schmutzie

My Golden pup (approx. 5 months) had a large lump develop on her back about a week back. I "think" I noticed it earlier but it became very visible at that time.I took her to the vet and she suggested that it was tissue damage from an antibiotic injection she'd had about a month ago when she suffered from diarrhea (I took her to the vet for this as it went on for a few days and she eventually seemed very weak and virtually stopped eating or drinking).

The vet took out fluid from the lump until a hard smaller lump remained. She then gave me anti-inflammation, antibiotic and pills to relief swelling, which I have been feeding her twice a day since as instructed.

We're due to go back to the vet tomorrow and although the hard lump seems (I emphasize "seems") slightly reduced, it's still there.I don't see how they'll be able to get any more fluids out and I'm preparing myself for them to say that she'll have to live with that lump for the rest of her life. Or have some serious surgery, which could just throw up another bunch of problems.

I'm kicking myself a bit for allowing the antibiotic injection, if indeed that was the cause. I'm sure an oral treatment could have been effective too (and we were given antibiotic pills to give her at the time as well).

My question is really - what would you do?

Is there any point in going to town at the vet and flaming them for botching a pretty standard injection? Do you think it's likely that the lump WILL remain?Have you been through this and what was the outcome?The hard lump is about 5-8cm in diameter and about 2-3cm in height.Feeling sorry for the amount of medication my girl is being given already (all this on top of rabies and standard shots). Concerned.

I'm hearing Big C are taking over Carrefour operations in Thailand at the end of the month. Seems a bit quick and no confirmation, but that's what I hear staff are being told...

My GF started working at Carrefour a couple of months back and I've been tempted to post some random rant for a wee while.

She works 8 hours a day (9 incl. break which many don't take) plus OT which usually adds an hour or two per day.

She's paid around 7000THB per month plus OT (at standard hourly rate of, I think, 37THB).

Now, before you go barging in with "this is Thailand", and "that's pretty good for Thailand" can I just express that I'm disgusted that this is the base pay offered by a Western company.

The prices I pay there are not 1/10th of what they are in the EU. And BKK is not a cheap place to live.

I'm not naive, just ashamed that I can earn in a day what she earns in a month.

Having said the above, it surprises me that they're pulling out - I thought they were raking it in from the Thai market.

As for the quality of Carrefour I think it's a pretty good place to shop.

Are they straightforward just shutting it down or is there a replacement/new service coming?

Heartguard comes in a chewable form. My dog thinks it tastes great - she thinks its a treat!

Have given to her 5 yrs no problems. Pedigree dogs are supposedly more susceptible to heartworm (shes a Golden R.).

Had a dog before who died from it; tried to treat it but the dog was very old, not enough stamina. A heartbreaking disease to watch, as it ravages your dog before your eyes.

My girl is a golden too!

I agree that there are plenty of good deals going and that "a good enough TV" can be had for 20K. Actually, I would be better of just getting a cheapo 4:3 telly.

BUT...As per usual common sense goes out the window when boys start to look at toys and the 720p plasmas I was looking at just don't seem to cut it on BR material for me (which admittedly I won't be viewing a whole lot of but as already stated...the seductive powers of technology).

Specifically I was getting good deals on 2009 Philips sets, but they are still pricey. That's why I was looking for extended warranty.

Although reselling might seem OTT, that was more something that came into play in order to justify paying the higher price. I know, don't buy it then...I know.

But it's something I'm factoring in with all my purchases: Should my Thai stay end in a years time, I would still be able to recoup 50% I hope: By finding the best deals and buying quality stuff.

Like I said, Carrefour and PowerBuy already give these and I just paid 600THB to have 3 years of warranty on a small bedroom Sony. I think that's worth it.

I was simply wondering if there was some bank or insurance company that would do similar deals (I'm trying to remember who's doing it for Carrefour but can't ATM)

I appreciate the common sense advice above though.

I think you'll want to make sure that the model has a good response time, although as to what is a noticeable lag time seems to vary.

This site is in Italian, but have done a recent TV test - if you go to the bottom of the page you should see links to the results. Pana's do very well overall.

Note that a few of the TVs on there are not FullHD and may not fit other criteria you have for your telly so further investigation is called for from there.

DDay 2010 Game TV Test

I've been shopping for a new TV for ages now and one of my main issues is that when I find a good deal, the shop usually does not offer an extension to the standard warranty (1 year).

Exceptions to this are:

PowerBuy (3+ plans at 6% of price)

Carrefour - as above

Panasonic - 3 year standard warranty on new 2010 range

I'm reluctant to drop 50K on a telly that could easily develop issues, eg. backlight probs with LED LCDs, after one year. I'm also concerned about resell value.

Anyone know anymore outlets that offer solid extended warranties or alternative options (insurance company) for adding extended warranties to your electronics, eg. TV?

To Schmutzie, Is that 2600 baht "per month." If so, I don't see how you can say it's dirt cheap when compared to True as True's most expensive package, their Platinum package with approx 90 TV channels, is only 2000 baht per month (plus 7% VAT). True has five packages at various prices with the lower cost package down around 300 baht per month.

