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Fluffypaws, don't apologise! I absolutely LOVE seeing pics of people's pets - cat, dog, bird, fish, horse, elephant; whatever! I love ALL animals and I really like learning about them. Don't ya just love the seal points when they're babies? Sooooo cute... I have a friend who has a seal point boy whom she named Milo, because when he was a bub he looked like he'd dipped his nose in Milo! I fell in love with that particular colour and pattern when I decided to get a raggie. When I emailed Arnie's breeder an enquiry, she had one little seal point boy left - someone had backed out on the purchase and he'd become available again that very day. That's how I got my darling boy - it was fate! You wait until Cosmo and Dash are fully mature, around 3 or 4. Their winter coats are spectacular! Arnie's ruff was so long and full this past winter, I had to trim it because it kept getting stuck in his mouth! Loads of grooming on all three boys, but so worth it. You should have seen the coats on both boys when we lived in snowy, cold Chicago! Arnie's stayed very pale in the rest of his coat - his tummy and sides are still pure white and his back is a pale vanilla colour. Sly has a fairly dark 'saddle' though. I'll post a pic of Sly, aka Porky Pants, next week when I'm at work. I'm sending this from my Blackberry and don't have any decent pics of him on it. Thanks for sharing your beautiful boys with us. And your dogs are pretty special too!

Cool, thanks! At around $1 each from Petbarn, it can get a bit expensive. Particularly when you don't have a choice and live in an apartment!

Kirra-Bomber-Zeus: Ah, ok, I think I get what you're saying about immunity vs antibodies - I always wondered about the whole titre test thing. Australian quarantine laws are a wonderful thing for us all, but I can tell you they're a pain in the proverbial when you can't get your beloved pets home! And then there's the looooong stay out at Eastern Creek - the handlers are wonderful, but the facilities suck. I used to sit in the boys' cage and cry when I visited them! Lol! I'll look forward to reading the immunisation info. If you have any info on dog diet, I'd appreciate that too - once again, the vet tells me one thing, Max's trainer tells me another (BARF), and then I read other stuff on line! Aaaaarrrrgggghhh!!! What's a concerned owner to do???? Lol!

Thanks for telling me about Maine Coons...they sound lovely! I think I will have to add them to my 'cats I would love to have one day' list. And Wow! Arnie is gorgeous! I can't help myself either and I hope no one minds but here's a few pics of my two Raggies... Fluffypaws, your boys are just gorgeous! Cosmo reminds me of a young Arnie. Isn't it interesting watching coat colours and patterns develop as animals age? I look back on photos of my lads when they were younger and the difference is amazing! Luka looks like a little sweetie! God, I hope Arnie and Sly end up like that with Max some day...Max, who is currently chasing poor Jordie around the lounge room! Yes, the old "add (breed name) to my list of cats/dogs to own someday" just gets longer and longer, doesn't it? I'd dearly love a standard poodle,but not til I have a yard...and I'd love a japanese spitz. As for cat breeds I'd love to own, don't get me started! I used to wander around the judging rings when I showed my cats and add to the list in my mind... Animals - how great are they?!

Hi Mini-M I'm in Sydney, north side about 10 mins from the city. I'd be very keen to do some puppy play dates at a park or wherever. I have a 20 week old poodle/maltese cross, named Max. He's a ball of energy, absolutely LOVES all people he meets, but is rather timid around other dogs. I really don't know anyone close by who has dogs, so I'd be pleased to help you out - you'd be helping me out too!

