Carolk9s

I'm so sorry Koolie, my heart goes out to you.

Poofy said: [quote]A dog does not HAVE to be two years old to breed.[/quote] Poofy please do your homework before throwing out such statements. In dogs that are screened for hip dysplasia, they WILL NOT be OFA'd until they are at least 2 years old. Perhaps is some breeds starting them earlier is not as much a factor as in other but many dogs do not fully mature physically and mentally until they are about 2.

Any progress on the stair issue with Duck? Are there any stairsteps you encounter when you are walking her outside? Will she go up or down them? If she still will not go up the steps, try her at just the top two. What really turns her on? A food treat? A toy? Perhaps if you stop a couple of steps from the top, set her down, then go up yourself and play with the toy or toss the food in your hand a bit. Inquiring minds want to know... 8)

Well Lance, here's hoping your subject line is not what your truly looking for. BTW, I don't live in NC. Do you want help training your own dog? Do you want to train other dogs? If you are indeed wanting to get involved with training dogs to attack, can't and would not choose to help you there. There enough idiots in the world already taking perfectly good dogs and turning them into creatures that cannot be trusted around the general population. Lots of these dogs live very restricted lives on the end of a chain or locked in a junkyard. So tell us what is it you REALLY want?

Working the obedience into playtime is excellent. I'd certainly continue that. In addition, perhaps yelling OW very loudly if he so much as touches you with his teeth or even appears to be headed that way might help. And of course playtime is OVER. Do you have an outdoor pen? Or a crate? If playing outside, he chomps or even touches your skin with his teeth, you can VERY CALMLY put him in his pen or if inside, put him in the crate. No fuss, no muss, just 'oh my you bit me now in ya go' in a neutral tone. I know that crates should not be used for actual punishment, that is why you do not want to fuss at him, be neutral or even upbeat about it. Still means playtime is over if he nips or bites. If possible, involve the kids in the obedience work. With you by their side, teach them to ask him to sit for attention, treats, playtime, etc. Help him to understand that EVERYONE in the house outranks him. Best of luck, I think he is lucky to have 'found' you.

This makes me sick! Another dog headed for death or perhaps a brutal new home due to aggression issues that have been building for some time and no one has done one damn thing to try and find the actual problem. Sorry Shara, if your parents are not interested in saving Hazel's life or a life of who knows what, then the safest thing to do is have her put to sleep humanely. There are people who will smile to your face and say 'don't worry little girl, I'll take care of her and the aggression doesn't worry me a bit'. Then they will try to beat it out of her. Maybe she'll end up on a chain somewhere lucky to get fed and watered now and then. Sounds horrible doesn't it? VERY real possibility. Maybe it's time YOU pitched a royal fit about your dog. It is just HER life that is in the balance. Newfiemom and I have both encouraged you to get her thyroid tested. I realize you are young but perhaps you should wait til you are in a position to financially care for a dog on your own before getting another one. I have to add, I found your reference to getting a new dog just a bit too glib under the circumstances. What happens if the next dog needs vet care that your parents don't want to bother with? Dogs don't come with a warranty of perfection. If anyone thinks I am being too harsh, I do apologize, I am really steamed about this as it happens every damn day to dogs.

Aroura, Sorry to hear of the continued worries with Lily. I agree that desexing her is a sensible thing to do. I would caution you though to tread VERY carefully about calling the breeder to report a 'bad bloodline'. You want this person to help you and be a resource to you, might have some trouble with that if you call her up and tell her she's got temperament issues in her bloodlines. You need to ASK questions and explain the troubles you are having. You do not need to TELL her that the problem is in her bloodlines. Not saying that is isn't but that may well turn her off completely on you and limit the cooperation you get with assistance. It may not have much to do with Lily's breeding, there have been numerous issues within her environment that may have brought this on. Her feelings of insecurity and the upheavals shes' gone through I'm sure have played a major role in her emotional and mental development.

Jesse aka UAGII C'est Si Bon Rolling Thunder, CD, CGC, OA, NAJ, HIT He is a Belgian Sheepdog aka a Belgian Shepherd Dog, Groenendal variety. Jesse is an 11 year old neutered male. [img]http://members.toast.net/agilk9s/Jesse_ribbons3_260x390.JPG[/img] Brittany aka UAGII Rescue Me Brittany, CGC + 2/3 of her CD She is a mix of German Shorthaired Pointer and Australian Shepherd. She is spayed and will be 9 years old on Jan. 29th 2003 [img]http://members.toast.net/agilk9s/Brittany2001.JPG[/img] Candy, aka UAGII Rescue's Call Me Candy She is (best guess) a lab/terrier mix. She is 2.5 years old (again best guess) Spayed [img]http://members.toast.net/agilk9s/Candy_Stride_300x199.JPG[/img]

And I have been know to gnaw on bones from time to time! :lol: Better clarify that, steak bones, baby back rib bones, but ya'll knew that right?

