spottychick

Gravel??? You can get different colours of gravel! Anything you put there unless it's really heavy is going to get trailed back onto the lawn tho if the dogs keep going up there. Also, woodchip tends to disintegrate and sink down after a while. So fence with gravel or something similar might be good.

... not to mention lack of basic human compassion!! What sort of nonsense arse-backwards approach is this anyway? Just ban pet shops from selling pets.

I've never used electric fencing but from talking to others I think you set it differently for dogs, less voltage I guess. I was actually talking with someone yesterday who warned me that the fence I was standing near with two of my dogs off lead was electric and set "for cattle" so they'd get a hell of a shock if they touch it. It seems chicken wire is rarely any good unless you have dogs who are simply put off by a visual barrier. BUT my neighbour gave me a panel she made herself to help with my current escape artist - it was chicken wire but it was completely framed in double wood and very tight and solid. If you can pick up some cheap lengths of timber to make a series of frames for the chicken wire I reckon that would work better than just chicken wire.

ifitwere me I'd be getting a second or even third opinion from other vets. I learnt that lesson last year.....

I cant see why not. I know people who have done that with no problems.

Yep, she's no gentle meanderer that river But it is beautiful! I definitely wouldn't voluntarily jump in there!! Apparently the undercurrents are nasty in parts and it's very deep. I'm not sure about Dylan - I hope he doesn't think all water is scarey but I want him to think THAT bit is!!! I'm pretty sure he was terrified when he was in there but, at least when he saw me, his swimming was strong so that's a good sign.

But alls well and sleeping dogs are lying around happily

Another

Here's a couple of pics of the river for those who are interested in details

Awwww how gorgeous!!

LOL I think I did all that and more. Yes that water was freezing!!! There's been snow close to here lately and the river comes straight off the mountain!!!!

ROFLMAO THe house already has support bars around the backyard stairs and paths (due to the old dear who lived here a few years ago!) so i'm well on the way! I don't think he thought it was too much fun while he was in there!! A bit later I went to a safe sheltered part of the river where some people were paddling and enjoying our first truly warm day of the year. I wanted to reintroduce him to the river safely. It has a gentle slope down to still shallow water and Pepper ran straight in but Dylan wouldn't go near it. Tango never does - he has a water phobia. So I hope it hasn't put him off water.

Hee hee - at least it meant he has been quiet all day since we got home. Poor lad exhausted himself. I still have no idea where he went in or how far he fell. Not sure I want to!

Thanks The good news is he CAN swim and he came straight to me. My other boy I used to have never did learn to swim. He used to just paddle frantically in one spot and slowly sink if he landed in water. I think he just splashed his front legs and did nothing with his back legs so he couldn't get any forward motion or get his back legs up! Dylan was pretty good at it from what I could see.

Awwww but you just have to!!!! :laugh: Lucky she wasn't injured in the fall! Yes it is amazing. Dylan isn't quite that heavy but he's no lightweight!

Yes I read about that a while ago. People are disgusting aren't they. But what a lovely heart-warming doggy rescue story this begins with

I get completely and utterly emotionally involved in that movie. I couldn't even make it through that vid without cracking up LOL

Oh this must be such torture for you and your OH. I really feel for you and your two precious pooches. I am "praying" in my own way for them.

