Bumpy flaky skin

My dog (American staffy 2,5 yrs) has recently developed lots of tiny bumps
on her skin, and today she started flaking too. The bumps are all over her
back and on her neck, but none on her head og feet.
She is also seems a bit itchy. She doesn't scratch herself, but her skin
wrinkles up and she gets that scrunched up face when i scrith her.
She has also started drinking more than usual. Not heaps, but noticably
more.
She is on antibiotics (Synulox 400mg x 2) for it, but I don't really see
it helping much.
I'll take her for another visit to the vet next week, to have a more
thorough checkup, but in the meantime I'd appreaciate some thoughts of
what this could be? Or something helpful I could bring to the vet?.
I'm thinking maybe it could be some sort of thyroid-problems? Her coat has
always been scarse, and i think it has gotten a bit worse, but she is also
shedding her summercoat nowso I don't really know if it's symptomatic.
Energywise she is her normal bouncy self, loves her walks, training and
playtime with other dogs.
I've been spraying her with a skinspray meant for mild skin-issues, which
contains organic acids, algea, glycerol and chlorophyl (I don't even know
if that's a word in english, and have no idea on spelling if it is). It's
not really helping, but I've only been doing it for a day and a half. I've
been adding vitamin-C, Aloe-juice and probiotics in her food to boost her
immunesystem since the bumps showed up, which was maybe 4-5 days ago.
She was also shampoed with MalAcetic yesterday, and before she went into
the bath I noticed she gives off a faint strange smell. Almost sweetish.
She doesn't stink, and I only noticed by putting my nose on her fur. But
that is a symptom of thyroidproblems, right?

I don't know if it matters but she is spayed, has been rawfed for the last
almost two years, and has only had one allergic reaction in her life which
was to Biogroom Flea & Tick Shampoo.
She has had some skinproblems earlier though, a case of demodex when she
was around 6 months and she does get furunculosis from time to time. She
is *alot* better since I changed her diet to raw.

Any ideas?

Mari

"Mari" wrote in message
news

My dog (American staffy 2,5 yrs) has recently developed lots of tiny bumps
on her skin, and today she started flaking too. The bumps are all over her
back and on her neck, but none on her head og feet.
She is also seems a bit itchy. She doesn't scratch herself, but her skin
wrinkles up and she gets that scrunched up face when i scrith her.
She has also started drinking more than usual. Not heaps, but noticably
more.
She is on antibiotics (Synulox 400mg x 2) for it, but I don't really see
it helping much.

could be really bad mange, or a bad flee allergy... could be a really bad
food allergy. Staffies are prone to allergies, but that extent sounds more
like something else. might be a fungal infection. there are a lot of
"could be's" with this. i'd go straight to the vet for a skin culture.

-kelly

"Mari" wrote in message
news

My dog (American staffy 2,5 yrs) has recently developed lots of tiny bumps
on her skin, and today she started flaking too. The bumps are all over her
back and on her neck, but none on her head og feet.
She is also seems a bit itchy. She doesn't scratch herself, but her skin
wrinkles up and she gets that scrunched up face when i scrith her.
She has also started drinking more than usual. Not heaps, but noticably
more.
She is on antibiotics (Synulox 400mg x 2) for it, but I don't really see
it helping much.
..............the increased drinking may be from the antibiotics.

I'm thinking maybe it could be some sort of thyroid-problems? Her coat has
always been scarse,
..........maybe. If you decide to have thyroid tests done, get a 6 panel
thyroid, not just T4 and T3.

I've been spraying her with a skinspray meant for mild skin-issues, which
contains organic acids, algea, glycerol and chlorophyl (I don't even know
if that's a word in english, and have no idea on spelling if it is). It's
not really helping, but I've only been doing it for a day and a half. I've
been adding vitamin-C, Aloe-juice and probiotics in her food to boost her
immunesystem since the bumps showed up, which was maybe 4-5 days ago.
She was also shampoed with MalAcetic yesterday,
..........you may be doing too much at once. It's too hard to isolate
various responses when you start things all at once.

and before she went into
the bath I noticed she gives off a faint strange smell. Almost sweetish.
She doesn't stink, and I only noticed by putting my nose on her fur. But
that is a symptom of thyroidproblems, right?
.........I've never heard that. Most likely it's Staph or fungal problems.
I'd get a fungal culture done.