Kirra-Bomber-Zeus: I'd love to read your info on vaccinations, please - I know very little about dogs and their care and I really want to edumacate myself, as a certain Homer Simpson would say! *lol* I know what you mean about certain topics getting people's backs up - I've found that feeding is another. One of my cats was extremely intolerant of preservatives in food and I reckon I must've read everything there is to read about cat food! Not to mention ask a million vets... And you know what? Almost everyone gave me a different answer! I was horrified to find out what's in the majority of commercial pet food and I've since become a bit of a Nazi when it comes to what I feed my pets. I think everyone who loves their animals is the same way - we all have certain brands that we 'swear by'. For me, it's Nutrience or Eagle Pak for dry food, plus raw meat and veg, grain etc. that I make myself. The heartworm vaccination scared me because I read in a few places how a lot of dogs had died or developed severe health problems after having the shots. One of the health issues was seizures. Our family dog was never given heartworm prevention until he actually tested positive for heartworm and went through treatment - Mum started giving him tablets after that. When the annual vaccination came out here, he started getting that. I don't know exactly how old he was the, but probably around 11. Not long after that, he developed mild epilepsy - I say mild because the seizures didn't happen very often. Now, I don't know whether it was anything to do with the vaccination because I recently read that one of the health issues that can plague poodles is epilepsy. But it makes me wonder if it's coincidence or not... I think that vaccinations are important for both people and animals, but you're not alone in your thinking that we over vaccinate. As I said, what's the point in me vaccinating my cats when there's almost zero chance of them picking anything up? I did wonder about one thing you said - about booster shots and it not being possible to become 'more immune' to something. When I took my cats to the USA, they had to be vaccinated against rabies. This was a Govt.requirement and the fact that they were indoor-only cats made no difference. During our time there, they were all given annual boosters and when it was time to come home, their blood titre levels were measured to check the level of immunity each cat had. Well, what a disaster that was!!! Sly, the youngest ragdoll, failed and showed zero immunity; Arnie JUST scraped through. I didn't have Jordie at this stage. . To cut a long story short, we had to leave Arnie and Sly behind with friends for 30 days due to Government regulation (Aust.Govt.) so they could be re-vaccinated and susequently re-tested, then they had to spend the full FIVE MONTHS in quarantine upon return to Australia. Damned near broke my heart!!! Anyway, they were none the worse for wear from their experience (it hurt me more than it did them, lol!) but it's made me think a lot about vaccinations when it comes to Max. So, any info you have would be much appreciated!

God, I'm so pleased you didn't flame me for that one! I wasn't going to admit it, but as Max is a poodle/maltese cross - 'Moodle', which sounds stupid to me - I figured most people with breeding knowledge would guess anyway. I didn't actually know he was classified as a 'designer dog' until after I bought him and looked up Moodle on Wiki! *LOL* I wanted a poodle because I'd grown up with them and I love their intelligence (and the non-shedding coat!), but Max just suckered me in with one cuddle. I'm lucky he seems to have a lot of poodle in him, physically - he has a poodle coat, very curly on the body, head and ears, a little straighter on the legs. His tail is curly, like a maltese, and his ears are currently too short to be poodle. His snout isn't as long as a poodle pup's, either - our last poodle used to get called Needle Nose! And his eyes, how you can see the whites quite a lot when he's looking around, they seem very maltese too, judging by other maltese I've known. But he's an amazingly intelligent dog - I've been reading the old threads on this forum all day (bugger work!) and I've realised how comparatively lucky I am with Max in terms of training and behaviour etc. Particularly toilet training. At 4.5 months old, Max is damned near 100% with his toilet training now and has been for some weeks - and we live in a flat! When I used to participate in Ragdoll forums as a new owner, long term forum members would absolutely CRUCIFY new owners who came on and talked about their new ragdoll kitten that they'd got from a BYB or shelter or whatever. Yes, we all knew it most likely wasn't a purebred cat, but some people were REALLY nasty. Actually, that's why I stopped showing my boys - the cat world is so...ummm...catty!!! 90% bitches, 9% freaks, 1% normal people! *LOL* Can you give me your thoughts on vaccinations, please? I've done quite a bit of reading into cat vac protocol and came to the conclusion that my cats didn't need to be vaccinated at all, after we got back from USA and they were out of quarantine. They never leave the house, I have a pet minder who comes in and looks after them while I'm away, they haven't been to a vet in at least 7 years etc. Really no point in filling them full of antibodies etc. they don't need. I'm terrified of the annual heartworm injection for dogs, after what I've been reading on the internet over the past couple of days...

