Info about Penny's Mom and Update- April 23, 2009

Information about Penny's Mom
Today my mom talked to the breeder that we got Penny from. She asked her about Penny's mom and if she ever had any problems with her. Here is what she told her:

First of all she said to never use Hartz Products. As if I didn't already know that one, I would never go near any Hartz Products, ever. Then she told her that Penny's mom did in fact have allergy problems. She told her that her vet determined that she was allergic to eggs. I do not think that they did any testing, but somehow they narrowed it down to eggs. She also mentioned that she would have trouble eating because of her allergy to the eggs. She told her that she would get ear infections often but would take care of the problem herself. I think that she fed her Purina Dog Chow, and would bathe her (no more than) once a month with Oatmeal Shampoo. She does not have Penny's mom any more, but claims to know the people who have her now, so I am not sure how her mom is today. She did not mention anything about seizures or eye problems, but who knows that does not mean that she didn't have those problems also.

So now things are all beginning to make sense. If you ask me I think that it was irresponsible of her to breed her mom, and even worse that she did not inform whomever bought one of the puppies. But, I am grateful that she was willing to tell us what she did and not just hide it all entirely. Besides I am not doing this to start an ethics debate, and just wish to get my dogs problems solved. The breeder whom Penny came from does not breed goldens anymore anyhow, so the damage that has been done is done.


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Penny's Unusual Eating
I was finally able to get some videos of Penny eating.

I wish I could have taken better videos but this was the best I could do for today. I used a digital camera, so I was only able to take 30 second videos and the quality is not the best. This was the simplest and quickest way to do it, so here they are:


When she first starts eating, she just seems to chew every piece, then she begins to lay down and chew the food on the floor. This video shows her just before, and then the first time that she lays down to eat.



This video shows her trying to chew and eat her food while she is laying down, This is probably the best one that show how much trouble she has.



And one last video



Her eating may not seem unusual to everyone, but it is definitely not normal for her. She use to inhale her food, so fast that I do not think that she would chew any of it.

My first guess would be that it is allergy related, but why did it just start now (when her allergies are not as much of a problem) and not before when her allergies were at their worst?