Oh my goodness I just had quite a scare! Walking the dogs on the river walk today. Most of the edges of the river are steep, lots of trees and sheer drops to the river varying in height from about 3 or 4 feet upwards. But the walk itself is away from there and nicely set up with a path and lawns etc. Anyway, I have Dylan and Pepper off lead and Tango on a long lead. Suddenly I hear a loud kerplunk and snap my head around to see where the dogs are. Dylan is missing!!! From somewhere over the lawns and across the embankment I can hear splashing and then silence! After a while, I hear another kerplunk, silence, then splashing. Then silence. I figure he tried to climb up and fell back in. I listen but can't hear anything at all. Pepper has sussed out the problem and she's headed into the trees and is racing along the edge of the embankment looking into the river and over at me trying to spot him. She will actually "point" in situations like this - no pointing. My hearts in my mouth and I'm calling his name, running and trying to see down into the river. I can see part of it but not where it's closest to land. Then I hear splashing again. *sigh of relief* so I'm calling his name and frantically trying to work out how to get down to the water and where the hell he is. I tie Tango to a tree, race further down the emankment, take off my back pack - all the while calling Dylan and listening for him. Then the splashing stops. Silence. I run through trees, get to the embankment edge and there's another steep drop of about 5 feet to the water but no sign of Dylan. Just a bit further downstream there's rapids and the water is fast flowing with hidden currents. Still no splashing sounds. I"m about ready to burst into tears when I see his head pop out of the water, he's way out in the middle of the river heading to the other side. He is swimming well but the wrong way and he looks tired - he keeps zig zagging trying to work out where to go. I call him again and he spins round, sees me, sinks, pops back up again and heads towards me. He is making good progress so I stop taking off my shoes (to jump in) and instead keep encouraging him, find a tree to tie myself to with my jumper so I can lean out and down to grab him. He comes up against the embankment directly below me and cant get purchase. I reach down snag his collar and literally haul him out by his neck and into my arms! FARRRRRKKKKKK!!!!! Dylan is coughing and snorting and sooking a little and then he jumps out of my arms and leaps onto my backpack (of course) and shakes. Then he darts around doing zoomies coz it's all such fun isn't it!!! ;) Meanwhile I'm rapidly moving back up onto the walkway to get Dylan as far away from the water as possible and once there I collapse in a heap on the grass. Dylan and Pepper do zoomies at each other. Tango has wound his lead around three other trees and is just standing there looking bemused. I was so traumatised I actually walked all the way to the shops before realising I'd left my backpack at the river!!! Man that was too close.

LMAO It's looking more and more likely. But I dont want to set myself up for disappointment so I'm not committing either way yet. There's still a chance this wont work so I'm proceeding on the assumption he wont be staying, just in case. But that doesn't mean I don't want him - and if all works out he definitely has a permanent home here - how could he not???? This little fella is so smart and seems to have the sweetest personality. He's a delight. Poor little dude accidentally stuck his nose on a just boiled metal kettle today and has a slight burn just on his bottom jaw. I've been putting paw paw on it and it doesn't seem to be bothering him so hopefully it isnt too bad.

my dogs dont "squander" anything. Nothing goes to waste with them around And they appreciate everything they get. More than I can say for my sisters kids LOL LMAO @ kuma akita!!! As for these alleged environmentalists who are supposedly choosing not to have pets due to some half-assed lame-brained notions like those stated in the letter - well that's fine by me. They don't sound like they're smart enough to own dogs or cats so we're all better off :p

Ah yes. I know what a heart dog is. My old girl Lotta was one. She died at nearly 19 years of age and I was absolutely devastated. It took me a long time to get over her loss even tho she was so old at the time. Many people dont understand that. It's like a part of me died with her. I don't mean that morbidly. She just had a special connection to me. I had total faith in her and she had total faith in me. There was nothing I could ask her to do that she wouldn't do. And she never gave me any reason to be angry at her. Even when she was a puppy she was the most well behaved puppy I've ever met. She was fierce when she needed to protect me or the other dogs but otherwise not an aggressive bone in her body. But it was not for any of these reasons that she was my heart dog - tho they contributed. It was just that connection that is so rare and difficult to define. At the time I had another boy dog who I rescued at 12 months old. He almost developed into a heart dog - but not quite. He had a connection with me too but he also seemed to connect with many other people. He was one hell of a special boy. Sadly I lost him a year after I lost my old girl - I had barely recovered from her loss at the time. I fell apart over him too. Pepper I love to bits - but she's not a heart dog like my old girl was.

That all sounds really positive! Yay for you and Baxter :p

How small are the treat holes? I ask because of issues with kongs getting stuck on the dogs tongue etc - I threw out the kong I had. They look different tho. There's no issue at all. The fun ball is squishy, you can squeeze it in your hand easily. It makes it harder for the dogs to get the treats out. Holes are star shaped sort of, with about a 5c coin hole. I tend to stuff it with bikkies and get the everlocking treats to put in it for my two. Diesel will walk around chewing on it for hours. Thanks for that! :p Have ordered one!! And also a Bad cuz. I bought him a cheapie from chicken feed for the meantime and it seems to be doing the trick nicely. IT cost about $3 and has all sorts of different hardish rubber textures on it. Very nice. I'll have a look at Aussie Dog Toys Nekhbet - Thanks for that - Yeah he gets bones of some kind every day. But I don't let him bring them inside. He just has a thing where he chews on something while he settles down in his bed and if I dont find him toys or something he will eat the bed itself. Like I said the cheap chew toy seems to be holding up well so far

NOt much to add - I just wanted to say I really understand how you must be feeling and I'm sending positive thoughts your way......