That's 2600THB for a year. All included.

Pretty standard for rogue BKK cable providers I believe.

Found the channel list here:

Google Translate

Just seen this new (?) service from 3BB:

Google Translate

Anyone have anymore info on this? Can't see what channels they include and not sure if it requires an existing 3BB internet subscription (think it does).

I'd really like to see a demo of this working.

Surely, if 3BB has this, True cannot be far behind, but their webtv/iptv offering seems dormant.

I'm on True, so there's no way I'd pay to cancel this to get onto 3BB (who couldn't supply an ADSL connection anyway as they were oversubscribed for the area).

I actually think it's a limitation on the hardware/ router side. I checked the spec for the router and iirc it stated this as the upload limit. I haven't got the link right now.

I have the same nlink router true give ad you. These things can go up to 16mbit.

I think you're confusing downstream and upstream rates.

I'm still trying to find the link that had the spec sheet. It's difficult because I think it's basically a rebranded product. Prob Zyxel.

ADSL 2+ support should enable the router to go up to 1024kbps upstream and supposedly the True network support this.

Still digging...

I would also like to know about this. I'm about to pay a local cable company 2600THB for 70 odd channels but I'm a bit worried about the quality and having seen their office, the customer support.

However, it is dirt cheap compared with True and will give my GF all the viewing pleasure she needs.

But still, alternatives would be welcome.

I've seen a DTV dish/box set retail at HomePro for approx. 4000THB. Is that all that's needed? Can't be...

Is it easy to install?

If I could briefly resurrect this very helpful topic:

I was in Panthip today, and I take it's much the same story there, namely that the consoles are grey market imports from HK.

The 120gb retailed at 11K w/o haggling. The 250gb was 12.5K or thereabouts.

As for warranty I was told that they have 1 year but that I'll have to pay Sony Thailand to fix them (which doesn't make much sense, so not sure if something was lost in translation).

I take it that I can basically forget about warranty. At 11K versus 16K for the Thai version I think I'm happy to take a chance.

Questions are:

1. The Panthip models are definitely genuine models...(I can't see how anyone could practically go about cloning the ps3 hardware)?

2. The warranty is basically useless as they are HK/China models and not Thai versions?

3. Are they likely to break...? Couldn't find much when googling...Which seems like a good sign.

Slightly OT, but also:

4. Are there any region restrictions wrt to DVD playback? I understand BR is region-locked to Asia/US but what about the DVD function? It'll play Thai (genuine) DVDs and US imports?

5. What video formats/containers can you stream over it? Eg. is it comparable to WD Live?

I actually think it's a limitation on the hardware/ router side. I checked the spec for the router and iirc it stated this as the upload limit. I haven't got the link right now.

OK, thanks for the advice and pointer to alternative.

I think I'll go for Heartgard in pill form and see how we get on.

Our vet would like us to give our dog a monthly pill or injection to prevent heart worm disease.

There was no pressure - basically up to us and wether or not we felt we could protect her from the risk etc.

I understand that the rate of infection is about 10% for domestic and 40% or more for stray dogs. I also understand that Thailand is considered endemic due to the favorable climate for mosquitoes.

Finally, I understand that Bangkok (with it's higher number of both stray and domestic dogs) is considered higher risk. This is where we stay.

Our dog is taken for walks outside and is free to roam at times when out on these, and also stays outside in the parking space. Basically, I can't see how anyone in their right mind would consider it possible to protect a dog from mosquito bites as I can't even protect myself.

I've read a bit about side effects but I'm keen to avoid the holistic versus poison debate. I'm not going to use my dog to put a question mark over the pharmaceutical industries and their morals.

Still it bothers me to give a preventive drug all the time. Its seems like such a...Well, not a solution.

My vet said that he gives these to his own dogs and has happily been doing that for 6 years. I do trust him, it's not that.

What are your thoughts? Is it even something to consider NOT doing?

On a further note, I've come to realise that certain TV sets are often sold under the same name but with a slight or sometimes significant different feature set in Asia.

The Pana V20 is a case in point: No THX setup (although does have something called "True Cinema" which may or may not be the same) plus the panels are supposed to be IPS and not IPS Pro.

I can confirm the first thing but not sure about the second. Odd, cus they are made here!

Also, the Sony EX600 is advertised with DLNA and Internet TV on the Aussie Sony site, but does not have or is not advertised to have this in Thailand.

Basically double check your "feature expectations" with the shop before committing.

Just want to share that Carrefour have started their World Cup TV promos and there's a fantastic deal going on the Samsung LCD 40" B750 at 32K (that down from 58K). This is a full HD Series 7 set. It gets a mixed review from AVForums but I think it's such a bargain that you can probably live with their (very picky) concerns.

The Power at HomePro also seems to have a significant discount on one of the top Philips LEDs - can't remember the exact model but the discount was something like 35k on the RRP (still leaves a hefty price of 60K though).

