Odin-Genie

My golden retriever whines in her sleep. Most of the time it is minor but sometimes it sounds like she is whimpering. I usually just hug her or pat her and that seems to calm her down.

I think goldies do tend to get a strong doggy smell if they are not bathed regularly. My goldy gets a bath every fortnight. If we miss she starts to get the doggy smell.

My elkhound's eyes shine emerald green at night while my goldy's eyes shine a very bright red!!!

Agree, though I do sit in a chair. Would never get up if I sat on the floor! Totally agree. I refused an executive level promotion overseas four years back because of my dogs. But I definitely never regret that decision.

+1 The headline says "Police wants these dogs destroyed". How about the police demanding serious consequences for the owners?

You are lucky. My goldy is exercise crazy and is very lean. She just doesn't put on weight and would go on walks every hour if we were willing!!! She is six now and requires long walks twice a day with play times and zoomies with my elky during the day.

I was very anxious about boarding my dogs as well and had the same requirements....that they are boarded together, plenty of exercise, no interaction with other dogs, plus one of my dogs was on medication. I boarded them at Akuna and it was great. Marcus and Ariel, the owners, are lovely, really care about dogs, and have a policy of no interaction between strange dogs. While Terrigal pet resort is good as well, they do tend to board strange dogs together, so you would have to give very strict instructions about your requirements.

I have an Elkhound who grows a thick coat in winter and loves the cold during the day. But at night he finds the warmest spot, usually sneaks up on the bed with the electric blanket on. We tell him that he has an identity crisis. Can't be a northern breed :laugh:

Walking back home with my goldy...saw a Border Collie following. Since my dog was getting hassled, we walked fast, I dropped her home and went back with a leash. Dog was still there with some neighbours who were wondering whose dog it was. I checked for tags but there weren't any. So I left my address with them, leashed the dog, brought it home, put it in my car and drove it to the Asquith vet so that they could scan it for a microchip. The dog is with them now. Hope it gets back home. Long shot but if anyone knows a border collie missing in the Mount Colah area, then they should contact Asquith Vet.

I would love o say that I trained my dog to do this but I really don't know. We always stopped the play when he got rough with other dogs when he was a puppy. So he probably understood that it wasn't acceptable. But my elkhound continues to surprise me. Sometime back we met a 10 year old bull terrier at the dog park. My dog did the play bow, gently coaxed her to play and within minutes they were playing with each other. My elkhound was very gentle with her. This bull terrier's owner got teary eyed and said his dog hasnt played for about 4 years and he was so happy that my elkhound could make her want to play. I can't take credit for that.

I have an elkhound and a golden retriever. My elkhound often has play dates with his litter brother and they play typical Elky style. But his play with my goldy is different. When my Elky meets timid or smaller dogs, he changes his play style and would often sit own and play. If you manage a puppy well and socialise it properly with your gf's lab, I'm sure play style won't be an issue. And from personal experience, Elkies are really special

Oh. I can not understand putting a threatened animal life above that of a threatened human life, or how anyone could justify it , and sleep well . Imagine ,in a fire, for example ..when conditions are such that only one rescue can be made- imagine saving your pet, knowing a human is dying ... I can not imagine it , thankfully .... This isn't quite correct .. equating your dog as the child - that concept causes me some thought. Most times , a child is the flesh & blood of a parent ..they are the parent's genes walking round ..and instinct demands we save our genetic material ... never mind morals, love & all the rest. A dog is no way carrying any of your genes ...and saying you would save it as your own child is a worry. I sleep perfectly well, thank you. Other people's children aren't carrying my genes, and what's the big deal about genes? Do people care less about their adopted children? Don't presume to tell me how I should feel. As I have said before, my family first, strangers second!!! And only those who would save strangers before their own family have the right to question this. I don't care if you feel all human life is superior to other life forms. I don't. Let's leave it at that.

Well, even if there were fancy tether rings and bowls outside a shop, I still would not leave my dog unsupervised. A truly dog friendly place would allow the dog to stay with the owner.

+1. I have never left my dogs unsupervised outside home and never would. If we have dogs in the car and have to buy something, my OH or I would stay in the car with the dogs while the other does the shopping. If I was alone, I would drop the dogs home first.