Oh my God!!!!!!! There is really someone else out there like me!!!!!!! I love the smell of my dogs feet too!!!!!! You guys are nuts! Every time I look at Henschke's feet, I can't help but wonder how much poo he's walked in! *hehehehe* Yeah, that's why I try not to think of that when I have animal paws up my nose, or when I'm blowing raspberries on their paw pads! *LOL*

Oh wow - thats one beautiful cat! Thank you - I think he's pretty special!

Here's a pic of her: http://www.flickr.com/photos/34919246@N08/...57613106160868/ In sepia tone unfortunately so you cant see her colours too well. The kitten that was curled up with my Staffy was one of hers - she also had a beautiful silver one - striped back and snow leopard spotted belly They are pretty cats - also alot like dogs too arent they, playing fetch and swimming (My Staffy girl loves to swim too so as you can imagine she is rather unimpressed when she finds herself sharing her shell pool with the cat.... ) Dont worry maximum, my life is just the same ;) We have 3 dogs, 2 cats, 2 bearded dragons (which we also breed so at times we also have babies beardies too) and 3 siamese fighting fish. I love living in a zoo....really. She's beautiful - I just love the 'wild' look that cats like Bengals, Maine Coons etc. have. Something harking back to the 'big cat heritage'...if you know what I mean! I didn't know they were fond of water! So are Coons, although I don't think Jordie would commandeer a paddling pool! Ah yes, living in a zoo - I absolutely love it, too. If I had more space, I'd have LOADS more cats and dogs - I already have far too many fish. I know people have far more cats/dogs than I do in houses/flats far smaller than mine, but I don't think it's fair on the animals. That's why I hesitated so long to get a dog. I've really wanted one for aaaaages (particularly after our family dog was put down 12 months ago at 18 years of age, suffering from cancer), but I didn't know whether it was going to be fair on the dog to live in a unit. That's why I went for the toy poodle/maltese cross breed. Hopefully, he'll remain on the small side. He has plenty of room to run around in my place - I live in an older style building that has high ceilings and REALLY big rooms. The whole place, including the 2 balconies, is about 145sqm. I try and walk Max every day too, but if I don't, he does 'laps' of the lounge room and dining room - usually while chasing the cat! *LOL* Don't you love the 'bum down, head up' gallop that puppies do when they're really excited? Max will be playing with me, Jordie or by himself when suddenly, he just chucks a spazz and starts doing laps! Cracks me up every time!!! I committed the cardinal sin and bought Max from a pet shop. I'm still mentally beating myself up over it. I'd been speaking to several breeders and was tossing up between a toy poodle, chihauha or mini pincer (which was apparently a terrible choice for a flat!), when I dropped into a shopping centre to pick up some kitty litter. Walked past the pet shop on the way to Woolworths and there was Max in the window. I thought he was a full poodle and I just fell in love. I never knew anything much about animals until I owned purebred cats. That's when I started reading up on things that 'destroy' the good work ethical breeders put into the animals they produce - I know that a good breeder does it for the love of the breed, certainly not the money. Which from what I'm told, is bugger all unless you're over-breeding! I'm thoroughly against kitten/puppy mills, as I'm sure is everyone. I had every intention of buying a puppy from a breeder, but I just had a brain fart when I saw Max - it was love at first sight! I would have rescued a pup from the RSPCA or local pound, but i couldn't be reasonably assured of how big the animal would get, not knowing its lineage at all. Would be a disaster to have anything other than a smallish dog in a flat, I think. Anyway, I'll get over the pet shop thing one day - it just pisses me off that I went and did exactly what I tell everyone NEVER to do!!!

