Elbie, Hoover, Dodge & Friends!

[koalathebear]

raz loves the vets too, when he got done, he basically pulled the vet out the back didnt even say goodbye to me, when we go for his shots now he is still always super excited to be there

Do we have an origin story for raz yet?

We might actually still be missing one for Pepper, too.

[Max#1]

I love the photos of Elbie and Hoover playing together!!!! And poor Poover..... I remember I was doing washing every day at the start. Max had runny poo from worms and until we realised what it was we had some interesting non-hygienic experiences! We used to call him The Poo-Machine. Its funny how names like that stick - be careful with Poover!

Clastic: was thinking of you as I dropped Max off this morning. Rolling my eyes at all these happy dog-vet stories. First off Max knew something was up when he didn't get any breakfast. My OH and I were talking in the kitchen and he told us off very plaintively - rooo rooooo oooorrrr. When we arrived at the vet, it took him about 45 seconds then he remembered - GREAT!!! I LOOOOOOVE this place!!!!! And all the people!!!!!!!! He got so overexcited! First there was the vet cat there, which he loved. Then the lady. Then the post-man arrived and ruffed him up a bit - oooh what a cute puppy....! Then the vet nurse who took puppy pre-school came out - Max just adored her and he was beside himself. Then there was another dog..... We had to do subtractive weighing because he wouldn't stand still AT ALL to go on the scales ie (me+Max)-me = Max = 15.1 kg! You can imagine his shock and horror when we took him out the back, put him in the box and LEFT HIM THERE. Well we all got to hear about it - so embarrassing! (I made a very quick exit). I'm sure they all think my poor dog has never left the house before.....

And of course, last night at the park, Max decided it would be a good time to try out swimming.... in the mud-puddle hole. Actually he waded in, then decided to sit down, and I think even he was surprised by the wetness. Not a water-lover my dog. Photo of very meek dog pre-spongedown follows:

And we've been working on 'shy dog'. It seems his natural instinct is to roll on his back to wipe his face - rather than sit up and do it. So while not authentic, we might go with that (not the best quality video sorry!):

And another one we've been doing 'peekaboo':

Wuffles: hope you are feeling better!

Its raining down here too.... perfect day to have a sleepy puppy....

[Max#1]

RE: the 'OH' and dog training. Mine won't do it. And would rather undo any good work I'm doing.... hmmmmmmm....

RE: training. I bought a crate today (only slightly influenced by the vet experience). A bit late to get started I know, but we'll give it a go. Its one of those giant cage boxes. Okay question. Where's the best place to keep it? Its a bit heavy to move around too much. And any tips people have would be much appreciated...... :party:

Come on more photos from everyone!

[koalathebear]

Our metal crate is in the kitchen but to start out with, the crate should be wherever Max sleeps right now.

We keep the metal crate in the kitchen and once Elbie got crate-trained, he'll sleep in anything crate-like so we have a large soft crate that is in our bedroom right now where Elbie is sleeping.

I can envisage a day when we have a crate in every room

Good luck to Max and his snippage!

He is tooooooooo cute - I love his movements - so swift and cat-like. He also has a very cute face. The peekaboo and shy are very well-done. I think the flip onto his side sells the trick.

Edited October 15, 2010 by koalathebear

[wuffles]

RE: the 'OH' and dog training. Mine won't do it. And would rather undo any good work I'm doing.... hmmmmmmm....

RE: training. I bought a crate today (only slightly influenced by the vet experience). A bit late to get started I know, but we'll give it a go. Its one of those giant cage boxes. Okay question. Where's the best place to keep it? Its a bit heavy to move around too much. And any tips people have would be much appreciated...... :rofl:

Come on more photos from everyone!

My OH doesn't do training either. The other night I took Ava out for a walk as she was acting a bit restless. I felt soooo guilty because Satch really wanted to come and he was dancing around, nudging the door handle and woo-wooing So I asked OH to do some training with him while I was gone.... blank look "What should I get him to do?" "I don't know... sit... down... stay... anything" After another blank look I said, "How about you give him a brush then?" which is what he ended up doing

Ava's crate is in the lounge room. We don't use it much anymore but it doubles up as a bench

[dandybrush]

an origin story? as in when/where i got him?

[koalathebear]

an origin story? as in when/where i got him?

