yellowgirl

And a short video... Nandi and Sarge are in it first, then Banshee. I don't think she realised it was me in front of her until the last minute, and then she got a bit excited

More pics are here http://www.dolforums.com.au/index.php?show...p;#entry5148152 As you weren't there to take amazing pics Snook, we'll have to make do with the efforts of the point-and-shoot crowd My crew had such a nice day . Even Pepper ventured out a few times I'm happy to make it a regular meet - every 2nd Sunday of the month if anyone else is interested

Some more .... Ooh, are there treats over here? My Miss Gorgeous - Banshee Madeline and Banshee Dory Nandi and her big stick Beautiful Janna

Some happy snaps of our meet-up for little dogs and calm larger dogs on Sunday Pele and Banshee The three muskateers Nandi and Dori The dog whisperer Little Man Annie Sarge, Pepper & Madeline take a break

Sorry to be a pain, I appreciate you editing it Julie but the online addy is still not connecting. eta ... the address bar says it's trying to connect to the MDBA website eta ... all sorted now . Thanks Julie!

Lovely to chat to you Julie, I'm so chuffed to have been nominated! :rolleyes: Julie, my website addy in the online list doesn't connect - probably needs the www in front of it I changed my store's name last month and I'm still working on getting the new website finished ... I hope the judging panel understand ;) I've tried to work something out, but I won't be able to make it to the awards . Do we need to nominate someone to collect an award on our behalf should we win?

Sorry for being such a slacker guys, been so busy this week! The meet is at the usual park at Main St, Eastwood. I'll be there about 12. My crew are okay with big dogs if they're easygoing and not in their face (Pele would be a perfect example ;) ). We're hoping the littlies will do some running and zoomies together, so larger dogs just need to be okay with little ones running around. I'm really looking forward to catching up with everyone and their pooches! Westiemum is hoping to come with her 3 westies too DTDO- Dory is most welcome to come if she's okay with other dogs, especially the littlies LMM- it will be great to see you with or without the scruffers ;) DBT- so glad you and your little guys can make it Bully- Pele will be fine with these guys... as long as she doesn't think Banshee is a runaway bbq chicken! :rolleyes: JB- hope you and Jaxx can make it. It would be great to see Jaxx relaxed enough to play with some same-sized friends MRB- have fun at the seminar. Hopefully you and Frosty can make it to the next one :D Tokkie- great to hear that you and Nandi are coming

It was good but we missed Earl drool ... and you, Shannon & Paul

Weather permitting, I'll be there on the 13th with my four littlies. Tammy and Alex are under strict instructions to attend ;) . Everyone else is welcome too of course I'm quite looking forward to this one, it should be great fun for our little guys

Banshee and I will be at the meet on Sunday. My suggestion would be not to worry about bringing food, just treats for your own dog if needed. If a dog gets aggressive or too over excited we pop them back on lead. Happy to keep it simple I'm happy to have a meet on the 13th for the littlies and quiet dogs, I can probably bring all four of mine then I'll start a post about that one when I get a chance. I'd love to see DBT's little chi's again

I have this link on my website and help when I can. Debra Tranter is an amazing woman.

That's a worry. We had fenced off a corner, less than a quarter of the total park. There were at least three other groups including another one with dogs in the park that day - was a bit crowded. Eventually when there was only three or four dogs left (Frosty being one) from our group, we packed the fence up but several BBQ loving dogs had to go check the far side out. Not sure how many of us have recall in the face of a dropped sausage. I'm not there yet. Close but not quite. So Frosty went on lead and stayed on lead after that. She spent a fair bit of time on lead during the main bit of the party too. Mostly so she couldn't crap somewhere when I wasn't looking. There wasn't any altercation that was more than "get away from my stuff" warning - as best I could tell. Not sure there was enough in it for others to call it a "disturbance" though we were definitely the biggest gathering. Anyway I think we do a reasonable job of considering others who want to use the park. We were not the ones who stuffed four garbage bags full of trash into the only bin at the park. Not sure where you were MrsRB, but one of the altercations involved at least two dogs fighting, several owners screaming, and the whole park looking at us. I'm happy to move forward though, I think we've all been a bit complacent at times in one area or another. I'm happy to start from scratch and pretend that Feb 6 is our first meet. I hope all our regulars will still come and we can help, advise and assist each other in making the meets a pleasure for all of us xxx

Bring her along! . It looks like for many of us, we're aware of some of the past problems and are open to conferring with each other to make sure we're doing the right thing for the group as a whole. I think this is a positive move forward to keeping the meets a safe and happy time for all of us . Bring Frosty along Mrs RB, I think she'd do well at a 'mild dog' meet . As Trish says, it's more about play style than size. Trish, thanks for your input. I'd love to see you and your dogs at another meet. No pressure to make you the boss and keep us under control , just come along and have fun. I think this would be the scenario most of us would like to see at dog meets. I think we can make it work if we're all on the same page Snook, I'm happy for you to bring Justice along to see how he goes. He played beautifully with Bansee when they met a little while ago. We can always do a practice with Banshee and Justice with the other dogs on lead to start with, and if others are comfortable with letting their dogs off, we can slowly add the amount of dogs. If Justice gets too overwhelmed he can easily go back on the lead.

