Dory the Doted One

Tyrion is looking pretty magnificent! He has such a soulful expression.

Thankyou!!! I can see some of his Mum in him too. :D I love seeing parents and puppies. We're still working out who Willow looks like. Sometimes I see a lot of her Dad, and then some times you see her Mum. I think she leans more towards Dad, though. Willow's Dad

Wow, everyone's puppies are growing up to be big dogs! I love seeing piccies of parents. But what about their Mum's?? We only get to see dads? Willow is 34kg now, she's really slowed down in her growth. Some days I look at her and I think OMG...you're huge (these are not the days when we have seen Sumo piccies). Other days I look at her and think...are you going to be big enough?? She's a big hit at the dog park with the people, she floats with all the dogs. Unless there is an entire male, the hussy. We are watching her like a hawk for her first season and dreading the mess. and her training is coming along, despite the fact that I've been flat out lately and haven't given it the time I want to. She's a very quick learner. :D No shows since the Adelaide Royal...each time I go to enter, I wuss out. :laugh:

Willow in a crate, in the loungeroom. I would have it in my room except it's waaaaay too big. And if she's not crated she wanders around for ages before sleeping. And by wandering I mean...walks all over me while I'm trying to sleep. Dory sleeps on my bed, on her bed...or a pile of clothes that haven't made it to the washing hampter.

I like to surprise people with actually knowing what breed of dog they have. :laugh: Truck stop in the middle of nowhere....German Pinscher. Local Dog park on a few occasions....Fox Terriers, Welsh Terrier, Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, Old English Sheepdog (shaved) and numerous Lagotto's. to name a few. Work..you name it, we've had a few, the highlights have been Irish Wolfhound I sooooooooo want to steal :love: :love: , a Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier and a Glen of Imaal (which I didn't guess, I was told).

And while the husky might not attack, it's behaviour could cause another dog to become heightened, and THAT dog could be the one to chase and grab. Like a domino effect.

Willow when she was little and very puppy cute. She still gets some attention, but not as much...massive flailing puppy feet while getting her to sit still for pats puts most people off. :laugh: It's soooooooo much easier when you're around dog orientated people and they know how to greet a young, silly, boofhead. She's getting the idea much much better these days...but we still aren't perfect. Dory...a LOT...which is a pain, because while she's fairly sociable, she isn't really THAT interested, unless food is involved. I remember going to a market with her (Dory) when I hadn't had her for very long, this 'oldish' couple followed us around stalking her for pats. Despite her not being very comfortable with the idea, and me telling them she wasn't. (Oh, we understand, but she so adorable ). I left in the end, because it made the whole thing really traumatic for both Dory and I.

Aside from accidental 'wetting of the head', the closest I've ever seen a dog pee on another dog was when one of my old girls peed on an obnoxious barking yappy dog (smaller than her). But to be honest, I thought it was an accidental pee more than anything. It was behind a wire fence and it looked to me like she was more likely marking a tuft of grass that was close to the fence, and right in this dogs face. I think the dog was collateral damage. (although it did shut the little sh!t up). PS: Dog was just as obnoxious when a fence wasn't involved.

It's also a lot to do with the fact that the judge is a breed specialist, so is generally more knowledgeable about the breed than an all breeds judge and as a result their opinion is more valuable. Yep...this too. Completely overlooked that element, I guess it seemed a little obvious to me, and I assumed others.

There are a few Rottie people that will do mostly specialities rather than do smaller 'all breed' shows, I'm sure it's the same with GSD's. And for some I think it's because of the fact that the dogs are individually critiqued and appears to be a more transparent process.

I've heard the peeing on your dog one before, many times....sadly. Something to do with showing your dog your lack of respect for them...as in..."You think you're such a big dog? I pee on you to see how much I think you're a big dog". And other derivatives of that 'concept'.

I had a rottie who went a very unattractive red colour after I had switched her foods. Switched her back to the old food and her colour returned to black.

Never has. But there isn't access to the loo unless she follows me in. Then she's only interested in the shower drain or sniffing around whilst your on the loo. Which tickles and is seriously annoying, even the cats do this! Why?! I don't sniff them.

Or it's a purely working litter? Saw a dog with everything they wanted for a working/sport prospect, except papers and went with it anyway. Oh...and Red Dog???

Wow, Nova's feet still look so huge! Willow's not really a couch dog, Dory is definitely a couch dog. Willow likes to LEAP joyously onto beds if you aren't quick enough to close your bedroom door. She likes it when she's eye level so she can lick you all over the face. :laugh: As for nail clipping...Ugh...both of them hate it...hate...hate...hate. Willow spacks out if you even touch her feet...we're working on that.

Hank always looks so sweet in his piccies. If I didn't have my own little naughty girl, I would never believe he could be so bad. :laugh:

If you ever need a Bouncer.....

Thank you. :D It's nice getting other eyes looking at her. She's cheeky and mischievious, stubborn and clever...love her to bits.

It's a bit dark... She's grown a little bit.

Independence, Do what you love and the simple pleasure of just 'being' with them. (especially sitting on the verandah steps one leaning on one side, the other leaning on the other...heaven)

I kicked around a few different breeds before I got Willow. I wasn't going to go with another Rottweiler for a number of different reasons. Some of those reasons being the cost vs longevity, renting with a large breed dog, and how I would feel if the worst case scenario in terms of HD/ED were to occur. But after coming into contact with a few different Rotts over the last 12 months, I was reminded of why I loved them so much as a breed and, well....we have Willow now. :D (love love love her to bits, and if the worst did happen I might not be able to get another dog any time soon...so I'm soaking up all the Rottie Loves now). So if you can, spend some time with those breeds on your short list and see which one resonates with you the most.

If getting within an inch of him with a toothbrush sounds difficult, you could try one of those finger brushes...or...just a good old facewasher...(and a bit of doggy toothpaste).

Every Monday...I get a good dose of it. :D Which is great, because I didn't get to savour willows very much...she was such a bitey little bugger. Now she's a licky big bugger!! :laugh:

Haven't properly read thread, will when not on phone. Sometimes, whilst petting fat dogs I may say, nicely and directed at the dog, "Wow, you're on a good pasture. Are you a bit loved?" It often opens discussions and we talk about diets and food in general. In a conversational way. As has been said, give pointers on how to check and ways to control diet while still giving treats.

Dory scoots her butt, often. She is wormed regularly, has had her anal glands checked multiple times with a nil result as far as fullness or infection. She does get allergies from time to time. And butt scooting often coincides with that. So it's not always about worms and anal glands.