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If your dogs are fighting, and are causing severe damage to each other – or one dog is causing severe damage to another – I’m sorry to say that you are dealing with the most difficult of all canine behavior problems, the one with the worst possible prognosis. Your options are extremely limited, because the treatment really should have happened when the dog was 4 1/2 months old, which is when dogs normally learn bite inhibition.

Regarding your recent article on vaccination - thank you for confirming my belief that its the excessive challenging of the dog’s immune system that is responsible for so many auto-immune disorders. I am a non-practicing LVT in New York state and I have three dogs, two of whom have autoimmune disorders. I used to vaccinate religiously, and even brought the vaccines home to administer them.

When Emma, a German Shepherd mix with magnificent, mule deer ears, jumps out of the car after being driven home from a particularly hard run on the trails or mucky outing at the beach, she immediately trots into the bathroom and waits for her bath. During her soaping and rinsing, her owner sings and tells her stories. Cheeky squirrels are given a run for their money by fleet, wily dogs. Cats are put firmly in their place by commanding, resourceful dogs, and humans are rescued from various perils by brave and sagacious dogs (all the dogs bear a striking resemblance to Emma, of course).

This is just a quick note to let you know how delighted I am with Whole Dog Journal. I have ordered and received all the back issues, and am still working my way through them. (I already have a holistic veterinarian and use veterinary chiropractic services occasionally.) I also faithfully cook for by two blessedly healthy dogs. I have been following the discussions on dog training with great interest, and am now curious: How are service dogs trained? How are the dogs in government service (customs, drugs) trained?

I own two beautiful Rottweilers, a male and a female. They are uncle and niece. I’ve had the male from birth; he’s now four years old, has the most outstanding personality, and his temperament is excellent. He gets along with everyone, he’s obedience trained, and there just isn’t enough I could say about him. A couple of years ago I decided to purchase his niece, a neutered female. She is also obedience trained. Initially, the two got along as if it were meant to be.

I switched Duke’s food to one of your top picks, and in just the few months that he has been on this food I have noticed a much healthier dog.

As with the death of a relative or close friend, losing a dog can have long-lasting effect on the owner's lifestyle. For example, I am surprised to realize that I have not been cross-country skiing or running (both previously major activities) since the death of my first Malamute, Omaha Beagle, well over 10 years ago. Grieving is a painful, yet necessary process. At the time of the pet's death, owners may lose perspective, tending to focus on all the bad experiences associated with the last few days, weeks and sometimes months prior to the pet's demise.

As we were going to press with this issue, we received a report of a dog’s death due to ingestion of a small part...

I have two nine-month-old puppies, brothers from the same litter, who have received all the usually recommended vaccinations, on exactly the same schedules (I have taken them to the veterinarians at the same time for all their maintenance visits). Recently, after being boarded at a large facility, one of them began to exhibit symptoms of parvovirus. After receiving IV fluids and antibiotics, he recovered, but I am shaken up. Why should a well-vaccinated puppy contract the disease? And why should my other pup, who has been exposed to all the same things, be fine?

It’s really a safe and simple procedure; one that most dog owners can easily learn to perform on their dogs. I have done it to my own dogs since I was a little kid. So it never ceases to amaze me when I ask my training classes how many owners clip their own dogs’ toenails and an average of only one out of eight raise their hands. That means the other seven either neglect this important procedure, or spend hundreds of dollars over a dog’s lifetime to pay someone else to do it.

We love our Labrador Retriever, Bailey, very much. We rescued her when she was six weeks old. She is now almost two years old. We believe that a dog is part of the family and therefore should live inside the house with the rest of the family. However, we were warned about Labs and their desire to chew and need for a lot of exercise. We were prepared for the worst. We limited Bailey’s living quarters to the kitchen and family room.

It is generally accepted that the practice of human and veterinary acupuncture had their beginnings in ancient China. According to legend, veterinary acupuncture was discovered when lame horses were used for battle and became sound after being pierced by arrows at distinct points. Regardless of the accuracy of the folklore, there is evidence that veterinarians practiced acupuncture around 2000-3000 BC. The early use of the technique on animals was probably prompted by the economic importance of horses, camels, elephants, cows, pigs, and chickens as sources of transportation and food. Now, veterinary acupuncture is used worldwide to treat all types of animals including many exotics.