Whiskey has impeccable timing. The day that my partner left for Belgium, she started her heat. We’ve been noticing that she’s been slowly swelling for about 1.5 months before she started bleeding. The last 2 weeks her nipples had swollen up as well and she had been losing appetite for 2 weeks prior. Other changes were that she’s been getting more protective (barking at “strange” people and sounds) and there’s been more “discussions” about rules in the house. For instance, Whiskey “talks” to me to try to convince me to give her my dinner. Or she’ll “argue” with me that she doesn’t think it’s time to go into her crate. The latter could be just part of her growing up and nothing to do with her heat.
I bought dog diapers on amazon when Whiskey was 6 months old. Her mother had her first heat at 6 months so I count myself lucky that she held on for 1.2 years. I bought a size medium, which is too large so I just ordered another size small. You really do need 2 so you can wash one while she wears the other. Currently, with the diaper and a load of sanitary pads, the bleeding is fully contained and not a huge issue. I’ve lined her crate with light coloured towels and change them daily so she doesn’t have to wear diapers in her crate. Thankfully Whiskey is tolerating the diaper because I know not all dogs will. The reason we are not spaying Whiskey yet is to let her full develop and also to avoid health issues later in life.
A meet and greet in the woods
As soon as her heat started, she became more interested in other dogs, especially males but they are not yet going “crazy”. Her training is pretty poor (recall down to 50%) even without other dogs around but I haven’t felt an increase in velcro tendencies or much more overall moodiness. She much more often though, and is very very interested in smells around town.
Still hiking! Still smiling
Meeting few hikers on the trails
We take walks in quieter areas now with only female dog friends. She’s still ok with a couple dogs around, but to avoid problems I’m trying to go on less populated hikes so I can let her off leash. Once she starts “flagging” or lifting her tail, I’ll have to be much more cautious and keep her mainly on leash. I’m pretty happy a know quite a few “secret” hikes to do during this time.
Just girls these days. Hana already had her heat.
Shorter hikes in the summer heat on Whiskey’s heat
So last weekend we took a little trip to Kelowna, the Okanagan, in the interior of British Columbia. It was my first trip there and we had a great group of 6 to share a wonderful vacation home. I’ve been wanting to visit for ages as it’s BC’s wine region and is famous for its local produce.
Lots of weddings and nice scenery
everyone helping out in the kitchen
The Summerhill Winery
Moo having loads of fun outside her normal home
our beautiful rental
This was the first time we’ve taken Moo for a trip and as our cat-sitter was coming along, we figured we’d give it a go. Moo is not a typical cat and has experience moving homes as a rescue. We had an idea she would be fine because she was so quickly comfortable in our house when we first got her. So this time we traveled with a full car-load, cat scratchers, litter box, luggage, food, 3 humans, 1 cat and 1 dog. Moo and Whiskey were great in the car for our 5 hour trip although Moo wouldn’t take any treats (Whiskey had no issues). When we arrived, Moo didn’t eat for 1.5 days but was exploring non-stop. Luckily the house we had was 2 floors and Moo felt safe on the top floor away from a friend’s mini Dachshund (who wasn’t allowed up the stairs). In all, we were 6 people, 2 dogs and 1 cat.
the group
Whiskey working for bacon
naps surrounded by a zoo
yummy home cooked meals
travelling companions
Kelowna
Our first day consisted of a farmer’s market, 3 vineyards, a goat cheese farm, and an amazing Korean rice roll dinner. Whiskey strolled around the vineyards and I had such trouble keeping her calm with the wild Quail (with babies!), ground squirrels, marmots, and birds everywhere!
SpierHead Winery
Waiting for the adults to taste
Oh Boy! A goat farm!!
Very interested in goats
Our 2nd day was a lazy sleep in, followed by fun on the lake, a bbq dinner, and board games.
Ginger rather stays on the beach
Getting ready to do a 3km swim
BBq dinner for all
S’mores over the fire
Moo even got to explore the garden for short (very carefully watched) outings. The 3 acre plot was fenced off so we felt very safe letting Whiskey roam (though she stayed really close to us the whole time).
