nickyp

Thanks Persephone! I knew I should search before I asked, but I was being lazy. There's plenty there to keep me reading for quite a while!

I raw fed my dogs in the distant past, but went back to kibble when I had kids because it was easier. Now that the kids are older and we have a new dog, I'm thinking of going back to raw, but can't get my head around the quantities to feed them. Em, our 13 year old kelpie x acd, is in desperate need of a dental (it'll be done in the next few weeks) and has to keep her weight down due to arthritis. Em weighed 22kg at her last vet visit and I'd like to get her down to 20 - it's not viable to keep her under that. I also want to get her eating bones regularly for her teeth. Cricket, the new dog, is a 5 months old maltese x. She's not very food-oriented and hasn't been very interested in kibble she's been having (Advance Puppy Small Breed), but will eat it if she's hungry enough. She's had some diarrhoea over the last few days from, I think, pinching the vegie scraps I give our chooks because she likes them better than kibble. I think she weighs about 4kg. My plan is to give them raw meaty bones in the mornings and then a meat and vegie mix in the evenings. From my previous raw feeding experience, I recall the quantity to feed being a percentage of ideal bodyweight, but I can't remember what that amount is, and whether I would need to adjust it down for Em because she's much less active these days. Any suggestions?

Hi Horts, Em is still lonely, I think. She has become velcro dog and doesn't like to be left alone at all. Mostly it's OK because we're home a lot at the moment, but that will change. We're looking at getting a rescue dog to be my son's. He's 10 and ready to start taking some responsibility. I think Em will enjoy the company of another dog. It may take a while to find the right match, though, as the new dog needs to be good with kids, other dogs and small animals (cat and chooks).

Clever puppy!

The first dog that became mine was Pappy, my sister's Papillon. She moved out of home and took him with her, but the yard wasn't secure and he escaped and was missing for 3 weeks. When he was found my mother decreed that he had to come back to family home. He became my little mate and was my best friend and confidant from the age of 9 until he was hit by a car when I was 17 (Dad was walking him without a lead and he ran onto a busy road).He was a nasty, snappy little bugger who would attack any dog larger than him, but he and I were devoted to each other. The first dog that I bought for myself was Buster, a gsd x kelpie x acd. A workmate owned his mum. They had just moved back to Melbourne from Darwin and their dog had gone on heat while they were moving (they had planned to desex her once they were settled). The neighbour's gsd got over the fence the day after they moved in and the rest was history. Buster was growing into a fantastic dog - we were doing obedience and blitzing the classes - when he escaped from the yard of the rental I was living in and was hit by a tram. He was only 8 months old.

We went from two dogs to one a month ago and, sad as I am to have lost Indiana, I quite like only having one dog. If it were up to me I'd stay a single dog family for a while, but this is a democracy (of sorts) and I've been out voted. At the end of March we'll start looking for a rescue dog to be my son's first pet of his own. At the same time we'll be looking for a couple of guinea pigs for my daughter to avoid a mutiny!

Wow. I'm not often moved to tears by things like this, but I'm sitting here with happy ones running down my cheeks ... to Ruby's family for not giving up. And :cheer: to Team Dog for stepping in and helping them.

I occasionally refer to our dog and cat as "fur persons" - they're a bit old to be babies or kids! :laugh:

For me, that's the hardest part of losing them. They are there on the edge of so many of the big events in our lives and, when they go you lose a connection to those times. I felt that way with our cat, Cosmo, when he died. He was only 12 (young for this thread), but he was the first pet OH & I got together, right at the start of our relationship and had been there for all the big events of our lives. And now Indiana. Over the last couple of days I keep remembering the way she reacted when we brought our son home from the hospital. She was so fascinated and excited by the baby, but gentle.

Rawnsley Park is now on the itinerary! It looks fantastic from the website. You're a star, DD!

Sounds just like Em, our 13 year old kelpie x acd (we've always called her the cattle dog in kelpie's clothes). We were at Barwon Heads this evening and some one asked why I wouldn't let her off lead to have a big swim. I explained that, if I did she'd have a huge swim and run after all the other dogs and would be in agony tomorrow from her arthritis. She had a little swim on lead and I reckon she'll be a bit stiff tomorrow from that. The oldest I ever met was a 21 year old foxy too. She belonged to my SIL's boyfriend of the time. She was deaf and a bit stiff, but very sprightly and bossy! She had a 16 year old poodle x toy boy. :D

Thanks again, DD. Do you have any recommendations for places other than Port Augusta? Showdog - We will. We'll have plenty of water with us and Em will be sitting in the back seat with the kids so will get the benefit of the aircon.

Thanks, DD. I knew there'd be a DOLer who could help! OH is a bit happier now that we have recommendation for a kennel. He was a bit upset that Em would "miss out" on going to Uluru. :laugh:

We're planning a family road trip to Uluru in mid-late March and will be taking Emmylou. Our current plan is to do the trip from Geelong to Alice Springs in four stages: Geelong - Bordertown; Bordertown - Port Augusta; Port Augusta - Coober Pedy and Coober Pedy - Alice Springs. We're thinking of staying for a couple of nights in one or two places to break the trip up. Can anyone recommend any dog-friendly camp grounds in those places or nearby? We want to spend a couple of days in Alice and then head to Uluru and maybe Kata Tjuta (The Olgas)for a day or so. We've just realised that Em can't come on this part of the trip with us because it's a national park, so we're considering boarding her in Alice while we do that. Two boarding kennels come up when I google and only one of them showed up in a yellow pages online search. Does anyone have any recommendations for a good place? Having just lost Indi, we really don't want to do this trip without Em. When I mentioned that she wouldn't be allowed into the national park, the kids insisted that we were not going if she couldn't come. I had to convince them that I'd find her a nice place to hang out in Alice Springs before they'd agree to do it.

