Sharna3

thank you appreciate it!

Thank you Harley - maybe its just a natural animal reaction then? Will keep an eye on her.. (on another note - what a coincidence, the pup we bought home tonight, is named Harley!!)

Really hoping someone is online who can give me their advice; We bought our new pup home tonight and introduced him to our 5yo Sibe Bitch, who promptly started drooling all over him! and she had a bit of froth at the very front of her mouth too. Is this normal or has my girl picked up something today that I should be worried about??? I am out back with her now and she has a tiny amount of drool on her chin but nothing like when she is around the pup. Help

Hi Bel, Excessive drinking in older dogs can definitely indicate issues - has she only developed this recently or is it a lifelong habit? My Rotti drank excessively (1.5-2 litres in one drink) all his life and it wasn't a health issue, but if your dog has only just started doing this I would definitely suggest a trip to the vets and they will run some tests just to put your mind at ease. In the meantime - it might be wise to watch her and make her pause for a minute or two when drinking just to ensure she doesn't get bloat , especially just after exercise :-)

Hi Costa's Mum, We're picking up our pup tomorrow and still haven't made the final decision on crate location... tossing up between our bedroom and another area of the house where we plan to have him when he is home alone. I just want to comfort him for his first couple of nights away from his litter & mum! But also know we have to get him into a routine as quickly as possible. I think we will see how he is when we get him home I think and then go from there, playing by ear is our plan. Hope you can post some pics when your pup is home :-) Sharna

"Have a look at the OP, it has directions on what the challenge entails and just pop your pics up here, easy peasy!!" thanks for that - just one thing: OP - Opening post ??

kbrown, So sorry for your loss.... you gave her a wonderful home and loved Keysh and that is amazing. I am sure she loved you and was grateful to you, you did the best for her.

Newbie here ... Is the idea just to take the pic , following the challenge topic, then just post it up on this thread? Or is there somewhere else you should post it???

That's a good idea - I do expect an adjustment period but hopefully it smooths out after a time. No, not a rotti pup, I just can't do it. Considered it as I love the breed , my rotti was just a really perfect dog for me! If I'd gone looking for a pup before he went, would have definitely gotten a rotti but as it is, I can't look at a rotti without thinking about Bastian and then its all over :-( We've decided on a Mastiff as we love big dogs.

Hi Mel, Thanks :-) I just worry - is it a bad idea to take a pup to a park??? He won't be fully vaccinated and I'd worry about parvo??

Hi All, We recently lost our male Rotti and in the last week his best friend, a 5yo husky bitch, has been fretting noticeably (we think it has finally hit her that he is really, finally gone) We made the decision to get a new puppy and he is due to come home next week. I am worried about their introduction, Jazz is a very active and full on dog with other dogs and gets along with them fine but is quite domineering in play, etc. Also, I worry that she will be a little anti-the puppy because he is not our Rotti, her best mate. Just after advice, what is the best way to introduce them? Should I sit down holding the pup and let Jazz in to sniff and get to know the pup this way? Or put the pup on the ground and let her in? I don't want my nerves to stress the dogs out and think that knowledge is the best weapon I have against nerves so any suggestions, hints, tips would be great.

Hi all, Forgive my ignorance, but what does it mean, feeding RAW? Thanks :-)

Well thought I would update, we went to the vets last night and by then my beautiful boy was pretty much not walking, not on his hind legs anyway. Vet checked his kidneys again and they have been impacted a little by the NSAIDs (he has a preexisting kidney condition). We admitted him overnight and the vet put him on a drip while they put him back on previcox to see if pain was the problem with his hips... today he is not really better and his incontinence is definitely no better. The vet thinks that there is nerve failings, this is why he is unable to control his bladder and is struggling to walk. Also thinks there is a disc protrusion in his spine. At 9 and three quarters, and with his kidneys the way they are he wouldn't cope with a spinal op, or any op. And they are hesitant to do x-rays because of his age and kidneys, the GA wouldn't be very good for him. All this aside, the fact he is struggling to walk seals it for me, poor man can't get up to even go to the toilet without a massive struggle and just looks at me patiently as I coax him along. His heart is so big he will try to please me no matter what the cost to him. And so my husband and I have made the decision that unless he improves overnight (he's at home with us), the vet will come tomorrow night and we will let him go. What a struggle, my heart is breaking, but I want to do the right thing by him, as he has been faithful and loving and loyal to me every day of his life.

YES YES YES!!! And i could guarantee at least another 5 people with Whippets that would be interested too! Where would you do it? At Cannington? Absolutely! We tried to do it with the retired racing Greyhounds that had been adopted some time ago at Cannington race track but the racing industry wouldn't be in it, they would have needed tractor driver, vet etc on course and the only day available would have been Sunday - not a problem with us being Owners but tractor driver, vet etc would want paying - and being their only day off! Unless you could find an enclosed oval somewhere that would be willing, we used to have Greyhound playgroup at the German Shepherd Assoc in Southern River they had a huge enclosed straight track the Greys could run up and down to their hearts content but then they wouldn't allow us to go there anymore. We would definately be up for it as I'm sure would other Greyhound owners, if you need a hand please let me know. Julie Yes, finding the venue will be the hard part, but now i know there are people out there who would be interested in getting involved in lure coursing, I will start poking around and see what I can come up with. Will keep you all posted thru this thread

Hi All, Wondering if there are any WA dog lovers out there who would be interested in getting involved in Lure Coursing ? I'm trying to establish a lure coursing club, if I can get enough interested parties!

