Paul777

Thank-you tdieridx & shirra. Naturally I agree with you both. And he's a real little character. Just starting to find his voice now. He's grown so quickly. I'll try to post a couple of recent shots. Not sure why I can attach some pics but not others. I think pics that I've cropped seem to be the ones that are accepted.

Don't ask me how that worked. The program will accept some pics but not others. Anyway, finally, here's Zagan. Isn't he beautiful?

RiverStar-Aura Cats are very territorial. Do you think that she sticks to her territory because there's too many cats to fight to establish a range? As a 12yo, I came home to find that my father had, without my knowledge, got rid of my 6 budgies & replaced it with a ginger tom-cat. I resented that cat with a passion & gave the poor little thing the hardest time. But it didn't matter what I dished out he'd come back for more. I'd lay him on his back on my lap, with his head on my knees & I'd slap the shit out of him. When he'd have enough he'd pull his head in & would refuse to get of my lap until I gave him a long pat while he purred his head off. My arm would look like it had a fight with a razor blade. He beat the crap out of all the local cats & then cleared the possums out of all the neighbours roofs in his territory. He'd attack visitors that he didn't like (usually my mates) & even beat the daylights out of an 'attack-trained' GSD, lol. It was so rare to have such a vicious cat that was extremely affectionate towards my mother & myself & tolerated the other family members (as long as they didn't mess with him, lol) God how I loved that cat. One in a million. I'd let your dogs out. Cats are usually quicker & can climb/jump obstacles that dogs can't. It'd definitely give them a good scare & I can't imagine that too many would come back for more. Just make sure they've got a head-start if your dogs are quick ................ Living on an unfenced block backing onto bush many years ago, I had to chain my 2 dogs up at night. Their incessant barking nearly got me evicted so I spent an entire weekend training them they could only bark at people on my property. There was this cat that loved to taunt my dogs & would casually stroll right in front of them, just out of reach. I'd hear the dogs soft whine at night whenever it went past them. One night at 3am, there was an almighty row. The cat had pushed it's luck once too often & my Staffy x snapped her collar & chased the cat into the bush. By the time that I was dressed & out the door, poor pussy was in pieces & Staffy came trotting out of the bush, all waggly tailed looking pleased as punch, with the cats tail in her mouth & face covered in blood

Thanks Avanti. "You are getting close now!" Oh, so you're an optimist then? lol We shall see ........................

Ok, I now have my photos on my laptop. Could somebody be so kind to give me instructions how to attach a pic? I've opened my file, dragged a pic to "choose files" at bottom of page & when I release I get a note appear saying "can only download 1,023gb" or something like that. But it's only one pic highlighted in blue & dragged. What am I doing wrong?

I'm a bit concerned about the right amount to feed Zagan. He's had/having a growth spurt & is ravenous. Although the vet said he was 0.5kg overweight (12.5kg) at 12 weeks, he's grown heaps in just 2 weeks. On one hand I have to ensure that he's not eating too much so that he doesn't grow too fast & at the same time ensure that he's getting enough. A week ago a half a chicken carcass for breakfast & the other half for dinner for e.g., with 3/4 cup of kibble during the day for training, kept him reasonably happy. Now he's just ravenous at mealtime & I have had to add 6 chicken necks or cup of mince at the last few evening meals When I stroke his back I can feel his hip bones. Is that normal for a large breed 14 week old pup? A photo sent to the breeder said that he looked 'beautiful'.

... I much prefer to catch them & take them for a nice drive to the pound where the owners have to open their wallets & purses. Morons would only replace a lost kitty anyway. There's so many kittens out there for free, which is a big part of the problem. Few have any respect for what they get for nothing.