Not quite sure about going outside
I wonder what she’s thinking
Checking out the garden
Time to come in!
It’s nice she can travel with us
Moo’s been great with the two dogs
Our last day was spent doing a little hike up Bear Creek, then a lazy breakfast followed by packing and heading out. The road trip back was uneventful with beautiful passing scenery. We really can’t wait to come back for a longer stay.
Low tide at Spanish Banks is really one of a kind. Spanish Banks is regularly a great dog beach but if you can get there on a low tide (arrive at least an hour ahead of the tide time) then it’s really special. With a fantastic view of the cityscape, it feels like you can almost walk out to the tankers and the beach is 1000x bigger than normal.
The tide is an hour away from low
It goes on forever!
Expert digger…not sure what for
Seriously, is this the only Vizsla that just sits in the middle of playing?
Playing a tiny bit of fetch
So happy!
We arrived at 9:30 on a Sunday morning and there were so many dogs and owners there that we met 3 other Vizslas!
Making friends
I had to lay on the sand to get this low
Meeting and playing with Hugo
There’s nothing like two Vizslas playing
Instant friendship
This time Whiskey was accompanied by her good friend Ginger who looks like a mini Vizsla with a no-nonsense attitude. Ginger was sporting her new life jacket (complete with handles) just in case the tide pools came too high. The two had a blast running around and meeting other dogs.
Little Ginger is so short!
Ankle deep water is pretty high for her
Whiskey chases the seagulls
Ginger swimming along
This is what the handles are for!
Amazing morning
Whiskey had fun sniffing out crabs. At one point we even had to leash up Ginger when a bald eagle decided to hang out on the sand. In the end we had two very happy and tired puppies on the way home.
So Whiskey has been running and doing really well lately. She’s even been filling out her very skinny frame (adding much more fat, oils, quinoa, sweet potato into her diet is helping). Then one day while at work, I received a text from her walker informing that she was limping and favoring her left leg. I had taken her out that morning and played fetch and she was doing really well, no sign of any issues before she was put into her crate to rest up. The walker noticed nothing different as she was taken from her crate, to the van to be transferred to her walk. It was only after getting out of the van, there was an obvious limp. He noticed the limp within minutes and kept her on leash for the walk (checking her paws but finding no problem). After he dropped her back home, he put her in the crate, and when we got home from work, she was a very different dog.
so so mellow and sad
getting her eyes tested
not putting weight on her back legs
switching from one leg to another
She wouldn’t come and greet us, she was very sad and wouldn’t stand or walk. She wouldn’t squat to pee, and she was refusing a bullystick which was very very out of character. We took her into ER immediately and carried her the whole time. At the ER, the vet pointed out that a dog with a physical problem doesn’t normally show signs of such lethargy and wanted to test both her legs as well as blood and more. She tested her legs, put her under sedation for xrays, and did a couple blood tests. In the end she said we ruled out the serious stuff and it was probably a soft tissue damage. She gave her a little painkiller and we went back home to watch her. The ER vet prescribed 3-5 days of on-leashed walks.
xrays
That evening I carried Whiskey to her normal potty spot and kept her lying for the evening. Since she wasn’t interested in eating from her bowl, I literally spoon fed her and she would only eat her favorite bits. I slept with her in bed, and the next morning I woke up to find Whiskey had forgotten the previous evening and was her normal self again! I couldn’t see a limp at all whereas the previous night she wouldn’t even stand! She ate her breakfast, cleaned the bowl, and there was a super happy wagging tail with lots of face licks, and she was very ready for her morning walk. I was astonished at the change. I only did a very short walk on leash so she could pee and poop.
The next day we pose for photos since we can’t do much walking
Still working for treats!
