MadWoofter

Can anyone come along? I mean, does doggy size count? I have just moved over from Sydney & will be here for the next 6 months, so would love to come & meet people. My two large hairies are very social

Thanks everyone. SK & Jo - I'd love to catch up in Renmark, but I'm leaving Mildura v v early in the morning - you'll probably still be in your jimjams when I get to Renmark !! Sal - you're always welcome to visit if you want Thanks Piper - I've marked those spots on my map.

I posted this in OT as well but thought I'd get a better response here !! I'm driving from Sydney to Adelaide next week, with the hairies. The plan is to stop the first night in Narrandera and the 2nd in Mildura. I've got accommodation & everything booked for each night, but need some help with suggestions for good sniff & widdle stops on the way. If necessary I'll pull over to give them a break, but if anyone has any suggestions for places or towns not far off the highway where I can at least let them have a good walk around (on leash) & get a drink that would be great.

I know it's a long shot, but I'll be in Adelaide in 2.5 weeks. If you still need foster care then I will be able to help out. Unfortunately can't do anything either physically or financially until then.

In my short experience I've found that black fosters take a lot longer to rehome than other colours. I think people just generally (and I'm talking about the wider uneducated public here) think black dogs are scary. The amount of people that will willingly go up to Tess is a massive amount more than go up to Fleming - yet she's a great deal bigger than him! Poor Flemo never had a chance - a black dog with three legs !! Lucky for me he had no interest in him & I got to keep him :D ETA Here's a pic of the scary black dog

Sent you a PM. I might be able to help

I'm going to be driving from Sydney to Adelaide around Easter, and am looking for pet friendly places I can stay on the way. First stop will ideally be Narrandera but I'm OK with anywhere from Wagga to Hay Second stop will ideally be Renmark but anywhere around the border is fine I've checked out the recommended pet stay thread but there's nothing really this far inland. Does anyone know of any places I can stay that take pets? Any DOL'ers got a spare patch of floor?

I just want to add my congratulations to all the winners and nominees, but especially to the MDBA & a great night. I had a wonderful evening, and from all the reponses here it sounds like everyone else did as well. It certainly sounded like some did on the night ..................................... (didn't anyone mention Huski ? ) ............................... A huge thanks to Troy & Dogz Online for their support - and nice to finally put a face to the (in)famous name. If anyone is interested I am open to bribery on information about Troy (but the price is pretty high :rolleyes: ) It was wonderful to catch up with people I haven't seen in ages, and to meet (& put a face to) a heap of others. See you in 12 months in Bris-Vegas

Awww he's such a cutie. Sounds like he's landed on his paws with you

I don't think he'll be big as such, as his feet aren't massively out of proportion. I'd say probably kelpie height. He will definitely be a stocky bugger though - there's a fair bit of staffy in there ! Whatever he is, he's cute

I might but still dependent on work & possible relocation. Will let you know.

Tess is about 45kgs, and is happiest when she's on the sofa right next to me. She has a sofa to herself, but no, she has to be next to me, preferably with her head & front legs lying on me, and if I move then even a fraction then she snuggles in even closer. If she can't curl up next to me, then she'll curl up on the smallest dog bed she can find. I reckon the bigger the dog, the more of a sooky lap-dog they are !!! I've had some big ones as fosters & they do the same thing. Chiko - that is one fine specimen of hairy goodness

Can it wait a day or two? I might (only might at this stage) be relocating for work but won't know more until at least Friday. I'd hate to say yes then have to renege 6 weeks later.

Might be able to take one. Will need to be the least 'under the foot' one and not afraid of sticks

While ever there are dogs in pounds I could never breed. Just my personal opinion & belief only, doesn't mean I don't disagree with breeding per se

Dogue de Bordeaux for the Olympus camera ETA & I'm fairly sure it was a DOLers dog in that ad too

Thanks guys, have been seriously let down by internet & mobile phone going pffft at the same time, and a broken leg stopping me getting replacements. Now have emergency phone, have left you both the number

Just caught up with this thread Huski, hope you are doing OK and Daisy has a successful trip to the vet's. Tess & Fleming send her sloppy kisses and some whoo-whoo-woo's.