I'm never going to get any work done today - I'm finding reading old posts FAR more interesting! *LOL* You know, it's funny, but I think you have to spend time with ragdolls to appreciate just how wonderful they are. I initially decided on the breed because I live in apartments or townhouses and I wanted a breed that was happy living indoors. But right from the moment I met Arnie at his breeder's house at 6 weeks old, I was smitten. They are truly the loves of my life! I've just put a girl I work with in touch with my boys' breeder - she's getting a kitty in about 12 weeks and I'm SOOOO jealous! I've converted many a cat hater after they've had Sly flopping on their feet and begging for his belly to be rubbed! Sly does that "hello in there!" thing too - cracks me up every time! Even when I'm bone tired and just want to get some sleep, I can't push them away. They're too precious when they want 'lovies', as I call it. The Maine Coon is an awesome cat to own, although they do tend to be rather destructive! Mainly because of their size. They just do the normal things cats do, but because they're so big they can wreck stuff really easily. Jordie's dad was known to chew all his owner's shoes to death! The breed is known to be a 'gentle giant'. They're very quiet cats and have the tiniest little voices - sometimes Jordie meows and all you see is his mouth open with no sound coming out. But they do have one interesting trait - they 'chirp'. It's hard to explain, but it's kind of like the noise a cat makes when you surprise it - sort of half way between a meow and a purr. At night when I go to bed, Arnie and Sly come up on the bed as soon as I'm in it. Jordie then spends the next 30 minutes or so roaming the dark house, chirping away to himself. It's quite amazing to hear, considering he's usually dead silent during the day, but apparently all Coons do it. Jordie is super affectionate - I just have to look at him and blow him a kiss, and I can hear him purring from across the room. And nothing beats a cuddle from my big, hairy monster when I'm feeling blue. I just lay my head on his big chest and listen to him rumbling away. I can't help myself - here's my precious Arnie!

My vet said that a 16 week vaccs wasn't necessary and that immunity would be in place from 72 hours after the second. Really? I got the opposite recommendation from my vet. I thought 12 weeks was the last vac and I was over the moon at the thought of being able to take Max for walks, rather than carry him everywhere. I was bummed big time when the vet said no, he still had another 4 weeks to go. Even then, after his 16 week vac, I was still paranoid about when the immunity kicked in etc. Stupid, really... When Max had a reaction to his worming medication, I thought "Shit! It's Parvo!!!" *LOL* I'm such an idiot...

Just dunk them in white vinegar ,just buy the cheapie stuff dilute & dunk feet. Dogs can also suffer from Tinea lick us because they lick & lick there feet that they stay so moist they pong. Dogs cool from there feet thats why if ther hot they will stand in the water to cool Interesting! Thanks I'll try this! This is very weird, but I absolutely LOVE the smell of my animals' feet! *LOL* One of my cats has feet that smell like warm toast! I just try not to think of where he's been stepping (kitty litter) when I kiss them... I never knew dogs got sweaty feet - now I know what 'that' smell is. I like it! *hehehehe*!