3 days later I took Whiskey to see another vet for to check her legs for any sign of trauma, for a second opinion, and to see how slow/fast we could expect to have her to full running again. The vet was very thorough and was unable to find/feel/see anything alarming. She also mentioned that instead of a soft tissue injury it could have been more in her back/spine which is why it seemed like a huge change from one day to the other. She prescribed a more conservative 10 days of on-leash walking (no running and jumping) with a gradual work up to off leash and longer hikes. At the moment it’s been very difficult to keep a one year old from running or jumping but we are trying our best. Today we took her on a canoe ride (because I really hoped there would be limited running and jumping in the canoe) with a tiny bit of water retrieving and some short on-leashed walks. It’s been a tough week but it’s worth it to make sure whatever the problem was doesn’t happen again and Whiskey can fully heal!
activities for the resting Vizsla
swimming much better this year!
Update: 2 weeks later Whiskey’s shown no signs of limping. Hopefully this was a one time thing and it doesn’t happen again! I think the lethargy was mostly Whiskey’s personality when she is feeling sorry for herself. Alot of dogs don’t show signs of this, but even when Whiskey is cold from swimming, or it’s started to rain, she looks so miserable you wonder if there is something truly wrong.
No, not that Birdman (great movie), this is the birdman that Whiskey LOVES. We are working to train Whiskey with birds (trying to get her to hold a point right now). Eric has been our very informative trainer and this time Whiskey recognized Eric’s car and just jumped right in. It smells like birds, fun, and dog. We met up with, his brother and Yoffi, his now-junior champion Vizsla. Yoffi ranked 7th in puppy field trials (dogs up to 1.5 years of age) out of all pointing breed dogs in Canada and was the only Vizsla to place! I was so stoked to watch Yoffi “work”. Now we don’t want to compete with Whiskey because it’s a full time commitment but it’s really nice to see the dogs work and learn. They are happiest doing the work they are bred for and I just love learning.
wading into the field
Yoffi, handsome junior champion
Puppy in training
We went out to a big field to practice and Eric brought some birds. He set up a bird tied to a string that was fluttering around and both dogs were so excited. This is expected in an experienced dog, but really key for Whiskey. I then tried to walk Whiskey in a big loop around the bird to a pre chosen position, then encouraged her to stay still and hold a point, lifting her back into place when she lunged ahead. After a couple rounds, she got much better and understood what we wanted.
initially Whiskey was so hard to hold back
Putting Whiskey in a “suitcase” and learning how to handle
these dogs are so beautiful
getting better!
Yoffi showing us how it’s done
birdman and birddog
watching from the sidelines
Switching to something else before the dogs lost interest, we kept Whiskey while Yoffi got to go “find” and point a bird. Eric took a bird in a launcher 500m away, came back to Yoffi and released him. It was pretty crazy to see Yoffi run full speed tracking the bird and pointing it out way before we could catch up to him. He held the point until the bird was released and is currently training to keep his point while the bird takes off and flies around.
Yoffi finds the bird and holds point
walking up and he doesn’t move
Still holding point while Eric encourages good style
pointing another bird
I’m really excited to continue her bird training as I just love to see these dogs point. I can tell Whiskey loves it and she’s so keen to learn.
It’s the time again! Meetup time in Vancouver for loads of springy red dogs. This time we took over Bridgman Park in North Vancouver for a little walk with alot of pep. There were several new dogs and lots of butt sniffing, playing, and chatting with other ‘parents’.
I really huge group this time!
my little girl stops to pose
long-haired Vizsla
dogs everywhere! where is mine?
everyone is meeting little Moose
The dogs acted like a giant pack walking through the park, although one or two inevitably went off chasing scents. I even got to meet my first long-haired Vizsla and we also have a black Vizsla-mix in the group! It’s so great to have a good community that gets together like this. Vizslas are relatively rare but the show-ups to these meetups is so much higher than other popular breeds. Suffice to say we had one tired and happy puppy on the way home.
I love these dogs!
four way conversation
treat? you must bring an entire bag of treats today
by the riverside, these are not water dogs
everywhere you see, vislas!
