Hi,

Late at night so I thought I'd give this is a try...We adopted two dogs from a shelter a week ago, both have settled in ok so far. One is a border terrier (Joe) and the other (Sally) is a border / lakeland terrier cross, they've lived together for 7 years and had to be adopted together. Both have been eating fine and have not displayed any real problems. We've kept the diet pretty much the same as they had in the home. Today Sally has had diarrhoea today and has started constantly licking her surroundings, the carpet the sofa, even the fridge. It's non-stop and she almost resembles a monitor lizard at the moment. She displays the same behaviour whether we are comforting or not. We called the vets and they advised not feeding her for 24 hours and to call tomorrow if the symptons persist...

Any suggestions / advice? Probably an impossible question but we're really worried about her, she's such a friendly dog (apart from other animals but that's another story) and Joe is fine, sleeping as per usual. Its probably just teething troubles, and maybe she's not as settled as we hoped but I'm torn between staying up with her all night and trying to settle her in as normal.

Sorry if this is the inane babbling of a new dog owner, but I've been reading the advice about aggressive borders with interest and thought I'd try my luck

Thanks

Hi Borodino

I haven't a clue what this might be caused by, but someone else will probably be along soon who does :) If I were you, and Sally seems ok in herself, apart from the licking, if that makes sense, I would try to follow the normal routine and go to bed as usual. Then in the morning if she is still doing it I would get in touch with the vet again as per their advice.

Sorry I'm not much help! Let us know how you get on.

Lesley

Hi Lesley

Thanks for your message. Just to let you know that Sally seems to have stopped the lizard impression today and back to her normal jolly self. We are still keen to find out why - Grandad suggested it could be to do with wanting to make herself sick, as she was also eating grass.

They are both at the vets on Monday for a check up so we will mention it then. If we get a answer we will let you know.

Cheers Sarah and Simon

Hi Sarah and Simon

Yes, your Grandad may be right :) I'm glad she's ok now - it must have been a worry for you wondering what on earth she was up to with all her licking! Let us know what the vet says!

Lesley

That sort of licking often means the dog has an upset stomach or sometimes that they have a pain

Thanks for the replys. Yes slightly concerned about the licking - I know I hate cleaning but Sally really did not have to start doing it ha ha!

It can also be stress related.

It could be that she was feeling very stressed with her new home and has now settled and found there is nothing to worry about.

Keep an eye on it because it can be habit forming. Hopefully she is feeling more content now.

Good Luck
Sandra