Trish's small energetic poodle would hopefully be running and doing zoomies with my small energetic cresty For the meet I suggested, I'm thinking of smaller dogs and other dogs of moderate temperament that mix well with them. I would very much hope to see lots of running and playing for the pooches that want to do so. Dogs that cause a problem or upset the balance should be put back on lead. Once in a while Banshee might get a bit overexcited when racing around and forget her manners. If this happens she'd be put on lead until she calms down. I'm happy to take the food out of the equation entirely, I think it detracts us from keeping an eye on our dogs. At big Christmas meets, we could have dogs on lead unless they're playing nicely. I think it's okay to bring treats for your own dog if that's part of their training and keeps them focused on their owner, but it might be time to put the treats away if other dogs start congregating around the person with the treats. These are just my ideas and I'm very open to other suggestions of what we can do to make the meets more enjoyable for us and our dogs

Ohhh, just had another idea Maybe we could do the 1st Sunday of the month for small, shy & calm dogs, and the 2nd or 3rd for the more energetic dogs. That way members could come to both meets if they like but not necessarily bring dogs that don't fit into the specific group. If you've got one calm and one energetic dog, you get to go to two different meets that suit the needs of your dog! Is this worth thinking about? I would love to be able to bring all four of my littlies to socialise with other dogs they can safely play with.

Trish, would you be willing to come to the Feb 6 meet? I think your experience in dog training and behaviour would really be of benifit to those of us who may have trouble reading our dogs in this group environment. I know Banshee would love to run and do zoomies with your poodle, but we have a similar problem in that when the little dogs run about, some of the bigger dogs can get a bit silly. As the meets are attracting more dogs of different personalities and temperaments I feel that we may need more input on how best to control our dogs so that everyone gets to have a good time. Like most of us, I just love my dogs and want them to have a fun play date. I don't have enough experience in dog behaviour to help solve some of the issues that are coming up now. I would love it if someone who really understands dog behaviour could come and act as our 'guide' so that we can learn about and become aware of behaviours that need attending to - when dogs should be put on lead, walked elsewhere for a while, when toys need to be removed, etc. I think we're getting a bit out of our depth with what's happening and I hate to think that some members won't be coming anymore because of it. The trouble is that between us, we don't seem to have enough knowledge or tools to make it work for everyone, and I think also many of us are unwilling to speak up because we don't want to sound bossy or hurt someone's feelings. If we had an experienced person to guide us, I for one would be willing to let them take the reins and abide by their advice and let us know what we need to do in various situations that come up during the meets. xx

I don't think food or toys will make the meet any more or less interesting, it's just a meet up for DOLers and their dogs, it's not meant to be the gala event of the season Its just a little thing for those of us who chat on DOL to catch up in real life. Anyway, Banshee and I will be at the usual park at the usual time Feb 6th

What say instead of saying if you're not comfortable don't go, we put our heads together and work out what would make it more comfortable for everyone? I don't think we need the food, I always eat before I come so I can concentrate on my dog and not on her trying to nick my food. I like Jaxx's suggestions Should be much easier if we keep things simple. Keep the DOL get togethers for a nice catch up time to see each other's dogs and have a bit of a chin wag. More active persuits could be saved for the beach or dog park . Maybe even give the real high energy dogs a bit of a run before the meet so they've burnt off a bit of excess energy before meeting up with all their DOL doggy friends. We should be able to help each other with this one :D

Thanks for the update Beagle Mum. So far, so good I too forfeited the 'stuff' for my dogs, and it was the right choice :p All the best.

Add me and Banshee

I hope he holds up his end of the bargain. I don't know if it would be such a good idea for him to have contact or visits with the dogs, it would probably confuse them, especially if the boy does fret a little bit to start with. A clean break would be better all round (for you too). Did you talk to him about getting a dog of his own from rescue?

It sounds like the dogs would be better off together. If necessary offer him money for the other dog so he knows you're not doing this to hurt him, you genuinely believe the dogs should be together. When I split with my ex I took my white shepherd and mini poodle with me everywhere because I knew he would take the poodle and dump it. It was originally 'his' dog but the novelty wore off pretty quickly and the poodle became my dog. I had him registered and microchipped in my name from the beginning. Unfortunately I was so set on protecting the dogs that I forgot to have the locks changed and the ex cleared out the house while I was at work with the dogs . I still didn't care that much, the dogs needed to stay together and they were safe from him and that was the main thing. Unlike my ex, it sounds like your ex may be geniunely attached to the dogs and it will be painful for him to part with them. Try to help him see that the dogs need to stay together and you're not doing this to hurt him. Would he be interested in going through rescue to help another beagle in need of a loving home? You were okay with leaving both dogs with him so I assume you see him as a good dog owner. Good luck, I hope it all works out.

Kool

I was looking for a Dremel nail trimmer and saw a thread from about 12 months ago from another DOLer letting others know that the trimmer was on special. I checked the link, and they have the Dremel on special again So, I'm paying it forward. The DOL thread brought me to the Dremel and it's on special again ($24.99). I've ordered mine, and now I'm sharing the news with others as it seemed to be appreciated last time http://www.mytoolstore.com.au

I'm so, so sorry to read of Sam's passing . It must be heartbreaking for you to watch Tara grieving for her best friend. Please try to take care of yourself, you have so much on your plate at the moment, especially as your mum is so unwell also. Things often happen all at once don't they? I'm so sorry for what's happening with you at the moment. Sending hugs and positive vibes to you and your family :D RIP sweet Sam