I've got a big bowl in the kitchen, one in the bathroom, and a couple of buckets in the backyard. They will always come inside to drink and the hotter (and puffier) Tess is the more she dribbles. Mind you it's not too bad, and I usually have a couple of hand towels (or used tea towels) lying around and I just wipe her chin before the drool gets too bad. Today, for the first time ever, she got so excited she put her foot in the water bowl & tipped it all over the floor. Lucky I've got old hand & tea towels in the kitchen (or in the laundry ready for washing) which I used to mop up the mess. Old towels are the only thing you can use. If you've got a dribbler you need a couple on the floor, and a couple on hand to wipe their face. I've got friends with a rather slobbery GD and they walk around with the corner of an old tea towel stuffed through a belt loop purely to dry up drool. I don't wash them too often, when they get wet I hang them on the line to dry and use them again & again before washing them (that sounds gross, but they're not dirty as such, just a bit wet & manky !!) Ah, the joys of a jowelly dog !!

bought my ticket just need to organise accomm & travel... CL will call you this week once I have details confirmed

Great post PF !! What has DOL given me? Way way way much more than I ever thought possible. A huge amount of information & knowledge, but also the realisation that I really don't know enough & I have lots to learn. An attitude change. I was raised to believe that all 'breeders' were bad, and were only concerned with how dogs looked, not how they lived. I am now a huge advocate for people choosing a pure breed from a reputable breeder. I have always been against pet shops & puppy farms. I am now passionately against them. My boy Fleming. If it weren't for DOL I wouldn't have been a foster carer and wouldn't have ended up with a gorgeous, character filled hairy who has been through hell but shows me every day that it was worth going through the hard bits A life epiphany - I want to spend the rest of my life working with dogs and intend to run a rescue group But most of all DOL has given me a community. I've conversed with people on threads, I've spoken to people on the phone, I've swapped PMs with others, and some of them I've even met in real life. I've made some fantastic, life-long friends, and I have had my faith in people reaffirmed when complete strangers have offered to come & walk my dogs now I need some help. DOL has changed my life.

As others have said, I think there's a huge difference between a pet that lives outside yet is given adequate attention, whether that be through working or training or just being around people, and a dog that is (as someone else said) left to rot. Tess is very much an indoor dog. Not only that, she's a sofa & bed dog too ! Fleming however is much happier outside hiding under a bush. Mind you, they had vastly different backgrounds - Tess was given the basics but no attention/affection, while Fleming was a fairly major abuse case. He is much happier in a situation where he feels 'safe' and that usually means outside under a bush where he can hide (or under the coffee table when he's inside) When I'm home they can go where they want - Tess is usually on the closest sofa or bed, or velcroed to my side, and Fleming will be in one of 3 spots in the yard. He does come in by himself of an evening and likes nothing better than to stretch out at my feet. I do however keep them inside when I'm out - mostly because I live on a corner and there are some stupendously thick people around who think that racing their dog(s) up my fenceline & stirring my dogs up is considered fun. I keep them inside when I'm out so they don't get too stressed by the idiots (and don't disturb the neighbours). I know that Fleming is OK with this as he doesn't stress out when he is inside, but I know he'd prefer to be out. A lifetime ago I went out with a guy who was a farmer, and I was distraught that he chained his dog up at night and it slept in a kennel and was never allowed inside. Now I know that the dog got huge amounts of attention - he was let off the chain at first light, they were always out together even if they weren't working, and for a macho Aussie country bloke that dog got more than it's fair share of pats & cuddles. It's the quality of life that counts.

Thanks Fleuri, I've got my wonderful office wheelie chair out and luckily I live in a flat semi with no stairs (except getting into the house), so I'm wheeling myself around OK. I'm also lucky in that I don't have a cast - I've got a wonderful ( ;) ) contraption made of metal & straps that goes from my ankle to my groin, but at least I can take it off to shower. My mum comes one day during the week and then on the weekend to help me shower, and while I might get a bit whiffy in between I can at least give myself a tub wash in between times Three weeks to go, three weeks to go ...............

Bugger - I'm housebound for the next 3 weeks at least otherwise I'd help out. If you still need help in about a month let me know ;) (I've dealt with a couple of fear aggressive dogs I've fostered before so have a little experience)

Sorry to those I couldn't get back to - I only had limited access on my mobile (it's certainly not an iphone ;) ) but broadband is back up so will PM those now.