In a previous post, mention was made of how some say 'treat a dog like a dog not a person'. I agree with Mei-Mei that sometimes this is just an excuse to treat dogs inhumanely or like objects. The following is not AT ALL intended to disagree with those who are offended by the saying. I feel that in certain respects we should treat dogs like dogs and let dogs be dogs. They are NOT people in fur coats, they do not think like we do, they do not react like we do, they don't see the world like we do. In many ways they are better off because of that as well! Now when I say 'treat a dog like a dog', I am meaning don't expect a dog to understand like a person would. It gets my dander up to hear someone say, it's JUST a dog then turn right around and say, dang dog KNOWS he/she is not allowed to wear blues shoes on Monday! Yeah, a little exaggeration but I hope my meaning came through. He's JUST a dog but he's supposed to have this great understanding of our expectations, especially when 'I just don't have time for training a dog, but he KNOWS when he's in trouble'. sigh.... Now you would not (I hope) let your human children run around sniffing others butts or let them poop in the park or hump other kids. Because people are not supposed to do that! However these are natural things in a dogs world so while we might roll our eyes and call our dog away if their getting TOO personal most of us understand that a dog has to do what a dog has to do. Without being a total nuisance of course. I have a lot of faith in my dogs off leash training and reliability BUT I also know that every now and again, they are gonna act like dogs. That means if they see another dog or heaven help me a rabbit or squirrel, chances are they are gonna take off like a shot. Knowing that, off leash fun is limited, very limited. I cannot expect them to understand that dashing off like that and perhaps zipping across the road could very well be deadly to them. Also as Mei-Mei said in another post, most of us do not treat them like people, the dog might sleep on the floor and chew on bones. Then again some of my brothers drinking buddies of the past..well nevermind. My dogs sleep on the couch, the bed, on me AND on the floor now and then.

I'm angered to hear of those horses being starved and mistreated, here's hoping both people get the book thrown at them. Regarding 'treating dogs like dogs', I DO understand where you are both coming from as often this, like Mei-Mei said, is an excuse to treat them inhumanely. I started a new thread regarding 'treating dogs like dogs' if anyones interested.

Very cute, gave me goose bumps!

Deep being the big strong physical guy that he is, perhaps he should think about getting a bear? 8) So who do you think would win? I'm just kidding folks. Really.

It is not up to you to moralize who should or should not be 'on the road' at 2am. As long as they are not trespassing on your property, they can be on the road whenever they want unless a town curfew is in effect. Sounds like your dog has some fear aggression issues. She might feel uncertain as to what her role is. The cringing and submissive peeing are indications of a concern with discipline. Does she expect to be corrected? Swatted? Scruff shook? I am NOT saying one should NEVER physically discipline their dog, I would be a hypocrite if I did. I have IN THE PAST swatted my dogs but a couple of years ago I decided I needed to stop that entirely. If I had kids, they too would get the occaisional swat on the rear but thats a different story. Now most dogs will alarm bark, that is part of the reason I do not believe dogs should be outside all night long. They are out there alone, might feel uneasy about strangers in the vicinity, and feel they need to bark, growl or chase. She should be inside with you. A simple sign on a porch rail, stuck in the yard, etc saying somthing like DOG ON PREMISES will get the message out that she's there without her having to bark and growl at people. Instead of disciplining her when she barks at someone, be ready for it to happen and work on distracting her with a toy or treats. You need to be able to communicate to her that YOU are in charge in a nonthreatening way. You might be able to teach her to ignore passersby by focusing her attention on you instead of the others. YOU need to be more interesting than they are. Interesting in a fun or rewarding way. It may take some time to retrain her, you must stick with it and perhaps get creative. It is also up to YOU to protect her. While many of us count on our dogs for some level of protection or security, dogs also must feel that we as their humans are ultimately in charge and can handle what comes at us. As was said before, if she continues to annoy people who are simply going about THEIR business, one might take exception to her to the point of retaliation, dog food laced with antifreeze in a bag was listed as a possibility. That has and could happen. If any of these people you consider to be 'unsavory' really are, they may well decide to take matters into their own hands to 'get rid' of the neighborhood nuisance dog.

[quote]I should say that the barking doesn't bother me, we live next to a trailer court and some not so savery people live there.[/quote] Oh and these not so savery (sic) people deserve to be barked at? Gee, if they are not so SAVORY, they might decide your barking dog needs to go. Or retaliate.

I'm very sorry to hear this about your dog Kewl.

Sending my heartfelt best wishes to Guy and his loving humans. Hope he will be ok and you will get through this without crashing yourself due to the worry. Hang on little Guy, lots of love coming your way.

