Cougar

Mine have nothing on some of the ones here! Great thread when you need a laugh We have vampire dane and the little known 'air hound'

So in love :love: with these guys. So squishy and cute and all kinds of awesome! Great photos too. I want one....

Kirislin is right, its more versatile than the 50mm. We bought the 17-70mm as our first lens with the camera - i also intended to buy the 50mm 1.8 canon lens at some point. I asked the brains trust here and they said the 50mm setting on the Sigma was quite good, and i didn't 'need' the 50mm as well (though i may have got it for my birthday anyway....). only thing is that the sigma goes to 2.8 and the canon to 1.8, i haven't shot anything that wide yet, i'm not that good! more practice required. Here's a couple of sigma lens ones for you - though i'm far from the best photographer Have fun!

I have the Sigma 17-70mm, use it a lot - its lovely! I'll have to hunt around and see if I can find something i've taken recently with it. We were recommended that as being much better than the canon kit lens, and would last us longer as we improved our skill level.

Yeah, so mine didn't go all that well...or at least the dog was unimpressed!

thanks, some great ideas. would never have thought of the flea bomb! Have bought some Fido's rinse for spraying with, will see how we go. I did try the op shops today, used to be able to get great blankets etc for the dogs but no luck. It was all sheets and towels!

So, we've got the dreaded flea thing happening here - we haven't had problems before, but now we do. So any tips on how to wash/treat dog beds that are too big for a washing machine? They're the squishy filling type if that helps. All removable covers have been hot washed but I'm just not sure what to do with the inners, please help!

Cool - do you think maybe they're 'hypercolour' poodles? Or perhaps even 'mood' poodles? Ahhhhh people.....

For what its worth I had a rotti with lp in both back legs. We did the op, one leg at a time with time off in between. The op worked really well for our dog, his knees were great after that! (though the rest of him was another story entirely :rolleyes: ). And I'd also recommend getting the weight off and keeping it that way, its much better for their joints that way. Good luck with it.

Way too cute! Just a ball of fluffly, squishy gorgeous. Lucky you!!

I can't quote here (cos I'm a goose!) - but Poodlefan - that's what I did. Rang, asked the price for spey and microchip - got told x dollars. The 'would you like fries with that' bit was not mentioned until the drop off (made appointment on the friday, surgery on the monday). That's why I felt weird about it. Unexpected stuff, yep sure - it happens. This feels to me like a calculated, slightly sneaky way of guilting you into extra things. And like I said, have been using this place for a number of years now and have loved them so it was somewhat disconcerting, that's all. I will say that I'm glad I bought the extra pain killers though, its made a world of difference to Miss today.

Fair enough Staranais - you make some good points. I think in my situation, I'd have appreciated them mentioning it when I made the appointment - so the op will be x dollars and these extras would be z dollars and tell why I should consider each extra option. Then allow me to give it some thought over the weekend etc. Its the asking me without warning that feels like pressure, IFYKWIM? Especially considering I asked for an approx. quote when making the appointment - oh and it would have been $200 for all three, not the $120 I posted before. Anyway, I know now and will be prepared in future!

Sorry for dragging up an old thread - but this just happened to me today! A clinic I've used for the last 10 years (quite frequently!) sprung this 'would you like x, y and z' form on me as well. It was not mentioned on the phone when I made the appointment last Friday. Had I wanted all three options it was another $120 on the bill (not as much as the OP but still). It feels horrible to be ambushed like that, which is why I came home and dug this thread up. Is this standard practice now? They've been great for so long, so this just made me a bit uncomfortable.

Thanks again! Have just downloaded the lightroom trial and have started playing a bit. Its fun and i can see a lot of time being wasted (messing around!) with it! I can vignette now!!! I'm a bit excited...

Thanks! I often forget to reply (serial reader, much less of a poster!). Will do a bit of research then and thanks for those links to other programs, much appreciated. I'll have to go and play! Yeah Kirislin, I think that would do my head in too! THe photoshop we have, doesn't seem particularly easy to use - much like your story. Thanks for sharing!

