persephone

Oh Hopefully Buddy will find somewhere wonderful You shouldn't feel guilty, as you worked very hard !

The one of the two fighting horses is wonderful! The bird is striking!

IMO, Just keep to her normal exercise until close to whelping,when she can relax and loosen up... keeping fit and toned will help with delivery- and she will miss her daily outings! Obviously if she is big, shorter walks in the heat etc is common sense..she has a lot more weight to carry.. I have seen lab brood bitches who were amazingly fit, still jogging behind horses up until a few days prior to whelping... and working sheepdogs working up until a few hours prior to whelping.. giving birth, and then back to work if they could ! Not recommending either!!! , but if your bitch is at a level of fitness then try and keep her there . She's pregnant, not convalescing

Oh dear!!! Peeeeew!!! eerrmm- how on earth are you going to remove the smell??? Hope dog didn't drink too much - it probably will have some dire effect

aah- that was to be my 'excuse' - that the dog was a brilliant worker, and so could perhaps pass that on... are 'koolies' a trendy type dog to own these days?

No- however, one of the keenest and most useful of dogs we had in the sheep yards was my lilttle dachsieX mini foxie ..MANY years ago(when I was 17)! She worked the sheep in her own style.. I trained her in the paddock using a fishing line /rod ... used to reel her in if she went the wrong way! She absolutely adored sheepwork, and was actually very useful in trucks- as she'd fit right under the sheep!! Dear little Wreckit ( named as when I bought her (as a mini foxie) she was full of demodex, had an abscessed eye where the bitch had bitten her, had more fleas than hair...and the vet was going to put her down . I had to work hard to get her back to health ( the person who sold her to me paid, thanks to the vet tearing strips off him)..and she repaid me by being the toughest little thing in our house til she was well into her teens Friends all called her a cross between a toothbrush and a bullant (excuse rant..she was a one-off!, and such a treat to watch with the sheep!)

Friends drove up one day- and the ACD in the back was barking and carrying on- so I didn't go near the car. They drove to their camping spot- and opened the back door to let the dog out. It looked big, so I was a bit wary... Then I laughed- it must have been a corgiXACD- cos it hds tiny stumpy 2 inch legs! A big barrelly ACD body - all nicely marked (no it wasn't the merle of a corgi)..but someone forgot its legs

it means "Yes".

*nods*

that is ONE thing my goofy Hamlet wil do - for cat food or something dropped on th e floor..-- he will lock his eyes on mine, start the drool machine, and wait

PF- I ,too was wondering about this, it seemed a bit at odds with itself . To get a dog to look at you, wouldn't T O T be a better place to start?

yes, you will get something said to you for this if it was a small child who hit the deck, cried and ran away when they saw you coming? her reaction is pure fear- and that's funny???? This is really not teaching your dog anything- except that when you approach a certain way- she gets HURT.

Hopefully this will help

*wipes drool off the keyboard* LOVE black and 'square', solid labs yep- mason's mom- your boy will end up looking gorgeous!

I did notice his back end looked a bit lighter than the front - maybe he needs some hill climbing to build up some muscles there?

yes- get a vet to check it- the joint may be loose- or a ligament may be longer on one side-or.....

Mason's Mom- your boy is lovely ! i LOVE black labs he is certainly NOT skinny

labs are amazingly resourceful when it comes to finding food . That sweet face hides a very scheming brain

Sounding as if it may be the right thing for you both

When you wrote 'family' I was a bit worried have fun keeping them all quiet!!

I didn't read the post properly- the TRAINER suggested a harness? You have two young pups- why not just train them to walk nicely ,using a collar? What has the trainer tried to stop them pulling with a collar on? What has the trainer shown you as things to do to teach the dogs to walk without pulling? Remember- you are now looking at about 10-12 years of these two PULLING, if they are not taught otherwise

I can't remember the cost- it was about 20 years ago! It was done by a specialist.. lots of stitches and bandages ..and a dog who was severely restricted in movement for ages to allow healing... all went very well tho- and no further trouble. Mind you - It's something I wont forget, as I was assisting in a minor way... URK, and OUCH.

We have numerous dogs. None have ever had ear mites or demodectic mange needing treatment (all dogs have a population of demodex mites- it is only when the immune system suffers that they multiply and cause trouble). In the past years ,there have been two lots of sarcoptic mange from chasing/catching mangy foxes. Ear mites are not that hard to treat, from my experience - demodectic mange can be tricky- but usually only affects dogs in poor condition. Sarcoptic mange responds very well to treatment Ticks are nasty. Luckily we don't have paralysis ticks here - so don't have to use stuff to protect the dogs. Our dogs only ever get a spray on treatment IF they have fleas. Don't worry overmuch about the mite side of things The less chemicals on/in your dog the better, IMO.

Puggerup- perhaps you can explain to your SIL that dogs do not NEED to "find a girlfriend" to lead happy doggy lives... her Golden will be quite content ,possibly MOREso if he never has a chance to run with an in season bitch,and better still ,if he is castrated.