This info was of interest to me as I've been hearing more and more that supports NOT dosing dogs annually with vaccinations. Jesse BSD got his last 'cocktail' 2 years ago and probably will not ever get another. I talked with my vet and she suggested I might want to have titers run next year but she agrees that he is probably covered for the rest of his life. Brittany will be 9 next month, she too will at MINIMUM skip a couple of years then I'll do titers. Now to weigh the decision on Candy, she is about 2.5. Perhaps I'll have titers run for Candy next year. My dogs are exposed to a lot of other dogs at the park. Granted most people who care enough about their dogs to bring them out for play and socializing with other dogs will care enough to have them vaccinated but one never knows for sure.

[quote name='Kiwi']LOL thats amazing :lol: I'm very impressed, can you train mine as well? :wink:[/quote] NO KIWI! NO NO! BAD IDEA! TRUST ME! I can just seeing coming home from a hard day at work to a porch FULL of dog food, dog toys, dog treats, dog STUFF! Jesse would probably find and order that blow up bitch for his own private fun.

Er ok ladies Roo and K, just what do you have WITH your tea? :drinking: :drinking: :drinking: :lol: :lol:

I finally got around to visiting the Richmond SPCA in their new building. It is awesome! Clean and bright and huge! I visited the dogs and the cats, you can go in a room with several cats just lounging about. They have nooks and crannys to sleep in, toys to play with, several litter boxes, even a chest of drawers lined with carpeting to tuck into. The dogs are in runs that are oh about 20 times the size of the cages they were in at the previous location. They have 'living rooms' where you can take an indivual dog to visit. Upstairs is the indoor walking track and a huge agility area. You know I was drooling up there. I am thinking it is time to volunteer again, one who was there showed me how they can take the dogs out for walks, you don't have to dodge buckets and mops and who knows what all while trying to control a dog intent on getting outside as quickly as possible. And I have to include a photo of Olaf, he is such a cutie! Skinny body but they are working on that. The #1 grocery store in Richmond, Ukrops, has partnered with the SPCA to provide ALL food, litter, and treats. During the month of October, Ukrops matched every bag/box/package of its pet food and cat litter line that a customer bought for the SPCA. The initial donation was nearly 19,000 lbs of pet food and kitty litter. Oh and the dogs are learning manners as part of the routine, I got a cookie from the volunteer and got 4 dogs to sit for me so I could slip a bit of cookie to them. Of course I had to shop at their new store and make a little donation while I was there. Here is a photo of Olaf from their website which is [url]http://www.richmondspca.org/[/url] [img]http://www.richmondspca.org/adopt/olafc.JPG[/img]

[quote]I do not make my own Icetea as there is a brand here ready made it is very nice called "Liptons Ice Tea with Lemon" and pop a couple of ice cubes in it and you are good to go[/quote] EEWW! Yuck! 8) Actually I used to like that too but now it's too sugary for me. Does it come in a can and/or plastic bottle like here? Maybe I've just never had GOOD brewed hot tea huh? BTW, glad to hear that Bobbi is feeling better.

[quote name='K']It's just the rules Kiger [u][size=6][color=red]THE RULES!!!!![/color][/size][/u][/quote] Honey, hot water is hot water! 8) Just kidding! Don't throw the teapot at me! :D Actually I've never cared for hot tea unless I'm really sick and stuffy headed. Now iced tea, yeah! For that I do boil water on the stove, steep tea bags etc etc.

I'm with K and Mei-Mei, there is a huge amount to learn BEFORE you get your dane. Regarding the ears, I know you did not ask for opinions but I gotta give mine anyway! I will say right off, I am rabid-foaming-at-the-mouth against ear cropping. Hey if anyone wants to chop off 1/2 their OWN ears to have a certain look, I'll support your right to do so! Then when your ears hurt and itch I'll say I'm sorry for your pain but it was your choice right? Dogs don't care how they look in regards to their ears. It's all about what WE want and what WE choose to do to them. Please do give some thought to leaving your dogs ears natural. Remember, this is something we do TO them, not FOR them. While there are many who say the surgery is not that painful and the healing is not that bad, and they may be right, I just cannot abide causing ANY unnecessary pain to those that will be our loving faithful companions to the end. If you absolutely MUST do this, like Mei-Mei said, have it done by a professional who has done this many many times before and will discuss in great length the surgery, post-op care, worriesome signs to be on the lookout for, etc.

I'm surprised Petsmart employees even got involved at that level. The adoption org? Yes. That sort of attitude is far from limited to Petsmart or other adoption orgs. My dr. has a young male golden retriever. Pure and pedigreed and not neutered (last I heard). He and his wife wanted to adopt a mixed female that was ALREADY spayed. He was turned down because his dog was still intact. I DO believe that is rather shortsighted and don't really understand the reasoning. He and his wife had previously had two border collies that died of old age fairly close together. So should he lie if they try again to adopt? I would absolutely understand if the female was not yet spayed but that was not the case. I would imagine that when I adopted Brittany from AARF their contract asked about other animals too. No business is perfect, Petsmart does a lot of good in the community as well, hosting the adoption stands, having the vetsmart clinics that offer lower cost vaccinations, etc.