Little Gifts

Thanks for the advice so far. My neighbour is on a disability pension so I know she wont be able to spend a lot of money on products unless she has no other option. She has the dog booked in to training but I want to give her some tips she can start with now that are free or cost minimal. Sounds like the dog came from a house of chaos and that may have become normal for her where her new house is the ultimate of peace and quiet. My neighbour probably wont be able to afford a crate (mine would be too big to loan her) but we could easy rig up a cardboard box cave somewhere quiet in the house where the dog can watch from but feel safe. Also a good idea to get her focussed on her owner and training to reduce her stress and occupy her mind. She already knows sit. She's not overly food motivated but she does love her new owner so she would do it for pats.

I have a lovely, animal loving neighbour. She hasn't had a dog for about five years when her boy passed away from old age. Someone has given her an 18 month old shitzu-maltese cross. It is up to date on vacs and desexed. They said they were rehoming it because their children were too rough with it (apparently they have a very active and noisy home) but already I can tell the dog is an uber barker and I think that is why they rehomed it. Yesterday my neighbour was in the middle of the road with a panicked look on her face. I was in my car and stopped in the street when she said her new dog had escaped the front door. She quickly grabbed the white ball of fluff and came back to me, still in the car. The dog was happy enough and she popped it straight in the car onto my lap for a cuddle. No barking, no fear, all tail wags. After my appointment I dropped back in to see the new dog properly and see if she needed anything for it as she is on a disability pension and will go without for the sake of her pets. I get to the front door and the crazy high pitched barking starts. It continues as I am let in the door and the dog is showing the whites of its eyes so I stop looking at it and ignore it and walk through the house. We sat down at the kitchen table and the dog is right there still barking. She didn't seem to recognise that we had already met outside the house. None of the usually calming things I say do anything. I put my hand down to let her sniff it and she starts to growl and bare teeth. I am confident if I pushed she would bite or snap at me. It's tail is between its legs and it is looking fearful. It has already bonded well with my neighbour after six days though and she can pick it up even when it is like that. If she holds the dog I am able to touch it and is relaxed under my touch and not acting aggressively. It's all very weird. The husband is in the backyard with some friends and as soon as they get to the back door the dog is doing crazy barking again. My neighbour tells me the dog doesn't seem to like men and that the dog also barks like this when it hears the neighbours next door doing something. The barking is so bad I can't help myself and first say a strong 'enough'. Dog doesn't stop. I clap my hands and the dog is distracted for a nano second. When I left the dog was still barking up a frenzy at the friend still in the house and has her kind of bailed up in the kitchen. So we have a serious barker who is still getting to know her new environment. She did not bark or act aggressively outside her new home though - exact opposite. Inside the new home she is fearful and acting aggressively but once actually touched is fine. What suggestions do you all have that I can share with my neighbour? I was thinking about a squirty bottle just for the barking but given it is a new home and she has some fear I wasn't sure that was a good idea. I did talk to my neighbour about acknowledging her alert barks and then giving her a firm command to stop but I think this dog will just bark right through any commands given at this point. The barks are high pitched and ear piercing. Thanks in advance!

We had a work car that had milk spilled under the front seat. We had it detailed several times but couldn't get the curdled milk smell out. It became known as the vomit car and no-one would use it. As it was a lease vehicle that meant we were stuck with it even longer than normal so I understand your desire to sell yours KDF!

To the list of crimes against the nose we could add: I hate it when my human comes home smelling of other dog and doesn't fess up to who they've been with and why! Anne I house/dog sat for someone and when we went on walks with the owner it was all distance and time on a short, taut leash for both dogs. I think there is an element of exercise and an element of boredom breaking so a walk on a short, tight leash must be pretty damn boring if you can't also go off on tangents if you've smelt something interesting. My walks are more meanders. As long as it is safe I let the dogs dictate direction and turns because it is not my walk, it's theirs.

Ha! I knew she was heavily involved but didn't know it went right back to inception! I learn something new every day on DOL....

