Shenanigans

There is a sticky thread on this forum listing all the gear you're ever going to need. :) [url]http://forum.dogomania.com/viewtopic.php?t=13813[/url] Congrats on the new puppy. :)

I don't know if it's something in the air, but my two dogs just blew coat as if it was the last time they were ever going to shed. Banzai was particularly bad, as he was shedding over the course of a month. I just got the remainder of the hair removed this week. What I use for my guys is cold pressed flax seed oil. You should be able to find it in a Dominion or a health food store. It will be in the fridge, a tbsp of that a day helps to keep the coat in nice shape. I usually give ground flax seeds to my dogs per day, in addition to 400IU each of vitamin E and if it's really dry in the winter, I also give some salmon oil.

[quote]Also peddler of the notion that showing a dog a doll will test whether the dog is child aggressive... [/quote] In that case, both of my dogs should be child killers. You should see what they do to dolls. In fact just last night, as Shenanigans was cuddling neighbourhood kids, he saw a little girl's doll and I had to make sure he didn't gut it. The children escaped happy and slightly slimey.

[quote]Did Gander the Newfoundland storm an enemy bunker on D-Day? I think i read about a dog doing that somewhere![/quote] I don't think so, if I can recall D Day was launched for Normandy, whereas Gander was fighting the Japanese.

Gander the Newfoundland. A very brave dog who met a sad end in WWII. I was at a couple of ceremonies where they honoured this dog in 2000. [url]http://www.cdli.ca/CITE/newfoundland_gander_hero.htm[/url]

Wow, all I can say is that I'm sorry for your very difficult situation. I do know of many Rottweiler breeders and enthusiasts who have had to make a similar choice when they've had dogs who have not gotten along, like GSDs, who they like seems to be very dependant on their personalities and since they are large powerful dogs, when they don't like another dog, it poses a serious risk. In the end though, your child's well being *is* the most important and I think everyone might benefit from placing Patti in a loving experienced home. It would decrease on tensions with the dogs and your family. I wish you the best of luck.

[quote]You may consider them dangerous wild animals, but maybe to someone who owns a Tiger, they are more like just an 800 lb kitty cat. I wish that there was a Big Cat owner here who could enlighten us as to why they would want to keep one, but there isn't. I never bothered to ask my friend why he wanted a pet lion and tiger, I assume it's because he loves being around them, and he wanted to know what it was like to live with one. [/quote] I asked a similar question, and I think the answer to this question is fairly important. It's not that *I* consider them wild animals, they *are* wild animals. I bottle fed my GSD, I considered him a cute puppy dog, and baby him still, but he's a 120lb dog who could be trained, who is part of a lineage that has been sitting by the fireside for thousands of years. Tigers have not had this history. They have been removed from the wild for how many generations? Even if I'm generous and say ten, that's very little time to transform them into big kitty cats. And why someone would want to remove the majesty of a super predatory cat to make it their personal kitty cat is motive enough for me to suspect that their wishes are not in the best interest of the animal, but rather for themselves. If all the people who are "practicing" tiger conservation through zoos, private breeding programs, pets were to concentrate their efforts into wildlife protection, habitat protection, I believe changes could be made to keep these animals safely in the wild.

One thing I've learned about Newfoundlands is that, like cats who are quick to find the warmest spot in the house, Newfoundlands find the coldest when they're warm. According to Shenanigans anything more than -10 degrees is too warm. Well...I'm exagerrating a little. Aside from a day or two here, it's been a VERY cool summer here in Toronto, which is nice in a way because I can actually bring Shenanigans outside to enjoy it with him. Usually he'd just opt to sleep on an A/C vent (I have central).

Our GSD was originally bought for companionship. It seemed a natural progression from Shelties and Border Collies. We wanted a larger dog, and so we went with one of the largest herding breeds out there. We felt that we had enough experience with squirrilly dogs, yet we were pretty unprepared for a GSD in retrospect. A lot of the great things about our GSD was purely luck on our part. However having Banzai has fostered a great love of the breed and involvement in breed activities. As for Newfoundlands, I've always loved them. I guess it stemmed from a Newfoundland in our area named Murphy. He was always the dignified gentle giant who carried himself so masterfully. Though he'd never turn a hug down from us kids. I've wanted a Newfoundland for about ten years and about five years ago fulfilled that desire with my nutty guy who couldn't be dignified to save his life. Nevertheless, he is extremely sweet, good natured and always wears a smile and will always stop to be hugged by neighbourhood kids. How can that personality not grow on you? I don't know if I will have another GSD after Banzai is gone (50 years from now *G*) but I think we'll definitely have another Newf, Shenanigans alone has definitely illustrated to me, why this breed's reputation for being excellent with children is well deserved. And since we plan on having kids in the near future, I think the Newfoundland is a perfect choice.

