westiemum

Hmm... maybe the large beds are an exception - I don't know. Maybe buy the cover on special that Roova posted earlier - that's a bargain! ETA: I just tried it out - I 'ordered' a large lounger bed and it added shipping of $24 odd dollars no worries. Maybe a problem your end somewhere?

That is an absolute bargain!

Norty PK!

Yes they do. I shipped two Orvis beds to Adelaide in late November last year (for a surprisingly reasonable price) and they offer shopping in AUD on their website.

I've just caught up with this thread Perse - great story on the 'the Boss', love the photos.

LOL! Roova don't you dare laugh!! (She recommended these beds and now I'm a complete convert!) wanderlust IMO the best beds for that sort of money are from Orvis in the US here. They are absolutely awesome - they also have 'quiet' plastic covers underneath the washable top cover to protect the foam (or at least the two I bought did and I assume they all do). And that plastic cover is worth its weight in gold. My westies fight over this one. When I get my next house I'm going to buy another and as long as the money is available I won't ever buy anything else. I've had two of these just on 12 months with two westies scratching around in them and they still look like new. If money is tighter you can't go past the Henry Hottie here. My guys love these as well - I have one in the lounge and one in the bedroom. But they don't have the internal plastic covers (which with an old occasionally incontinent westie is a pest) and as much as I love them too I think the Orvis are better designed. Hope that helps. ETA: Until 12 months ago, I always bought cheap(er) beds - and IMO it was an absolute waste - fell apart fairly quickly but more annoying was how quickly (usually after the first or second wash) they badly lost their shape. I reckon I spent more replacing them than if I'd bought better designed and more solid beds in the first place!

I tell you Roova you are the enrichment Queen! I had a large bobalot which Mac used to love - and I filled it with pieces of dried tripe treat - worked well. Should be able to pick one up around the $30 mark if you hunt around.

Be interested to hear how you get on with the zapper Gretel.

She knows EXACTLY what she's doing!

Yet again, someone who wants to do the right thing is stymied by a system which makes it all too difficult and has come about by trying to take in account the "evils" of renters and the "evils" of landlords. So many people just won't and/or can't be bothered to do the right and decent thing. I no longer go very far on my dog walks, but when I roamed far and wide, I used to see some terrible neglect both by owners and renters. Some of the houses in my area have changed hands in the past couple of years and I find it hard to believe the state some people allow their yards to get to. However, the worst by far, is a family who owns their home, has lived here for twice as long as I have, and their yard is disgusting. At least they finally moved the rusty broken down old car that had sat there for about 15 years :laugh: . And when they open the garage . It beggars belief: packed to the ceiling with what looks like rubbish. Which is rather going off topic, but relates to the fact that some people just live in squalor with no respect for their own or other people's belongings. I have been on both sides of the fence - a renter and a landlord - and never want to be either again. Yep I'm the same DD - I'm working very hard at the moment to not be a landlord or a renter again. You're right - its got far too hard on both sides - and its the system that is at fault.

Thanks Woof - and I genuinely think that the part of the problem here. While I don't know these people well, I just have a feeling that sticking the dog in the backyard would be the approach.

Enthusiastic third to Gruf here. When I was using whitening shampoos the purple horse stuff diluted was by far the best.

the baits may be pet safe as in where they are situated ..but the chemical is not one of the ones I would consider ...Here is a diagram showing how many G g/kg is needed for a lethal dose . Using that diagram .. a 10 kg dog would need to eat 50 grams of Brodifacoum but kilograms of Difenacoum . it is always such a balancing act ... and one gets very creative as to where one puts bait ..so animals/little humans can't get to it - but where the mice will naturally find it .... It is always a challenge !! Thanks Perse - yes it is a balancing act. Luckily for me the main spots for these baits which are enclosed so 2- leggeds and 4 leggeds can't get to the bait paste - is in firmly closed cupboards in the kitchen. The only advantage that I could find is that the brodifacoum is very effective and kills the buggers more quickly than the other options - which is why the professionals use it. And I certainly had a real problem that if I didn't get control of was going to spread to the rest of the house. I feel sorry for the meeces - but the moment their constant overnight partying kept me awake their days were numbered!