Max looks so sweet! I think my cats are more 'tolerant' of our new pup because he's a baby - but that may just be the 'what the hell is that?' look instead Awww, Im sure the Raggies will come back to being around you all the time - they probably just need a little bit of time to get used to the new 'arrangements' in the house Im loving that they 'howl' for you to go to bed though - I havent met any Raggies before, they sound like they have good personalities. We have one Bengal cat and she is rather different too! Oooo, a Bengal! I'm jealous!! I'd love to see a pic of her, if you have one. I haven't seen a Bengal in years, since I used to show my boys when they were younger. Back then, the Bengal didn't have the best reputation in terms of temperament, but they are a magnificent looking animal! Ragdolls are beautiful cats, both in looks and personality. In my experience, the boys tend to be sweeter and more affectionate than the girls. I've always had cats (moggies) growing up and I love each and every cat I meet. But since owning Ragdolls, I'll never again be without one. They really are the dogs of the cat world! Yes, Max looks very sweet - until you notice that little gleam in his eye...Then you realise he really should be called Mad Max! *LOL* But seriously, he's a lovely dog - full of confidence and personality, which is what I look for in any animal. The 'shrinking violets' are not for me, which is why I probably have the occasional socialisation problem, as I did when Jordie entered the furry family. Arnie still hates him and will 'swear' at him every time he dares walk by, but they tolerate each other well. I'm going to try the idea of feeding the boys somewhere that Max can see them and they can see him. Both Sly and Jordie are totally food-motivated and Arnie, well, he's totally 'me motivated'! I just have to work out how to build a ramp from the baby gate to the dining table that's stable enough for a 12kg Maine Coon and an 8.5kg Ragdoll! It's funny how they howl me to bed - before Max arrived, they used to jump on me and try to sit on my face to get me to come to bed with them! That's their 'last resort' way of getting my attention! Arnie sits on my head during the night and pats my cheek with his paw, waking me up periodically all through the night for his cuddles. Annoying, yes, but I love him to death and I'm used to it after all these years. Sly just yells in my ear when I'm asleep and he wants my attention! Can you tell that my life is ruled by creatures with more legs than me? Even the fish get special treatment at my place! *LOL* I'm going to be one of those mad, old women with far too many animals that little kids down the street think is a witch...

Hi Seashell It's amazing how much work is involved in owning a puppy, isn't it? First couple of months I had Max, I felt like I had a human baby in the house!!! I love Singapuras...they have such cheeky personalities! I used to show all my cats and Singapuras were one of the breeds I coveted...So many cats, so little money! *LOL* The problem with the Raggies is that they can be real wuss bags - Sly, my younger Raggie (he's 10) is a huge, boofy boy, but he's such a big girl's blouse!! Loves every human he comes in contact with, but he's absolutely deathly afraid of fireworks, thunderstorms and now dogs. And unfortunately, once one cat panics, the rest tend to follow suit. Arnie, a tiny boy for a ragdoll at only 3.5kg, is WAY more confident and adventurous than Sly, but Sly now has him terrified of storms. Drives me crazy, because it's SOOOO hard not to comfort them and fuss over them when they're crying and scared. But it just makes it worse if I do anything other than act like there's absolutely nothing wrong. The only concession I make is to let Sly into the wardrobe to hide, or let him get under my doona. I'll just persevere with the getting the cats to adjust to Max, I guess. If know that if he'd stop charging up to Arnie at a million miles an hour, Arnie would be fine. And once Arnie's fine, Sly will follow him. When Max isn't in sight, Arnie will jump over the baby gate and start to suss things out. Trouble is, he's a 'chatty cat' and always announces his presence - Max then chases him back over the gate! *sigh* Oh well, it can only get better!

Thank you! I think he's a handsome boy too...although he's currently going through a huge moult and has chronic 'bed head'... Maine Coons are awesome cats. But they can be almost as destructive as dogs - particularly given their size. Jordie has systematically destroyed my $3,500 wicker lounge suite that I scrimped and saved for - mind you, how dumb was I getting a wicker suite when I own three cats???

It also meant that when he was a puppy and I took him somewhere, I could take a pad and he knew that was the place to go. That's what I find with the training pads. I can take Max anywhere and he knows where the toilet is - makes life SO much easier than being on constant high alert that he's going to pee on someone else's carpet!!! Living in a flat, I'll always use the training pads. You mentioned a discount store where you can buy them relatively cheaply - would you mind giving me the name of the store? Puppy pads can get really expensive - when Max had a reaction to his worming tablet and had bad diarrhea for a week, I went throught about 30 of them!!!

We are using a tray of sand for our puppy to toilet on. I've heard kitty litter can be bad for them if they decide to swallow it, but I think you can get special puppy litter. The sand works really well, its cheap and easy to scoop up, also doesn't smell. I was going to ask about the eating kitty litter thing. If my Max manages to zip through the baby gate before I do, he makes a bee line for the cats' litter boxes and starts eating the tracked litter that's on the floor. He hasn't so far showed any interest in the actual litter box or its, er, 'contents'. Just the bits of litter that flick off the cats' paws when they exit the boxes. One of my cats ate litter as a kitten and I asked the vet about it then. He said it wasn't a problem for them to eat a small amount of it. The cat stopped doing it once he got a bit older, but even now, at 10 years old, he does occasionally chomp on a stray piece that's on the floor...

