tdierikx

Tears streaming down my face watching that first clip... beautiful! T.

Well - Ellie was an absolute delight to travel with... like she'd done it heaps of times even! Harness on and buckled into the seatbelt clip, she settled on the back seat and enjoyed looking at all the sights as we drove to the vets. She only thought about poking her head into the front once, and I just said "no" and she took up watching the sights go past from the back side windows instead. We got to the vet early, so I went and told them that we didn't know how she would react to the small dog that was there, and that we would happily wait outside the clinic until her turn came. The other dog went into the consult room, and one of the clinic staff said they would take Ellie out the back to do her test - no dramas there, Ellie happily went with her and behaved well. When Ellie came out and I was talking to the clinic staff, the small dog came out of his consult - luckily I had Ellie on a shortish lead, because the little dog was not very nice, and started trying to have a go at her - I asked the owner politely to shorten her dog's lead (had him on one of those stupid retractable things and let him do whatever he wanted... grrr!) as we didn't know exactly how Ellie would take to being attacked. Ellie was quite interested in the feral fluffy, and I'm sure she wasn't overly happy at whatever he was barking at her - however, she was very easily corrected and her attention focused back on me and the pats I was giving her for correcting so well. The clinic had 2 kittens in a large play cage, and I showed Ellie - she looked and sniffed - and then one of the kittens hissed at her and she jumped back and lost interest really quickly. Another round of "good Ellie" pats for that effort - and she wasn't too sure about going up to the kitten cage any more. I have a suspicion that if one ran, she'd probably chase it though... She was happy to have the harness put on and walks on it like a charm - didn't pull at all. Rach - if someone wants to foster or adopt Ellie, you can give them the harness too, OK? I'm really impressed at how obliging Ellie is. I was a total stranger, and she let me put a harness on her, put her into the car, go to the vets and get poked and prodded, then had a walk around a few blocks when we got home for good measure. She would make someone a very faithful and loving companion dog I reckon. T.

I had a Koolie cross foster pup who used to be the best poo scout - he'd go and find one and sit by it until I picked it up, then he'd rush off to find the next one for me... I miss him! piperspal - Milo hasn't changed much since he came to live with you then? Hahaha! He used to take great delight in tormenting my 2 older girls until they played zoomies with him - and considering he was all of about 2 kgs and the girls are 30kgs each, it was an hysterical sight watching him trying to keep up with them... Trouble likes to play zoomies - she is the queen of zoomies, and teaches all of my foster pups the arcane art. She also has a weird ritual for doing her poos - has to find just the right spot, then turns twice clockwise, then 3 times anti-clockwise, then assumes the position and gets on with it - this can take a while too because the finding the right spot is another arcane art apparently... Zeddy is pretty normal - she just does the turning 3 times clockwise before settling down to beddies. Pickles... god, where does one start?? To be fair though, Pickles does have a brain injury and walks funny so she has an excuse for almost every weird thing she does... lol! She's a perpetually happy girl which is all that matters... T.

Have either of your dogs been crate trained at all? Do you think they may take to a crate well? I have 2 girls here - a Lab and a Rotti cross - who have had a few fights where the Lab was definitely trying to kill the Rotti cross. I have one of them crated or confined to a room whenever the other is loose. Both dogs had never seen or been in a crate until just after the last fight about 18 months ago. They both had to have cage rest to let their wounds heal, and they coped brilliantly. Both of them get on with my other dog just fine, so there is always a playmate for the one that isn't confined. Not to mention that I also foster pups for rescue, so there is always something or someone for them to play with... lol! They are fine sniffing and licking each other through the crate too. They would most likely go a while just fine together and then something would trigger another fight - and quite frankly I don't need to have my dogs hurting each other, or the hefty vet bills two 30kg dogs can rack up when they try to kill each other. It's a total PITA to keep 2 dogs separated at all times, but we have gotten totally used to the routine, and it's second nature for us all now. The upside is that both dogs get equal one-on-one time with me - and they really love that part of it. I also feed all 3 dogs separately - in different rooms. T.

I'm off soon to pick up Ellie and get her to the vet for her appointment. I have a large harness, one of my own strong leads, and a bag of yummy treats... I think we will get along just fine... *grin* T.

This one should be framed... amazing shot! I still want the fawn boy... he's stunning! T.

The "useless things" I buy for my dogs (all year around) tend to get shared with my fosters anyways... *grin* I have an interesting concept for you Little Catdog... maybe you'd like to help out at your local shelter, pound, or rescue... maybe foster a dog yourself? Many people here on DOL do that too... all year around. T.

No probs dogmad... I'm looking forward to meeting Ellie and making friends with her... she sounds like a complete darling. T.

PUPPIEEEEEEEEEES!!!! SQUEEEEEEEEEE! How cute are they?? Another hand up for the fawn chubby... he's gorgeous!! T.

You definitely have to include the out takes too... they are hilarious! T.

How adorable are they?? I bet you spent more time cuddling them than photographing them... I would have... *grin* T.

Sounds like there may be a whole other side to that woman's story than what she wrote in that blog post... it seems that the staff at that particular shelter knew her through her rescuing exploits (read the last part where it mentions it)... As we all know, there are some involved in rescue who really should not be allowed to represent rescue at all - pound/shelter staff from all over can tell some very interesting stories about encounters with certain types of rescue people. It's a given that most people in rescue are pretty dedicated to the cause - but that doesn't give any of us the right to treat pound staff badly when we don't get our own way. I don't know many people working in pounds that enjoy certain aspects of the job - that most of us don't have to deal with on a regular basis... as they do. Personally, I'd rather clean up a filthy kennel with my bare hands, than have to assist on "kill days"... and I'm pretty sure that the pound staff I deal with regularly through rescuing feel the same... I'll say again - the pounds (and their staff) that actively work WITH rescue to avoid high kill rates, are my heroes... they are DOING something to make a difference, not just discussing it, or tut-tutting about the problem from a computer chair. T.