[quote]Since you seem to think that no Big Cat owner, no matter how well they care for their cat, is irresponsible, than do you or do you not think that sanctuaries are also irresponsible in their ‘ownership’ of the Big Cats they care for? I have seen owners who take care of their cats as good as, or even better than, some sanctuaries. Would your opinion be any different if the owner in question had rescued his/her Big Cat, as opposed to buying it from a breeder? [/quote] The difference being that sanctuaries keep large cats not because of a choice, but because they see a huge need for fthese animals who otherwise would be destroyed by people who made a choice to get them and then realised that taking care of a 500lb wild animal is not an easy task and made a choice to get rid of them. Like rescues, I'm willing to bet that sanctuaries wish every night before they go to bed that they didn't have to exist. Why does a person have to keep a very large and very risky *wild* animal as a pet? I guess that's the question. I can't for the life of me think of any good reasons.

I'm very sorry about Apollo, I wish I had an ideal or something more comforting to say. You are all in my thoughts. :(

A GSD is not a breed I would recommend keeping outdoors. You want this dog to bond with you, and it takes time for dogs to do so. Once they do bond with their people, they want to be near them, even if on their own terms, but to be physically seperated, is often inviting problems. Such as barking, digging, guarding, jumping, aggression. This breed has a very high incidence of seperation anxiety, so I would definitely say house dog and with crate training. GSDs can jump extremely high. I was working with a GSD a few years ago, she was all about 50lbs, but managed to scale an 8ft fence easily. A GSD will bark and do more if necessary. Usually their mere presence is enough to scare most intruders away. I never recommend guardian training for a pet dog. The breed by it's nature is protective, but you should encourage it to also be social, gentle, well adjusted and friendly. They are intelligent enough to know the difference between friend and foe if properly bred and trained. My GSD is a therapy dog, he is out and about and always has been since we've gotten him. He is quite friendly, and very well socialised. However, I have no doubts that he will protect our home if need be. However he is a pet first and foremost and his primary responsibility is to shed, keep the Newf in line and keep my bed warm in the winter. $800.00 is usually the starting price for a responsibly bred GSD. But it's a tiny fraction of the cost of maintaining a GSD for the first two years of it's life. They are considered large breed, and large breeds carry large bills. So you need to be prepared to pay a lot more than $800.00. Honestly, I have to agree with Majie's mom in what you have given us, you don't seem like a good candidate for a GSD. I suggest you join a GSD email list for a few months to really understand what this breed is about. They require a very patient owner who is quick on their feet and willing to work on numerous solutions to counter a very smart dog. They love their people, but you also have to be prepared to establish a pecking order with many GSDs which can be a daunting task. They are notoriously naughty teenagers, and they have TONNES of energy. You have to be prepared to exercise a young GSD for hours to try and burn off some of that energy or they'll bounce off the walls. I've had GSDs for 10 years, I've fostered quite a few, trained several for different purposes and share my home with one senior GSD who can still run for hours. I love them immensely, and yet the prospect of going through the puppyhood of another GSD is enough to exhaust me just thinking about it.

I can't believe that a parent would tell their kid that they could have a tiger so long as they can raise the money. I can't believe that a tiger sells for less than a Newfoundland (an animal that has been domesticated for the past 500 some odd years and is specifically bred to be docile and gentle with kids!). I guess it's too early for me to have my cynicism-o-meter on. What part of *really big cat, can see human as prey* escape these people. Considering that my dogs after thousands of years of domestication still retain many if not most instincts from their wolf ancestors, including the thrill of the chase and hunt (albeit in different forms) no one is going to convince me that a tiger even bred 5-10 generations in capitivity is going to have a far lessened effect (to the extent that they are safe roaming outside their enclosure around people) of that instinct.

[quote]No, what I see she writes is how horribly irresponsible many of the owners and breeders of Pit Bulls are. I don't think she slurs dogs and their owners as much as she really hits home with some of her comments and that makes people uncomfortable. Carla[/quote] Yet she refused to discuss any OTHER ways to solve the problems of irresponsible ownership. What makes me uncomfortable is someone who so deeply believes that their way is the only right way to address a problem.

