westiemum

You're very welcome. And Maggie is just gorgeous! Have fun looking for her companion.

That's really interesting Leema. My last little foster failure westie, was a puppy farm rescue - so humping for real was his job! And it was probably the only time he got any attention. Since he has been with me and he's been desexed (2 years ago) he attempts to hump my desexed westie girl (she was desexed 4 years ago) and he really goes for it, thrusting body action and all! I've noticed though that its often preceded by a sort of courtship play dance with tails up - and usually she doesn't mind, dances and then plays 'the game' as well. Sometimes she moves away as if she doesn't want to 'play'. He too is a timid little boy who gets very stressed around strange men - but these play dances often take place in the evenings after dinner when he appears relaxed. So when reading the article before the rest of this thread I must say I thought it described my randy little lads sex play to a tee! Who knows!!

JulesP they look like a good design - the only thing that concerns me is that they don't mention the maximum weight the steps will bear safely. Is it a chunky 8 -9 kg westie or a mega kgs husky for example?

Excellent post KKDD. tands I agree - a foster doggie from a foster carer who knows the dog so it can be well matched to your family is just as good a choice. Do have a good look at petrescue.com.au Or there is a good link to current BCs or BCXs in pounds here or indeed to the BC rescue website here Its terrific to see someone doing their homework before adding another member to their family for the next 10 - 15 years. Good luck and will be really interested to see which lucky doggie winds up with a home with you.

If like me you are on a slightly sloping block and need a few stairs outside, think about putting in a ramp instead for old doggies who eventually can't (or won't!) use stairs - will make your life toiletting old doggies much easier...

Don't forget to check the webbing between her toes, her anus and under her tail and have the vet check her ear canals with an auroscope for ticks... ie check every orifice!

Congratulations puggerup That's marvellous news. Hope it all goes really well.

:D Yep me and three westies in the bathroom`and shower with the handheld shower head after a trip to the beach yesterday - contained all our sand - and I used their EPO shampoo too! (Vet Grade of course! ) Gorgeous stuff! Better than mine by far!

Dougal how is she? How are her poos? Any sign of blood? Also Persephone asked about her gum colour/refill time? Are her gums tacky to feel? Has the trembling decreased since she has had something to drink? The first time my westie girl had HGE the young vet missed it - and its serious. I don't want to panic you as its tremendously difficult to know over a forum - but if any of these are happening I suggest you get back to the vet, and maybe get a second opinion quick smart.

Good luck puggerup. It takes courage to discuss such a difficult issue on a forum such as this one. As I said in a previous post, I have seen these sorts of re-homings work brilliantly - so all paws crossed here that it works really well for you and Ollie. Best, Westiemum

Oh and BTW, a friend of mine adopted a Cavalier who apparently had some continence problems - and funnily enough the problem resolved almost immediately in the new home - we're not sure why - different environment, different expectations :D Who knows - but it all worked out well...

Couldn't agree more TA - you've summed it up very well and puggerup yes you have made the right decision - and whats more have taken responsibility for his well-being as well as your own. Cold comfort I know - but I recently rehomed a 3.5 year old westie, whose devastated owner finally made the decision she had known was coming for some time - that (although for different reasons to yours) she needed to rehome her beloved dog. She kept the dog and got used to the decision while I found this westie girl the perfect home - and all has gone extremely well. Its been three months since the trial began, and she has settled in very well with another rescue westie - her new family says 'its like she has always been here'. I spoke with her former owner tonight who although she still misses her (and knows that will pass with time), knows she did the right thing, hard as it was. So big hugs, take your time to decide - and whatever you decide - stick with it.

Big Hugs Danielle and Abbi. I sooo dread being in your position - but I know it will come one day. There are two posts which stand out to me in this thread: Shena: . I think this is just so true - hard as it is - as it means we've put the needs of the dog before our own. The other one is from the ever wise one: tdierikx nails it as usual - no need to second guess yourself - ever - as the decision you make for Abbi will be the best one. Thinking of you both. Praying for you.