Anne just reminded me of another classic Stussy moment. As she hit sexual maturity she was challenging our other female sbt. A behaviourist said she needed to be punished for her poor behaviour by separating her from the rest of the pack until she learned to behave. Instead of letting her sleep inside with everyone else one night, at about six months of age she was made to sleep outside. She had a very comfy spot to sleep in and it was a nice spring night. She cried and carried on but eventually all was quiet and those of us inside went to sleep. Some time during the night there she was, on the bed. In my daze I thought maybe she'd been making so much noise one of my neighbours had come and let her in. Nope. She'd gone under the house and chewed her way through metal fly screen mesh and a metal ventilation grill that lead under the stairs in our lounge room and crawled back in. The whole thing is still damaged some six years later because you'd have to crawl under the house and fix it lying on your belly or dismantle the stairs in the lounge room and do it that way. We sometimes see geckos and mice using it as their own personal vermin entrance!

Is there a word limit? My heart girl will be 7 this year and I have had her since she came for a temp stay at 13 weeks. For the first 3 years of her life she taste tested everything I owned (and some stuff that belonged to other people). I used to take show and tell to work several times a week as people didn't believe what she would destroy. We were at my vet a lot. Some examples: remote controls, mobile phones, metal garbage bins, energy saver light bulbs, the handles off washing baskets, the buttons or plastic clips off doona covers, doonas, pillows, dog beds, birth control pills, anti-depressants, kilos of almonds, whole blocks of fruit and nut chocolate, a used tampon, several coffee tables, a six foot by six foot corner lounge, jars and jars of Vaseline, thongs, books (dictionaries are a favourite), cd's, dvd's (brand new ones preferred) Now her only failing is anything with fluff inside it. Doonas, pillows, lounge chairs. No-ones perfect! I buy her a couple of stuffed toys every month to de-brain and that keeps the damage to human goodies to a minimum. Her only other problem is with dropped tissues and dropped pattern pieces - if not picked up immediately it will start to snow. After all these years our garbage bin is still inside the laundry sink and even if we go out for half an hour all surfaces lower than the kitchen bench are cleared. She is easily tempted. Her little eyes start dancing if she sees something edible! I really like her naughty side though - I'd hate to have a boring dog! Our other girl is now 2 and we've been quite lucky with her. She sticks to doggy appropriate chew toys and does like to bring things into the house, onto the bed to chew on so I have to do a quick check before I get in to bed every night. The most memorable was a 7 foot tree branch that she brought in one morning while I was in the shower. She clearly had some chewing she needed to do.

Melissa this just makes me sick. It is completely unacceptable for the national organisation who claims to protect all creatures great and small to reject the needs of animals (large and small!) in that community because it is not profitable on paper. How dare they! And they have been scoffing squillions in state funds here in QLD to build their mega shelter out at Wacol. Do tax payers get given their share back when they decide to sell or lease it on? How can you be the statutory body for animal cruelty and not operate shelters? Those cruelty cases need to be housed somewhere secure. Those lost pets hoping to be reunited with their owners need to be held somewhere. You can't take in a load of dogs from a puppy farm and expect them to be quarantined with a foster carer. WTF. If they are worried about donations and volunteer numbers dropping then wait and see what kind of community support they get when they start closing down shelters. Don't they understand they need to at least be seen to be doing something selfless to benefit animals even if they are not? Although, if I think about it cynically, nationally they kill more than they rehome so maybe they don't need shelters? Edited to add I would love to participate in the online petition if you can add the link? I will happily share it within my circle too.

I don't think her yard would be clear just yet but hopefully she still looks here in rescue (like me!) and lets her contacts know. And wasn't Lilypily also involved with the same group?

Have a look at Sheena's thread here in general about 11 things dogs hate us doing. Talking to them is number 1!

Guilty of the first three (see my recent thread on talking to dogs!). My dogs 'seem' to like being touched on the head and face though. I like to rub them where they like it and I might start around the back of the ears and they will be moving themselves around so I'm rubbing around their eye sockets and the like. Tempeh in particular seems to like her skull, eye sockets and snout being rubbed. Plus she often leans in to give me a kiss so I give her one back. One thing I try to avoid ever rubbing is the front of their chest. I was told by a dog whisperer guy that in the wild the only time a dog would be touched there is when mating so to avoid it. I do and my dogs never try to manoeuvre my hands there.

