Loving my Oldies

I can't get over how good my little rescue, Mufti, is. He is microchipped as turning 15 this year, yet he sleeps the whole night on the bed without any mishaps. On the rare occasion he needs to go to the toilet he will wake me up. If all the doors are closed (rare, but it does happen ) he will bark to be let out. Sometimes he will take a short cut to an array of pot plants on the deck, but mostly off he goes on the long trek down the ramp and into the back yard. He has learnt what walks are all about and has started to come running when the leads come out. I can't take him with the others, but I take him out on his own and on the last few walks, he is RUNNING and wanting to go further than I know is good for him. I have to turn him around and make him come home. I feel mean, but I know he will overdo it and he is too heavy to carry home :D

Everyone has said good and sensible things. I would just like to add that it is not so much that a dog mightn't be friendly, it is simply the size difference that can be a problem. A little dog can be so easily injured by a much larger dog who just wants to play. Older happy and friendly dogs seem to intuitively know how to play with different dogs, but a young boisterous Labrador wouldn't . It is also pretty instinctive for people with small dogs to pick them up in a situation where they believe their dog is in danger ....... I know when I first had two little Maltese, I viewed every other dog as a potential killer. :D I was amazingly ignorant. Luckily there was an offleash park close to where I lived and I soon learned to relax - ummm a little bit. No amount of reading prepares you for the real thing.

I know the shocking way humans treat animals AND each other. I am not going to watch a video which would put an end to what little peace I do have left. I do what I can by being vegetarian, by spreading the word, by having a car covered in stickers, by t-shirts, etc etc. I have been having correspondence with members of Parliament, etc etc. I don't have the speaking skills to be standing on a street corner; I don't have the moral or physical courage that people like Christine Townend do, to face up to a gathering of tough angry waterside workers and cattlemen and women. Tune your radios and televisions to the ABC for a week and you will find that top of the news are two things: sport and the economy. Speaking generally, I have come to the conclusion that there is a lot of lip service paid to the horrors of the way animals are treated, but when it comes down to whether people's entertainment or wallets are affected, well forget it.

Shhheeeeeee it !! Those poor little dogs. Your aunt must have been in shock getting them to the vet. That dreadful woman HAS to be found. Frankly, I'd be going to the police.

I'm certainly not going to watch it. Today on ABC Television I watched "Talking Heads". Christine Townend, the founder of Animal Liberation in Australia, was interviewed by Peter Thompson and during the show, piggeries and poultry farms were shown. I just can't watch. Those poor animals - just so human beings can have more food that can ever be consumed. What I find horrible, is that even knowing how animals and birds farmed for food are treated, the whole nation doesn't rise up in horror and indignation and have it stopped.

Sometimes the title "moron" is totally correct. That woman needs to have a brain scan to check she has one. Definitely ensure your Aunt gets a full and detailed report from the vet and she really needs to find that excuse for a supposedly intelligent form of life, because the moron should be paying your Aunt's vet bills. If it weren't for those men, Max and Zack could be dead. Hope they recover fully ..... and your Aunt as well.

But they're just dogs, remember.

Few things you need to think of: Clear lid so people can look at the selection without having to open a basket. Ease of opening the lid. Ease of taking basket/plate/container from Bitty to take food. I'd be having a rehearsal with a couple of friends beforehand. I think it sounds fun.

OMG! What a fabulous time everyone was having. Don't you just love it when one dog starts the "follow the leader" game. It's ages since I've seen Mawson and Migaloo . Is Mawson still visiting hospitals?

Phantastic Photos. He is one helluva cute Elbie

Ozjen, my eyes nearly fell out of my head when I saw the first photo of Gizmo. Here are two pix of my Tirra ( gone to god) who was a PapXChi. He even had the flat little head that Gizmo has. He was 16 when he died.

Yes, they're my feelings. I remember years ago, someone on DOL said she washed her dogs dishes in the laundry tub - wouldn't wash them in the kitchen sink. So I guess even doggy people would be a bit reserved about it as well.

:D Will someone tell me where #12 lives, please. I'm off to doggy nap. Rocco, these photos . What can I say? Of course we know you are amazingly talented from your work with Roc'n'Ralph; but you have so much more than talent - you have a true gift. If you were photographing two legged "stars", you'd be known worldwide, but I hope you stay with the four legged ones.

Well, silly billy, you should never feel like thatl. With elderly or sick dogs (same as people) there are good days and bad days. On bad days, you think the time has finally come and the next day they rally. If you can't share the roller coaster of emotions here, where can you. Look at some of the other end of the spectrum, that is whelping, stories we go through: temps taken, dilations, etc etc. Sounds as though your vet is wise and caring. Good day for Kuges, share it here. Bad day for Kuges, share it here.

Depends what you put in it, I think. Nothing savoury or spicy. I go with the boiled chicken and rice if they have been off colour, but nothing really serious. I used to have a little dog who would be racing around, he'd stop for a second, throw up and off he'd go again, totally unconcerned . Just one of those things. Maybe Fred was trying to replace Pro Hart with his carpet decorating.

What Persepone says. I'd try the medication, particularly if they won't tolerate the belly bands. My Rover (there is a thread on him, he died in September last year) was nearly 20 and was fine through the day, but I used belly bands on him through the night which saved my sanity. I'm sorry to hear you are going through this. Older dogs can take quite a bit of management, and to see them deteriorate can be very distressing.

Oh forget about sore backs. Altogether now: Waiting, waiting

Yep, me too. And if the dog who threw up doesn't eat it, one of the others probably will.

He sure is one handsome guy, K9A. Has he started to put on weight? Get that camera out woman ........... please!

Can't wait to see some of the pix. However, while I wait can someone tell me why there is a person disappearing into a tree

I gather Skye and Storm are "joined at the hip"? Don't they all look lovely and happy.

Deepest sympathies, Horts . A very hard call. For Kuga to have reached such a grand age means you sure must have been doing something right all this years. I've had only little dogs and adopted quite a few who were already old. They seem to be going great guns and then all of a sudden they go downhill and then there is no going back . No matter how long they've been with you or how old they are or what a wonderful life they have had, the hole they leave in your lives is immense. For many years, I have had several dogs and only three (all of whom are still alive) have been very very attached, so there haven't been any dogs who have been left bereft. That said, when I had my first two dogs and the little female died, the male was a total wreck as he had never been alone in his life. That was truly awful and to see a dog so distraught makes our own grief even worse. I would go with what others have said and let Ella know he has gone. She will grieve, but at a time like this, it is Kuga who needs you most. Again, hugs to you and to your beautiful animals.

Dogs' senses are so much more developed than human's. A dog doesn't know it is "disabled" Exactly. I think it is horrible that these kind and loving people have been made to question what they are doing. Have to agree totally and emphasise everything here. Oh that is good. I just hate to think that they are now feeling they are doing the wrong thing. They have a happy, healthy, playful and much loved dog. What more could the dog want.

Your photos are amazing.

Ah yes, the big question. Depends on the ranger and the council and how much they care.