All good news and happy pups aside, we did have a sad incident where one of our newest puppies, 3 month old Pana was attacked and bitten by a bull terrier before meeting the group, and had to go straight to emergency. It’s really terrible news, especially since that dog had attacked 3 other dogs that day. It’s always a really good reminder to keep a close eye on interactions with other dogs, especially new ones, and ensure your own dog doesn’t go charging up to meet new dogs.
Whiskey’s been feeling so much better lately after the vet visits. She’s actually been more energetic than ever and I’ve increased her daily ration to over 1kg a day, I have no idea what she does with it! With the longer hours we’ve been having, our sunsets are now at around 830 and we love walking on the beach after work. This day we headed over to Spanish Banks which has a fantastic dog beach and wanted to see how far the beach went. Well guess what? It keeps going until Wreck beach and the walk was really nice full of little beaches, and nice secluded picnic area, and no one around (how we like it!).
Spanish banks was rough today!
how lucky to be living here
the start of a really nice walk
Between Spanish Banks is a very beautiful connection with lots of smaller beaches. Perfect if you want to chill or just have a quiet walk. There’s also a small picnic area with garbage bins and bathrooms. At some point we ended up at the University of British Columbia’s grounds and headed back to our car.
We’ve had a couple minor health problems since spring rolled around. We’ve had a couple bumps crop up and are currently finishing up another case of Giardia (Giardiasis) so I thought it might be of interest to keep a diary of small problems should they crop up again.
Bumps
I self-diagnosed these as hives which was caused by an allergic reaction to physical contact (in this case) with something in the environment (a vet would later confirm, but was unable to see the bumps). A couple small bumps would come after a walk in the park and last several hours only appearing on her lower muzzle. I was pretty sure it wasn’t food since I hadn’t been introducing anything new to her diet and it was a specific area (the part she shoves into everything interesting on the ground). Her appetite didn’t change but because she was a little swollen she looked miserable. They were slightly itchy but otherwise didn’t seem to bother her. The bumps appeared on and off for about a week and even her worse case of it had the swelling go down quite fast.
the worst case she had that lasted just hours
Bumps on ear- bumps all over just one ear after a play at the park. Gave her a ear mite treatment just in case, but they disappeared and never came back.
Treatment
I boosted her immune system by cutting out the kibble entirely (she only has at most a cup a day) and giving her a spoonful of local honey every night. Honey has been my go-to when Whiskey has a problem. It’s great for infection and wound healing (applied to the skin) and in this case local honey helps both humans and canines for allergies. I also sprayed on some Burts Bees Anti Itch Soothing Spray because it seemed like she had a mild itch. We also washed all bedding just in case and gave her extra cuddles.
Giardia
A week after the bumps went away completely, there was one evening when I noticed she was less energetic at the park (walking to retrieve the ball, not running). I kept an eye on her and she happily ate dinner and but then was super sleepy. An hour later I noticed her tummy gurgling more than usual (I was lying down with her because I felt something was off) and she didn’t even seem interested in some cantaloupe which she normally loves. Overall it wasn’t a huge change in temperament, because even my partner thought she was just tired from her hike that day. That night she woke us up whining and when we took her out, she pooped twice (soft) and went back to sleep for the rest of the night.
My sleepy girl with gurgles in her tummy
The next day her energy level seemed better but she vomited during a car ride. In the evening again she seemed ok, but in the middle of the night woke us for another poop. After that she was fine with no symptoms since I changed her food back to home cooked and added extra probiotics. We weren’t too concerned at this point because everything went back to normal and we had assumed that she just ate something bad at the park.
energy level is quite normal
Then several days later the wake-up calls to soft poops started again. After a couple days of getting progressively worse it got to the point she was straining to go but couldn’t and would try over and over again. She would also wake us up 3 times at night to go out. At this point we took her to the vet.