Tempeh definitely sleeps better when she is warm, so in turn so do. Her coat goes on straight after dinner as she likes to put herself to bed after she has eaten. I generally take them off after they have their brekkie and we go out and get some sunshine.

They are very cute! Jumper should be finished tomorrow. Everyone who sees it says it looks gorgeous. Mac is going to be a very stylish lad!

I must admit I prefer to leave the dog park poo bags for people who may not be as organised as me. I don't want people having any excuse not to pick up their dog's poo. Plus I'd never want to rely on their beings bags in the dispenser so always bring my own. I like things to match and the wonderful MTD made these for me. I had a couple of iron on thingies so stuck them on myself. And I can't believe how much more ragged Stussy's bag is compared to the other two but that just goes to show you that she is more likely to be the one to run off before I can disconnect her leash, be running in bushes, rolling in something or dragging it through water. Her bag is constantly in the wash and has had several repairs while the others have had none.

Hah yeah I have always talked to the dogs but find myslef talking to random object like the fridge etc as I go about my day. I think it is hereditary... i always thought mum was nuts when she did it, and now I am turning into her haha My family all think I'm a bit ridiculous with how i talk to the dogs, but i think they appreciate it! I had one of my pet sitting clients with a rescue dog that used to be used for breeding in a puppy farm. The dog was always very anxious, and the lady was getting to the end of her tether. She ended up getting a "pet psychic" to find out what was wrong (interesting option!) The psychic told the owner that the dog was scared of being abandoned, and never knew if the owner was going to come back when she went out to work etc. The owner was instructed that she needed to make sure she told the dog the schedule of the day, and when she would be home so that the dog wouldn't worry. Apparently, this made a huge difference, and it was part of the instructions while I was looking after the dog that i had to let her know i would be back in the afternoon etc etc :) From what I recall, Little Gifts had a similar experience with her Tempeh, worked for her too (hence Tempeh gets told all about the plans for the day :) ) It was so interesting hearing her talk about it... and great to see an owner willing to go to those lengths to try and help their dog. Gave me chills listening to her talk about it actually ... she also mentioned that there were spirits from some of her previous dogs who were buried in the back garden, protecting the home. Yep we were told by a pet psychic that telling Tempeh our plans would calm her. I think she said Tempeh was not the brightest puppy on the playground and got easily confused about what she was supposed to do so needed clear instruction and routine. So my morning explanations are similar to what I might give a pre-school aged child. No idea why it should work given she can't understand the words but it does. If we take her somewhere new in the car and tell her the details, including how long we will be travelling for (we even add something in about traffic just in case) then she lays down and goes to sleep. If the timeframe passes she will be up on the seat crying. If I don't explain anything then she will cry during the whole trip and add a puke in for good measure. I used to follow amichien bonding techniques with my other dogs so all this talking and sharing and explaining was something that didn't come naturally to me, but now I'm taking it to the other extreme!

I tell Tempeh my exact movements and how long I plan to be gone as I'm getting dressed. She lies on the bed looking at me and making all these quizzical noises. If she is involved in the outing I tell her our full itinerary and timelines too! If I don't she pukes in the car. If I tell her she just lies on the floor in the back and goes to sleep. She's a weird dog. I do love her!