I'm in love with the P42V20 from Pana. But once you hit the 50K expense range the choice suddenly becomes mind boggling.

The LGs are said to be poor out of the box, but from what I can tell you're able to calibrate them quite a lot. And LG is apparently equipped with one of the better GUIs on the market to do that job (ie., they make everything very accessible).

Thanks for all the advice. Duly noted and some being put into testing.

There's a small problem in that our outside area is concrete top - there's no grass or garden or similar for her to evacuate on. Plus from time to time she will be alone and as such will not be able to go outside. So, as her indoor evacuations have not really receded in occurrence I think the next step is to get a litter box of some sort with newspaper or "gravel" and apply some pot-ty trainer deo to this and try to make her use that. We can then move the box inside when needed. I'm confident that as she gets older she will start to simply leave the evacuations for walks (she does evacuate when we walk - and we encourage her to do this all we can, but there's always more left so to speak). I've been reluctant to go that route because I think of this a cat-like and that it'll make us lazy, but right now there's just pee and poo going on in abundance. Spreading vinegar seems to have no effect.

The nipping and mouthing is also happening quite a lot still. Tried the vocal cues but it has short term effect really.

As much as I appreciate there are probably some better "dog handlers" out there than me, I'm putting most of this down to her age and am thinking she will eventually change her ways. She's just a baby after all.

I'm encouraged that above all I seem to have a very happy girl and that's what counts. And boy does she grow fast!

One thing I would warn about is that on two occasions my girlfriend has over heard bystanders talk about her (when they didn't realise my girlfriend was the owner) and, perhaps jokingly, talk about "taking that dog". It's nice to have a beatiful pup, but be careful...

BTW, does anyone know a park or large grassy area that is well suited (and allowed) for dogs to roam in Bangkok?

This is a link to the RS website (the company that has the broadcasting rights for Thailand) and shows the Thai stations that will be broadcasting the matches on the right of the page.

http://www.rs.co.th/FIFA2010/fifa_program.html

The times shown are Thai times but are 30 minutes before the match is due to KO, presumably for a 30 minute introduction programme.

There will no broadcast on TrueSports normal sports channels, only the HD broadcast on channel 111. All broadcasts are on free to air Thai TV channels as shown (Thai commentary only). According to another thread on the subject, BBC radio does not have the right to broacast commentary over the internet outside of the UK. English commentary for matches broadcast on Channel 3 is promised for 105.5 FM but whether this will be synchronised with the TV picture is anyone's guess. I really wish that they would give the option of crowd noise only on the English soundtrack instead of making everyone listen to the Thai commentary or watch in silence.

Thanks a million delboy. Was looking for something like this!

I bought a Samsung 42" plasma 1.5 years ago and it has failed. Very disappointing TBH, we got a call from the service center and they said the cost to repair is 13000 Baht. Samsung is off my list of future purchases.

Do you have any idea of exactly what has failed?

No sorry I don't my wife didn't ask. The problem with it is that after a while the screen goes black even though the sound is fine. We decided not to have it repaired as it doesn't happen too often. When it does happen I simply turn off the set and turn it back on and it is fine again. The price of the flat screens keeps dropping so I don't think its worth repairing.

Update: We received the TV back from Samsung and it doesn't work now. Should have known that would happen, the repair depot said it was like that when they received it. Yeah right even the dealer thinks that they took it apart to check it and when we said not to fix it they didn't put it back correctly. He gave us the number to some manager which was a waste of time. Oh well I will not purchase Samsung anymore, no point arguing with people who don't give a dam_n.

Seems ro happen a lot according to AVForums (albeit WRT Pana black level issues and repairs).

I'm sure you can have the panel replaced somehow.

Thanks for that but I'll perhaps qualify my request. I don't want to open a new bank account, either in the UK or overseas. I'm just wondering whether some of the FX places, either online or not can do a transaction which beats the SWIFT rates when you factor in the charges. That would be conversion at the UK end but the impact of the fees on small transfers does make quite a difference to the effective rate received.

Have you looked at Moneybookers?

The specs on that LG TV he is referring to is pretty poor. The image quality is noisy and it only supports up to 720p rather than the current standard of 1080p. If you want to buy a TV don't waste your time on that one, there are better options for smaller but Far better sets out there.

Which ones?

I went to the PowerBuy Expo at Queen Sirikit. There weren't any mindblowing deals going.

I saw the TV I want though - Panasonic P42V20. But it's 50K, so not gonna happen. I can't justify it.

After briefly toying with the idea of dropping down to 32inch and getting something top-of-the-line there I'm

now tempted to come 360 and look at the cheapo LGs with a view to simply drop it in a years time.

Design wise I think the Samsung LEDs look stunning and something about the Philips build quality also appeals.

But ultimately I'll get satisfaction knowing and seeing that I got the best panel for my money.

But it seems there are always trade offs no matter what route you take.

Does any know the ACTUAL cost diff between a plasma and an LCD in terms of power consumption?