ICMag brethren, meet Layla.

[jd4083]

(my new puppy)

I'm a proud papa and completely in love with this dog already so I had to post up always wanted this exact mix in a dog (brindle pit/lab) and she's the best puppy I could possibly hope for, incredibly sweet, personable, and well-behaved. The guy I got her from was too lazy or broke to afford the $$$ treatments for puppy mange and a couple other issues she's having though, so she kinda looks like a hyena right now because of the mange.

On another note, today marks my 3rd month of being off pain pills and benzos. I'm glad that I have made it this far and a lot of that is due to the support I've received from my friends and family, and even here on ICMag in the "drug problem discussion thread" I made a couple months back. I still think about taking a pill every single day at least one time, but the difference between now and 3 months ago is that when I think of it now, I shove that thought to the side and continue on with my business rather than shoving pills down my throat.

I'm not a religious guy at all, but I almost feel as though Layla was meant to be my dog because I am finally at a stage in my life again where I can comfortably take care of not only myself, but another being as well. She has been hard work in the few days I've had her, but incredibly well worth it for the loyalty and love she provides.

 

[Bionic]

She's a beaut! Cheers all around!

 

[yortbogey]

congratz......she will only help enrich U'r life and bring the soul back too life......if only thru a dogs eye we see the light of day,then we shall see our true being.......

blessedBE ... layla

 

[COOKIE MONSTER]

On another note, today marks my 3rd month of being off pain pills and benzos. I'm glad that I have made it this far and a lot of that is due to the support I've received from my friends and family, and even here on ICMag in the "drug problem discussion thread" I made a couple months back. I still think about taking a pill every single day at least one time, but the difference between now and 3 months ago is that when I think of it now, I shove that thought to the side and continue on with my business rather than shoving pills down my throat.

I'm not a religious guy at all, but I almost feel as though Layla was meant to be my dog because I am finally at a stage in my life again where I can comfortably take care of not only myself, but another being as well. She has been hard work in the few days I've had her, but incredibly well worth it for the loyalty and love she provides.

Good on ya, man....all them pills are bad for you and no drug, not even ganja can make you feel better than a waggy tail, slobbers and most of your prized possessions chewed to bits

Beautiful brindle patterning on her, uniform full stripes going all the way around

 

[tryn2getby]

Now thats what im talking about....one good decision becomes two ... well done...

Now you have a responsibility....& a damn fine one at that..... high miss Layla .....

Great looking pup....years of friendship ahead..

 

[Stoner4Life]

wtg jd, she's a real cutie pie. I only wish my back was feeling well enough to get another dog.

 

[Miss Blunted]

What a sweetheart, give her lots of love!

 

[pearlemae]

It's important to remember you now have a dog, which will love you unconditionally. No matter how bad life can get she will give you her all, be sure you are willing to give her your all in return. You will have a loving companion for life. Congrats to you both.

 

[Rednick]

I'm not a religious guy at all, but I almost feel as though Layla was meant to be my dog because I am finally at a stage in my life again where I can comfortably take care of not only myself, but another being as well. She has been hard work in the few days I've had her, but incredibly well worth it for the loyalty and love she provides.

Cute for sure.
I feel animals have entered my life at important times, to teach and remind me of my human side, not just the molded individual that stands before you.


"I only wish I was half the man my dog thinks I am" bumper sticker.

Oh, and the sooner you can set up a doggie door to a secured dumping area, the happier you'll be at 5am. Once they hit 7-9 mos, you can start getting up at 6-7 letting them out to discharge, and then get them sleeping again for another hour or two (I had to let them up on the bed for the extra sleep).
But if you're a morning person, more power to you, she'll love morning walks. The air is crisp and fresh, lots of scents.