waiting at the new vet
During the wait for the vet, she tried to go poop 5 times in an hour. Because it was last minute, we tried out a new vet closer to home that was available (her normal vet was booked up that day). This one was much more thorough in the examination, but asked to do more expensive (and maybe unnecessary) tests. He noticed her heartbeat was slower than normal and did an EKG (she’s just really fit). We also ordered a very comprehensive parasite panel and diarrhea panel, but needed to wait a couple days to hear back. That night I went to Costco and bought a ton of ground chicken and sweet potato so I could start her on a bland diet.
during the day she is normal
We went back to the vet the next morning after 2 rounds of vomiting (mostly bile) and waking up 4-5 times at night for poops. Strangely she was eating fine and her energy was good at the park, but more subdued at home. This time they did a full blood test, gave her extra electrolytes, a subcutaneous fluid injection (fluids injected under her skin) to help elevate any dehydration, and got her started on antibiotics and some special super canine probiotics. Her blood test came back with everything normal, which was a relief because with home-feeding it’s good to have the feedback she’s doing well. Within an hour Whiskey had perked up again has been getting better ever since. Eventually a couple days later we got a call about the poop results and confirmed she had Giardia and I could come pick up more medication.
the lump is the fluid injection, disappears over the day
Whiskey’s had Giardia before as a puppy but this time didn’t present the same as last. As a puppy it came on very fast and was obviously a problem. This time the illness was non-continuous and harder to tell it wasn’t just something she ate in the park.
a bit skinny, needs more food!
Treatment
Vet bills were over $900 so it’s good we were insured!!! If we weren’t insured, we wouldn’t have agreed to all the tests and treatments. So Whiskey had a heart test (EKG), bloodwork, poop test, electrolytes, a subcutaneous fluid injection, probiotics, prescription probiotics, antibiotics, and a small change of diet. The last time we had Giardia we only had a poop test, with quick feedback (40 mins vs 4 days) and antibiotics so the price to treat and diagnose this can vary like crazy depending on the vet!
extra velcro these days
Lessons Learned
-Insurance pays off, especially moments where you don’t want to make decisions based on money
-Even though we spent more at this vet and did more tests, it took longer to get a diagnoses because the fecal test was sent to another lab. Our other vet would have been quicker because they can do it immediately, even though we would have had to wait an extra day to get an appointment.
-A sick dog plus two working parents make for a very hectic week and lots of worrying
It’s been raining puppies lately and I’m overjoyed at being able to set up some play dates for Whiskey. I was a bit worried about Whiskey being gentle enough around the little ones but with treats, recall, and lots of “lie down” she was great sharing the attention. I really can’t believe how fast her first year has gone and when I see these (10 and 16 week-old) puppies I honestly can’t remember how small she was. Puppies are just so floppy, awkward, and such a joy to watch romping around discovering the world.
Pana, the little sassy girl
Sophie is a mini Whiskey
First we met up with Sophie, Whiskey’s full sister from a different litter. They’re both from Stella and Ripley (click for links). Sophie is 16 weeks old and has Whiskey’s puppy confidence. It was her first time off leash and she did wonderfully! The only problem was she developed habit of sneaking off to drink seawater. Naughty puppy! I love Sophie and can’t wait to meet up with her again.
It’s so cool to see the sisters together
Whiskey looked just the same but their personalities are different
Sophie is fearless and will use her teeth
Whiskey’s got Sophie’s collar
These girls are so good together
A quieter moment
Checking out the genetics
They really are little mirrors
If only I could have two…
Teaming up against a sweet Bernese
Sophie’s learning to pose
And just last weekend we met up with Pana from Egerton Vizslas in Nova Scotia. We were also looking at Egerton when looking for a breeder but they didn’t have any litters coming up back then. A couple provinces in Canada including Nova Scotia have a law that prevents docking tails and dew claw removal so Pana is fully natural! That’s a whole other topic for another day but it’s great to see a full tail wagging on such a happy dog.
This is Pana
Because Pana is so young, Whiskey spent most of the time on the ground
My little girl is 1 year old. We’ve both been working overtime these days so we haven’t been able to have her a little party, though I we gifted her with a custom made dog monster-toy from etsy. Lets see if this one lasts! Here’s a little look back at our growing puppy:
