Snoopy21

I the tumour is benign is there an option to leave it alone? Or is the dog in too much discomfort from it? Removing a leg is pretty drastic in a dog that age. Maybe a second opinion if you wanted some more options?

More kids are diagnosed with autism these days because people are more aware of the signs, and diagnostics tests etc are better. During my childhood those children would simply have been "weird" kids or "disturbed" or my favourite "touched". The rate of diagnosis of ASD is 1 in 150, nowhere near 50% - I don't know the stats about peanut allergy. Very true!

That made me giggle. How gorgeous!

You should feel sorry for the poor kid. No doubt he got his prejudices from somewhere (i.e. his parents), so don't be surprised that they didn't apologise either. I hate reading posts about kids on here. Some people are so hostile and tar all kids with the same brush. What happened to "blame the deed, not the age group"?

I find people are scared of my girl because she is big and black. Apparently black = evil to some people. I think you have to be careful of assuming they were afraid because of your dog's breed. Some people just don't like dogs. People walking past have no idea of your dog's temperament. I would take a wide berth if I had my children with me, or if I had my dog with me. Some dogs just don't like children, my dog acts crazy around other dogs. It wouldn't matter if it were a chi, a stafford or a dane, I still give a dog I don't know some space.

That's so sad . Those poor dogs - what a horrible way to die. That man must feel just awful about it. I have had brain farts before in my life but thankfully none of them have resulted in a death.

Our big, goofy, cuddle bunny surprised us a few weeks ago. She was asleep at home and my husband was sitting on the floor next to her bed. My BIL who she knows quite well and loves to smooch was telling us a story. He jumped to his feet and waved his arm in my husband's direction while recounting what was said. Willow jumped up from her bed, leaped in front of my husband and barked at my BIL. She was jolted from sleep, and it was in her own home, so I wouldn't rely on her to protect us in any other situation, but we have stopped joking about her scaring burglars by sneaking up and kissing them when they weren't looking.

Willow certainly does this. Usually it is when she wants you to play with her. She will play bow and then snap the air. She copies me if I do it to her too. It's all in good fun I think. She fleas us too. Especially if you lie in the floor to watch TV. Nutty dog. :D

Coffee just came out my nose!! Classic....

Sigh......there she is!! So adorable! I have serious want. Definitely on my "to own" list. Maybe later this year.

Me too. My dog lost 2.5 kgs while she was there (she can afford it, but still I could see her ribs) over a 2 week period. I figure that she just doesn't eat as well and probably runs around more there. But the woman kept calling her "he" when she is a large smooth haired dog, so she obviously never looked at her. She had a large (1cm diam) bleeding sore on her foreleg that wasn't there when I dropped her off. The facilities at our kennel are great, with large outdoor pens for each dog as well as indoor runs for overnight - and the food they provide is excellent, as is the price. So I think I just need to accept that when they have that many dogs to care for, they aren't going to get the individual attention they get at home.

Fair enough. But the child actually quite a long way from the adult in that picture. Definitely far enough to reach out to a strange dog or whatever. I hate child harnesses like that and would never use one.

So as a parent I am supposed to be some sort of superhuman? I would crate my kids to keep them safe and I'm sure that would go down really well. Leash and muzzle perhaps? Let's be realistic. Children have rights which need to be respected. We can't tether them or cage them or gag them. It is the nature of children to explore, to shout, to run, to test boundaries and to break rules. I try my damnedest to "control" my children. I spend a great deal of time keeping them safe (buckling seat belts, supervising bathtimes, holding hands crossing the road). There are a lot of parts of their environment that I can control in order to help me with this onerous task. But there are a lot that I can't. I expect that if I go into a hair salon then there will be scissors, straightners and other dangerous items. I can plan for this and have a snack or a toy that will keep my kids busy on the couch in the waiting area. I don't allow for a dog in the salon. Especially one that is eating and not child friendly. The dog shouldn't have been there. It is the dog owner's fault that this child was bitten and their dog was euthed. It is completely different (and stupid) to bring kids to dog training. Mine have been twice and stayed in the car.

What a sweet face. You are blessed to have known her jaybeece. Sleep peacefully old girl.

I have to make an admission. I am one of those people who yanks my 5 year old off the footpath or across the road to avoid your dog. I'm not so worried about what the dog will do, but what the child will do. He is a maniac! I wouldn't want anyone to be offended, but keeping my son safe is more important. He doesn't understand that not all dogs are as tolerant of children as Willow is. I feel sad for people who are frightened of dogs. I see many of them - Willow is big and black and solid - so we meet many road crossers, leg lifters and screamers. They are missing out on meeting my lovely girl and getting some of her particular style of loving.