 

[zeppelindood]

Hello lil' Layla.... she's a huge sweety. Awwwwwwwwwwww, just love her up JD cause that's what she got for you my br0ther. Good news, stay strong dood Agape' be yours ~

 

[jd4083]

Thanks all. Had a little scare with her yesterday and had to leave her with the vet overnight (high fever, etc.) but I picked her up this morning and all is well! and boy was she happy to see me, she only weighs 25 pounds but she almost knocked me off my feet when she came running down the hallway at the vet and saw me.

It's important to remember you now have a dog, which will love you unconditionally. No matter how bad life can get she will give you her all, be sure you are willing to give her your all in return. You will have a loving companion for life. Congrats to you both.

She'll be with me til the end of one of us. She's already incredibly loyal and won't go anywhere without looking back and making sure I'm in sight first (well, unless she's with her puppy friends, in which case I become nothing more than that big weird-looking dog that feeds her and gives her that nasty medicine)

Cute for sure.
I feel animals have entered my life at important times, to teach and remind me of my human side, not just the molded individual that stands before you.


"I only wish I was half the man my dog thinks I am" bumper sticker.

Oh, and the sooner you can set up a doggie door to a secured dumping area, the happier you'll be at 5am. Once they hit 7-9 mos, you can start getting up at 6-7 letting them out to discharge, and then get them sleeping again for another hour or two (I had to let them up on the bed for the extra sleep).
But if you're a morning person, more power to you, she'll love morning walks. The air is crisp and fresh, lots of scents.

You know...knock on wood...but even at 4.5-5 months (I was a little off on how old she was) she will do anything to avoid using the bathroom inside the house. She's got the pit in her, so she tends to pee a little when she gets real excited (like when she's playing with other dogs) but that's it...no peeing or pooping in the house at all, yet anyways.

I'm not a "morning person" persay but I do get up at 8-9am at the latest anyways, and I've been keeping her on a pretty tight schedule so that she can learn structure early. Up by 8am, use the bathroom & eat by 8:30am, all 18 friggin' medicines I have for her administered by 10am, and lights out by 10-10:30pm. I figure that for a puppy, having a routine is important, so I'm working on keeping that as solid as possible.

I take this responsibility very seriously, just as seriously as I would raising a child, because this dog is relying on me to provide for her the life that she deserves, and anything less than 110% on my end is a huge disservice to her.


Thanks again to all for the kind words and comments...it is much appreciated. Layla sends her regards as well.

 

[nattynattygurrl]

Layla! What a doll! She has a very sweet face.
And you, are going to be a wonderful puppy papa!
Congrats to you both!!

She actually looks a lot like my pup, Jones...She had the same brindle pattern, she was a rottie hybrid.
Do you mind if I ask, what kind of treatments are they putting Layla through? I ask b/c Joney's sister, Bella, had mange as a puppy...I put her through a "treatment" the vet suggested, (they suggested several rounds), the treatements were expensive and very scary; they dipped her in a chemical and had to put a gel around her little eyes so they wouldn't get "burned"...It gave me the heebeegeebees! The 2nd time I took her for a "treatment", she acted odd...she did not want to go back w/ the vet, I could tell something was not right...I had a bad feeling seeing the way she struggled and seeing the way they treated her when she was afraid, how they violently pulled on her leash, I knew I had to get her out of there! So, we left and I took her somewhere else...Thank goodness I did; the new vet gave me a $12 creme that cleared it right up! (as opposed to several rounds of the chemical treatments, which were not cheap and seemed to be extremely harsh on her little body.) I must add however... The Bella's case of mange wasn't nearly as bad as poor Layla's seems to be, she just had a little patch; but I thought I ought to mention it, as I would want someone to do so, were the situations reversed, (I hope you don't mind. ) Perhaps it is something you could mention to your vet, (the creme), or even consider get a second opinion?


I hope it's starting to clear up! Poor girl.
She's going to be an amazing friend! : I am really happy for you both!

 

[jd4083]

Layla! What a doll! She has a very sweet face.
And you, are going to be a wonderful puppy papa!
Congrats to you both!!

