Sydoo

I am NOT teaching my dog to open the fridge :p But otherwise, a good philosophy You don't necessarily have to teach them to open the fridge ;) http://youtu.be/m2iCsXs_gDk

Off topic...but I'm amazed they offer a standalone poo patrol service!

I disagree with this point. Not a dog but I had a car stolen one month after the policy was renewed and the insurance company paid out on the policy in full with no further payments required. If someone has life insurance and dies you do not have to continue paying the year out in order to claim. I think this is just a scam to try and get money from you. I would be asking the Dept of Fair Trading (Name varies from state to state) or get in touch with the insurance industry ombudsman. You wouldn't have to continue paying life insurance instalments because the insurer would most likely deduct any outstanding amounts from the payout figure. We claimed on monthly paid life and mortgage policies not long ago and both insurers most certainly ensured the full annual premium was paid before handing over a cent.

We use Advantix, which claims to repel mosquitoes and sandflies.

Billie usually sleeps on our bed (not under the covers). When it is warm, she sleeps on top of the blanket box at the foot of bed or on the floorboards just outside the bedroom doorway.

I forgot to get wrapping paper so just put the whole shipping carton out for Billie this morning. She's certainly grown out of her destructive bent...took her almost 5 minutes to carefully open the carton. She is very taken with the foam balls. Thanks for the recommendation Sheena!

Yup, we have a detachable shower head and doglet seems more comfortable on the flat tiles of the shower floor than in our slightly curved bath. I usually sit down in the recess to avoid bending over. Easy to rinse myself off afterwards and she will shake off inside the recess which reduces the amount of wet dog on our bathroom walls.

Great idea! Christmas might be toybox clean out day here. I try and order 2 of anything that I buy for Billie and donate the other (or equivalent goods if what I'm buying might not be a practical donation).

My order was mistakenly delivered to a house down the street last week...poor woman I've never even met has traipsed up the hill with the huge carton morning and evening since then to try and deliver it to us but we haven't been home when she tried until today. Thank you determined neighbour! Now can I wait until Christmas to open it?

OH car is due for replacement and he is considering a model with no carpet and a hoseable interior. It's going to make my car seem even dirtier!

Anywhere from 7 - 11hrs. We both work full time. The higher end of that range is when OH is away as we generally stagger our work schedules when both home. When someone is at home she has free access to the house so there is a fair bit of interaction. Billie spends a lot of her alone time sleeping, interspersed with bursts of zoomies in the yard, watching the world go by from a high vantage point on our deck...and more sleeping. I'm home right now and she is outside napping on the deck by choice. She has access to whatever toys happen to be outside that day as there is a constant migration cycle from toybox - inside floor - deck - yard - toybox (except for those toys she has decided are purely indoor or outdoor...if you take one of those to the wrong area, she will hastily return it to its chosen home).

We have the Brick game and Billie really enjoys it. She mastered it very quickly but still gets so excited she spins on the spot when I get it out of the cupboard. We have a dog pyramid too but she seems to have forgotten it exists after getting a tug-a-jug a few months ago. I've just ordered the Casino game from Clean Run for Christmas...along with a few other toys to get over $100. :D

My brother has a rigid pond shell for his large mutts - rectangle, 30cm deep and I'd guesstimate twice the area of a standard clam pool.

Billie had hers trimmed by our vet this morning (for $20). She seems to think going to the vet surgery is a very exciting outing so I'm happy to take her in...not sure she even noticed her nails being done.

OH travels frequently so I have to limit my escapades. When we are both away, I organise OH's mother, sister or a close friend to stay here. Billie has spent nights at a friend's house during a family emergency...friend has a spare key so just came over and collected the dog after I rang to say I couldn't make it home. Very handy and I have done the same for their dog when needed.

My local supermarket sells them diced in 2cm-ish cubes but when I asked they were happy to cut them smaller.

glad you found his escape route! A friend of ours resorted to CCTV to crack his frequent escapee's secret. Billie doesn't wear a collar at home. She is not prone to wandering and I frequently find tufts of hair snared in small gaps around the place that she has stuck her head through.

Billie will spit out some things (raw mushroom yesterday) but then looks to us for a cue. If I tap near it with my foot she will grudgingly finish it. Very handy for chewable worming tablets...I try and trick her but she quickly realises that it is not a treat and spits it out. A quick tap and she picks it up again then cleans up any crumbs. Don't make her eat things unnecessarily though, I just try and remember not to give her x again. More OT: Billie drops stuffed kongs from height to bounce out the food...she has figured out this is also very effective on raw eggs. Was hilarious watching her lug her first bottle buddy up on to the lounge to drop off the side over and over before she realized it didn't work like that!

OH was forever going mad at me for accidentally feeding 'his' tinned fish to the dog...now he's given up trying to buy it for himself altogether. Billie and I both feel this is the best outcome. I get Brunswick or John west sardines for her. New fishmonger has just opened in our local supermarket so will see if they can get me some dog friendly whole fish.

I bought a new cot mattress on sale and made a simple pillowcase style cover for it. Also bought a terry towelling waterproof undersheet for less than $10 that I put under the cover to keep the mattress clean. Billie likes to eat bones on the bed so this way I don't have to worry about the mattress getting festy, just throw the undersheet and cover in the wash as necessary. All up it was certainly under $100 (plus some time to sew the cover). We didn't add extra padding as she's not a big dog and rarely uses the soft bed we bought earlier. Excuse the debris on the floor...someone used to think the recycle bin was just another toy box.

I agree it would be annoying. It sounds like they did not realise. I have to admit the above did make me laugh as I can just picture it in a Brisbane dog park, which are fenced off and are not intended for a 'picnic'. I have encountered dog-free picnics in small fenced dog areas here! Always seems odd that people would choose the little doggy area over the lovely open parkland around it. One group asked me to leave as they wanted the fenced area so their kids couldn't run off while the adults relaxed for lunch. Very sceptical when I told them I'd stay as my dog wouldn't bother them...and shocked when I asked if they would ensure their kids didn't bother my dog. Dog stayed away from the picnic. Kids chased the dog to the far end of the park and threw bits of food at her.

Our dog whines if smoke or house alarm go off IF we don't get up and go to the noise. Same for a ringing phone. She will paw at you, lick your face and then resort to barking if you don't get up (I've tried to sleep through some phone calls before). Not sure if she is actually bothered by the noise or if she has just learned they should be tended to. She doesn't react to the microwave, washing machine, dishwasher or OH's alarm clock. We must ignore those too frequently

Our backyard was a nice soft, fine bladed grass when we bought this place. We noticed a coarse runner grass trying to creep in from a neighbouring yard and intended to remove it...until we got Billie. The coarse grass now covers half the yard and withstands her busy feet. The soft grass has really struggled and has a lot more weeds than the other side. I won't be upset when the coarse grass conquers the whole yard.

Billie usually retrieves, but with one ball in her mouth like Elbie she can't pick the other up - it's the only way to guarantee she'll push it back to you. Billie also likes 'handball'...you bounce a ball to her and she bounces it back quite forcefully with her nose. We get some surprisingly long rallies!

Yes. This little face pushed onto my lap recently and waited patiently for assistance... Damn weeds are driving us both spare at the moment.