And why

[Max#1]

While I'm here... and sans Puppy chewing my feet... check out the dog on the crate-box:

How cute is that dog? Before we got Max, my OH and I would always go up the dog-food aisle at the supermarket coo-ing at the pictures of the dogs/puppies on the various dog food packets... hehe... we were hopeless!

KTB: The aim with the crate is for it to be a place he is happy to be in, but I'm not necessarily fussed about whether he sleeps in it (he's an under-the-covers kind of dog.... terrible I know) - though now it starts to get a little warmer (though not today) and he a little bigger, he'll jump off the bed and stretch out and sleep on the floor. The idea is we'll need it in the future for flyball competitions, and just in case for travelling, for example on a plane. I think unless we got a new car, a crate in the car just wouldn't work, and we're happy enough with the car harness. Do you think its better to have it in the house where we are? Or is it really better to start to enforce it for bed-time. Oh I just don't know!!! (A crate for every room is starting to sound quite workable).

Wuffles: I was away this past weekend and my OH didn't take Max to training. I think its because he can't do the high pitched happy voice (like Mickey Mouse on helium we were told). Also, he's German, and our instructor is German, and there's something funny there - she's from the north, and he the south. Like comparing a laid-back Nth Qlder (south Germany) to an uptight politically correct Victorian (north Germany). And the OH undoes my good work by repeating commands, so Max thinks he doesn't need to do things when I say it once. It usually goes like this - my OH: 'sit', Max: 'woof', my OH: 'sit', Max: 'woof'. Meanwhile he hasn't come to flyball training yet and considering that training ended with the puppies getting to run around off-lead together, and the handlers getting out their camping chairs and opening a cold one - it might be his kind of training!!

[koalathebear]

My OH doesn't do training either. The other night I took Ava out for a walk as she was acting a bit restless. I felt soooo guilty because Satch really wanted to come and he was dancing around, nudging the door handle and woo-wooing So I asked OH to do some training with him while I was gone.... blank look "What should I get him to do?" "I don't know... sit... down... stay... anything" After another blank look I said, "How about you give him a brush then?" which is what he ended up doing

I am aghast that Mr. Wuffles doesn't do training. Given how well-trained Ava is, I'd have thought that you'd have trained up Mr Wuffles, too!!! :D

Ava's crate is in the lounge room. We don't use it much anymore but it doubles up as a bench

Urgh. Elbie's crate is very much used but it is also used as a bench. Soooo much stuff on it. There is also a giant drawer that is dedicated to dog treats.

Edited October 15, 2010 by koalathebear

[KumaAkita]

Oh look at that Chow Chow (i'm pretty sure that's what it is) their looks are decieving... apparently mean things (happy to be corrected )

Kuma's crate is in the lounge room, next to the TV, so he can be with us. He's never been allowed in our bedroom (not that it has stoped him trying!). He also has a cupboard for "Kuma stuff" (leads, treats, etc), a crate of toys, two shelves in my linen cupboard... man, this dog has taken over our lives - and we wouldn't have it any other way!

OH doesn't do training - he didn't like our beginners instructors (known as Santa and the Poodle Lady) so he thought that his mood was impacting on how Kuma was training and has elected to stay away. I will try and get him to come back, but I won't push it.

Wuffles: Sounds like my house! Kuma was going a bit bonkers the other night, jumping and wanting to play. OH was getting cranky. I said, "do some training with him"... OH: "what do you want me to do?", ME: "Sit, drop, touch, stay... you know... basics!". He spent about 10 mins and came in to me saying "oh, he's such a good boy..." plus Kuma had calmed down and was playing nice.

Edited October 15, 2010 by KumaAkita

[dandybrush]

ok we got my baby in 2008 he was 9 weeks old.

My OH and i had been married 1 week, we walked into a pet shop (very bad i know) and fell in love had never heard of a coolie before, went away for half hour to discuss and research, only wanted a boy, so went back asked if he was a boy, yes, gave him a cuddle, and the rest is history he was the cutest little baby, we were always going to get a pup, just didnt plan when lol

we were soo not prepared, i didnt crate train him first thing i will do with any new puppies i get

he is kinda crate trained now, will sleep in his crate by choice, i have done preschool, advanced preschool, clicks and tricks, off leash courses and now we are doing agility

he has also had a go at hearding

hope that answered your questions

Edited October 15, 2010 by dandybrush

[Max#1]

Okay... some huffing and puffing and a few broken toes later...

