Little Gifts

I can never understand how people leave animals, babies or the elderly in cars on hot days, leave the air con on and think that will suffice. My car is fairly new but the idling air con is nowhere near as cool as the running air con. The car heats up uncomfortably quite quickly. I always wonder how desperate you have to be to buy something if you can't go home and drop off your immobile or non-shop suitable travelling companions first. Having worked in child protection I once had to locate a parent who left a newborn screaming in a new 4wd with the air con on and the car unlocked. She could not see the car from inside the shop and obviously couldn't hear her screaming baby either. She was incredibly lucky she only got me and not someone who would've liked to steal her nice new car and dump her baby off somewhere. She was a new mum and very upset that her baby was upset so I doubt she will ever do that again. I had flames blowing out of my nose and one defensive response from her and I was taking that baby with me!

Do they do this? Hilarious and really very clever if you have that hard to get at itch! I was also thinking that before buying new furniture Nathan's owner probably considers the fabric and angle of the backrest to ensure Nathan is not disappointed! Us dog people get it!

My only advice if you are trying to make your own is to consider movement space for your dogs and the ability of the fabrics to stand stiffly rather than collapse in on your dog. I think it would be quite scary to feel like you were trapped inside a collapsing bag if the fabric was too floppy, especially if the dog's movements caused it to kind of dip in while you were wheeling them. If using a steel shopping trolley then I would also be concerned about making sure it is well padded around the steel mesh. Imagine an old dog bumping against steel or getting a nail caught. Proper dog prams are made of fairly stiff but lightweight materials to restrain your dog, provide air flow and which are easily washable. The light frame is designed to maintain space for the dog to move around in. The sides are also up higher than babies prams to stop your dog from jumping out. I reckon check on ebay and gumtree for secondhand ones to keep the costs down rather than make your own and have a dogastrophe out in public.

This is me a la Peimy Whinehouse at Woofstock last year saying hello to this beautiful old boy in his stroller.

Pre air con I used to put the fan on in front of bowls of ice so it would blow cooler air over us. I know the ice wont last all day but perhaps something similar could work using frozen water bottles rather than ice cubes? That could last longer.

I bought a doggy pram from World for Pets for my old Stafford girl. She absolutely did not want to be left at home when the other dogs went for a walk but she was so slow and prone to tire that we had to come up with another option. She found the pram embarrassing but it was a practical solution that enabled her to continue to be part of the pack and get out and about. I will say that it set the more active dogs back on their leash training for a bit both having to manage an old dog walking and also with the pram. We'd get tangles and delays and I spent so much time focussing on the old girl and making sure she was ok that some bad habits developed with the other two. All good now though. My pram is navy blue and shaped like the pic that Marion added. It took the weight of an sbt with no problems. It has a clip inside that you can attach your dog to and it zips up and there is all see through mesh so the dog is safe from jumping or falling but can see and has plenty of air circulation. The bottom is padded and there is a shelf underneath and a cup tray at the back. We also used the pram at a Peiradise event last year where we had puppies that couldn't go on the ground. The pram and pups drew a lot of attention.

I had a foster boy who squirted me twice just doing stretches. Once we were on the bed. Blerch. I think the vet said he had weak muscles in that area or something. He was the same boy who vomited up a load of live worms (even though he had been wormed). Both things still make me shudder.

Some rescues actually assist people to rehome rather than surrender their pets so really, for some dogs this is the step before true desperation sets in and a good dog needs to be surrendered, sent to the pound or pts. I truly believe there are genuine circumstances requiring well loved and cared for dogs to find new homes and if it ever happened to me I would love to have some control over finding the right new owner for my fur baby. As long as the potential dog is right for you and you for it, you have saved it the heartache of being surrendered or worse.

I think Stussy would sound like Phoebe Buffay from Friends - all love and fluff! I think Tempeh would be Sabrina the Teenage Witch - the world revolves all around her 'issues'. Wolf would be some kind of tall, scary headmistress type with an imposing voice.

Buddy's story touched many of us and made us look at grooming practices and the safety of our dogs in a whole new light. I have shared Buddy's Story with all my friends who use grooming services and my vet so that no other dog suffers from such carelessness. To you and Leah though Caz, I would remind you who Buddy was in life. I'm sure he would approve of you bringing this issue to the dog community but at some point I'm sure he would want you to let go of your grief and remember him as the beautiful, happy soul he was and shift your thinking to celebrating his life rather than being angry at his loss. You've done your job. Time to take comfort in the dog you knew rather than the dog you lost. Buddy and his story will live on and I hope after this anniversary passes you can move on too. Love you guys. XXX Alyson

Welcome Canetoad! :D

And she's got he own song "Give me one Reason to stay here and I'll turn my back around...said I don't want to leave you lonely, you've got to make me change my mind..."

I know! I keep thinking I would be most owner's nightmare! And here we are wanting our dogs to fit into our crazy lifestyles! No wonder they get confused!

Random post deleted! Maeby what happened to your lovely post?