I've recently had trouble with mice getting into the kitchen in the old house I'm renting at the moment. Tried to use peppermint oil which helped but didn't solve the problem. In the end I had to get the professionals in who used pet safe baits containing brodifacom paste. No I didn't like it but I wasn't prepared to use traps either. Problem seems to be under control at the moment . So much for having terriers!

Thanks animallover 99 - this has been a really enlightening journey for me too. Generally what I thought was going to be an easy case of renting to responsible pet owners with some mutual agreements and securities in place (after all I'm a pet owner too) has turned out to be much much harder than I thought. To further complicate things, I've found out today that a lot of landlord insurance policies won't cover pet damage either. Yet apparently in some states 'pet agreements' are enforceable. I tell you its all getting a bit too difficult to navigate. And I'm now beginning to really understand why some landlords just say 'no'. I think its genuinely ' the system' that is at fault.

Good post Maddy and glad your Mum is well. However, I saw many many people come out of this sort of work in the 90's with mental health difficulties. No, not the whole work-force, but a lot. And yes I agree times have changed and not for the better. You're certainly right on the economic money. We need to pay these people better to attract skilled people and to do a good job or not eat or reduce meat consumption.

It's more a case of any bond can only be a max of 4 weeks rent, whatever it is to cover. It's not that it being intended to cover pet damage is an issue. In residential tenancies though both parties can agree to pretty much anything they want as long as it doesn't contravene legislation, it's only if there is an issue and it ends up going to a tribunal that one side or the other could run into trouble, depending on what evidence is presented. Yes thats right as far as I understand too. The various state Acts state the maximum bond that can asked for regardless of what its for. I think you'll find that accepting extra bond money over the maximum regardless of whether or not its lodged it with the bond office is illegal. And I think SG's right - depending on evidence one or both parties to the transaction could be in trouble.

Great post SG - I agree entirely - and you've said so eloquently what I was trying to say earlier. Want to take the task on??!! I actually put in the hardest engineered flooring boards I could find so hopefully it would stand up to dogs and left the doggie door there thinking I would be able to charge a pet bond and have a tenant with pets. The property has two gates down the side, the back one is completely opaque and a high fenced back yard. Then I discovered the pet bond problem and I admit that in a new property I busted a gut to build without one for me its was part of the deal breaker.

Yep. Many years ago I used to rehab workers from the now defunct Macksville Abattoir on the mid north cost of NSW. And I found that if they didn't have mental health issues going in they sure had them coming out. The vast majority of people are badly affected by the work and can't do it forever unless as you say they have that 'cruel streak' to start with. I don't know what the answer is. Maybe an automated system of some sort or not eating meat in the first place (which for many is not realistic)... Don't know.

Amazing beautiful dogs. Dyson is just gorgeous. I know very little about working dogs and their needs - so a lovely thread to pop into.

Thanks asal - it appears that live export is only part of the cruelty problem here.

ABC 24 reporting a Victorian Abbatoir in Echuca is under investigation for mistreatment of animals, particularly bobby calves, prior to slaughter. They have been burning the animals in the neck instead of stunning properly according to footage. This is the second time in as many years that this abattoir has come under investigation by PrimeSafe and there are calls for it to be shut down. Warning - Disturbing footage embedded in the story. But you can read the story without viewing/clicking the footage here

You know Sarah and Andy too well! Its interesting - when I was living there, the tenants next door had been there four or five months and didn't know I had dogs. They said they'd never heard them - not once. Also described my border collies! The lazy sods don't self exercise. They are either snoozing or staring at me so I exercise them. Andy is snoozing beneath my desk, snoring his head off and Sarah (aka Her Ladyship!) is in the Orvis Lounge bed. It appears she won this morning's bed battle! Poppy is trying to guilt me into walking them by sitting in the rain! Gotta love 'em!

You know Sarah and Andy too well! Its interesting - when I was living there, the tenants next door had been there four or five months and didn't know I had dogs. They said they'd never heard them - not once. Also described my border collies! The lazy sods don't self exercise. They are either snoozing or staring at me so I exercise them. Andy is snoozing beneath my desk, snoring his head off and Sarah (aka Her Ladyship!) is in the Orvis Lounge bed. It appears she won this morning's bed battle!

Thanks Roov - thats a a very kind offer - but no not Japanese. Another friend last night suggested they might be looking for a guard dog breed which is why they've chosen an Akita. But thats pure supposition on her part. But I suppose its possible.