Yep wonderful stuff - and the cat taking off straight after surgery and the vets comments that this otherwise would have been a lovely life 'snuffed out' made me cry! Can't wait for next week. It also got me thinking - would I do it for my animals if I had to take them to the UK? You bet I would! In a heartbeat. (And besides Monah I get to meet the hot vet! )

Thanks Souff - yes I hope so too - I suspect there is a lucrative niche market there for a smart Australian company somewhere. And certainly agree about the costs. In most things, I find its cheaper in the long run to buy good quality. Shame because the K9 ones I saw were excellent. Hope an ingenious Aussie company will catch on soon. I have worked it out that the cost of a double unit which lasted for say 5 years and stayed in the back of the wagon would not be much more than the 2 crates that I replace every couple of years because they get banged around, left out in the weather, etc. Souff

Thanks Souff - yes I hope so too - I suspect there is a lucrative niche market there for a smart Australian company somewhere. And certainly agree about the costs. In most things, I find its cheaper in the long run to buy good quality. Shame because the K9 ones I saw were excellent. Hope an ingenious Aussie company will catch on soon. I have worked it out that the cost of a double unit which lasted for say 5 years and stayed in the back of the wagon would not be much more than the 2 crates that I replace every couple of years because they get banged around, left out in the weather, etc. Souff

Oh and forgot to add - I heard back from Trans K9 - a nice email but no joy at all - no way of them being shipped or made available in Australia.

Thanks everyone for your insightful comments and advice . This thread has turned out really well ;) - and yet not as I expected. I've come to some conclusions... If you can get them, then something like Trans K9 dog transit thingos are the best way to go. But of course sadly we can't get them in Australia (still investigating other local options but no success today... will keep trying). If these custom fitted style dog transit thingos are not an option (price, availability) and you can fit them in your car, then one or more of the good quality plastic vari crates or similar, tethered and fitted as snugly as possible in the orientation Souff recommends is probably the next best option. (Not metal crates - they damage animals on impact). If you can't fit crates in your car then I think a hammock style cover thingo for the back seat which covers the footwell is the next best thing - but must be with some good quality harnesses and tethers/restraints such as petbuckle or another harness I like is the 3 in 1 dog seat belt from canine spirit which a poster in this thread pointed me to - it looks to me like it would spread the impact instead of concentrating it like strappy type harnesses would. The thethers need to be adjusted correctly - not too long or too short. Have come to the conclusion that a tether only (no harness), in a seat belt connected to a collar (I've seen these very cheaply in places like Big W) just on the back seat is a really bad idea - in an accident the impact will be concentrated on the dogs neck and depending on the length of the tether you can wind up with a (little) dog hanging by their damaged neck half way down the footwell. I also think that just a harness in the back seat is only marginally better. I suggest if you are using the back seat without a crate then the footwell needs to be covered and you need good harnesses and tethers. Ultimately, the cost of good dog transportation might seem high, but will be cheap compared with vet costs for severely injured dogs (or worse the abject misery of losing a family member). OK - how am I doing? Would be very interested in what you all think!

There are a number of local distributors listed on the Petavenue website as well. I bought mine at a local Subaru dealer and from memory it was 26.00 cheaper plus didn't pay the 20.00 in postage - so a saving of 46 dollars... I think! Anyway it was significantly cheaper. I see the Petavenue website is still playing up - so might be worth a phone call to see who your local distributors are. Hope that helps.

Hi Sheridan, My car was listed on their drop down menu - and I think it says on the Trans K9 website that if your make and model isn't there to contact them as they are adding new designs all the time... but it all might be moot anyway if they reply to me and say they don't have an Australian Distributor (which I suspect is the case) and freight would be hellishly expensive I think even if they would do it... will post what they say when I hear from them... hope that helps :D That is them! The ones I saw up close were hard moulded plastic and fitted very snugly into the back of a wagon. Very stylish too. They do not move anywhere, cannot tip, and best of all the dogs LOVE them! The Brits are the best with their dogs, and no, I have not seen anything like them in Australia yet, but must say that I havent been specifically looking either. I would not suggest that they are cheap but hey, they would be a lot cheaper than vet bills for impact injuries and without the trauma and pain! Souff I'm not seeing anything on that website that's useful for a hatchback.