Thank you for all the advice. Yep, Peptosyl sounds familiar - it looks like that American product, Peptobismol (probably wrong spelling). And it seemed to do the trick with Max, although he HATED the taste of it!! I'll try the not worming on an empty stomach thing. He's not having the chewables, just the regular tablet. And I actually under dosed him last time - the pack said up to 3kg give one tablet, over 3kg give two. Max was only 3.2kg and knowing what reaction the tablets have, I only gave him one. I'll keep looking for a suitable wormer!

Sorry - I didn't mean to infer that I bred Max. I was just quoting the Drontal packet. But when I bought him at 8 weeks, they gave him a tablet and advised me to follow the Drontal schedule. So did the vet. But thank you, it seems I'm doing the right thing. I just have to find a wormer that doesn't upset his tummy!

Hey there, Shoemonster! I always clip all my cats' claws - totally agree about the claw in the pup's eye. I'm particularly vigilant with Jordie's, even though he tends to smack Max directly on the top of his head. Was hilarious when Max was really little - Jordie would whomp him on the head and all four of Max's legs would shoot out sideways, splatting him on the carpet! *LOL* Max LOVES it, unfortunately. His mission in life is to torture poor Jordie. I'm don't separate Jordie while I'm out, but I'm pretty sure he separates himself. All three cats have always hung out on my bed all day while I'm at work and I don't think that's changed - Jordie always emerges from my bedroom when I come home. I do keep an eye on them when Max is being particularly mental and I'll yell at one or the other (usually Max!) to calm things down. This is big Jordie...

Awww, that's SUCH a sweet photo! You know, I was hoping that the cats would accept Max because he's a baby - cats tend to accept kittens much more easily than they accept grown cats. I was hoping it would work with dogs too! I wish I could get Arnie and Sly to come near Max. He knows what the 'deal' is with Jordie, because Jordie has never run away from him since day one. Probably because Max was about 1.4kg when I bought him and Jordie is a good 12kg! But if Max gets out of hand, Jordie will whop him on the head with one of his big paws and Max knows that he'd better give the cat a 'time out' or else. If Jordie seems to be getting totally harassed and 'over it', I'll chase him over the baby gate myself! *LOL* With the Raggies, I'm doing as you've said in making time to cuddle them etc. and just 'be' with them. I think that's what they miss the most - just being with me. I sure miss them! They hang out by the baby gate and wait for me to go to the loo, where they follow me of course! *LOL* And they'll howl when they think it's time for me to go to bed... I've attached a picture of Max - hope it comes up!

