Little Gifts

Greg there are also several vet clinics in Beenleigh, which is the next big suburb north of Ormeau. I've used Beenleigh Vet Hospital (3287 2599) for decades (Sidney or Renate are both wonderful). If you get caught out on Sundays Anvet Beenleigh is open 7 days (I don't use them but at least they are there) and our closest after hours vet is at Springwood, about half an hour north from Ormeau. I think your vet needs are pretty well covered for your holiday.

They look a bit like the classic dad, mum and child pics not siblings!

Mita are you supporting them? Do they know about Team Bart To The Rescue? I'm always looking for new groups to put forward for Team Bart support. We have a FB page and website under that name.

We have an XL sized Dingo Food Storage Bin. Had it for a few years now. It keeps the food fresh, never had any mice or cockroaches get in and certainly no dog break ins either. Also really easy to wipe out. Stores a 20kg bag of kibble with space on top for measuring cups and any open bags of dog treats. Because of the shape it takes up less room in our laundry than a round container. http://www.petshopdirect.com.au/shop/item/dingo-food-storage-bin-large

I refer to mine as an SBT and a pei but since both are rescues I seriously doubt they are pure. I've never let that stop me from enjoying the forum! If you want to stay and enjoy the interaction then stay.

He looked like he was always on the go and in the thick of the action! What a dog! Rest easy now big boy and keep the vermin down over the bridge!

Saw him on FB. Very pretty boy and yes, no pooping on the couch Bear! It's for snuggling on!

I'm so sorry Kirty. An OES girl was the first dog I ever got to choose for myself and she was all mine. She was rather odd and undog like and did some crazy stuff which only endeared her to me more. I never met anyone who didn't adore her from the first meeting too. It took me a long time to get over losing her as well. Live on in your mum's heart Rupert. XXX

Just the best news! And yes, as hard a discussion as it is your vet needs to come to the party on their error. Things like medication dosage is important and not an error that can be shrugged off as an accident, particularly when this seems to be a common drug and it can be a fatal error.

Please don't tell me there are puppy farmers with 350 fertile females at any one time? I can't even fathom how easy it would be to neglect and ruin for life that many dogs. I hope they have the resources to support these new laws. I do like the bit about foster carers!

So happy for you all! Amazing news!!!!!!!

Gosh imagine how scary this is for the dogs themselves to behave like that. It is sounding more and more like the underlying cause. I guess time will soon tell. Hope you are coping ok Teekay.

Bloody hell! I hope it is the meds! Would a blood test pick up the toxicity or just indicate something wrong with the liver? Without Shoelaces post it might've taken days and several intrusive tests to even consider this the issue! Poor Mya - sending her lots of strength to recover fully and quickly.

Stussy just makes a 'cack' sound and there you have it - instant vom bom regardless of the time or place. And thank you for the link - they sound like very entertaining dogs to live with!

See from the stand point of someone who used to write for parliament and court I can see why they didn't want to deal with this situation. Councillor Mills clearly has skills and experience of his own enough to assess what has happened in this situation but he is making far too many claims and his points are diluted. He refers to the tv program too many times - that might be the reason they removed the koalas but it is not grounds for discipline or charging. The fact they removed healthy animals and didn't go on to care for them adequately is. He should've focussed on that. He should've also shown more than one case to support his demand for their powers as a whole to be removed. I think he should've also pushed his point about there not being anyone to complain to outside of that organisation only if he can provide details of specific cases where their complaints process was tainted. It is normal for an internal investigation to be done by independant officers in nearly all local, state and federal government departments. They can contract an external agency to do the job if they think it is in everyone's best interests but unless it can be proven that an internal investigation has been done and was biased then he has no basis to complain it is an unacceptable practise when it is actually very widespread. I can see where he is coming from and with some fine tuning this would've had some teeth they couldn't ignore. Sometimes when the concerns are so broad/large you have to pick the biggest issue with the most evidence and community impact and push it. As it stands this looks to be all about only 2 officers, 2 koalas and 1 case and it is not big enough for parliament to get involved in. I hope someone, somewhere out there can get a sharp stick into the RSPCA and poke some arses till they bleed. I find it hard to believe that some of their staff are not animal lovers also seeking change but when our national animal protection agency with millions of dollars in their bank accounts kill more animals than they save and take years to take so few cases with successful outcomes to court something is very wrong. They should be the power house of animal welfare and reform that we all look up to.

I want RSPCA to be held accountable but I think the reasons are much broader than that petition. And sadly there are so many grammatical and spelling errors it just isn't succinct and professional enough for me to support.

