Fat Phoebe:  We have found that dogs are like humans:  they need different amounts 
of food to stay in shape.  Our bitch, Phoebe, gets fat easily.  Several times a year, she goes on a green bean diet.  She gets half her food and a full can of green beans.  It takes 
a month or so, but it works.  Some people find that other vegetables work just as well.  Sometimes she and I use the same diet - I use a can of beans instead of my Doritos. 

Dangerous Chews:  There are many types of chews for dogs.  Many of them are both expensive and dangerous.  Rawhide, tennis balls and some dog cookies contain harmful chemicals, while some import rawhide contains arsenic.  They are suspected of causing dogs to seizure, and all cause problems with digestion.  Ging Campbell suggested carrots to me.  I now use carrots and broccoli for chews, which has saved us a lot of money and worry. 

Diarrhea:  There are many causes of diarrhea, but the most common seem to be a change of water and overfeeding.  We carry our own water and send water home with puppy buyers.  If a dog gets diarrhea we take him off all dog food, then give him cooked white rice, cooked ground turkey, kaopectate and cottage cheese.  If possible take a stool sample to the vet after several days of treatment.  There is a risk of dehydration in young puppies, and the weight should be monitored. 

Vaseline:  We have found that first time mothers take a while to clean newborn puppies.  We apply vaseline to the their rectums several times a day for the first week or so.  It 
also works well on older dogs in the cold weather to brighten winter nose. 

Rubbing Alcohol:  This is great stuff.  If you live in the woods, as we do.  We used to use butter to remove pitch and grease, but we found that rubbing alcohol works much better.  The pine pitch comes right off. 

Hives:  Once we had a bitch come to stay with us for a few months.  My husband was going to show her. We took her to a show, and her whole back broke our in bumps. 
We thought she had hot spots, but Pluis Davern saw her and said it was hives.  We 
gave the bitch the antihistamine Benadryl.  It would have worked better if she had a few more hours.   I have been told that some dogs get hives from nerves, and can be treated with human antihistamines. 

Belly and Pad Redness:  We have found that dampness and crate travel can cause redness.  There is an over the counter spray called Cortaid, which contains hydrocortisone, which works to soothe many minor skin irritation. 

Elbow Callus:  The farm store carries an antiseptic ointment for cow udders called 
Bag Balm.  It is cheap and works well on dry elbows. 

Puppies in the House:  I like to look at rummage sales for old blankets and bathroom rugs.  The puppies love them, and I try to send one home with most puppies, since it gives them the smell of home and makes the transition a little easier.  We also purchase carpet and linoleum 
remnants to cover our wood floors.  The carpet pieces in the whelping box help the pups get on their feet faster.  We use baking soda to keep the odor down (it helps on carpet spots as well!) 
 
 

Dog Food:  For years, we did not know that we could buy dog food through the breeders association for about half the price.  We feed Iams Lamb & Rice**, and were shocked to find out that if we bought 300 lbs, it was about half the cost. 

    **What we do now is feed several different kinds of food depending on the time of year.  They seem to do better on a different food during the summer months. Enjoyed your website very much--especially the tips!. Thought I'd share a tip for hot spots: Plain old Witch Hazel dabbed on with a cotton ball at the first sign really helps prevent the thing from developing. This was suggested to us by a holistic vet. She also suggested wiping the dog's underarms with baby wipes every night to cut down on bacteria in those areas. He loved the extra attention and TLC