tdierikx

Not all of us are fanatical bleeding hearts HW... I cringe when I see people in rescue carry on like that too. I personally feel that there is room on this planet for all types of owners (as long as they care for their dogs adequately) and all types of dog (pure or crossed). You are perfectly entitled to choose your own family pet in whichever way you feel will ensure that you get exactly what you are looking for - and I commend you for your reasons for that selection. An informed decision is always a good thing IMHO. T.

My foster pups sleep in a crate in my bedroom where they can see me in bed (and hear me snore)... the longest one took to settle was about 20 mins. The current pup grizzled for exactly 4 minutes on his first night and hasn't made a fuss since. You get used to ignoring the grizzly ones for as long as it takes to settle when you do it often enough... and you also learn how to tell when a pup is truly distressed or just trying it on to get their own way. If truly distressed, I have been known to retire to the couch and get them to fall asleep with me - then move them back to the crate and get them settled with me half inside. Once settled, I gently and quietly remove myself from the crate and crawl into my own bed. Repeat as often as necessary to make the pup understand that the crate is not a scary place to be by themselves. A nice plastic bucket bed with warm bedding and a largish teddy bear to snuggle up to can work wonders for a pup missing having sleeping companions also... My own permanent dogs sleep on the bed - they live here all the time, and that is one of the perks... *grin* T.

Maybe crate Millie then if she takes her time about eating. Does Millie get fussed over when she stays at your place? Maybe Dusty is unsure of her position in your pack? I agree with seeking some professional help - one on one help for your dogs and you. A trained behaviourist will be able to see the dogs' behaviour and then be able to advise on a course of action. They are worth a lot more than they charge really... T.

Cute pup... but definitely not 8 weeks old... I'd say about 3 weeks at the most... T.

*waiting patiently for playtime photos* T.

tdierikx - Canon 450D, 18-55mm IS, 55-250mm IS - and backup is a Canon Powershot S5 P&S (12x zoom equivalent to around 400mm apparently) Can add Canon 60D and Tamron 18-270mm lens to mine please T.

Loving these little guys... please keep 'em coming. Also love the "girlie eek moment" description... lol! T.

Stunning!!! T.

*giggle... snort!* T.

One of my dogs puts on quite a show if a stranger comes to the door - but out in public she is a complete teddy bear and wouldn't harm a fly. My biggest worry would be her being hit by a car or attacked by another dog if she wandered onto someone else's property looking for help to get home. Oh - and she is a Rottie/Pittie cross... *grin* Then again, all my neighbours know my dogs and that they are friendly - someone would bring them home pretty darned quickly if they got out - or keep them at their place until they could contact me to come get them. T.

Run free little Lola... My heart goes out to you and your family Lisey... T.

Yay! They must be feeling so much better if they are starting to play. You are all doing and awesome job with these boys... T.

Uh oh! *giggle* T.

Rear end issues may mean that the dog is sore there for some reason... usually arthritis or an old wound... T.

I wonder if pounds don't have some kind of disclaimer in their adoption paperwork about that. No pound can truly assess a dog as 100% "safe" outside the pound environment when they only get to keep them for a maximum of 7-14 days in a kennel environment. I believe that rescue should be held to a higher standard than that - and reputable rescues already operate at a much higher standard, which should be the norm IMHO... Funnily enough - the most reputable rescues seem to be in the firing line for PR and their minions... reputable rescue is a finite resource, and animals are selected very carefully, tested thoroughly, and all likes and dislikes are imparted to prospective adopters. PR are all about just getting animals out of pounds with little or no regard as to what happens next... except to bring the donations in of course... T.

More importantly, why are 5 1/2 week old pups in a pet store overnight?? Owners of the pups are "concerned"?? T.

I want your cat! T.

Oh - and my rescue is on their hate list because we have some kennels and refuse to fill them up with unsafe dogs that PR want us to "save"... sheesh... we don't fill them even with our OWN dogs that we carefully select from our local pound or have surrendered to us. We can only care properly for a certain number of dogs to get them to a rehomable status, and that's what we set our upper limit to (which is a MUCH smaller number than we have a license to keep). T.

Hmmm... how about the PR representative who forged a genuine rescuer's signature to spring a dog from a pound under that rescue's name... without notifying said rescue... Everyone who has a 16D should and is legit rescue should be making sure that all pounds they deal with know exactly who is allowed to use their clause to get animals out of said pounds - and no exceptions unless prior arrangement by the clause holder is established. How are we to know what animals have been sprung under various rescue's names without our knowledge if all paperwork is handed to the person taking the animal? Might be an idea to contact DLG and find out how many animals they have listed under your rescue's name... because if these people have done it once, they may have done it many more times... and who is accountable when the DLG ask for your records at the end of the year? T.

It's amazing what a decent diet can do for a growing pup, isn't it? T.

I will only take on "Whippets", I do so because as a "breed" they come with a certain amount of predictability in terms of their temperament and breed quirks. I am not "whippet rescue", I am a dog breeder and exhibitor and as such I will pick and choose what dogs I bring into my home. *LIKE* T.

She looks Husky cross... maybe Lab or Kelpie? Does she have a double coat? T.

And in the process making it harder for genuine Rescue to do what they do best. There's a reason some pounds do not want or like to work with Rescue - and it comes from bad experiences. This is leading up to one monumental bad experience. *LIKE* T.

Not many reputable rescues are going to take on an AmStaff that has a thing for children... T.

I'm guessing that BJ made those little marks in Izzy's ears, right? He looks cheeky enough to try to drag her around by them... *grin* They are totally stunning little munchkins FM... you must be pretty proud of how they are shaping up... T.