Thank you all. Yes, we have a huge, Indiana-shaped hole in our lives and will for some time to come. We underestimate the impact they have on us and those around us. We have friends interstate and overseas who haven't seen Indiana for years, but are mourning her loss with us. Emmylou is restless and, I think, a bit confused. She's never been without Indi to boss her around. We're trying not to act differently, but things ARE different around here. Indi is not whinging for her breakfast at 6am and her dinner at 5pm, so Em is getting fed later. Em is spending more time inside because we're not tripping over Indi (after she went deaf she had a tendency to lie in doorways so she could keep tabs on everyone). Em has gone on walks over the last couple of days to tire her so that she'll settle and stop wandering from room to room. We're actually not supposed to walk her much because of her arthritis, but it calms her so we'll do it for now and see how she goes.

My daughter has a friend who she argues with a lot. One minute they're best mates, the next they're at each other's throats. This friend's elderly dog died late last year. My daughter is sure that her friend's dog and Indiana are at the bridge together, arguing just like their little girls. :laugh:

What a day for me to come into this thread. We gave our oldest girl her wings yesterday. Indiana was 14. All our recent photos of her and Em, our 13 year old, are on Instagram and I don't know how to put them up here, but here's a blog entry my OH wrote last night which has lots of photos in it: Goodbye Indiana Paddledog

We said goodbye to our silly brown dog yesterday. I can't find the words to express our feelings, but my OH has done so eloquently on our family blog: Goodbye, Indiana Paddledog

We're all home but I've been leaving our girls outside all day. I think they're better off there because we don't have aircon. They spend all of their time on the back verandah which is on the southeast corner of the house. It gets the morning sun, but at least half of it is in the shade from late morning on. There are other shady spots around the yard, but they insist on staying there. I've been going out two or three times a day to hose the verandah, and dogs, down. Indi hides in her kennel when she sees the hose, but Em will tolerate it even though she hates being hosed. Once I go away they both lie on the wet concrete and Em doesn't pant for a while. I think the cool change is starting to come in. The wind has picked up and shifted round and the temp is starting to drop - still 41, but was 45 an hour ago.

:rofl:

This is a question I'm starting to wrap my head around. Our girls are 13 and 14 years old, so there's a fair chance that we'll be looking for another dog in the next few years. I figure that the next dog is likely to belong mostly to my children. If that's the case, our local pound/shelter will be our first stop. After that, a reputable rescue and then a breeder. If the next dog is just for me, it will depend upon what's happening in my life at the time. We had a Papillon when I was a child and I'd like one again, but then I'd also love to have a GAP greyhound. I had a Bull Terrier cross when I was in my twenties and would love to have that temperament again, but my current girls have also given me a love of herding breeds. So I could be happy with just about any type of dog. If I decide I want a specific breed, I'll go to a breeder or breed-specific rescue, but if I'm after a type/style of dog, then the local shelter or a general rescue will do me. And I don't think I want a puppy again - it's too much like having a human child. For my kids I'd like a young dog. For me, I don't mind.

Indi (kelpie x) is coming up to 14 (a guess because she's a rescue) and we've had her for 13 years. She's started to show her age in the last wo years. Physically, apart from a mild heart murder and deafness, she's in excellent condition. I think the deafness has made her anxious and she has slowed down a lot. She falls asleep whenever she sits still for more than five minutes. Emmylou (kelpie x acd) will turn 13 on new years eve. She's still as bright as a button and we joke that she thinks she's still a puppy! She's always up for a game. Unfortunately her body is giving out. She has arthritis and bulging discs in her back and needs regular cartrophen injections and daily antiinflammatories to keep her moving.

Indi and Em sleep in crates in our room. We used to let them have the run of the house, but they would wander around, looking out the windows, finding things to bark at all night. In winter they have a pile of blankets to snuggle into. Indi builds hers into a wall in the middle of the crate and curls up into a tiny ball behind them. It can be very hard to tell if there's a dog in there at all. Em piles hers up against the front of the crate and uses them as a pillow. I don't think she feels the cold all that much. In summer they have just their mattresses and one blanket because Indi likes to have something to scrunch up. We leave the crate doors open on hot nights and they will move to the floor on either side of the bed. Indi on the OH's side and Em on mine. That lasts until the first one barks and then it's back to the crates with the doors shut!

Thank you for this thread! You've inspired me. I had just been looking at new dog beds online and was appalled by the prices before I read this thread yesterday. Today I went to our local op shop and for $25 I've pretty much got the dogs' outdoor beds sorted. I got a rubber camping mat, which will be cut in half and the pieces will go under the plastic kennels as insulation, and a mattress protector and a sleeping bag, which will go inside the water proof bean bag covers currently in the kennels ( I had been going to get more polystyrene beads, but like these much better ). With some newspapers under the cushions and a couple of pieces of polar fleece for them to snuggle into, they'll be all set. Now I just want some more camping mat-type stuff to put under their indoor beds and a couple more blankets for them to snuggle into and they'll be completely set up for winter!

It might be worth getting in touch with Guide Dogs Victoria to see if you could have one of their "Reclassified Dogs". It wouldn't be a puppy, but it would be a lovely, well-bred dog and you wouldn't have to go through all the bumpy puppy stages, like teething, house training, etc. NB: I know that link says their waiting list is currently closed, but it can't hurt to contact them. They may also be able to put you in touch with other organisations who might have similar dogs.