Bwwwwaaaaaahhhhhhaaaaahhhaaaaa!! That is hilarious! (sorry) I did this exact same thing with my 5 year old son 2 weeks ago. Except it was bouncing putty stuff - and he fell asleep in it. It was bright blue and thoroughly stuck in about a quarter of his hair. The websites said to use WD40 to get it out, but I was a little reluctant to spray it on his head, so I used olive oil and a fine tooth comb. It came out fine. 4 shampoos and one very frustrated child later he was as good as new. I would have freaked if the colour had come out as well. Maybe you could try bleaching it? Blonde streaks would look noice yes?

So can I ask what fish everyone feeds? I guess it would be whatever was cheap and available. I can get salmon heads and spines very cheap are they OK? Willow loves her sardines and the occasional can of tuna but some fresh fish would be better.

I would also love to know if anyone knows of a fenced in area in Hobart where we could train. A tennis court maybe?

Hell yes! Tail is up ears are forward and there is joy in every step. She loves to run and sniff and socialise. I can see that it is a self rewarding behaviour I just don't know how to stop that. She is pretty reliable but I don't unclip the lead and only walk about 4m away from her at a time. SHe drags the lead or we use a long line at training. I feel ok about trying it there because she would only run as far as the nearest dog for a bit of a play. I am not against the idea of a remote collar (except the usual EEEKK at the cost), but we live in Tassie so trainers are few and far between. Generally Willow is reprimanded for her bad behaviour (she is walked on a prong for example). She is a hard natured dog and takes a correction (or several corrections) fine. I don't want to associate returning with a reprimand - I guess that is why the remote collar is the best way. Can anyone recommend a trainer in Tas?

Willow is a 2 year old great dane cross who we adopted from a rescue organisation at 5 months old. She is a lovely girl who fits really well into our family. I take her to obedience training every week, and we are doing OK there (pre CCD level). But we have a problem. Willow has no recall at all outside the house and yard. I would love to be able to let her off for a romp, but her behaviour when she is offlead is quite weird. Once she realises she is off she just bolts away from us as fast as she can go. She will just keep on running - not caring whether we are in sight or looking back at us at all. If she does turn around and come back toward us she makes sure she stays far enough away that we can't catch her. The last embarrassing episode was when she broke a lead at the beach and ran full pelt down the beach running up to people and their dogs spraying them with sand and wet dog fur and god only knows what they were thinking. We only caught her because she stopped to play with another dog. Willow will also run like that if she escapes out the front door or gate and she has had a few close calls on the road already. I thought we might work on her recall using Shirley Chong's program on her website. It is basically a repetition heavy intro to recall using positive methods, that gradually introduces distractions. But I want to know why Willow runs like she does as soon as the lead is unclipped. I have a 10m long line that I can use for training but she is a big dog and long line training is difficult because once she breaks into a run she gets a fair bit of momentum. So does anyone have any suggestions? Why does she run like that? WHy doesn't she want to stay near us? What can we do to fix that? Will good recall training make a difference?

Our girl looks great on it too. She is a great weight and her coat is soft and shiny. She is happy to eat it, her poop is not sloppy or too much. We tend to switch back and forth between the Great Barko and the Uncle Alber's just for a change. Willow is doing better on GB than she was on Advantage.

RIP Evie Much love to you and your family deelee as you grieve the loss of your gorgeous girl

I have just taken Willow to the vet for the first time with horrible itchiness, hives and red skin. It has been a problem for a while now. Sigh....I don't know where to start now. I am off to educate myself about elimination diets too. I suffer from eczema myself and know that what I eat can make a huge difference, but also how horrible I feel when my skin is sore and itchy. Poor Ruby. I just wanted to say that Biozet is terrible for me, so maybe reconsider using it to wash Ruby's stuff. Any cleaner with enzymes sets me off terribly. Even if I rinse twice and dry in the sun I still react. I use Planet Ark's Aware washing powder for sensitive skin if that helps.

Thanks everyone. I now have a plan. Here is what Nekhbet sent to me (it makes perfect sense - thank you!) I am going to give it a go. Willow doesn't bolt every time the door is opened, she does it when she sees an opportunity of a good escape (usually one of the kids standing just inside or outside the door distracted by something else). I really like the idea of an outside command and will use that at both the front and back door each time she goes out or we go out together. I will enforce sitting at the edge of the carpet for opening the door too.

Thanks Nekhbet! Good luck with your exam.