Roova, exactly. It's not the cats fault, they're just following their instincts. One of the few animals, that I'm aware, that kill just for the fun of it. I have a lot of respect for cat owners who build cat runs connected from a window to outside aviary like set-ups so their cats have the choice to be outside & keeping the wildlife safe. The laws definitely need to change. In this day & age why aren't councils thinking of the wildlife? For around 5 years I was visited by a pair of grass parrots, around spring from memory. Such beautiful birds. I haven't seen them for a few years now & wonder if cats got to them. I also get black, white cockatoos, rosellas, galahs, rainbow parakeets, pee-wees, magpies, little hawks & even a tawny-frog-mouth owl. Haven't found the remains of a bird since I started trapping the cats.

Asal "too smart"? lol Come on now, one just needs to get creative : ) Place the trap in a nice secure spot, cover it with a hessian bag or an old towel & place something that they can't resist inside. I'm not sure what the retrieval cost from the pound is but I bet many will get sick of forking out their hard earned eventually. "the temptation to get it shot is overpowering" yep. But I'm an animal lover. It's not the cats fault but lazy, inconsiderate owners. Feral cats on the other hand, which are the biggest cause of extinction of species in Australia, I don't hesitate to take them out. A mate who lives on acreage backing a National Park, knows exactly when his dogs have chased a feral cat up a tree by their excited barking & gets his rifle out. These cats are usually huge compared to domesticate cats. An acquaintance has 5 cats at last count AND has a mice problem, getting into her cupboards & chewing threw her food packaging. Simple solution - don't feed them until the mice are gone.

Sorry to hear. It must be awful to witness. Hope this isn't against the rules but legal states in America are having excellent results treating dogs with epilepsy, as well as a host of other ailments, with cannabis. It's not just humans who benefit from this amazing, safe & natural Herb. My aged Rotti ate a dozen 'special cookies' from my bin, slept for over 30 hours & never had a problem with his back legs again : ) Coincidence, I think not. Good luck & a hug for Ebony.

So they're saying that your little dog has no expectation of safety in it's own yard Papillon Kisses? What a joke. Get yourself a cat trap (mine was ordered on e-bay - delivered for $39.95) & take the captured cats to the pound. Simple. It's the only legal defence that we have & I imagine a big deterrent if they're actually fond of their feline.

I can finally pat Zagan without getting bitten, although he does sometimes lick & slobber all over my hand & arm instead. Who was it who said a pup will stop biting "When they learn not to."? Exactly. He's learnt. The other day I was re-potting plants & Zagan decided to 'help'. Although he has 3 soft plastic pots to play with, he preferred my pots. The louder I said "leave it" the more berserk he became, he just wouldn't listen. I grabbed him by the scruff (Rotti pups have heaps of loose skin, very handy) roaring in my growly voice & pinned him on his side until he relaxed. When I let him go he jumped up & got stuck back into the pots like a hoodlum, so I pinned him again until he relaxed & averted his eyes. Then he got up, came & lay beside me, observing my activity with interest like a perfect little pup, as happy as Larry, as if nothing had just happened. Now if that's not dominant behaviour (or an attempt to train me to put up with his hooliganism) I don't know what is, lol. Not that I'm complaining, I do love a dog with spirit : )

A Uni study years ago (1980s from memory) looked into the death toll on native animals in Aus. by cats that are allowed to roam free. Most field work is often done by senior students under the guidance of a professor. The results showed that cats were slaughtering anything that moved & were responsible for killing at least 350 animals each annually (birds, frogs, lizards, marsupials etc.) The professor, alarmed at the figure, thought it was inflated by the inexperience of the students. Nuh-uh. He found that even 'docile' cats were killing a minimum of 350 animals per year. No-one can tell me that anyone who let's their cat loose is an 'animal-lover', more like a crazy cat person.

While they're at it, why are cats still allowed to wander, kill native animals in my yard & use my garden as a toilet? I live in an area where everyone chops down anything green & living, while I plant trees & bushes. Naturally the filthy animals have a preference for my yard. I'd sunk my fingers into soggy poo while gardening once too often, so I got myself a cat trap & take offenders off to the pound.