Fluffy, thank God you understand!!! You're very familiar with the sort of cats Ragdolls are and I'm sure you know exactly what I'm talking about. Thanks SO much for all your advice - you've actually given me several ideas to try to coax the Rags out into the open. Sly in particular is EXTREMELY food-motivated (his nickname is "Slug" coz he's a bit porky!), so feeding them up high where Max can't get them but where they can all see each other really makes sense. Arnie really couldn't care less about food, but he's less frightened by the dog - actually, I think he's not frightened at all, but just miffed that there's yet another furry thing in the house that competes for my attention. My flat only has 3 doors in it (aside from the front door and three balcony doors) - the two bedrooms and the bathroom. Every other room is divided from the next by an archway, which makes it hard to shut areas off. Ideally, I'd love to give the cats safe access to the kitchen and dining room, because they're both closer to where I spend most of my time, but I couldn't give Max just the living room and front balcony. I feed him in the kitchen and he uses puppy training pads in the laundry for his toilet, and both the kitchen and living room connect by archways to the dining room, which then connects by archway to a hallway off which are the bedrooms and bathroom. If that makes sense!!! LOL! I really don't want to buy another baby gate, because they're pretty expensive and I really am hoping this is a temporary situation, although I'll probably leave the existing one up permanently, so I can keep Max away from the bedroom and litter trays. I've tried gating things off with the puppy pen I bought for Max - it's one of those folding metal ones - but Max just climbs over it. That's the reason I got the initial baby gate. First day I went to work after I got Max, I left him in the kitchen with the pen across the archway. I came home to find him running all over the house and the cats hiding on my bed to get away from him. This happened 3 days in a row. I finally put him in the kitchen and hid somewhere where I could see him, and watched him calmly use all four feet to climb up and over the gate, into the rest of the house!!! At 8.5 weeks old! Cheeky bugger. So, I can't have anything that gives him a foothold. That's why the metal baby gates with vertical bars are so great - no way for him to climb over. And doesn't he hate it!!!! *LOL* You've now got me really thinking about how I can get the Raggies to come over the baby gate into the dining room, and I'll feed them on the dining room table. The taking Max into the cats' area on a leash idea is also an excellent one. Except Max NEVER gets sleepy enough to leave the cats alone! Not while I'm home, anyway - as I work, I'm pretty sure Max sleeps all day and then goes mental all night! Well, not ALL night - he's very good with bed time, seems to know that when all the lights go off and I'm through the baby gate, I ain't coming out til morning! I don't hear a peep out of him all night. Anyway, I might just try taking him down their end on a lead, whether he's being mental or not. At least I'll have some control over him!! Thank you again for your advice and your understanding - it's SO nice to know that there's others out there in a very similar situation!

Hi Ellz and thanks for the response. It's SO great to know that I'm not the only one with 'multi-cultural' issues! And LOL at 'multi-cultural family' - that truly hits the nail on the head in my place! I love all animals, but if I could have one animal and no other, it would be a cat. So, I've learned to speak 'fluent cat' over the years and at the moment, it seems like I know what the cats are thinking/saying, they know what I'm saying and NONE of us know what the dog is saying!!! Max's trainer is trying to teach me to speak dog, but it's a slow process. Such a different psychology than cats, in terms of the pack mentality thing, and it's taking me a while to get the hang of it. It's almost like dogs need to be treated like children - they need a lot of boundaries in their behaviour. Something that's totally foreign to cats - they just do what the bloody hell they like! LOL! My cats know what "NO!" means and they do as I tell them in that respect, but they actually don't have any bad habits (apart from the Coon destroying my wicker furniture). Unlike Max, who is just doing what puppies do. Loved the photos of your doggies with the kitten! One of my Raggies isn't too keen on the Maine Coon ('swears' at him every time they meet in the house and is incredibly jealous over me), but I often catch them cuddled up together in the winter time. Very sweet - the Jordie the Coon is 12kg and Arnie the Raggie is a very runty 3.5kg. For Arnie, it must be like sleeping on a big, furry bed!

Hi and thanks for your advice. I'm doing what it says on the Drontal packet, which is WAY more than you've suggested and WAY more than I've ever wormed an animal in my life! Here's what the packet (and my vet) says: "Worm at 2 weeks of age, if greater than 1.5kg, and then at 4, 8 and 12 weeks of age. After 12 weeks of age every month until 6 months of age. Thereafter every 3 months except in hydatid tapeworm areas when every 6 weeks is recommended, or on veterinary advice." According to this schedule, Max was wormed at 4, 8 and 12 weeks, then 16 weeks which was when he ended up at the vet. I'm now paranoid about giving him his next tablet!!! If I follow the Drontal schedule, he should be wormed this week and I can tell you, I'm NOT looking forward to it!! As I live in an apartment and Max only goes outside when he's with me (and I watch what he puts in his mouth when we're outside), I'd think that the chances of picking up intestinal worms would be less than a dog who spent his days in the backyard. But I'm no expert. Your thoughts on whether I'm worming him too often would be appreciated!