She has had some skinproblems earlier though, a case of demodex when she
was around 6 months and she does get furunculosis from time to time. She
is *alot* better since I changed her diet to raw.

..........sounds like she's sort of immune deficient. How was the demodex
treated? She may not be able to handle slight insults to her body that
other dogs would shrug off. Have you changed anything in the house -
cleaning products, dog beds, new carpeting? Gone anywhere new for a walk?

buglady
take out the dog before replying

On Wed, 16 Nov 2005 14:15:24 GMT, buglady wrote:


"Mari" wrote in message
news

She has also started drinking more than usual. Not heaps, but noticably
more.
She is on antibiotics (Synulox 400mg x 2) for it, but I don't really see
it helping much.
.............the increased drinking may be from the antibiotics.

Ah, I didn't know that. But it does make sense with the timing. Drinking
and antibiotics started at the same time if I remember correctly.


I'm thinking maybe it could be some sort of thyroid-problems? Her coat
has
always been scarse,
.........maybe. If you decide to have thyroid tests done, get a 6 panel
thyroid, not just T4 and T3.

I'll be sure to tell the vet. Thanks.


.........you may be doing too much at once. It's too hard to isolate
various responses when you start things all at once.

Heh, I do that with her I guess. I just want her to get better, ya know?
Should I cut everything out except the antibiotics?
I usually give her probiotics anyway if I have any in the house. And she
usually gets them if she has a lot of bones.
Should I stop even though she gets them regulary?
And isn't it a good idea to give her probiotics considering she's on
antibiotics?

........I've never heard that. Most likely it's Staph or fungal
problems.
I'd get a fungal culture done.

Is that done by a skinscraping? Like they do with demodex?
If it is staph. Would the antibiotics wipe that out? I think it's a
broadspectered antibiotic. How do they diagnose staph? Bloodtests?
I was surprised they didn't do a bloodtest to see if the bumps *were*
infact from an infection before putting her on antibiotics.
I should have asked for one, but didn't think of it at the time.


She has had some skinproblems earlier though, a case of demodex when she
was around 6 months and she does get furunculosis from time to time. She
is *alot* better since I changed her diet to raw.

.........sounds like she's sort of immune deficient. How was the demodex
treated? She may not be able to handle slight insults to her body that
other dogs would shrug off. Have you changed anything in the house -
cleaning products, dog beds, new carpeting? Gone anywhere new for a
walk?

Yup, I agree on the immune deficiancy. Like culprit said, the breed is
prone to that, and she does have a history of it.
Funny thing is, it's usually only her skin though. She never seems to
catch kennelcough even when it's going around. Or flees. Or diarrhea.
The demodex was treated with Interceptor. But considering this was almost
2 years ago, is it still relevant? It wasn't a bad case of demodex. She
had some bald spots, but no itching or rashes.
Nothing new in everyday life. Except for the fact that me and my partner
broke up, and he has now moved out.
She does love him to death, and I'm sure she misses him. I can't imagine
that would cause this though? Then again, ya never know.
Now that I think of it, I have bought a new bed. My old bed (sofabed) has
now been turned into the dog-sofa in the livingroom (I'm getting another
dog in a few days).
But she has slept on this from time to time earlier, and she doesn't use
it much yet either.
If that is the cause, would it help if I washed all the covers and the
blanket covering it?

It seems that the antibiotics are helping more now. The bumps are gone,
but she is still flaking and she still has that faint smell.
I've talked to the vet, and she says to finish the antibiotics, and then
we'll see. I still have 5 days left of them.
I don't know... This just doesn't feel like an infection.
The suggestions about fungal or thyroid seem more plausible, I can't put
my finger on why.

Thanks for the input!

Mari

"Mari" wrote in message
news
.........you may be doing too much at once. It's too hard to isolate
various responses when you start things all at once.

Heh, I do that with her I guess. I just want her to get better, ya know?

.........yes, I know!

Should I cut everything out except the antibiotics?

.........No, but start one new thing at half dose, wait a few days, then go
to full dose, wait a while, then add another new thing.

I usually give her probiotics anyway if I have any in the house. And she
usually gets them if she has a lot of bones.
Should I stop even though she gets them regulary?
And isn't it a good idea to give her probiotics considering she's on
antibiotics?