Thanks tons SnT - that sounds much more promising - will do. Thanks Jules P for the info - on their website they seem to only work in metal - do you know if thats right? Cos for safety and lightness of handling I think if I can find a hard plastic solution that would be ideal... I don't think I could handle a double transit box in metal on my own... but could be wrong! He said he was experimenting with poly-resin (or some such) false flooring for ease of cleaning when he did mine, this was a couple of years ago now. Flick him an email. If you have a wagon he might be able to do something awesome in the back for little dogs.

JulesP Thanks Jules P for the info - on their website they seem to only work in metal - do you know if thats right? Cos for safety and lightness of handling I think if I can find a hard plastic solution that would be ideal... I don't think I could handle a double transit box in metal on my own... but could be wrong!

OK - I've just sent TransK9 an enquiry about an Australian distributor... a long shot I know but lets see what comes back... That is them! :D The ones I saw up close were hard moulded plastic and fitted very snugly into the back of a wagon. Very stylish too. They do not move anywhere, cannot tip, and best of all the dogs LOVE them! The Brits are the best with their dogs, and no, I have not seen anything like them in Australia yet, but must say that I havent been specifically looking either. I would not suggest that they are cheap but hey, they would be a lot cheaper than vet bills for impact injuries and without the trauma and pain! Souff

No they aren't cheap - but compared with the vet bills I've paid this last 12 months and the old boys rebuilt million dollar back end they are cheap at half the price!! And with a double in the back of the wagon and the centre divider removed I could get three westies in it without any bother - and they could all have some comfy bedding as well!! Now to get my hands on one or something similar... That is them! :D The ones I saw up close were hard moulded plastic and fitted very snugly into the back of a wagon. Very stylish too. They do not move anywhere, cannot tip, and best of all the dogs LOVE them! The Brits are the best with their dogs, and no, I have not seen anything like them in Australia yet, but must say that I havent been specifically looking either. I would not suggest that they are cheap but hey, they would be a lot cheaper than vet bills for impact injuries and without the trauma and pain! Souff

Thanks tons Souff - thats really helpful. And you know when you see something and you intrinsically know its right? Well here it is - and these are fantastic and the perfect solution. Do you know of anything similar in Australia? Crates are actually safe havens for dogs, try to think of them that way. However, there are rules for crates. Do not use a crate that has clips - they will spring open on impact. Totally useless in an accident. Also, do not use metal folding crates. Use AIRLINE APPROVED PLASTIC CRATES - these are crates that are screwed together and cannot spring open on impact. If you have a wagon, the best place for crates is behind the back seat. If you have a sedan, the best place is being placed across the rear seat. Never place a crate with the door at the front, i.e. do not have the crate door facing the same way as the car is going. The dog or puppy can be smashed against a steel door! On the back seat the usual seat belts hold the crates in place well, but do not thread the belts through the handles of the crates. Crates come in many sizes and 2 smallish westies should be quite OK in the correct sized crate. Practice at home first with toys and food and practice sleeps. I suspect that the main reason that crates are safer than harnesses on impact is because the dogs are lying down and relaxed and literally roll off the sides of the crate after impact. They are not restrained with great force, and as most dogs usually have a nice comfy mattress in their crate, and/or blankies, the impact is absorbed better. The dogs joints, particularly shoulders, and ribs, neck, spine, etc , is not taking a great shock. Harnesses have their place and many of the bigger dogs simply wont fit in a crate, a crate that will fit in a small sedan anyway. I was in the UK recently and was very impressed with the snazzy"boxes" that fit in to the back of wagons. I think they are called "Trans K9" or something like that. Come in many sizes and they can be very roomy for the bigger dogs. btw, you are talking to somebody who used to drive with small dog on lap (!!!!!!) :D :D Sooooooo bad, and of course it is now illegal. And with very good reason! After seeing first hand the damage done to dogs by impact injuries, and having seen for myself what a determined dog can do to a harness with a set of teeth (while all the time I was blissfully listening to music as I drove) I can only recommend crates for safety. They can save your dogs life, and save him/her from serious injury. As that article points out, there is another very good reason for having your dog in a crate in the vehicle. When the ambos need to help you or injured passengers, an angry dog (who does not understand that ambos are there to help) is far better to be in a crate than lashing out at them from a harness. I sincerely hope that nobody and their dogs are involved in an accident, but it is best to plan to avoid/minimise disaster whenever you can. Please don't add them to the list of casualties. Souff