I don't value humans over dogs. They are different species. It's not a question of equality. It's a question of what one values more. And my family, both human and canine, take precedence over any one else. If your personal system of ethics dictates that humans are more important, that's fine. But people are different and their sense of what's ethical is also different. Don't try and impose your values on others. I haven't come across any logical rationale for this presumed superiority of humans. It's always an emotional response. And one can't argue with emotions. I could give you a whole host of logical rationales for why one species chooses to protect members of their own species :laugh: You say you have human family, would you chose one of your own human family over your dog? That contradicts this above "I don't value humans over dogs." I assume if one of your parents were in danger or a sibling you'd save them rather than your dog? Well, you haven't. And ethics isn't species related. What a species would do for its own survival does not define ethical standards. I don't value humans over dogs and I don't value dogs over humans. The species has nothing to do with my preference. The one and only thng that defines my preference is how much I value a particular member of my family. And those I value most, I will save first. But this is going way off topic and is an argument where those who disagree will continue to call the rest inhuman, simply because people react emotionally. So I will not participate in such a pointless discussion.

I don't value humans over dogs. They are different species. It's not a question of equality. It's a question of what one values more. And my family, both human and canine, take precedence over any one else. If your personal system of ethics dictates that humans are more important, that's fine. But people are different and their sense of what's ethical is also different. Don't try and impose your values on others. I haven't come across any logical rationale for this presumed superiority of humans. It's always an emotional response. And one can't argue with emotions.

Don't treat me like an idiot please Jo, I didn't say they were the same, I said each to their own. Well, I don't have any children either. If I had to choose between someone elses' children and my dogs, my dogs would get precedence every time. I am responsible for my dogs, I am not responsible for other peoples children. See, I don't get this. Are you saying if it was a life or death situation you would let a child die to save your dog? Note I am asking for clarification because I am not sure you really mean what I think you mean. I would do that too. I will first save my dog and then any stranger.....child or adult!!! But I would do all I can to save anyone, human or animal. If you will save a strange child before your own, then and only then you would have the right to question this. Because we always prioritise what we love most. Since you are here are you saying that if a car was coming and there was a child or your dog you'd save your dog and let the child die? Sure I'd save my child if it was between a strange kid and my own, but I'd never let a child die over my dog. So you can value your child over a strange child but I can't value my dog more than a strange child?? So your feelings are more important than mine? That's double standard. And yes, that's exactly what I mean. I will save my dogs over a stranger under any circumstances. And mind you, it's not I who would let the child die, it would be the highly irresponsible parent who did not take care of their own child.

Don't treat me like an idiot please Jo, I didn't say they were the same, I said each to their own. Well, I don't have any children either. If I had to choose between someone elses' children and my dogs, my dogs would get precedence every time. I am responsible for my dogs, I am not responsible for other peoples children. See, I don't get this. Are you saying if it was a life or death situation you would let a child die to save your dog? Note I am asking for clarification because I am not sure you really mean what I think you mean. I would do that too. I will first save my dog and then any stranger.....child or adult!!! But I would do all I can to save anyone, human or animal. If you will save a strange child before your own, then and only then you would have the right to question this. Because we always prioritise what we love most.

They will never be human but they, as dogs, can be more important than some other humans you know. I like my dogs precisely because they are not human babies. What I can't stand is the expectation that everyone should empathise with this person who callously caused the horrific death of a dog. Because, I'm pretty sure that no parent would forgive if another person caused their child to die callously. Dogs are not children, different laws apply. But laws and ethics aren't always the same.

Yes it would be a different story due to dogs not being the same as children. I just don't get the comparison between kids and dogs all the time, of course it's a different story! No, it's not a different story. If you could forgive and empathise with a person who left your child to die this way, then come back and say that people should not be blaming this person. I don't know how much you care for your dogs. But my dogs are like any other family member to me.

Gee, I think that's a bit harsh. Considering the staff member is undergoing counselling, I think he has suffered enough. He will most likely not be allowed to handle dogs in the near future, until can be found trusted again. For someone who is in that line of business, imagine how awful he'd feel no, not harsh at all. Totally reasonable. A child care worker who lets a child die due to negligence will not be allowed to work with children again. However bad he might feel, it can't be worse than what the dog went through.

This is beyond irresponsible. How can someone just forget that they had a dog n the car? The dog must have died a horrible death. This guy should be sacked.

At the suggestion of a possible disaster I would evacuate with my pets and OH. Houses and property can be replaced, pets can't be replaced. If I and my OH couldn't evacuate with our dogs, we would stay with them. Whatever happens!!

Not all kennels are bad. I recently boarded my dogs for 14 days during the busy Christmas time. The kennel took care of all our instructions, applied all the meds, and going by the condition they were returned in, they looked very fit and happy. However, I would avoid any kennels that board strange dogs together or allow strange dogs to play together.

I love to say hi to dogs that I meet. But only after asking the owners permission. My dogs also love to greet people and get a pat so it usually turns out to be a nice friendly encounter.