.........if she's used to getting probiotics, then that's fine, you don't
have to consider it a new thing. And yes, considering she's getting
antibiotics it's a good thing to supplement with probiotics.

I'd get a fungal culture done.

Is that done by a skinscraping? Like they do with demodex?

.........No, they pull a few hairs out in the affected area and culture it.
My vet had kits so they could do it in house. Otherwise they have to send
it out. I live in FL though, where fungal problems abound, so he might have
thought it worth it to have kits for use in house. I don't know if all vets
have this available. It usually takes a week to 10 days to grow the culture
and see what's on there. The culture medium has something in it that
suppresses yeast, so a negative wouldn't necessarily mean it is not yeast.

If it is staph. Would the antibiotics wipe that out? I think it's a
broadspectered antibiotic. How do they diagnose staph? Bloodtests?

..........skin biopsy, scraping, culture are all used apparently.

Here's a good list of things that causes skin pustules:
http://www.peteducation.com/article....&articleid=426

Staph (pyoderma):
http://www.peteducation.com/article....&articleid=480
http://www.vetinfo4dogs.com/dpyoderm.html

I thought this site had a skin section. It doesn't (except for ears) but
perhaps the hypothydoidism section would be of interest to you:
http://www.dogaware.com/

Other sites on skin things:
http://www.veterinarypetcare.com/Dogallergies.html
http://www.vetinfo4dogs.com/dskin.html

She has had some skinproblems earlier though, a case of demodex when
she
was around 6 months and she does get furunculosis from time to time.
.............Furunculosis? Do you mean anal fistulas? I'm kind of fuzzy on
what furunculosis is, but this site (discussing acne of chin) says it's the
rupture of a hair follicle:
http://netscape.petplace.com/Article...ll=1&artID=17&
conID=12527

Where did this occur on your dog? Did they do a skin biopsy? Was the
treatment a prolonged course of antibiotics?

.........since she's had these skin things going on for a while, I'd
definitely consider a 6-panel thyroid. Your vet may object, but I'd think
it worth it to rule it out. After all it's not invasive, just a blood
test. And the simplest place to start to look for underlying conditions.

She
is *alot* better since I changed her diet to raw.

........You might be interested in joining K9Nutrition - link on the dogaware
site.

The demodex was treated with Interceptor. But considering this was almost
2 years ago, is it still relevant?

..........I just wondered. Sometimes they use really nasty stuff to treat
demodex (like Mitaban) which further stresses the body.

Nothing new in everyday life. Except for the fact that me and my partner
broke up, and he has now moved out.
She does love him to death, and I'm sure she misses him. I can't imagine
that would cause this though?

...........sure, stress can cause susceptibility to things, and in her
particular case she seems to be prone to express stuff in her skin. Which
isn't a horrible thing, better where you can see it, than where you cannot.

Now that I think of it, I have bought a new bed. My old bed (sofabed) has
now been turned into the dog-sofa in the livingroom (I'm getting another
dog in a few days).

.........uh oh, more stress and change. Any way you can delay it until this
dog's health problems have settled? Maybe she heard you thinking about
another dog! ;-) Does she get along well with other dogs? Has she met
this other dog yet? My suggestion is to get someone else to help you do the
introduction and it's best done outside of your house and yard. Someplace
neutral. You walk your dog and the other person has the new one. Then you
can both go to your house walk around the yard, then go inside. I'd keep
them separate unless supervised, until the new dog knows the rules of the
house and to make your dog feel more comfortable with the invasion.

But she has slept on this from time to time earlier, and she doesn't use
it much yet either.
If that is the cause, would it help if I washed all the covers and the
blanket covering it?

.......sure, might help. I'd use non-perfumed soap.

It seems that the antibiotics are helping more now. The bumps are gone,
but she is still flaking and she still has that faint smell.
I've talked to the vet, and she says to finish the antibiotics, and then
we'll see. I still have 5 days left of them.
I don't know... This just doesn't feel like an infection.
The suggestions about fungal or thyroid seem more plausible, I can't put
my finger on why.

.........sometimes Staph (bacterial) things are secondary to a primary
problem. If so, and the primary problem is not resolved, they tend to come
back. Also seems that many times the course of antibiotics is not long
enough.

good luck
buglady
take out the dog before replying

On Thu, 17 Nov 2005 13:50:33 GMT, buglady wrote:


Should I cut everything out except the antibiotics?

