Little Gifts

People have been posting their pei crosses on a FB page and I am now convinced a shar pei will breed with anything! Some of the crosses are hilarious! Scooty-Blues is in that category! And yes, imagine him as a moody teen - intelligent, bored, stubborn. He's going to need some challenges and a job to keep him busy!

Look how tiny she is!

Dear Dog! I can't unsee that! Almost puked!

Stussy goes straight for the brain! I only give her stuffed toys that don't look like real animals because skin mummy can't deal with all the disfigurement. She really gets crazy face the minute she sees a stuffed toy so I appreciate Sharpie's fear!

Oh Loki! You were a star on this earth and now you are a star in the night sky! Gone but never forgotten! Big hugs to you Cannibal.....

I was horrified at how animals AND humans were treated in the wake of Katrina. I think it was a demographics thing. I still remember reports of awful/criminal things happening at the stadium people were sardined into and people on the streets dead and others desperate for water. So many homes have still never been rebuilt. That just tells you how little money went back into rescue and recovery down there. I used to do disaster recovery in QLD and have seen some heartbreaking stuff involving animals that I wont go into. It's why I would choose to do a preventative evacuation under my own steam and just get the hell out of Dodge before a forced evacuation was necessary. It's why I own a station wagon and a shit load of camping and dog gear. Other family are the same and loaded their gear and animals up and evacced to higher ground a couple of years ago when a cyclone passed through and flooded their town out.

I'm so sorry Boronia. It's not fair that we have the good ones for so little time. Your house must be feeling very empty. Big hugs to you. XXX

I never look in the breeders section because I can't post there and it frustrates me if I see something gorgeous or exciting and I can't express my appreciation!

Those dogs have the best life! I love how Jonah always secures the most comfy spot he can! And I'm loving all your pics. I travelled around Australia visiting a lot of the same places as you have over time (but living in a tent) many moons ago so the pics bring back fond memories. I had to leave my OES at home back then as you could hardly take your dog anywhere. You take amazing photos!

Thanks PK. All useful stuff for me to check out.

Thanks everyone. Seems like a few things might trigger the fear. I didnt see her do any ear swivelling but didnt think to look for her smelling the storm. Having had a boy so scared of storms I so don't want this to be a thing for her now.

What is it that upsets them though? Is it the noise or atmospheric pressure or something else? She settled quickly both times after the storm stopped. Was sooky la la all day and wouldn't eat much dinner. Quiet and sleeping for most of tonight. My sister was the one home this afternoon (I called as soon as I heard the thunder) and by the time I got home a few hours later she was all over me like a rash wanting serious cuddles. Very unlike her but good to know she trusts me enough to seek comfort. Good idea about the rescue remedy. I always have that on hand.

Afternoon storm is rolling in and she is doing the same thing. I'm so sad for her!

I really wasn't sure where to put this. We've had our pei Tempeh since she was about 4 - 5 months old (a foster fail). She's 4.5 now. This morning when we woke it was very overcast. I was at the computer and she started getting under the table and wanting me to squeeze her against the side. I could hear a bad storm coming. Then she had some shaking. Then she followed me everywhere and wanted me touching her. She is not a big fan of being confined or tightly cuddled or sometimes even being touched so none of this is normal for her. She even tried to come into the bathroom with me while I had a shower (even though she usually considers falling water akin to acid). I previously had an epileptic dog who got very scared during storms but he was like that all his life. His distress would rise with each thunder crack. Tempeh didn't shake or flinch with each thunder crack though so I was wondering - for some dogs is it about the atmospheric change rather than the noise? And this is one incident as an adult - does that have to mean she will be like this now every time there is a storm? This morning I chose to comfort and distract her and talked to her a lot (she likes to be talked to even though I'm not a huge fan of it). I don't want to reinforce the fears but since this was her first time like this I also didn't want her to feel abandoned when she was clearly seeking and needing comfort. Have other dog owners just had random instances like this or is this a sign that storms might now be an issue for her? My previous storm hater used to destroy things in a major way if there was a storm and no-one around. I often had to pick him up and take him back to work with me to keep him safe or my parents would come over and sit with him. I wouldn't wish that level of fear on another dog.

Dogs can definately have experiences that cause them to develop and carry fears. And if those fears can't be managed then I guess the level of anxiety when triggered will increase. I'm not sure I like the use of the term for animals but Isn't that relevant to PTSD in humans too? There are negative experiences and triggers that take them back to how they feel about those negative experiences? I still remember a lady on a doco talking about a Michael Vicks bait dog she'd adopted. She said her pit bull didn't need to be rehabilitated, it just needed time to recover from its ordeal. I think that is very true of some dogs who have experienced loss and pain. It's like they need to put distance between them and the incident and they need stability, support and guidance to rely on when their own instincts fail them. All that makes them quite vulnerable in their world. And given the bond dogs have with humans I can imagine some are really affected when their trust in a human is broken in a savage way. Imagine you are a dog thinking you are doing your job by protecting your property and you are rewarded for that by being threatened and injured and isolated from the family you care about most, all by us humans. It must be very confusing for some dogs. But is it PTSD as we know it in humans or does it just mimick it?