The cat reminds me of my beloved Fluffy, my childhood pet. Although she was only about 10lbs. And shame on you for tempting me with ultra cute Staffie pictures, I almost lost my resolve for keeping lazy dogs. ;)

To me, intelligence of a dog is measured by their ability to adapt to a surrounding and act accordingly, whether they are trained or just learn on their own. So a dog capable of opening doors to get somewhere to me is very intelligent. Or conversely a dog who is capable of excelling at many activities as opposed to just herding or waterwork. All of this still is based on good breeding and training to ensure that the dog is confident enough to adapt to new tasks. Actually the smartest dogs I have worked with is my GSD who is too smart for his own good. We have a lock on the refrigerator and cabinets because of him. He has also been very versatile in his work and has titles to prove it. I only wish he were able to get titles in sports that only allow certain breeds. For example, I think he would get his title for water rescue dog far faster than my Newfoundland. But I can also recognise the value of a dog specifically bred to do one thing. If I want a dog to guard my flocks, you better believe I'm getting an LGD bred from a long line of working LGDs or if I want a hunting retriever, I'll go straight to the source.

[quote]Guys...Please don't feed the Trolls!!! I know it's hard but feeding them will only make them come back.[/quote] Oh boy is it ever hard, especially when the trolls ask such stupid questions, making it extremely transparent just how little experience they have with dogs. And that's all I'm going to say, because I'm going to sit on my hands now.

I used to pretend I was an Ewok. LOL

This is a very ridiculous story, enough to get the blood warmed up in the morning. Basically the University of New Brunswick is denying a blind man entry to their English Immersion course because his guide dog responds to French commands. The guy will use english at every possible moment, however it will take 8 weeks to retrain the dog with the english commands, and the guy understandably is probably a bit nervous on this one. What a horrible abuse of the university's power. [url]http://www.cbc.ca/stories/2004/07/06/canada/guidedog_040706[/url]

I'm Canadian, so I use duct tape. Wrap it around your hand and presto boom, it's gone. There's no problem in the world that duct tape can't solve. ;)

There's the same sort of precautions with dremels, usually you'll start hitting a whole bunch of whitish junk before getting too close to the quick. Often the quick will recede the closer you get to it when trimming, but this is a process that takes a few weeks. Also with dremels, you have to watch and make sure that the nail doesn't get too hot. And at all costs, never get the dog's hair trapped in the dremel, it hurts like h*ll. If necessary, push your dog's nails through an old nylon so that the hair and nails are seperated.

I don't think so. Though I have seen such pale yellows, they could easily pass for a white-goldy type colour. I don't know if that is allowed, if the yellow has to be a certain shade. I've also see such pale goldens to pass for the same colour.

Many thanks! Thank you to everyone who helped to make Banzai's day even more special. As wonderful it is to spend the day with extra special time with him, it also feels important to me to share with my friends how great he has made our lives. Thank you for letting me do that and wishing Banz a happy 10th. :)