The one and only time a dog I owned ended up in the pound (some 25 years ago), the release fee was $40. There were no microchips back then and her collar had been removed by the person who took her to the vet after he'd hit her with his car. If I hadn't called the local council that 4th time about the location of the pound, I would never have got her back at all - the previous 3 calls had some airhead admin person tell me she didn't know where the pound was... grr! What I learned from that experience was that I always made sure my animals were securely housed inside if the lawn mowing man was coming (he'd left the gate open when he left that day), and as we now have microchips, all of my furkids have those with all details kept current. I also make sure that all of my fencing is escape proof. I'd pay anything to release one of my babies from a pound if they ever wound up in one... even beg, borrow, or steal to get them back. Pound release fees are quite high nowadays - and are often also followed by a fine notice as well. This can put reclaiming out of the immediate financial reach of some families, even if they are desperate to get their pet back. I know of at least one instance where a family has actually adopted their dog back from the pound as it was cheaper than paying a release fee and a fine - the dog wasn't chipped or registered, so they played dumb about being the actual owners... T.

I've had a couple of male Rotties in my life - and both of them were the most forgiving and tolerant gentle souls. Big sooky lala's actually... One thing I did notice with both of them was that when they hit full maturity (around 2.5 to 3 years old), they both developed a bit more overall confidence in the world and where they fit in it. Both were intact, but I don't think that really makes too much difference if the dog is well raised to behave in certain ways in certain situations. Basically, I am of the belief that a dog (any dog) is a product of it's upbringing - a calm and even owner will generally raise calm and even dogs. T.

It involves a lot of patience and timing... *grin* When I took my ones, I reckon I snapped about 1000 to get about 25 decently focused ones... errr! I worked out that manually focusing on the spot you want, then snapping in Sports mode with continuous shooting, got me more good shots then trying to catch the drops myself... I'm a bit of a lazy bugger... T.

If they aren't broken, then why aren't they getting homes? Are homes truly not available for unbroken dogs? I've rehomed some pretty broken dogs through rescue in my time - homes do exist, they're just harder to find. We've already talked about education to prevent pets being seen as disposable. Do you like this idea? Do you have better ideas? There are literally thousands of perfectly nice, friendly, healthy dogs in pounds and shelters all over Australia. Unfortunately the general public perception of pound/shelter animals is that they are there because there is/was something wrong with them due to their owners surrendering or just not reclaiming them. Equally unfortunately, not much is being done by the government departments tasked with dealing with the "problem" - easy route for pound contractors is to house for the mandated time then euth, and collect the fees for same from the councils who contracted the pound service. Thank god for the pounds that actively work with rescue to at least reduce the numbers of animals being euthed... they are true heroes IMHO. I'm a BIG believer in the fact that EDUCATION is the key to changing anything - especially when it comes to our furry friends who have found themselves homeless. It could be as simple as a half page (or even a quarter page) reminder in the community/local newspapers that there are more places to source a pet than the local pet shop or BYB. Some papers have a dog or cat of the week section - maybe that could be a good spot to add some extra info about the local pounds, shelters, or rescue organisations, and what they are offering to the community in the way of perfectly lovely pets. Every day in this country rescues are rehoming animals sourced from pounds or private surrenders, so there isn't necessarily an "overpopulation" of pets - some just need more time than pounds and/or large shelters can give them to find their new forever homes is all. I've always thought that there was something lacking in learning only the Three R's in school... I'd like to throw in another one ®espect... respect for other living beings - be they human OR animal. T.

We subsidise people having children... pity we can't desex some of the types that expect the government (read taxpayers) to provide them a living... *sigh* Contrary to popular belief, most of the animals that end up in pounds and shelters AREN'T "broken" in any way, shape, or form... Unfortunately, pets are often viewed as objects - easy to discard when no longer necessary to requirement. It's a sad indictment on our civilisation, or level of same. Personally, I couldn't live without at least 2 or 3 dogs around - and my furbabies are for life. I know why many people give up their animals, but will never truly understand it... T.

I would have ditched the model and just been happily snapping puppies all day myself huga... *grin* T.

Jasmine is even more gorgeous in the flesh Robbi... you can feel what a gentle soul she has. Young Jack picked himself the most wonderful little best friend that day at the pound... T.

Tug ropes factor highly with my lot... T.

Might be a better idea to wait until the twins are about 6 to 12 months old before looking at getting a puppy. The household routine will be more settled and she will know how much time she will have to spend on proper training for both the pups and the kids. Pups need a lot of training - especially 2 large breed dogs - they won't train themselves, and being pregnant with twins is exhausting enough as it is without trying to train 2 exuberant large pups as well. T.

Who would have thought that her previous owner could have not been able to pick her up from the pound? Such a gentle soul... T.

Awesome comparison Rach... they grow up too fast, don't they? T.

Mine certainly aren't anywhere near as nice as yours redangel... but it's great fun trying to catch the drops happening, isn't it? T.

In actuality CC, Labs don't tend to shed much when they are wet... so you probably won't have any hair issues in the pool. If RubyStar gives the dogs a good brush before coming over, then there should be no problem at all... *grin* I'd love to see RubyStar's 2 babies having crazy Labbie fun in the pool... you know you wanna... T.