From there he can look out to the kitchen - watch me making dinner - and can be happy next to us if we're on the computer. He's also nearby if we're in the loungeroom - and actually I've found its not so hard to drag the thing around when set up so we can move it into the bedroom at night. Cross your fingers all! I bought a water-proof pillow thing that goes inside it and chucked in some of his favourite blankets.

That table used to be in our dining room - and I've just moved it here - swapping it with the table that was here (a light square wooden one). All by myself. Its got a stupid glass top, which is stupid for eating off, as every plate and glass makes clattery noises on it. And its extraordinarily stupid heavy when dropped on said toes. Mein Gott! I've got a job interview in 1h20min (eeeeeks!) - how am I going to be able to explain my limp! Ha!

Okay better get ready!

Dandybrush: you can see in my photo I'm looking at your georgous puppy on the computer!

[dandybrush]

rofl max

thats a good place to put his crate, good luck with your interview

i have 2 crates now, for my untrained dog, and they are both in the same room one is out of sight beside the kitchen, that is where he has his dinner, thats a wire one, also the one i take to agility till i know he wont damage the soft one, right next to our speakers where we sit watching tv is his soft crate, which he will sometimes go lie in by choice when particularly cold or tired , he also gets his time outs in there, he has a regular bed like elbies in the bedroom and thats where he spends the night

Edited October 15, 2010 by dandybrush

[koalathebear]

While I'm here... and sans Puppy chewing my feet... check out the dog on the crate-box:

Chowchow! I love their blue black tongues. I hear they're hell to train though.

KTB: The aim with the crate is for it to be a place he is happy to be in, but I'm not necessarily fussed about whether he sleeps in it (he's an under-the-covers kind of dog.... terrible I know)

I'm so jealous of all these people who don't have allergies and can have their doggies with them. _{Although doesn't that make it kind of awkward when you want to get romantic or do you just turf the poor dog out or cover its eyes and plug it into an iPod and no I can't believe I just vocalised that Thought Bubble. Ahem.}

The soft crate is great. Once Max is used to the wire crate and doesn't try to destroy it, the soft crate will be super convenient. I have a feeling on aeroplanes they use the travel crates rather than the wire crates ... Elbie had a travel crate for his toilet training days then graduated to a wire mesh crate. We tried to do the same for Hoover but he took a dislike to his travel crate at first and kept wanting Elbie's bed or crate. Weirdly enough, last night he decided he likes his crate so our puppy is now voluntarily shuffling into his crate.

That's a great vantage point for Max's crate. I find that our doggies don't mind not being in the same room as us so long as they can see us. When OH and I are in different parts of the house, Elbie runs back and forth between us as if to keep tabs.

Good luck for the job interview! I hope it goes well!

hope that answered your questions

Yes it did thank you. He's beautiful and so clever! I'd never heard of Coolies until recently and I think their colouring and intelligence is very appealing. I think Coolies and Kelpies are supposed to be quite similar.

we were soo not prepared, i didnt crate train him first thing i will do with any new puppies i get

Definitely ... it makes life sooooo much easier. I am so relieved OH and I crate-trained Elbie.

[dandybrush]

I'm so jealous of all these people who don't have allergies and can have their doggies with them. _{Although doesn't that make it kind of awkward when you want to get romantic or do you just turf the poor dog out or cover its eyes and plug it into an iPod and no I can't believe I just vocalised that Thought Bubble. Ahem.}

The soft crate is great. Once Max is used to the wire crate and doesn't try to destroy it, the soft crate will be super convenient. I have a feeling on aeroplanes they use the travel crates rather than the wire crates ... Elbie had a travel crate for his toilet training days then graduated to a wire mesh crate. We tried to do the same for Hoover but he took a dislike to his travel crate at first and kept wanting Elbie's bed or crate. Weirdly enough, last night he decided he likes his crate so our puppy is now voluntarily shuffling into his crate.

That's a great vantage point for Max's crate. I find that our doggies don't mind not being in the same room as us so long as they can see us. When OH and I are in different parts of the house, Elbie runs back and forth between us as if to keep tabs.