That's disgusting A person, or people, who are capable of that level of barbaric, needless cruelty - sorry but they don't deserve to use up the oxygen on earth. Horrid, despicable creatures. If they catch them, I say subject them to the same courtesy they subjected the dogs to.

Well, he is drinking a lot, but he always has so I didn't think too much of it. :p I think I will definitely follow everyone's advice and get back to the vet asap. He has regular blood & urine testing because he's got under-functioning kidneys and nothing has shown on those, but as you said, not everything does. Thank you all for taking the time to offer your advice I will call the vet and go from there... will keep you posted...

My 9.5yo male rotti was recently diagnosed with severe arthritis, which came as quite a shock to my husband and I. One day he was A-OK and behaviour was normal ... next day he whined a couple of times when going to sit or lay down and then within 2 days could barely walk. He is on Previcox once every three days and we have him on Sasha's Blend also; he has good days and bad but every day he walks a little more awkwardly and I'm just devastated that in five weeks my beautiful dog has changed so much. I dread to think where we will be in another 5 weeks. To top it off - he had a little issue with incontinence a while back, put him on Propalin but the side effects (vomiting and lethargy) were significant so we took him off the syrup and the problem appeared to clear up... since his arthritis has presented that problem seems to have returned with a vengeance - whenever he lays down, a small puddle forms below him and he's forever cleaning himself. (And I'm following him around with a mop and a bucket of hot water). He also "leaks" when walking, or when trying to stand up. Has anyone experienced this problem with their dog - any advice , suggestions would be so great. I just don't know what to do.

Hi Tiggy, What part of WA are you in? I'm in Perth itself .. I will keep trying but I gather there isn't too much interest in WA for lure coursing?? I did contact the CAWA but they didn't end up responding... I get the impression they aren't too keen on it? Not sure what to do next to be honest!

Here are some photo's of my beautiful dogs, Bastian (9.5yo) and Jazz (5.5yo). They really do bring me smiles, laughter, joy and serenity every day!!! Hopefully I'm uploading them in the right place

She is someone I know and trust, she is definitely a dog lover and wouldn't tolerate someone hurting our dogs - that said, I know she had a couple of visitors whilst house-sitting and I cannot say with 100% surety that no-one hurt Jazz. I can say I wouldn't think it likely, and that if anything negative was done towards Jazz, my friend wouldn't have known about it. But it is a good thought - I will have a chat to her and find out exactly who might have been around the dogs while we were away, and go from there.

Thank you- I will check it out. Much appreciated!

I hope that those people realise, one day, just how selfish, greedy and thoughtless their actions were, and appreciate the consequences of their actions. It makes me sad when I hear / read stories like that, but it also motivates me to do more, if I can, because I realise there are those types of people out there! Thanks for posting it :-)

Hello All :-) Just wanting to find out if anyone knows of or would be interested in starting a Lure Coursing Club in Perth, WA? I have checked out the QLD club and am hoping to find or help start one on this side of Oz?

Hello Everyone :-) I just found you guys today and am rapt that I did! Will be great to tap into everyone's knowledge and experience. Looking for some thoughts / advice: One of my dogs is a 5.5 yr old Siberian Husky bitch (desexed) who my husband and I rescued at the age of 10mths. We were her fourth owners and she absolutely did not trust us at first, understandably. Fast forward and four years on, she has become an affectionate if totally erratic and hair-brained dog who is very true to the breed - energetic, has no protective instincts, very prey-driven, etc. She is as obedient as a Sibe can be but I would say on a scale of 1 - 10 she sits at about a 7.5-8, when it comes to myself and my husband anyway (she doesn't really listen to anyone else). About 4 mths ago, we had a good friend house-sit and when she was going to bed she tried to put the dogs out, at which point our husky snapped at her - a first. Then, my mother had the same thing happen a couple of weeks ago. I put it down to the fact that Jazz, whilst being familiar with both women, has no urge to be obedient to them. However, last night I called her to put her out and she ignored me several times - I went to her and when I reached for her, she snapped at me then jumped up and ran to a different part of the house and curled up, ears back, head on the floor. We repeated this about 4 times, with her bolting to different rooms each time. Eventually, I squatted down about 2m from her and called her over in a very soft voice, she came straight to me looking quite nervous but without hesitation. I told her to "heel", which she did and then I walked her outside, no problems. I am uncertain as to what has caused this - she didn't in anyway act angrily aggressive, ie coming at me. It was more defensive, as if she felt threatened. That said, given she came to me quite happily when I crouched down, she obviously isn't scared of me, so what I am I doing wrong to make her feel the need to snap at me? Sorry for the length - thanks for your time Sharna