Kitt

Hi Blackdogs, I like the general idea. Sure, as others have pointed out, there would be problems. But in general, as a hypothetical idea, it's nice. And I think you're not talking about removing current privileges or rights that dog owners / dogs have (i.e., you're not talking about adding extra restrictions); rather, you're talking about the creation of extra places / situations, in which some dogs and their owners would be allowed. So, for example, a cafe would open, and dogs who've passed certain criteria would be welcome (sort of like how dogs can go to certain daycare centres only if they're vaccinated etc). So you're not removing any rights or privileges that people already have; you're simply adding new good things, available to certain dogs / people. So no-one suffers (relative to the current situation), and some people benefit. Is that right? I would love to go to a cafe created for people and their dogs - dogs who have passed a dog-friendliness test or something like that. It's a nice thought. Kitt.

I don't know anything about breed standards, but she certainly is a cutie! Especially love the photo of her hogging the cushions.

When I came back to continue reading these funny responses, I misread the title of the thread as... "Found a dead dog on my flea". Hee hee.

I think that's a great point, Cosmolo. A few times recently, I have seen a lady walking a German Shepherd (an adult dog). The dog is so incredibly well behaved, and the lady puts it in a sit when I go past with my dogs, and the shepherd's attention is fully on her. Once when I was walking without my dogs, I passed the lady and her shepherd. I quietly said "Such a beautiful dog". The lady smiled but kept doing what she was doing with the dog, making it clear that she didn't want to stop and chat. Fine - I kept walking. However, if she had chatted back to me, and had engaged more with me, then I might have asked if it was ok for me to pat the dog. But I suppose the problem that the OP is experiencing is that some people ignore her body language, and even her verbal language!

From what I've read, many people prefer blue greyhounds. It seems that black is particularly unpopular. But I think glossy black greyhounds are very impressive!

Stan's Mum, that is such a lovely story! I also have two greyhounds. Soon after I moved into my current house (yes, also a rental), my neighbour came to the front fence in order to return my cat's collar (which had come off near the neighbour's yard). The neighbour saw the dogs and said "oh... I would really love to meet them". So I let her in... and she kissed my greyhound, Deanna. It was very sweet. Every time my neighbour sees me and the hounds on the street she has to give the dogs a kiss and a cuddle. It's the greyhound charm, isn't it?

I love watching dogs play like this! And for some reason the term "bitey face" really cracks me up :D My two little foxie-cross dogs used to play like that, but apparently the greyhounds that I own now are just too dignified!

G'day Huga, I think the tickets (or the website) stated that people wouldn't be allowed to leave until 10:30am, but yeah it would've been pretty frustrating if you didn't happen to read that info - or even if you had - especially if you had to be somewhere else There were many water stations near the stalls, but yeah it was a bit weird that there weren't any along the actual walk. Still, I had a nice day catching up with DOLers and their pups. EFS.

Henrietta, I literally laughed out loud at that comment. Thank-you :D

PHEW!!

One day I would love for you to explain to me the difference between certain breeds. I've looked at a few threads on DOL (threads that often end in arguments) and have looked at a few things on the net, but I still have questions... (nice, friendly questions )

I had the names "Deanna" and "Lucy" chosen well before I had met either of my girls, and those names were chosed for a special reason (some people might recognise the connection between the two). Regardless of what characteristics the dogs had had, they were always going to be "Deanna" and "Lucy".

Damn it. I'm not. Not fair.

Okey dokey. Off to get a pie.

K&P - I'll just have to try to lose a couple of kgs before the walk, just in case you don't have a 12 for me :D

Sorry, I know this is an old thread, but I noticed the lovely photos and just had to comment. They're awesome. The bird is an Australian Hobby (not a Brown Falcon or a Peregrine Falcon). Thanks for posting the photos.

G'day Dandybrush, that's a lovely offer. Lucy (the greyhound that you met) would be fine in the back with Raz, and she would also be fine in the back seat with me. If you decide that you can definitely pick me up (and drop me off? ) pm me and I'll give you my address. But if you decide it's not possible, that's fine, I'm sure there are many cab drivers who can't wait to be entertained by me and my stinky dog.

Hey Keira&Phoenix, you've moved house now, haven't you? So I'm no longer "on the way" to the walk. So would it be better for me to make alternative arrangements to get there? I'm sure I could convince someone, using my charm and wit, to pick me up? ;) I promise to entertain the driver by singing... or not singing... whatever they prefer. Or I can get a cab.

I frequently use Black and White Cabs, and Yellow Cabs, to take my greyhounds and my cat to the vet in Brisbane. So you might have luck with the local cabs. Also, I think that B&W Cabs and Yellow Cabs are Qld-wide (maybe even Aus-wide?) so you should be able to get a cab.

Aaahh, the boobies thing is funny. Everyone's enthusiasm for the shirts is very impressive. Seriously though, I would be happy to turn up with any coloured shirt, meet with fellow DOLers, and do the walk. Of course, I'm also happy to have a red shirt with writing on it, but I wouldn't want people to think they have to go to the trouble of stencils, meeting early for ink to dry, couriers, etc. The main point of the day for me is to meet with DOLers and their dogs. But maybe I'm just a bit unadventurous.

Thanks everyone, for assuring me that my reaction was normal! Fuzzy, I understand about not intentionally losing it. It wasn't until after I had sworn and yelled at this guy that I thought "Oh gosh, was that me? Did I say that?... out loud??!!"

Regarding the t-shirts: Hopefully it will be warm enough that we won't need to wear jumpers over the top of our shirts. It's late autumn and the mornings can be a bit chilly. It might turn out that our red shirts aren't visible! But I suppose we'll warm up from walking in the sun. I'm looking forward to the walk. Hopefully Lucy is on her best behaviour!

Hi Greytmate , yeah, the guy in the other car could have been referring to the white dog's size or apparent strength. However, the two dogs appeared to be the same size and build. Definitely no obvious difference. That's why I was wondering if the guy was simply guessing the dog's breed on the basis of its colour. I totally agree that there's nothing wrong with acknowledging that some dogs would be more dangerous in an attack than other dogs. There just didn't seem to be any difference in these dogs except for colour, so that's the only thing I could think of as a reason for the guy's statement. The window was very big. It wasn't like a normal car window. It was one of those big windows that normally has a sliding glass section. The white dog would have easily jumped out. Both dogs had been leaning a significant portion of their bodies out the window already. But yep I was incredibly glad that the white dog didn't jump out too! It didn't even get agitated. I was very impressed! ;) And you're right - the owner seemed genuinely shocked that his dog would act like a dog by jumping out of a window to confront another dog.

Hi Pumpitdog, wow that would've been a shock! It's great that your situation ended well. I think that in my situation, this guy would have known that it was very likely his dogs could jump out. They were resting their front paws and upper bodies on the window sill, and the window was very big and low. My first thought when I saw them was that they could easily jump out. They wouldn't have had to climb up to the window or squeeze through it. But I did believe him when he said that the dog hadn't done it before.

Yes, MEH, Leelaa and Stormie, I was very relieved that the owner was apologetic. He was really shocked. Also, he probably realised how dangerous the situation was for his dog. It had leapt from his car and ran across a lane - if there were cars driving in that lane it would've been hit. An interesting thing happened afterwards - there was a car behind the ute. The driver of this other car was asking if I was ok etc, and then he said "You're lucky it wasn't the white dog that attacked" (referring to the other dog which hadn't jumped out). I can only think that he was suggesting it looked like a certain breed? It was an interesting demonstration of people's beliefs about their skill in identifying dog breeds and about those breeds' behaviours.