Thank-you Westiemum : ) There wont be a "next time" (touch wood - but good advice none-the-less) I've got an account where I've put $500 just for my new pup & will add $50 a month (insurance is $1,000 yearly!) just for emergencies. I've also got a very understanding vet who will operate (touch wood that's never needed) & allow owners to pay off a bill. That's what I call a caring, animal loving vet, bless him. Isabel1964 Appalling & sadly, I'm not surprised one little bit. The RSPCA couldn't recognise a loving responsible owner if they fell over one.

Many years ago I was going through a nasty divorce, poor health & was stone cold broke. My beautiful Rotti boy had previously been treated for a skin complaint but the treating vet had returned back home to England. I knew what was wrong with him & all I needed was some medicated cream which I could pay for but had no money to pay for a vet consultation. Thinking that the RSPCA would understand, I rang & explained my predicament. A bitch vet told me that I obviously was an unfit dog owner & said to bring him in to be euthanised. Not sure what the rest of their staff are like but if they're prepared to put up with a vet with that level of problem solving skills, then I wouldn't trust them to care for a cockroach. I've got no respect for them what-so-ever.

I've realised what happened to the pigs ear. He ate it. What took him weeks to chew from 8 weeks old, he now demolishes in a couple of hours, lol. Worried for nothing. That's what I get for listening to a mate who believes everything he reads on the internet (he read that dried pigs ear sat like leather in a dogs stomach - what a load of codswallop)

Well, I've tried all of the suggestions to no avail (yep, a complete computer dummy) Photobucket led to a 'Driver update' that costs $$$$$ So thanks for all the suggestions but I'll wait for my mate who set up my lap-top to come back from holidays, then there'll be a flood of puppy photos. Gee, he's grown quickly. He's already reached the gangly stage.

I've always fed my dogs raw eggs as a treat & they were always healthy. My new Rotti pup is not interested in the slightest.

I've also questioned a rescue acquaintance about the attitude to spend huge resources when the poor animal is in pain & often beyond help. Where those resources could be better spent on younger dogs with good prospects. It's misguided in my opinion. Sad shit happens, it's called life. When my 50kg beautiful boy was around 13.5yo, the vet had the 'we have to think of what's right for him' talk, I was so choked up that I couldn't speak. Ponti wasn't sick or in obvious pain, he was just very old. I couldn't do it. He passed peacefully at my side several months later & I think of him every day with a smile. I'm in pain everyday, I have my good days, I have my bad days, but even on a bad day I don't wish for death, I'm still enjoying life despite the pain. And that's how I see it with my boy. Looking back, if he was in pain & no longer enjoying life, not eating his tucker, no longer smiling, then I'd have known that that was the time to call the vet. My thoughts are with those who are facing this decision, it's never easy.

Thank-you everyone for your suggestions & tips. I tried last night to e-mail from phone to laptop but baulked because I had to set up an e-mail account on the phone. Can one post from ones own e-mail account from phone to computer to the same e-mail, or do I have to set up a different e-mail account on my phone to enable sending from one to the other? In the meantime, I'll try PhotoBucket tonight or tomorrow, time permitting. Thanks again : )

Hi Paul, I'm not very cluey with this stuff either but one suggestion is you could email the pics from your phone to yourself and then download them to your computer that way. Good luck! I never thought of that. I have noticed that my phone has that function. I'll give that a go later this evening. Thanks for the tip :)

Hey everyone. I've been asked by several DOLers to provide photos of my pup Zagan. I'm fairly new to computers & can't figure out how to download pics from phone to computer (some stupid unhelpful ad for an app appears) So if anyone REALLY wants to see pics of Zagan (& prove he's not a figment of my imagination) the only way possible is to txt pics to someones mobile & they could download? Just a thought, if someone has the time on their hands & help a computer dumb-dumb out it would be most appreciated :)