........No, but start one new thing at half dose, wait a few days, then
go
to full dose, wait a while, then add another new thing.

Ok, in that case I'll continue with the probiotics (which she is used to)
and the Aloe-juice.
Then we'll see where we go from there.


I'd get a fungal culture done.

Is that done by a skinscraping? Like they do with demodex?

........No, they pull a few hairs out in the affected area and culture
it.
My vet had kits so they could do it in house. Otherwise they have to
send
it out. I live in FL though, where fungal problems abound, so he might
have
thought it worth it to have kits for use in house. I don't know if all
vets
have this available. It usually takes a week to 10 days to grow the
culture
and see what's on there. The culture medium has something in it that
suppresses yeast, so a negative wouldn't necessarily mean it is not
yeast.

I'm in Norway, it's pretty dry here compared to what I can imagine Florida
is.
The temperature is definitely dropping, and I suspect snow very very
soon... Ugh.
I'll check what the vet does with the fungal-culture, I have no idea about
the routines here as I've never had one done.
Good to know that a negative might not be a negative though. A bit
frustrating, but still good to know.


If it is staph. Would the antibiotics wipe that out? I think it's a
broadspectered antibiotic. How do they diagnose staph? Bloodtests?

.........skin biopsy, scraping, culture are all used apparently.

Here's a good list of things that causes skin pustules:
http://www.peteducation.com/article....&articleid=426

Staph (pyoderma):
http://www.peteducation.com/article....&articleid=480
http://www.vetinfo4dogs.com/dpyoderm.html

I thought this site had a skin section. It doesn't (except for ears)
but
perhaps the hypothydoidism section would be of interest to you:
http://www.dogaware.com/

Other sites on skin things:
http://www.veterinarypetcare.com/Dogallergies.html
http://www.vetinfo4dogs.com/dskin.html

Thank you! I'll definitely bookmark these.


She has had some skinproblems earlier though, a case of demodex when
she
was around 6 months and she does get furunculosis from time to time.
............Furunculosis? Do you mean anal fistulas? I'm kind of
fuzzy on
what furunculosis is, but this site (discussing acne of chin) says it's
the
rupture of a hair follicle:
http://netscape.petplace.com/Article...ll=1&artID=17&
conID=12527

I tried to find the english word for it, but appearantly I wasn't very
successful. :-)
They are infected abcesses that fill up with puss, and then they burst.
They usually pop up between the toes, and sometimes on the chin.
It is, just like Demodex, a symptom for an immunesystem not being tiptop.
My friends American Bulldog gets them real bad.
This is her last august: http://static.flickr.com/4/4997705_3c07035ce7.jpg
I don't know if you can tell the size of the abcesses? They are about half
an inch in diameter.
Is any of this ringing a bell?


Where did this occur on your dog? Did they do a skin biopsy? Was the
treatment a prolonged course of antibiotics?

She gets them on her feet, between her toes.
They did not do a skinbiopsy, she was given antibiotics once. A ten day
course.
If she gets them now i just keep her feet dry and clean and wait for them
to dissapear.
If dogs are really troubled with them, vets might get a sample from some
of the abcesses and make an immunisation (sp?) program by developing
vaccines for the individual dogs. Like they do with allergies I guess. It
seems it's just about equally successful too.


........since she's had these skin things going on for a while, I'd
definitely consider a 6-panel thyroid. Your vet may object, but I'd
think
it worth it to rule it out. After all it's not invasive, just a blood
test. And the simplest place to start to look for underlying conditions.

She
is *alot* better since I changed her diet to raw.

.......You might be interested in joining K9Nutrition - link on the
dogaware
site.

I frequent a lot of the rawfeeding lists, just haven't been to any of them.
Haven't been to the K9Nutrition one for a while.


..........sure, stress can cause susceptibility to things, and in her
particular case she seems to be prone to express stuff in her skin.
Which
isn't a horrible thing, better where you can see it, than where you
cannot.

Good point. I still want to fix her though! :-)
She isn't too fond of a lot of changes, so you could definitely be right.
Yet she seems like her normal bubbly self.


Now that I think of it, I have bought a new bed. My old bed (sofabed)
has
now been turned into the dog-sofa in the livingroom (I'm getting another
dog in a few days).

........uh oh, more stress and change. Any way you can delay it until
this
dog's health problems have settled?