Today is a special day, we're celebrating a milestone birthday for our German Shepherd Dog Banzai. He was born 10 years ago today one of 14 puppies in a very healthy litter. We met Banzai about a week later when myself, Chris and his brother Glenn went into the little home on a lovely summer day. The puppies eyes were just opening and mother was very protective. She focused on Glenn who physically looks like an officer and she being a working dog zeroed in on him. She sat in front of him the whole time we talked to the breeder. We were assured that Banzai's parents had great hips and decent temperaments, yet as prepared as we were, we had little ideal of what we were getting ourselves into. Banzai's breeder was hoping for some experienced people to help him raise a couple of puppies as mom was frazzled and we agreed to take Banzai early and handraise him with the help of one of our Shelties who just raised a litter of puppies. So the next week we came back and collected our little bundle who was just crawling around. We brought him home on a birthday date of a friend, where the Sheltie we were hoping to have a hand in raising him, dropped a toy on Banzai's tiny head, as to inform us that she was DONE raising puppies. So myself, my mother and Chris took over and me and Chris attempted to give Banzai some formula, Banzai recoiled in horror once he tasted it, and made an ugly face. He soon discovered the joys of honey added to his formula and gulped down bottles of it at feeding time. He was carried around for the next 5 weeks of his life, meeting people, digging holes and eating dirt. Once he hit eight weeks, he felt it was time to walk, however would always sleep on my arm coming home from the park. He would try to chase me and couldn't keep up. Everyone remarked that he was going to be an exceptionally large dog as his puppy paws were huge as was the bone in his chest. They all remarked that his ears were up at 7 weeks and never once fell down. Which is more than I can say for a very clumsy GSD puppy. As his size grew, so did his personality, Banzai was not the model puppy. He fell asleep and snored in obedience classes, he harassed the Shelties and cats, he was consistently nipping and challenging authority, he'd bark non-stop and promptly make messes after he finished his business outside. He ate walls, books, shoes, chewed on the furniture and was not a happy dog with the vet. At about 7 months Banzai was neutered and the next time he went to the vet, he had to be carried in. Thankfully it was just a VERY long phase and about the time he hit 18 months, we got to see the real Banzai. He had an affinity for children, puppies and kittens, though he has never really liked cats. He is always gentle with small dogs, and in fact won the honourary title of Small Dog at our local dog park as he would ensure that any bigger dog was gentle with his friends. He however was allowed to pull on the fluffy tails of some small breeds. Everyone has always remarked what a gentle GSD he has been, he has never attacked another dog, in fact, he brought several small dogs who have been attacked by GSDs around. At two years he was no longer the puppy who I could outrun, Chris would have to pedal for dear life on his bicycle to avoid Banzai closing in to knock him off and shower him with affection. Banzai's favourite person in the world is Chris. He worships the group Chris walks on. At the same time he will also stop at nothing to trip Chris in a game of soccer only to steal the ball. Chris and Banzai have always been close, Chris would play with Banzai as a puppy, letting Banzai chew on his feet, he would also walk Banzai singing his Banzilla song, and sing Banzai to sleep. Chris taught Banzai to swim and jump and catch. They've both been two peas in a pod since the day Banzai was brought home and that is still evident as to how agitated Banzai gets each night about 10 minutes before Chris arrives home. Banzai has also been a crafty dog. He is a legendary cheater at any games we play, and knows how to open closets and refrigerators, he has yet to learn how to drive and that is probably the best for the human race. He also has a bit of cat in him despite the fact that he loathes most felines. He's not a super cuddly dog and you'll hear him moan or groan if we hug him too much. He is also quite aloof with adult admirers at the park. He KNOWS they are looking at him and he puts on an extra air of snobbery and avoids being petted. Banzai true to his breed is also a protector. He is the first to herd back wayward puppies or children, he gets very upset at the sound of a dog hurting or a child crying. He has protected me from a stalker, and everyday lets the mail know that it's not welcome, he's especially good at eating bills. Banzai has always been a patient dog with puppies and he has displayed that patience to no end when we brought home Shenanigans. A very rambunctious pup who was always pushing the boundaries. He has been scolded several times by Banzai and even nailed once on the nose for trying to steal some food, but in the end, Banzai adores Shenanigans and will come to his defense anytime a dog is picking on his "little brother". Banzai thankfully is blessed with good health, he has given us a few scares with various lumps and bumps, one of them being malignant, however at ten, he still outlasts most dogs when it comes to playtime and exercise time. Most people cannot believe he is ten, aside from his grey face and ears, he doesn't show a trace of stiffness, however he is working on the "old fart" angle to get more time on our bed (something he never did til last year) and more food. He has also developed selective hearing. We were initially worried that his hearing was starting to go, only to learn that he was pulling a fast one on us as he could hear a candy cane being unwrapped in the middle of a thunderstorm, but couldn't hear us tell him to come on the leash in the yard. I feel honoured to have spent 10 years with this dog. He's taught me so much about dog training. He's prompted me to do endless amounts of research, start dog organisations, meet new friends, and ultimate be a stellar example of the breed. Courageous, loyal, gentle, intensely smart and athletic, good sense of humour, versatile and just a presence where I can feel safe whenever I put my head down to sleep, whether I'm in the city, in the suburbs or in bear country. He has been the ultimate German Shepherd, I doubt any others could live in his shadow Happy birthday Banziboobooman (mommy's name for him...which he hates! lol)

Banzai was a destroyer extreme as a youth. One night I had to be rushed to the hospital and he wasn't put in the crate. So in about 12 hours time, he destroyed two couches and a loveseat. He managed to move them halfway across the room, and believe me, they weren't small. Countless books, papers, shoes, a futon, a chair, hockey card collection, ate some hair, learned how to open the fridge and ate the contents of that, tried to eat a couple of cats, a blanket, my homework, a bottle of Tums, some My Little Ponies (I collect them grrrr) and a few boxes. GSD youth typically are great at destroying things and going through severe enough seperation anxiety that would make even the worse PMS look like hiccup! Shenanigans in contrast was a good pup. The only thing he did of serious consequence is that he dug a hole in the drywall in two rooms. One has since been patched and painted over. I have to do the next one after I strip the wallpaper from it. Shenanigans has always preferred to eat tissues as his troublemaking item.