grumpette

No, I have not let the estimated life expectancy of a breed put me off owning that breed. Rottweilers are generally expected to live 8 - 10 years. Would this put me off getting another one. No way, because this is only an estimate. Baylee's brother Orca lived until her was nearly 13 yrs old and her sister Angel is heading towards 14 yrs old. Baylee herself will be 10 years old in May. To me it is the quality of the life lived, not the length of the life. This is the reason why our dogs live very busy lifes, with daily walks and activities, training, socialising, obedience, herding, pets as therapy etc. I may not have them for a long time but while I do share my life with them, it will be a bloody good life filled with many fantastic memories.

I am guessing you mean lost from Sth Morang, seen in Mill Park.

Yep you are allowed to walk dogs in State Forests, but not National Parks. Around here we have a couple of State Forests, Toolangi and Mt Robinson, but as you say have to contend with trail bike riders and 4WD vehicles most weekends

I was just wondering about dogs being allowed on the trail, as I just looked up Donnelly Weir, where the trail starts, and it is in the Yarra Ranges National Park Oh well, I will have to keep looking for trails where the dogs can go as well.

I would so love to do something like that with the dogs. I can dream and scheme until the time is right.

I love being around kids, as they give me an excuse to act like one :laugh: I love the fact that you can teach them and guide them, as they have an exhausting thirst for knowledge and such an enthusiasm to new things, and brilliant imaginations. However, I cannot be around them 24/7 because I like my own quiet time too much I don't have the patience to be constantly pestered anymore, hence I do not have any of my own. I just borrow them to keep me in touch with my juvenile side. I have three dogs who also pester and demand attention, but I can tell them no and they listen. Or I can put them in the backyard or send them to their bed/crate, and it is not against the law. No, they are not replacement children, they are dogs, much loved dogs, but the same training principles apply to both.

Kirislin I love the face plant. Three absolutely magic photos

This refers to deaths outside Australia

So glad to read that Gilbert is coming home

Cosmolo, Gilbert is absolutely gorgeous Heaps of healing vibes heading his way.

OK, totally off topic but your dogs have the most stunning markings, which are always shown beautifully in your signature

All three are inside when we are not home, with free access to downstairs only (have to love baby gates :D ). Our property is right on a main road, with 2m high ringlock fencing, but it is very public and our dogs will bark at the fence as people go past. We also have a lot of tradies around so I am a bit paranoid. They are definitely inside when it is hot, and when there are thunderstorms. Baylee hates storms and will freak out. Dee and Zeph are in crates when Dee is in season, secured with cable ties, as Zeph the bugger is a Houdini who knows how to open his and his sister's crate :rolleyes: They usually go for a good walk before we leave, so they are asleep for most of the time that we are away.

I think I just fell in love with you for this comment. A couple of years ago OH and I were looking at display homes. There was a young family ahead of us as we walked from house to house, three kids under 6 with one in a harness aged 3 years. The one in the harness kept trampling on the gardens, knocking things over and generally running riot. As they were approaching another house and the child was rushing through the door, all I wanted to do was grab the lead off the father and give the kid a bloody good correction. Just as I was about to articulate this to the OH, the father pulled on the lead and told the child firmly NO. He behaved like an angel for the next 10 minutes while they walked through that house.

Thanks everybody :D I think that they are pretty bloody special. They are certainly entertaining. One thing I have learnt from this thread is that all breeds need their hair done

Don't get a Rottweiler if you are not into dog sports like obedience, herding, tracking etc, as Rottweilers are a working breed and they love to have a job to do, or else keep in mind the point above. They will create their own entertainment.

Don't get a Rottweiler if you want to spend winter in doors, as they are an active breed especially during the colder months. Don't get a Rottweiler unless you are prepared to be constantly challenged and one step ahead of them, as they are brilliant problem solvers with great determination.

Don't get a Rottweiler if you like to drive with the windows up, as they love to see and smell where they are going. Don't get a Rottweiler if you like clean windows, both in the home and the car. Don't get a Rottweiler if you are house proud, as they love toys, especially squeaky ones and balls and will pull them ALL out of their toy box given half a chance, hence the mess above. Don't get a Rottweiler if you don't want the above mentioned soggy tennis balls and toys dropped in your undies while on the loo as apparently captive people always throw the ball/toy for you if it is dropped in your lap or underwear.

megan, I totally agree that a dog’s outing should be enjoyable 100% of the time. I have a similar problem with Dee. She is uncomfortable with lots of people (more than 4-6) around her as a result of going through a fear period at the age of 7 months when the fires went through in 2009. I am very selective with her human interactions and ensure that she has a very clear escape route. If people stop and she engages then we stop. If there are too many people, we side step, she waits patiently in a drop or sit, until they pass. Everything with Dee is done in a calm confident manner. emgem that sounds like a daily walk with Baylee and Zephyr :D Thankfully they are both extremely confident and social. When I want a quick walk I choose a route that has a good chance of no people contact.

I use other peoples' interest in my dogs as an opportunity for socialisation and education, which is vitally important for my dogs, their breed and the general public. How else does the non-dog own community learn to accept dog ownership when all they get are negative reactions? It is much better to have them leave with a positive impression and a little bit more knowledge about responsible pet ownership. It only takes a few minutes and the impression can last a lifetime.

Is it toilet and leash trained?

My other dogs have always been like this too, plates are a big no-no, as are benches, cups etc etc...this new one? lord its like he is never going to learn, he found a tupperware container with a tiny bit of tupperware in the backpack I've been taking to work...the other day I lost an apple out of my handbag! ETA...I saved the tupperware (thank god lol) Now plastic containers are a totally different story. Dee will run off with them and turn them into a sieve in no time at all, by dancing around with them in her mouth, throwing them up and catching them. :rolleyes:

OMG we have abnormal dogs They know that plates are off limits and that they are not allowed to eat out of each others bowls unless invited to by me. And the two girls are absolute pigs when it comes to food. Any food. Baylee and Dee will come and find me to ask if they can finish off Zephyr's dinner. One night I had just dished up home made spag bol and the CFA pager went off. We dashed out of the house with two bowls of fresh spag bol on the coffee table. When we got back 4 hours later it was still all there. Not a bit was missing. So we microwaved it and had a late dinner.

Baylee started on stilboestrol for spey incontinence, which worked for about a year, then moved onto propalin, which has worked for the last 7 years, with a few incidents of exercise induced leakage.

You can get bagged sandpit sand from Bunnings. This is what we use in our clam shells. The dogs love to dig in them and lie in them to stay cool in the afternoon as they are shaded by the water tank. Partially thawed meaty bones are brilliant on hot days. They need to be partially thawed so that the dogs wet tongues do not stick to the bone when they start eating them. If your dog loves food, hide a portion of their daily meal around the backyard and tell them to "find". You may have to direct them to sniff on the ground at first, but once they realise that sniffing around when told to "find" means food they will amuse themselves for a while, and then sleep because they have had to use their brains. This is more tiring than chasing balls.

OMG are you serious?? It is not PP friend's fault. It is the idiot owning/walking the dog that is at fault. The owner obviously knew the dog was reactive to strangers, so they should have moved off the path and correctly restrained/controlled their dog until the person had passed. Whenever walking my dogs, they are instructed to sit or drop to allow the passing people room to move, but also to instil in the general public confidence that my dogs are under control and well behaved. As megan said people appreciate this. A bit of common courtesy goes a long way, and prevents many problems for me and my chosen breed.