Weeelll... I've been waiting for this pup for a year and a half, and I
really want to get her at eight weeks.
The 10 hour drive is planned, everything is in order and ready for her.
I'll have a long think about it, and have a talk with the breeder.

Maybe she heard you thinking about
another dog! ;-)

Oh no! She *is* one of those mindreading dogs who just know the exact
nanosecond I'll drop some food on the floor!

Does she get along well with other dogs?

She gets along with other dogs *very* well.
She is fluent in all sorts of dog, and never gets in trouble.
Bacon has even been used to sosialize aggressive dogs without problems
(safely ofcourse).
I'm very proud of her.

Has she met
this other dog yet?

No, the pup is a ten hour drive away. I've only been able to see her once
myself.
She is very good with pups too though.

My suggestion is to get someone else to help you do the
introduction and it's best done outside of your house and yard.
Someplace
neutral. You walk your dog and the other person has the new one. Then
you
can both go to your house walk around the yard, then go inside. I'd keep
them separate unless supervised, until the new dog knows the rules of the
house and to make your dog feel more comfortable with the invasion.

Yup, everything is planned for the first meet. Not to mention everything
else.
I'm very excited and kinda nervous too. Comes with getting a pup I suppose.


It seems that the antibiotics are helping more now. The bumps are gone,
but she is still flaking and she still has that faint smell.
I've talked to the vet, and she says to finish the antibiotics, and then
we'll see. I still have 5 days left of them.
I don't know... This just doesn't feel like an infection.
The suggestions about fungal or thyroid seem more plausible, I can't put
my finger on why.

........sometimes Staph (bacterial) things are secondary to a primary
problem. If so, and the primary problem is not resolved, they tend to
come
back. Also seems that many times the course of antibiotics is not long
enough.

I think you are right on the money.


good luck
buglady
take out the dog before replying

Thank you very much! This was really helpful.
Mari

On Thu, 17 Nov 2005 23:01:35 +0100, Mari wrote:



I frequent a lot of the rawfeeding lists, just haven't been to any of
them.

Argh. I just haven't beem to any of them *lately*...
Brainburp.

Mari

"Mari" wrote in message
news
I'm in Norway,

They are infected abcesses that fill up with puss, and then they burst.
They usually pop up between the toes, and sometimes on the chin.
It is, just like Demodex, a symptom for an immunesystem not being tiptop.
My friends American Bulldog gets them real bad.
This is her last august: http://static.flickr.com/4/4997705_3c07035ce7.jpg
I don't know if you can tell the size of the abcesses? They are about half
an inch in diameter.
.........ugh, very nasty looking! I'd send her the website I gave you on
canine acne.

Is any of this ringing a bell?

...........It's probably Staph then. Check the vetinfo site for interdigital
pyoderma (Staph). There's also a condition where the dog becomes
hyperallergic to the Staph bacteria itself.

They did not do a skinbiopsy, she was given antibiotics once. A ten day
course.
.........I really don't think that was long enough. And I think by this
point it might be a good thing to rule out fungal problems and also have a
culture and sensitivity done on the bacteria itself, so they can get the
correct antibiotic to deal with the problem. Dr. Mike (at wwwvetinfo) does
say, though, that most antibiotics seem to take care of the problem, so
doesn't see the need to culture, but cautions that you need 6 weeks of
therapy. To check for yeast infection, they can just do a tape mount.
(Take a piece of clear tape and press it to an affected area, then stick it
on a slide and look for yeast organisms - Malassazia).

If she gets them now i just keep her feet dry and clean and wait for them
to dissapear.

........How long does that take? If it's not a long time, you might be
better off not using antibiotics and using topicals. I think she's just
sensitive to bacteria. Doubtless there's something else going on immue
system wise, but repeated bouts of antibiotics are only treating the
symptoms, not taking care of the immune system problem. OTOH a prolonged
antibiotic therapy might alleviate the problem entirely. You might start
focusing on adding things to boost the immune system. I'm wondering about
adding Vit A also.

If dogs are really troubled with them, vets might get a sample from some
of the abcesses and make an immunisation (sp?) program by developing
vaccines for the individual dogs. Like they do with allergies I guess. It
seems it's just about equally successful too.

...............meaning not much or highly successful? I think with people
they have to do this over and over, every allergy season.