I know we shouldn't anthropomorphise our dogs but last night, first time in ages my sister and I went out together for a couple of hours and my SBT heart girl Stussy decided to get the upchucks and runs in the short time we were gone. Instead of being upset I realised that she is prone to an upset tummy just like her mum. As we lay in bed together I rubbed her favourite spot to soothe her I started thinking about the ways we are similar. I am not black and white and my hair is wavier and longer but I do have short little legs! I think that is where the physical similarities end! But behaviour wise I can see a lot of similarities! She is very social, a little bit naughty, inquisitive and likes a lot of close body contact. Does silly stuff just to amuse herself but also likes to hold centre stage every now and then. She'll take a sleep in and a late brunch over an early morning start any day. If she is not well she prefers to take to bed and be comforted, not fussed over, but just someone there to watch over her. She gets anxious if she thinks people important to her are upset with her. For no reason her tummy can get out of sorts (probably to do with being anxious). She can sleep on anything. Loves going out in the car for random drives. Has her favourite spots in and out of the house (but will share if she has to). Happy to share her toys, leashes and clothes as long as you look after them. Not into sharing her favourite food (will eat quicker if you try) and bites her nails. Can get obsessed about small and slightly meaningless stuff (like the mouse she can't catch because she follows it in the wrong direction). This is all me to a tee. So go on, have some fun and tell me how is your dog like you, physically or behaviourally?

Imagine how terrifying that would be for a puppy. Gosh some of them could tell us some stories! Glad she was picked up by the right kind of person.

I can't believe no-one wants their own Rocky Raccoon!

Dyson is so focussed! And I agree about Jerry's story and all the other stories and photos you post. They really show what can be achieved by a 'good' rescue - a brand new life!

Very cute and an hilarious name!

Can you tell me about iggies please? What were they bred for originally (given their ability to become airborne in a nano second)? Their ability to turn quickly and take off at speed is quite cool to see in pics and I'm assuming their small size was also important for their original purpose?

In no particular order a Shiba Inu, a Chow Chow, a flower Pei and a bear coat Pei, a big, sleek and drooly black Great Dane, a pied or tri-colour Bull Terrier, a lazy lump of a Bulldog and a French Bulldog. I'd prefer them to be rescues in need of a new home and like older dogs or young adults except the last two and only because they'd be so freaking cute as puppies (which is probably the wrong reason!).

I had a dog that went to extreme measures to escape my small acreage property to simply be with people in my absence. He usually chewed through metal fencing, household doors and walls. He once got his shoulders out one at a time through a heavy metal balcony fence (which couldn't be chewed or bent) and he hung in mid air using his toenails to scratch at the concrete to help him get his back hips through then dropped to the ground and happily trotted off. We resolved it by him never being left home alone. He never wandered the streets - just went from house to house until he found a neighbour that was home and stayed there until he heard my car coming down the hill. And he never wandered between neighbours or even when I was home. Once he found a human to keep him company he stayed put. He always had a doggy friend (his mum) but that wasn't enough. When I moved to the suburbs it was so much easier to keep him contained. Six foot high timber fence (granted he chewed through rather than scaled fences) with wire attached all around the first 4 foot to deter chewing, concrete edging buried into the ground all around the bottom to stop digging and fencing containing him to only the backyard - no front yard or street access unless he was with me on a leash. There was also secondary fencing along one side of the house (so he had to escape 2 sections) and the other side was all garage. He only ended up at the pound once after I moved there when my sister's ex let him out through the garage (because he was a tosser). He did plenty of property damage trying to escape but he also went to my parents house most days so was rarely alone for more than a couple of hours here and there. And I was more worried about him hurting himself during an escape than ending up at the pound.

A puppy will lick an adult dog's mouth - as a "gimme food" thing or to indicate "pleased to see you" greeting or to show submission/greeting. I've not seen the mother dog lick the puppy's mouth - but more lick the whole puppy - in much the same movements as we pat a dog. long strokes from head to tail. Which usually does a good job of calming a dog, also ear strokes. Haven't seem drooly dog mums in action (eg blood hound or dogue de bordeaux) - maybe they spit in their puppies' mouths more? My stafford licks my pei's mouth and gums and teeth quite a lot. The pei is anxious while the stafford is chill, but the stafford has always been very in tune with the moods of the other dogs in the house (and us humans). In particular she has done wonders with some very scared fosters. She also used to sit next to them sort of on guard duty while they slept. She's not related to any of the dogs she mouth licks but she's always done it when she senses they are distressed in some way. She doesn't lick anything else (not an ear cleaner thankfully!).