Hi! I'm thinking that it might be time to learn how to do some editing. So I'm interested in knowing a few things - what program do you use/prefer, is one easier/more instinctive to use than the other and can I learn them via internet sources or would it be best to do a course of some type (which I'm more than happy to do)? So - tips, tricks, experiences, anything of use - lay them on me please, I'm ready!!

Hi If I need to remove the product name, then that's ok - not sure of the protocol. Anyway, my question is has anyone had dogs that have reacted badly to Frontline in any way, shape or form? Without going into too much detail, a family member used this product on their 15 week old pup - within 24 hours the dog had a few seizures/fits. It was used correctly, no overdose or anything. She 's had vet attention etc and is currently on anti-seizure meds and is ok. They have since googled seizures/frontline and found a number of reports of nasty reactions to this product. I just wanted to ask the DOL brains trust whether you"d heard of this happening or had any experiences at all? Thanks in advance.

Thanks kirislin and kja- that's pretty much what I thought. I do love the 50mm setting on my lens so far. I suppose I just wasn't sure whether the extra aperture was worth it. I shoot flash-less wherever possible, as flash washes out my son's skin like you wouldn't believe (we're all quite Nicole Kidman white here!). And my house has very little in the way of natural light, so I'm often doing the low light thing. I will keep it in mind for the future - and the shoot for a week on 50mm is probably a good challenge/exercise for me anyway.

So, am still new to this whole DSLR thing - must say I am loving it though. Am taking much better pics, but still a loooong way to go! Question is do I really 'need' the 50mm 1.8 (with of course 'need' being a relative term!!)? I've got a Canon 500d and mostly use the Sigma 17-70mm lens, which goes down to 2.8, I think. When I bought the camera I intended to buy the 50mm lens as well (partly why we went with the canon in the end) but am now unsure as to whether I should or not. Would be interested to know what you thought - obviously there's the wider aperture, but wondered if it offered much else compared to what I've currently got? Thoughts and opinions - lay them on me!! Oh and I mostly take pics of dogs and - if that helps at all. Thanks.

Thanks wilbur and Sugee - aren't those pups just gorgeous!! I think its the stairs thing that worries me the most - we have a split level house with 2 sets of 2 stairs and I'm concerned that that's not a good thing with the dachshund back. Would this be a problem do you think? Like many things, seems like everyone has a different opinion on the stairs issue. I also find the coat type/personality thing fascinating! Obviously there's variation within a breed, but what you've said about the wires being more outgoing lines up with what the man in the airport said. He was very nice, as was his dog!

Hi all - have put this here for traffic (dachshund thread is a bit quiet!). So as title asks - does anyone here have a standard wire dachshund? We're currently considering one as our next dog and I'd be interested in chatting with people who have them to find out some more info. We're heading off to the Melbourne Royal next week with the hope of meeting some breeders, fingers crossed there'll be some! Standard wires don't seem to be all that common/popular from the little research I've done so far. We met a standard wire at LA airport earlier this year and were pretty taken by him, he was just a cracking little dog - which is why we're interested in them. We've always had big dogs, so this is quite a departure for us!! At any rate, any info would be appreciated. Thanks!

I'm so glad you didn't give up - it would have been such a loss for all of us. Red is a spunk, and Ralph - well he's just a star! As always, your photos are fantastic and I remain completely jealous and in awe.

Hi kirislin - First your whippet is beautiful! Back to the question though - a 500d body and 55-250 canon kit lens. Am waiting on a Sigma 17-70 from digital camera warehouse. And to the OP - digital camera warehouse seemed pretty good for price on camera bodies if you want local Canon warranty. Almost bought there but decided to take a punt on the grey market thing - was a few hundred $ difference.

Yes, the warranty is not a manufacturer's one - its through DWI's service mob in Sydney. Though I believe lenses have an international warranty, but bodies are country of purchase. Or you can buy the MACK warranty which is international (don't know if its any good or not, but is an option). We just bought from DWI - postage was quick!! Currently charging the new toy, so we'll know if its any good soon enough :D But so far, so good!

Deepest sympathies to you. Couldn't believe the news when I saw this post. The photos of the boys have made my day on so many occasions, its just so sad to hear that Roc has headed over the bridge. My heart goes out to you and poor Ralph. Lots of