Mooper

spottychick, I don't think Winterpaws' original rescue thread is around any more, but the beautiful Henry came to her with appalling mange ... how many years ago was that, WP? Maybe four years ago???

Wow, what an odd shot and what a kerfuffle it has caused!

So lovely to see the boofer happy and healthy

What a wonderful smile Dusk has I do love a smiley dog. (and not to be left out, Scsi has an awesome name and is very photogenic, too )

The least you could have done was paint his nails to match Poor Grotty!

I'm guessing she's trying to get Bub to remove her socks. It could be a handy skill for an assistance dog??? In this household, it would just mean that nobody's feet are safe, so it's not a trick I would be teaching!

At least Wally doesn't seem too bothered by it!

Agreed. I'm another who feeds raw. We haven't stayed in many dog-friendly places, so have limited advice and opinions. We stay annually at Giba Gunyah near Bemboka, not far from Bega and Tathra Beach. We love the fact that the flooring is slate, so easy to clean, and the yard is well fenced. Their rule is that dogs are not allowed in the bedrooms or on furniture, which suits us fine. Our dog is never allowed on the furniture at home, anyway, but judging from the fur left on the couch when we arrive, not every four-legged guest heeds the rules. Giba Gunyah provide two large stainless steel bowls, which is cheap for them and saves us packing that little bit extra. We bring a crate for our dog to sleep in -- I've often thought it would be far easier if the cottages (there are two of them) provided a large-size crate that could be disinfected between visitors. It's only a $100 outlay for the owner (per crate), and again it potentially saves the guest from carrying something so large in their car. However not all dogs sleep in crates, some travel in crates in the car anyway, and for those with more than one dog having only one crate available would be a bit of an insult ... what do others think? I agree that info about off-lead areas and info in the room about groomers, vets, pet supplies etc are very handy. If ticks are in the area, a prominent reminder for out-of-area visitors would be wise. I've never contemplated the outside tap or hydrobath idea Our dog is wash 'n' wear. He splashes about in the river to get clean when we go away. Hope that helps a wee bit.

Sounding good, j

j, how is Occy going now? I'm just catching up on this thread. Jack is at the other end of the spectrum, with Addison's disease, and regular checkups to make sure the medication is still doing its job at the current dosage rate. Hubby calls him Foxtel because his twice-daily drugs cost us as much per month as a Foxtel subscription would

Dammit, Kaz, I was just getting excited about the prospect of staying at your place Let us know if you have an extended holiday away from home and need a house-sitter I've plugged these folks before ... Giba Gunyah Country Cottages in Bemboka, near Bega on the NSW South Coast. An easy drive to Tathra Beach from there. We've been going there every year since 2005 for our wedding anniversary. You can see Jack relaxing by the fire on our first visit here There are two self-contained cottages -- the artist-built stone cottage and the pine cottage -- with fenced yards, wood fires, lots of trees for shade, lots of buried bones for happy dogs, the Bemboka River at the end of the driveway for a dip ... and a whole lotta peace and quiet I can't recommend the hosts Ros and John highly enough. Lovely people, with a lovely, friendly chocolate labrador named Charlie There are cows, dams, (contained) chooks, fire trails and all sorts of interesting smells for the dogs. Cats can stay, too. Dogs are allowed in the cottages, but not on the furniture or in the bedroom areas. We always crate Jack in front of the fire when we stay.

Gorgeous, CM The second eye pic of Chester looks like it's from a glossy advertisement. A definite calendar shot