Good luck for the job interview! I hope it goes well!

hope that answered your questions

Yes it did thank you. He's beautiful and so clever! I'd never heard of Coolies until recently and I think their colouring and intelligence is very appealing. I think Coolies and Kelpies are supposed to be quite similar.

we were soo not prepared, i didnt crate train him first thing i will do with any new puppies i get

Definitely ... it makes life sooooo much easier. I am so relieved OH and I crate-trained Elbie.

lol regarding the um business :p raz just ignores us, he sleeps in our room on the floor, so he just stays there and doesnt move, lol he did used to get a little um keen to er, play but he would get locked out so has given up that ghost

i had grown up with dogs, and none of them had been crate trained, i thought it was a stupid idea, when i first got raz boy was i wrong

yes coolies and kelpies are from the same beginnings, i believe. though i have been told that coolies are like kelpies only they have an off switch so all i have to say is nah nah

gosh i love their colours and the variety they come in, they are such sweet dogs too, very soppy. I know a few breeders now so will definatly be looking for my next coolie from a breeder :D

Edited October 15, 2010 by dandybrush

[Clastic]

Just got a call from the Vet, Mars is awake! Yay!! I wish I wasn't working today so I can go pick him up now!

Thank you everyone.

Hrm.. we haven't crate trained ours.. they currently sleep in the ensuite for bed time so in a way its kind of like their crate... I'm thinking of crating them at our new place, but am thinking that the crate that I need to get will be huge and will most likely end up as a bench more than anything aswell. Originally they were going to sleep in the laundry, but I don't think thats a good idea.

KTB - I will definitely be letting OH know that there are some days that will be bad.. even though he doesn't like obedience atleast he will still walk the dogs and feed them.

Just give me a buzz when you take Hoover out to explore the world and I will bring Pepper along one Sunday, or even Saturday.. off-lead area will be better.

Oh yes... I still have to post Pepper's origin story.. I don't know how exciting it is though..

Max#1 - Hope Max is going well with his op!

wuffles - Ava looks so comfy snuggled in the blanket on the couch!

KumaAkita - I think Mars likes being at the Vet more than being at home! He did have puppy preschool there so have always had good experiences.. he had no idea what was happening today!

Sorry if I have missed anyone/anything, always hard to reply at work..!

[Max#1]

Thanks for the laugh pre-interview. Though its a bit of a worry having a chuckle - all my 'good' clothes seem to have gotten a little ehrm *tight*. Oh dear!

I can't even think of what to reply without laughing.... Max has always been a curious puppy. Um... what dandybrush said.

Now I'm really off.

[dandybrush]

:p

[KumaAkita]

Just got a call from the Vet, Mars is awake! Yay!! I wish I wasn't working today so I can go pick him up now!

Thank you everyone.

Hrm.. we haven't crate trained ours.. they currently sleep in the ensuite for bed time so in a way its kind of like their crate... I'm thinking of crating them at our new place, but am thinking that the crate that I need to get will be huge and will most likely end up as a bench more than anything aswell. Originally they were going to sleep in the laundry, but I don't think thats a good idea.

KumaAkita - I think Mars likes being at the Vet more than being at home! He did have puppy preschool there so have always had good experiences.. he had no idea what was happening today!

Yay for Mars... I'm sure he'll be just fine. Kuma did puppy preschool at our vet too. I actually think that it's a good start for them.

Kuma has NEVER slept in our bedroom - never going to be an option, so no worries about uhem.. wink wink nudge nudge

You'll have to come and look at Kuma's crate - it would be big enough for two small/medium dogs and only just big enough for one not fully grown Akita. :p

yes coolies and kelpies are from the same beginnings, i believe. though i have been told that coolies are like kelpies only they have an off switch so all i have to say is nah nah

Not sure that my friend who owns a Koolie would agree. Patch digs everything and anything in the yard (i.e. he ate a huge tree stump in their yard) and steals their laundry from the line... He also herds the kids and nips at their ankles. He could run to africa and back and still want to play. I have tried to tell her that he's probably a bit bored and needs some stimulation, but they "don't have time"... he was a free to a good home dog in All Classifieds and an impusle decision. Poor Patch.

Edited October 15, 2010 by KumaAkita

[dandybrush]

patch doesnt sound like the right dog for them then :p

raz can still be destructive, but he is a working dog, so i expect that, i also give him things that he is allowed to destroy like boxes and drink bottles. If they put in a bit of effort they would have a well behaved dog, but working dogs arent for everyone IMO as you have to be willing and able to give them what they need

oh well to each their own

Edited October 15, 2010 by dandybrush