As I said in the other thread my dogs 'help' me with the stuffing. One destroys pillows so I put the stuffing into something I can close (I have old/large zip up cushion covers) and give it a wash then dry. I then shred it again to fluff it up a I stuff the new beds. The same dog also destroys human doonas regularly so again, I put the bits into the big cushion cover, give it all a wash but then I cut it into strips and then down again into squares to stuff the bed as it wont wash well inside the bed as big pieces - it will imbalance your washing machine. My other tip is to buy large ugly pillows from your local op shop. I recently found one selling cushions for 50 cents each and they were huge! Wash, dry and then shred the contents to fluff it back up and stuff the new bed. If you use recycled fleece blankets (fleece doesn't fray) or buy some cheap kids fleece blankets at Kmart you can make a large comfy bed very cheaply. And here is a tip for cutting that fringing - cut yourself a piece of cardboard the width and length of the final fringe and just move it around the outer edge, using it as a guide to cut to. It saves loads of time measuring and marking - it doesn't need to be perfect. In summer you can cover these beds with an old sheet or towel to make them a little cooler on the surface. Here's one of our round models for those who didn't see the other thread. This particular bed is almost three years old so doing very well considering the fluff lover lying on it.

You may only be in the early stages of this insidious disease Vehs! I used to have concert and nights out photos on my phone and now it is full of dogs! Some of them aren't even mine!

I never used to talk to dogs much until Tempeh came along. Sure I used to sing to my foster dogs, was into "good boy/girl" and random nicknames but Tempeh constantly asks lots of questions and has to know what is happening all the time and talking back seems to calm her. Last year I noticed myself regularly saying "Tempeh, look at mummy" before going on to explain to her what was happening that day. She seemed to pay attention and understand. And she got the nickname Doodle Bug which she is now called more than her real name. But this year things have gotten worse. "What's wrong my love?" "Does Doodlie-Bug want a cud-cud (cuddle)?" "Give mummy kisses!" are all falling out of my mouth! It's embarrassing! And I whip out my phone at every opportunity to show other dog lovers my 'kids'. I've turned into the kind of owner that used to make me cringe! Has anyone else developed this disease? Is there a cure?

I miss mine terribly after the first week but by then I've also remembered what it's like to not share a bed with them. It's a double edged sword. My younger sister lives with me so I have a built in dog carer.

I think dogs allow soldiers to show emotion during what must be terrifying and overwhelming times of needing to remain in full control. A pat, a scruff on the neck, little things can enable a small connection to another living thing. There are plenty of stories of soldiers all fussing, spoiling or worrying over a canine mascot in a way that may not be cool to do with a fellow soldier. You may not make sure your mate has water on a hot day because you'd come across a bit of a wuss but you can bet you'd make sure a hot dog had a drink. A good dog is also very reliable and of course always living in the moment so imagine in chaos being able to cling on to something so grounding and real. I'm sure some of those soldiers couldn't even put into words how important those dogs were to their emotional survival. My two previous rescue sbt's (now deceased due to old age) got help for me when I lived on acreage and fell down my front stairs and knocked myself unconscious. Those same two dogs protected me from harm during a home invasion too. My current sbt is my heart girl and I am so full of love for that cheeky monkey that I do think I love her like I would a child. She is very intuitive and recently she has been staying up very late with my sister (who has insomnia) and going to bed with her rather than coming to bed early with me. She has not been getting into bed with me till maybe an hour or two after my sister falls asleep. I actually think she feels my sister needs her company at present as she is going through a funk. So yep, I've got a hero!

Well he's a good looking chap! I hope he finds a wonderful home for his cuddly personality. Can't beat shar pei kisses!

I'd want those arseholes to be forced to watch and listen to video clips of dogs dying from poison over and over and over again until they begged for it to stop. I'd want the cries of those poor animals to be etched in their brains.

I just buy the cheap shop ones. If I need to double bag I just double bag - we have large and medium dogs but none of them is an extreme pooer so I usually have no problem. Our dogs have lovely poo bag holders made by another DOLer so I just stick the cheap roll of poo bags inside that and pull them out the bottom as needed!

Looks good Ranga! What a goober I am - I should've mentioned you can make them any shape you want! We like the round ones to snuggle into so I'm used to seeing round. And if you have don't have any old pillows or doonas, check out your local op shop for big old but slightly grotty looking pillows. You can get them cheap, give the whole thing a wash, open it up after it's dry and retrieve the nice clean stuffing. I normally re-shred stuffing after a wash to fluff it up again before I stuff any new beds with it though.