tdierikx

Given that it took the bitch 15 hours to give birth to 7 pups, 4 of whom were stillborn, some malformed, and others displaying discolouration of gums and tongue - I would have thought that the owner of the bitch would have been banging on the doors of the vet clinic at the first possible chance - with mum and pups in tow for a complete and thorough checkup (including the dead ones). Regardless of the outcome, if the bitch was mine, I'd not breed her again. Oh - and for the record - I've lived rural (and even remote), and always managed to get an animal prompt vet attention when required... T.

Not wanting to cast aspersions here, but years ago when my crossbreed bitch was due to whelp, I had ALL of my local vet staff's home phone numbers in case we needed help... and ALL of them wanted to be called if needed... She gave birth to 9 big, fat, healthy pups between 7pm and 1am - and we had them all down to the vet at 8:30am the next morning for a post whelp checkup... and so all the vet staff could coo over them... *grin* Personally, I'd be very leery of a vet who didn't want to see a dog (and pups) immediately when there were still births and an exceptionally long whelp - which I would have thought 9 hours for 7 pups was... especally when 4 were under formed and still born. We have vets on call for our rescues if they come to us in pup... I don't understand why an ethical registered breeder wouldn't have planned for all possibilities, rather than coming onto an internet forum and asking for advice. T.

Katdogs - your tribute to Maggot is spot on... he was an awesome little guy, and your love and care gave him what was probably the best 2 years of his entire life. Vale my little Mate - you will live long in my memories. T.

This is what my Lab girl did to my Rotti/Pittie cross girl... it took 3 policemen, 2.5 cans of capsicum spray, boots and batons, to try to get her to stop the attack. Nothing worked, and it was only when both dogs were exhausted that they stopped the fight. The policemen had their guns out by the end of the fight, and would have had to shoot my Lab if she had kept it up. Needless to say, they never run together any more. Funnily enough, my Lab is perfectly well behaved when out in public, and is very tolerant of rude dogs - however, now I know exactly what she's capable of if she gets it into her mind to retaliate, I'm a lot more watchful when she's out and about, and we no longer go to crowded dog parks... just in case... T.

I just leave my back door open... my dogs then come and go as they please without having to wake me... *grin* Note: I have 3 large dogs who are quite alert and would scare the pants off any intending intruder... T.

Does nothing to stop the "legal" puppy farms though, does it? Those really large commercial enterprises that seem to be thriving no matter what... T.

Well - that's one way to "win" the "right" to use your photos.... *sigh* Not the first time these tactics have been used to intimidate and trade off other people's good name. Is there any actual limit to the number of businesses or names one individal or group can register with Fair Trading? There must be dozens listed under that person's name by now... T.

I have no qualms about recommending euthanasia for dogs with unfixable issues... and have held some while they have been given their wings. It is never easy to have to make the decision to euthanaise - but in some cases, it's the only responsible thing to do. We tend to keep our rescues for longer than most - precisely for the reason that we can know as much about the dogs as possible before finding them a home. What is the point of rehoming a dog if it's only going to bounce back to you or the pound? Rescue is about how well we can rehome... not how many... IMHO... T.

Fairford Rd Vet Clinic is also the Canterbury pound... they may have some cats or dogs you could chip for them... If you supply your own chips, some places are more amenable to helping you out. Belmore Vet clinic on Kingsgrove Rd are also a pound. T.

Could it be possible that you are both allergic to the same thing, and it's not your pup that you are actually allergic to? Just seems funny that you are both showing signs of an allergy... T.

Be careful with anything with tea tree oil in it - make sure it's VERY dilute... T.

I have always just shaved the spot and applied some Neocort for the first attack - and if it doesn't look happier in 24 hours, then I whack on the antiseptic powder to dry it up faster. Growing the hair back was the slowest part of the whole process. T.

Well, I think we may have a "happy ever after" to this story... *grin* One happy family went home today with a puppy that ticked all the boxes for all members. Falgall/Karen, your brother and his family are lovely people, and we are so glad that we could assist them in their search for their 4-legged new family member. T.

He certainly is a handsome lad... and looks like he knows it too... lol! T.