If I were a dog a potential new owner would need to know: - I shed long hair everywhere and need to be groomed daily. - I'm crap at ball games and have short, useless legs so don't waste your money taking me to agility classes. - Sometimes I need alone time in my crate. It's not you, it's me. - I like lots and lots of toys but do look after them and will tidy up behind myself. - I can't stand the same food day in and day out. And if I don't eat it the first time don't bother trying to feed it to me again. - I wriggle a lot in bed. Sometimes I like to stretch out and other times I like to curl into a ball. Deal with it. - I like all kinds of different animals. But not snakes, big spiders or snooty cats and especially not in my backyard! - If it's hot I expect the air conditioning on. If it is cold stick the heater on high! - I like to go for drives in the car. I also like going to the beach. - I don't like doing anything that takes a long time. This includes baths and walks. - I can't be bothered barking at nothing but would like to tell you all about my day. - Even though I'm quite social I'd prefer to be an only dog. And I like other people's kids but like it better when they go home. - I don't want to know about all the dogs you had before me. - Don't use baby talk on me and don't feed me loads of treats then call me chunky! How rude..... - I understand if you need to stick photos of me up around the house and have me on your FB page and phone. I look good! - I'd also like to add that I give excellent cuddles and kisses but I am not a random humper! - My pedigree is not good enough to want to breed with me so desexing me is fine. - I'd currently be considered mature aged but plan on living to be really, really old so we still have years of fun together! - You might sometimes need to check my sanity but you will never ever need to question my loyalty. I just thought of another very important point: - If I need a tablet you will need to master the art of peanut butter sandwich making and squishing it in amongst the crushed nuts so I will eat it.

I have an old school friend on FB who recently got a catahoula and said she was going to breed from it (I think in an arrangement with the breeder she got hers from). Since she has not bred any dogs before I asked if she was aware of DOL and suggested she join it because of what a great resource it is. Plus that breed is still rare out here so I'm sure we'd all like to see pics of a litter!

Michael Flatley....PMSL......

Deleted for stupidity and confusion. Need more sleep.

I've just found Tempeh's dope spot. With the big new tv and cable subscription we have been watching a few dog shows. Temp gets quite fixated on the new dogs in the house and has been looking behind the tv to check them out further. Hopefully she will learn to share!

I personally don't care where a breeder advertises and have always assumed they would be using all and any tools available to them that would illicit the right kind of enquiry. I also assumed that breeders would be advertising before the puppy was available, putting feelers out for the right type of homes? What does concern me most is how some ads are worded as I think it is the wording that encourages the wrong kind of potential home and indicates the quality of the 'breeder'. For example, wrong or right I can't tolerate advertising any live animal as a great Christmas present. I got into a fight on FB last year when an OS breeder was trying to flog a litter of pei pups in time for Christmas. I got called every name under the sun when all I simply said to him was please don't advertise them as Christmas presents, just sell them as beautiful dogs needing the right home. To me it should be the quality of the dogs that should be the selling point and the breeder's standing/history, as a lot of hard yards has probably gone to in creating this great dog. Show off a little. Be proud of what you have created. I like to see some pride in an ad. I appreciate that people take time off over this period of the year and kids are on school holidays so will get to spend quality time with their new pup and that you can't always control when a bitch comes into season, whelps and gives you a litter for rehoming, but just don't use present giving as a selling point. That automatically makes me suspicious. As does the use of 'rare' and 'blue' when it comes to staffords! Don't lie and don't manipulate the truth and don't try to cash in on big celebrations that we know often lead to impulse purchasing followed by regret, neglect and abandonment. I can't imagine a good breeder not caring what happens to their dogs after all the effort they put in to creating them. That's the kind of breeder I want to deal with. I want to carry on their pride in how I raise their beautiful pup. That's what I look for in an ad regardless of where it is placed.

Slight jigsaw miracle. When I got up this morning my sister had found 2 of the missing 3 pieces! No idea where as we searched high and low last night after retrieving the one that was mid chew. One missing piece to go.....although my hopes are low.....

I really think employment is the norm in most households so the best thing is to assess a potential new owner's thinking around how they will manage a new dog's needs, what changes they are willing to make from now until the dog dies, because we all know that every age stage has its own challenges. After having a geriatric dog I didn't find a puppy to require anywhere near as much work or worry! And anyone who has a storm phobic dog will also know the work and schedule rearrangement that comes with that! I took on a rescue pup unexpectedly while working full time but made some changes to my work hours for the first couple of weeks and the new pup also had daily visits from my mum, random visits from my then cleaner (she loves dogs) plus a very mothering older dog at home with her. Unfortunately, within only a couple of weeks I had an accident that left me bed ridden and on pain meds for three months. My sister and her dog moved in to care for me, the new pup and my older dog. She also worked full time so was spread pretty thin. Apart from a long delay on formal training none of it seems to have impacted negatively on that pup who has gone on to become a social butterfly who loves everyone and everything and is my heart girl who has been invaluable helping me raise other foster dogs. In some ways I think she became more sensitive to others in need and in tune with my moods and how I was feeling as a result of all that bed time. She has certainly been very protective of new fosters, particularly the sad ones. If she had've come from a breeder I may have asked for the breeder to take her back when I couldn't care for her, even though it might've broken my heart. But we muddled through and are closer for the experience. You can't predict everything life throws at you!

Sadly Grumpette, three pieces are currently being broken down into tomorrow's poo. The one chewed piece that was salvaged has swollen to twice it's original size due to said spit and the teeth marks in it make it look like it has the pox. Helping indeed.....

We are having a riveting night, I've been finishing up a jigsaw and the dogs have been eating the pieces I accidentally drop on the floor! What I wish for in 2014 is to complete a jigsaw with all the pieces intact!

Doesn't matter how often we go to the beach Stussy still drinks the sea water and we still have to wait till it's all out before we can head home!