It's probably a good idea to have this available especially if your local vet is not available 24/7.  Often it's a long drive to the very few emergency vets available.



https://www.petsplusus.com/you-and-your-pet/news-views/how-create-pet-poison-first-aid-kit

George's son, Sonrisas Bubba O'Riley #1

Rally #1 Havanese

#3 Toy dog group

Obedience #2 Havanese

#9 Toy dog group

All our hard work is paying off

Still waiting for the results in Agility. 

George has his MACH!

I am so proud to let you know that George got his MACH today.  That's the highest award you can get in AKC agility.  To those who think they want a puppy, Havanese live to learn and do and there is no greater reward with a dog that to build the relationship that working together brings.

Problem with email program

To All Those who have filled out a questionnaire for a puppy and emailed it to me.  Unfortunately Bell Hosting changed their email program at 3 in the morning without any warning and I now have over a thousand saved emails in the inbox.  It will take me months to get all those emails organized again so can those on the waiting list please resend your questionnaires.  Thank you.

Do not over vaccinate!

I believe vaccinations are extremely important, but over use can be detrimental to the health of the dog.

Merci and Charo in Missouri

Struvite crystals in urine

I have heard from several of my puppy people whose dogs are on Acana and they are experiencing problems with stuvite crystals.  This includes the dogs living with me.  This is a first in over 16 years. 

Please write to me if you are experiencing this.  If you are not sure then your dog's urine can be tested in two ways.  First catch a sample  first thing in the morning and test for both infection and for ph level.  You don't need to go to the vet unless there is an infection.You can use the same strips that are used on people for both infection and ph.  They are available on line and at the drug store.

 

If you want to go to the vet for this, again, catch the sample first thing in the morning and DO NOT refrigerate.  

If you want more information email me.  We are in Florida at the moment so send me your number and best time for me to call you.

I am going to try to call the company sometime this week.