She actually looks a lot like my pup, Jones...She had the same brindle pattern, she was a rottie hybrid.
Do you mind if I ask, what kind of treatments are they putting Layla through? I ask b/c Joney's sister, Bella, had mange as a puppy...I put her through a "treatment" the vet suggested, (they suggested several rounds), the treatements were expensive and very scary; they dipped her in a chemical and had to put a gel around her little eyes so they wouldn't get "burned"...It gave me the heebeegeebees! The 2nd time I took her for a "treatment", she acted odd...she did not want to go back w/ the vet, I could tell something was not right...I had a bad feeling seeing the way she struggled and seeing the way they treated her when she was afraid, how they violently pulled on her leash, I knew I had to get her out of there! So, we left and I took her somewhere else...Thank goodness I did; the new vet gave me a $12 creme that cleared it right up! (as opposed to several rounds of the chemical treatments, which were not cheap and seemed to be extremely harsh on her little body.) I must add however... The Bella's case of mange wasn't nearly as bad as poor Layla's seems to be, she just had a little patch; but I thought I ought to mention it, as I would want someone to do so, were the situations reversed, (I hope you don't mind. ) Perhaps it is something you could mention to your vet, (the creme), or even consider get a second opinion?


I hope it's starting to clear up! Poor girl.
She's going to be an amazing friend! : I am really happy for you both!

She is a sweetheart. I'd take a picture of her right now but she kinda looks like something out of Alien because the mange is so bad. I also hope it gets better soon, seems to be clearing up a bit already after only 4 days on the treatment.

The vet recommended "Noromectin" which is a brand name for ivermectin...it's actually a bovine and swine parasiticide that isn't approved for dogs yet, but I trust my vet when she says that it works better than anything else on the market and that she has used it with success. The downside to it is that it costs $50 as opposed to about $10-15 for any of the other treatments, but that's hardly even worth mentioning if it actually works for her.

In addition to that I'm giving her 1000mg of Vitamin E (faster healing) and 25mg of benadryl 2x a day (to keep her from itching) as per the vet's instrutions, along with Rimadyl (anti-inflammatory) and Cephalexin (antibiotic) 2x a day for her skin infection or whatever it was that caused the fever yesterday. Quite the drug cocktail, but if it works and gets her better, well worth the investment.

I'm also washing her once weekly in benzoyl peroxide shampoo (also as per the vet) for the next couple of weeks before I switch to this natural oatmeal shampoo. I've read about the creams you mentioned and meant to ask the vet about them yesterday, but I was a little frazzled with a sick puppy and a crazy day at work so it slipped my mind. I will definitely ask about it the next time I go visit the vet (hopefully not any time before the next checkup in a week or two!) for sure.

Thanks for the perspective and suggestions, and of course the kind words. Glad to see plenty of dog lovers here on ICM.

 

[zeppelindood]

Perhaps it is something you could mention to your vet, (the creme), or even consider get a second opinion?

TAKE NOTE JD *** super suggestion and wisdom coming from a spectacular caring woman right here man ***

Love ya Natts ~ Agape' shower you girl ~

 

[paladin420]

Man nice pup!!! BUD you 'sound' so freakin much better. Glad to hear all the good in your life..

doggy door is a must hav IMO for any gaurd type breed!!! Stay Frosty

 

[nattynattygurrl]

Phew, glad she's not doing that crazy chem dip they did to the Bella!!
I think I panicked b/c you called it as a "treatment", lol. : But, it sounds like you have a really great vet!

Please give Layla a treat for me!
Good health to you both!


Oh Zep, you are too kind!! Thank you for the incredibly kind words!
<3 to you always, my friend!!

 

[supermanlives]

getting a new dog makes ya feel like a kid again atleast me. then you feel like a tired parent . enjoy your pup

 

[MMJcali]

3rd month of being off pain pills and benzos.

keep it up man, it def gets better.

and that puppy looks like a keeper for sure!!! can she fetch yet?