10 things about Jack 1. Jack began his life on the streets of Queanbeyan The RSPCA picked Jack up on the streets of Quangers as a young puppy, desexed him and he was adopted thereafter by a family who lived in the north of Canberra. 2. Jack is the victim of a divorce Raelene from ARF was at Domestic Animal Services when Jack was tearfully surrendered at age 4. Mum and kids were moving into somewhere where they couldn't have a dog and the ex-husband didn't want him. Given that Jack was quite fearful of men when we got him, particularly of a man holding something like a dustpan and shovel, broom or stick, we figure the father of his original household wasn't the nicest bloke 3. He was the perfect passenger, for the first and last time, on the car-ride home from the pound When we met Jack at DAS, we were besotted with the big doofus who knew his name, knew how to have fun, and was not at all aggressive when my husband stood on the poor dog's foot! We went through all the adoption paperwork, chatted with the ranger about our yard, our plans for training etc and off we went. Jack happily hopped in the car and just sat there all the way home. For every car ride since, he barks for the first and last 5 minutes or so of every car trip. Sneaky bugger! 4. Jack can count backwards from three When riding in the car (see #3) my husband instigated a new, not entirely positive, training technique. He would count backwards from three to warn me that if Jack wasn't quiet by the time the countdown had finished, a stern "LEAVE IT" would be used. While the countdown was for my benefit, so I wouldn't swerve off the road or something, Jack was a fast learner. It usually goes like this: " (woof woof woof) 3 ... (woof) 2 ... ... ..." with silence thereafter 5. Jack is racist When we first adopted Jack, going for a walk involved much barking and frothing at the mouth, even if other dogs were behind gates in their yards. Most of our initial dog training was spent several metres away from everyone else in our training group, gradually decreasing the distance between Jack and other dogs as his tolerance and my training techniques improved. But he still hates the spitz breeds. I have no idea why. He's not as bad as he used to be, but playing with a husky, malamute, akita ... forget it. He does have a mate we pass on our walks, a big fluffy mal, who doesn't bother him one bit. 6. He is my first dog My family had a BC x corgi named Cindy when I was in pre-school and kindergarten. She ran away from home one Friday night and we believe she was poisoned by the cranky man up the road (whose flowers she would eat when she escaped from our yard). In the mid-1980s we rented a house owned by an Army family and their corgi. Susie, came with the house for the one year we were there. Those were the only dogs we had when growing up, and I was *desperate* for my own dog. Hubby was less desperate but puts up with me. And Jack. Mostly :D 7. Jack is a party animal Jack lives for attention from humans of all ages. Soon after buying our house and adopting Jack, we had a big housewarming party with loads of people and their kids. He tarted himself from person to person that night, in the house and out in the yard, and hasn't changed one bit. We had 12 people here for dinner on Thursday night this week and Jack was the life of the party, showing off all his tricks in the hope of getting food. Sadly for him, the guests had already been prepped about not giving the fatty any tasty treats. 8. He is a cancer survivor Two years ago last month, Jack went for a vaccination booster and the vet asked whether he had any unusual lumps or bumps as he was pushing 7 years of age and that's about when such things rear their ugly heads. I pointed out a small pea-sized bump near his right hind leg, which was tested and found to be a grade III mast-cell tumour A week later, it was all chopped out, with clear margins, and we've seen no sign of the C word since. 9. Jack has good drugs I don't know what they put in Florinef and Cortaid for dogs with Addison's disease, but I want some of that stuff. ;) It must be pure adrenaline! Jack is going to be 10 years old in February and still acts like a dumb puppy thanks to the good drugs he takes twice a day. 10. A cross of two intelligent breeds does not a smart dog make We think Jack is a cross between an Australian cattle dog (red) and German Shepherd dog. But he didn't get the smarts of either breed. Sure, he knows a few commands and tricks but, for the most part, he's as thick as a brick. And totally lovable We couldn't imagine life without the boofer.

I think it's been two years since Jack's diagnosis. Hooray for doggies beating the odds Love that Ollie dawg :confused: Such a good boy.

There are some lovely shots here ;) I missed this thread the first time around. Me sharing a joke with Jack Well, me laughing and him yawning. He doesn't like my jokes

Love it

Gorgeous :D

I wish I'd met you, Cujo. Be a good dog at the bridge

Rest in peace, beautiful Memphis. ILDD, I'm glad you felt ready to post in here

It sounds like a similar setup to Dog World. It'll be good for north-siders!

What a dreadful shock. I'm so very sorry, RL RIP beautiful Bella. Gone too soon.

I've never joined one of these challenges because I have a sh!te Kodak point 'n' shoot 4MP thingy. But as I was tidying up some files today, I stumbled across this photo I took of a dahlia in my sister-in-law's garden. So here 'tis. Maybe I'll treat myself to a decent camera post-thesis and manage a photo a day. These challenges seem like a great way to learn from one another

What a wonderful tribute, Slushie. Chloe was a special little lady, and was obviously meant to hang around a while longer than you'd all initially thought. RIP Chloe

That's great news!

We caught Addison's before it got to the cardiac arrest stage, thankfully, but that must have been incredibly worrying for you. The symptoms in my dog's case were general lethargy, drinking a lot (his kidney function was somehow affected), and eventually going off his food. When he went off his food, we knew something was wrong! We had been putting the lethargy down to old age, as he's 9yo and is a fairly large (30kg) dog. Keep an eye on Dida and all will now be well with medication :D All the best to you both.