I dont "harass" the clientele... just offer them better options at better prices... *grin* I don't get loud or demand an audience - just attempting to change one mind at a time... the store staff don't even cotton on to what I'm doing... hehe! T.

Ziggy was probably reacting more to the "bloody bugger" voice than the action that went with it... possibly he thought that he'd done something to warrant being told off? Dogs are funny things... I have one who absolutely hates her feet being touched, but has never had an incident that we had to handle a sore foot - another sometimes acts like she's about to cop a beating, but has never been hit... dogs just are methinks... *grin* T.

My tactic with pet shops is to talk quietly to people who look like they may be going to impulse buy a "cute" pup... I tell them some stories about the dogs we've had through our rescue, then tell them that there are heaps of rescue dogs/pups available through petrescue.com.au - at a MUCH cheaper price and with all vetwork, etc, done... T.

I heard this song on the radio on my way home from work, and I burst into tears and thought of you and Atlas... The lyrics/chorus say it all better than I ever could. Run free sweet Atlas... T.

Loopy Lu and Pickles was a disaster waiting to happen - they did not like each other one bit. Pickles went into "I'm not having you here" mode and wouldn't let up. As Lu is somewhat larger and more agile than Pickles, I could see some serious injuries on both parts if allowed to run together. Seeing as I already have 2 of my own dogs separate from each other, I'm not really into having another dog here just to separate it from the pack. Lu has gone back to the rescue, and will be having some intensive one-on-one training and socialising... and I was half tempted to leave Pickles there for some training too... grrr! All is not lost though - I did bring home another foster... a 4.5 month old Lab cross who Pickles seems to think is a much better prospect... *sigh* T.

She has feet like a Roo Katdogs... T.

She seems to like being called Loopy Lu... haha! Just had her out in the yard with Zeddy. Zeddy is pretty laid back with new arrivals, has a sniff and then does her own thing. We can definitely call it a success - Lu and Zeddy shared the back yard fine while I was doing the poo patrol - and Lu even tried to initiate play with Zeddy. Pickles is going to be a different story methinks - she's a bit of a pushy bitch and thinks she is the top dog. Lu might also be a bit big to play with Pickles, who likes to play rough, but has her mobility issues to contend with. Also because she has erratic movement, it can confuse some other dogs because they have difficulty reading her body language. T.

She's a lovely girl... silly as a 2-bob watch just like any other 6 month old pup, but very smoochy with people. Very leery about other dogs in her own size range or larger. Wasn't overly fazed at any of the loose smaller dogs at the rescue - but none of them actively approached her either. She has a healing scab/scratch on her head that may have been caused by another dog? Only going by her reaction to my dogs approaching her for this supposition - she also could have got it running through a farm fence or a bush branch scratching her there. There are no other injuries fresh or old. At the moment I'm calling her Loopy Lollylegs or Loopy Lu - seriously, she has legs any dancer or runner would be proud of... lol! T.

OK - here are some pics... any guesses at breed mix? The last one is jumping up to me - I'm 5'7"-ish... and the one before that is with Lillypilly - she's about 5'3" T.

She is quite happy to be crated - settled just fine, and not a peep from her at all. I will try more introduction today and see how she goes. I really think she's had little interaction with other dogs, and once she realises mine are no threat, she may settle OK. She's really quite sweet in all other respects, but a little confused at all the changes in her short life so far. We took some pics yesterday at the rescue, and I'll post some once I've loaded them to the computer and sorted out the wheat from the chaff... T.

My fosters get fed Bonnie kibble - the same as my own dogs get. Easily swapped for Supercoat if the new owner wants to buy supermarket kibble. All fosters are crated in my bedroom at night - they settle faster that way. My own dogs sleep on my bed. Couch cuddles is a big part of my fosters' routine - but only when invited. My dogs also have their own couch - they aren't allowed on mine unless invited. Some fosters will steal your heart completely - it's not only the first one you will fall in love with and want to keep yourself. When you do find the perfect home for them though, it's all worth it. (Note: I "failed" with foster #45 - I adopted her myself... *grin*) Toilet training and basic obedience are very much appreciated by any prospective new owner - I also like to socialise my fosters with other animals and people too. I have a few friends with dog savvy cats, and they get to meet my fosters and put them into line... lol! T.