She isn't too fond of a lot of changes, so you could definitely be right.
Yet she seems like her normal bubbly self.

...........how's your relationship with your ex? Any chance of visitation?
;-) Might be especially nice for her to have visitation set up when the
puppy comes into the house to give her a break.

Weeelll... I've been waiting for this pup for a year and a half, and I
really want to get her at eight weeks.

..........what kind of dog is it? I'm sure the breeder would probably
disagree with me, but I think 8 weeks is too young to leave. 10 weeks might
be better and give your dog time to adjust to the last disruption. Keeping
them longer than 8 weeks means the breeder has to do the socialization and
spend a lot of time with the puppies. I think it's the reason they tend to
send them off at 8 weeks. And puppies have incomplete immune systems and
might also be susceptible to Staph.

Bacon has even been used to sosialize aggressive dogs without problems
(safely ofcourse). I'm very proud of her.

........oh an alpha bitch! Well, she certainly shouldn't have any problems
behaviorwise then, but it's still a shock to have a rambunctious puppy
invade your home.........and stay! At least they sleep a lot when they're
that young!

good luck
buglady
take out the dog before replying

On Fri, 18 Nov 2005 13:07:13 GMT, buglady wrote:


"Mari" wrote in message
news
I'm in Norway,

They are infected abcesses that fill up with puss, and then they burst.
They usually pop up between the toes, and sometimes on the chin.
It is, just like Demodex, a symptom for an immunesystem not being
tiptop.
My friends American Bulldog gets them real bad.
This is her last august:
http://static.flickr.com/4/4997705_3c07035ce7.jpg
I don't know if you can tell the size of the abcesses? They are about
half
an inch in diameter.
........ugh, very nasty looking! I'd send her the website I gave you on
canine acne.

I'm sorry for having taken so long to reply, but i've been somewhat busy
with the pup and all.
I've given her all the links you posted already, she seemed appreciative.

I'm happy to day that Bacons skin has cleared right up!
Hopefully it won't come back, but I've found a really good vet if it does.
She insists on not just treating symptoms, but finding the reason why she
keeps having skinproblems.
So if/when Bacon has issues again, she'll check every inch of her.
I've saved your feedback, and will bring it to the vet.


..........how's your relationship with your ex? Any chance of
visitation?
;-) Might be especially nice for her to have visitation set up when the
puppy comes into the house to give her a break.

We have joint custody.
We had already planned on Bacon staying at his place when I went to pick
up the pup.
The first meet went very well, and Bacon has taken on the role of big
sisterhood just like I hoped.


.........what kind of dog is it? I'm sure the breeder would probably
disagree with me, but I think 8 weeks is too young to leave. 10 weeks
might
be better and give your dog time to adjust to the last disruption.
Keeping
them longer than 8 weeks means the breeder has to do the socialization
and
spend a lot of time with the puppies. I think it's the reason they tend
to
send them off at 8 weeks. And puppies have incomplete immune systems and
might also be susceptible to Staph.

MoshiMoshi is an American Bulldog.
And if Bacon wasn't the dog she is, I wouldn't have aquired another female.
But she is, and I really think it will work out fine.
The reason I wanted to pick her up at eight weeks was to socialize her
myself.
I live in Oslo, and I wanted her to get used to the hussle and bustle of a
city. The breeder lives quite succluded.
It's all gone very well, and we've started meeting other dogs handpicked
by me.
I can't believe how extremely well she is adjusting.
Totally unafraid, and very social with both people and other dogs.
And a bundle of cuteness ofcourse.
I can't wait to start training her, and see what she'll turn out to be.
For pics of perfection: http://bullblogg.blogspot.com/ :-)


Bacon has even been used to sosialize aggressive dogs without problems
(safely ofcourse). I'm very proud of her.

......oh an alpha bitch! Well, she certainly shouldn't have any problems
behaviorwise then, but it's still a shock to have a rambunctious puppy
invade your home.........and stay! At least they sleep a lot when
they're
that young!


Yes, and I'm ever so grateful! Not only for Bacon, but for me as well.
Having two dogs alone *is* a lot of work, especially when I want to raise
the puppy properly.
Bacon needs her quality time too, and it's important to me that she gets
that.
Anyway, thanks for all your help!
I'll probably be asking again if something pops up. :-)
Gotta take the two rascels out now.

Mari