Dog and Piano...

When I came downstairs this morning, David and Lola were in the back garden playing chase with a tennis ball and a straggly bit of rope.  I stood and watched them for a moment, marvelling at them both running around the garden, stopping and staying absolutely still till Lola gave a little bark and the chase resumed.

After a few minutes I shouted on Lola and filmed her running to me in slow motion.  Unfortunately I hadn't realised David had put her lead on so as she came hurtling towards me, David had no choice but bound along behind her holding the lead.  It was hilarious!

She'd been rolling in the wet grass so while I tried to dry her off, David sat at the piano and played her a song.  It's not every puppy who gets serenaded on a baby grand but to be honest, she was more interested in her tummy tickles and chopped apple and cheese treats.  She's a tough audience.

I don't want to speak too soon, but we've had a major success today.  Drum roll please....today is the first day Lola hasn't had a toilet accident indoors! Woo hoo!  It's just a small thing but to us it feels huge!  

We decided that we were not going to take our eyes off her for a second today and stop the "do you think she needs out" discussion and just take her out.  She is very good at going at her spot outside, it just seems we take our eye off her for a second and oops, little accident.

So today at every moment one or t'other of us, sometimes both of us, had our eye on her and she was taken outside not just at the times when we know she will go, but at any moment we thought she might.  And it worked.

Small victories.

Apologies in advance but I am going to have another bit of a rant about the vet.  I will completely understand if you stop reading now.

She gave me a Bravetco tablet to give Lola two days after her vaccine jab.  It's to stop fleas and ticks.  I wasn't convinced I was going to give Lola the tablet as Alan's Support Worker Christine had mentioned her dogs had it and had suffered terrible sickness and Diarrhoea.

Saturday came and I hadn't had time to research it properly.  Same yesterday but this morning the decision had to be made so I set about informing myself of the pros and cons.

Well the more I read, the more horrified I became.  This tablet is basically a pesticide that the dog eats and it stays in its system for months.  It kills fleas and ticks, but only after they have them.  What's the point in killing a tick after it's bitten you?  And how is it possible to have a slow release pesticide working inside your body and it not be detrimental to your own health?  

This drug is fairly new and it's only now that reports are starting to emerge of the horrible side effects.  If you have a dog and use this drug I strongly suggest you read THIS article. 

In the end I have decided not to give Lola this poison and will go down the natural route of small amounts of garlic in her food, some raw apple cider vinegar in her drinking water and Verm-X. 
 
And to add insult to injury, despite being prescribed by a vet who knows Lola is not yet three months old, the manufacturers OWN INSTRUCTIONS state it is not to be used by a puppy under the age of six months, because it doesn't work on that age of puppy.  So had I trusted the vet and gone ahead and given the tablet to Lola, she would have had this horrendous pesticide poisoning her for the next three months with none of the so-called protection it's supposed to give.  

I'm not sure how I am going to be civil to this vet when we return a week on Thursday (although we may be seen by one of the others.) 

NB Vigilance is key, especially for ticks (never rub vaseline or anything else on a tick to smother it as it will regurgitate its toxins into your dog as it dies.  Remove it with a proper tick remover.  See how on Youtube.)