KumaAkita

Awesome vid KTB! hmmm... Kuma and the water... What can I say? He's a water baby We have an automatic waterer for Kuma (as he drinks a lot during the day) it's attached to the hose and has a float valve in it, it works in the same manner as a toilet - once the water reaches a certain level it adds more, when the float reaches a certain level it stops adding water. He's not run out of water since we got it. Actually, I lie. He ran out once... the hose got a kink in it. We fixed it and now it's awesome. OH's dad bought it for us from the ag supplier in Bega, but I have seen them at pet shops. We will get him a clamshell once we have grass. I'm not dealing with muddy puppy ;) :D Wuffles - you are right, our furkids did awesomely well today. Considering, as mentioned, variations on age/size/breed - they all played nicely. Well, Kuma ran around for a while then watched on from the shade. :D He crashed on the floor as soon as we got home, hasn't moved much since! He did watch the video with me a few times, mumbling at the dogs (it's kinda like a growl kinda bark thing he does, really cute). Thanks for today, it was fun to Wuffles for coordinating ETA: to Mr KTB on the work front!

Mr KumaAkita will come along tomorrow Just took Kuma to the vet for his 12month booster injections. They said he's doing well and is a good weight. 47.3kg today

Don't worry Catherine.B - it's easy to do... it's a bit confusing... How about for week 4, you give us a catch up of your photos and then continue posting your weekly shot in here?

KTB - you so norty

We could send the Akita and the Big Black Dog in first to clear the path for us ... together with some dramatic music ... Neither of my two have sufficient gravitas, I fear ... 9am is fine for me! mwah ha ha ha... 9am is fine for me too!

great photo of James, Niques! Kuma always has eye boogers so I usually edit them out (and there ends my editing skills...)

@ Max#1. I don't know how anyone could eat Dominos either. Makes me feel queasy. As luck would have it, there's an awesome italian pizzaria at our local shops that make delicious pizza. So, not organic with local ingredients, but close :p Oh, and nope, Kuma would run for the hills if off lead. He would come back eventually, just in his own sweet time. We go for a walk each morning - about 30 mins - and when I leave for work he is sound asleep. He's LAZY. He does need a run around a park soon tho, he's getting a bit stir-crazy.

good morning, good morning :p same with Kuma. He just bats carrots around the place and leaves them in the most unlikely places (like under the couch). Now, if it was bacon on the other hand... You have just detailed my greatest fear... Pretty much why Kuma is most on lead in the dog park. I'm glad they're coming back to the park tho, no point letting the Brittany staying scared and the Akita getting into trouble for doing what they do... As said on FB - not her, she's innocent. Local maurading hooligans are to blame. She protected herself and sacrificed the lamp. True story. Roo on her new bed is so cute! so are all your other "towel" shots. So adorable We have about 20Kg of puppy food left. Once we're through that we'll transition Kuma to Adult food - he'll be about 18 months old then. I gave him some pet mince from Leonards with his dinner last night - it looks like minced offcuts, innards, carcuss, etc - I think he liked it, his bowl was licked clean in a heart beat. For only $1/Kg it's pretty good value! I am so calling the authorities - how could you leave your dogs unattended??? :D geeze louise... some people take things to the extreme. We'd never leave Kuma unattended because I have seen photos of the damage an Akita can do to a car in 10 minutes, I would rather not run the risk! Keep doing what you're doing, your furkids will be a-ok. Ahh, car lunging... Kuma is not bad with cars, its just runners and other dogs. We're working on it tho - he did well this morning. Let's hope we can string two days in a row Don't worry - Kuma will not be an off-lead dog either! Elbie and Kuma can be On-Lead buddies together. You'll really enjoy K9Pro - Steve will be able to give you some really good tips on how to work with Elbie. ;) :laugh: Just read the thread. Oh dear. That is soooooo cute! * We went and visited one of the local kennels yesterday - yass pets. They seem to be really nice. Their set up is good, they will continue your dogs routine and food as requested. They also have a dam on the property which I'm sure Kuma would love with a passion. They had boarded an Akita before, so they know what the breed is like - they are also pretty responsible and wouldn't socialise him with small dogs and unstable dogs... I have heard good things about them from colleagues, so Kuma may get a two week vacation on the farm... It'll break my heart to leave him there tho! Have a great day all!

Oh WA - Halo is so cute! :D at Poppi. Kuma is a sock theif too. He tries to steal them off your feet. Looks like Louie swoooped in for a kiss there! Moo and Flynn are both so beautiful - great shots. Morty is adorable - looks like he's telling you a story in that first shot. Just lovely shots everyone. I am enjoying doing this - hopefully my photos will get better!!

Great photos everyone! I love the latest of Paris. So Pantene Commercial! So many to comment on, will come back later and have a detailed look. Here's my week 3 W3/52 A man and his dog by shibburd, on Flickr

Australia Day AM should be ok. Don't think we have any other plans... Kyliegirl: I was going to suggest the same thing as Wuffles. "watch" is a very good place to start your training. Now I just have to hold my finger up to my nose and Kuma looks me in the eye. Akita/Akira... close! Akitas love to chase, so if Max enjoys being chased all's well in the dog world. There are some dogs that don't like being chased... then there are dogs like Ava who will come and "annoy" a dog like Kuma in the vain hope of being chased How old was the Akita? Sounds like you've got a great group there. Yes, yes he is. Too smart for his own good. Limp spaghetti weighing 47Kg is not fun! Your boys are looking adorable! Looks like they're getting on famously. :hugs: to you. yell if you need anything You too lilli_star - Hope your week gets better. *sigh* Kuma has started lunging at runners on our morning walk. Well, one runner in particular. This guy runs faster than any other runner we pass, but I'm not sure if that's the reason or if it's because the guy also acknowledges me (with a "hi")... Kuma is not being aggressive, just wanting to chase him. I'm moving off the path and trying a few other techniques, but nothing much is working. I think we desperately need to get some socialisation and get back to training. Plus this morning when we got home, he was lounging on the back patio and then started barking his head off. I went outside to investigate only to find a plane overhead... they must have been flying lower this morning because we don't normally hear them. Little turd...

Minxy he is soooo cute! Like a big squooshy teddy bear. And yes, OH is a softy when it comes to Kuma. Especially when he's talking to Kuma (and thinking I can't hear him!) When Kuma was little that was the only way to calm him down - hold him in our arms like a baby. Had to stop soon enough!

+1 I was just thinking that Kuma needs some socialisation with other dogs soon, he hasn't been out of the house much lately! Your house is lovely! I may just have to toddle up the hill ;) Re the fence, have you thought of contacting the builder behind you and asking that they put in the fence sooner rather than later? They may be accommodating if you explain that you have the dogs and would like them in the yard. Or they may be able to sort out the storm fencing to cover the back gap. Just a thought - most builders are fairly accommodating. Glad you're enjoying your new job... (and at least you don't have to go to Hume every day! ) This one??? hope you have a better day today. Nope you didn't miss it, I haven't posted it... it's not the best photo in the world and I think the OH may get a bit peeved if I shared it on a public forum! Oh, welcome Kyliegirl - Echo is adorable. I've not had much to do with Dobes, it will be interesting to watch them grow up via the thread! Max#1 - little Max is looking cute. What a great bunch of friends he has! I think mood has a huge impact on how our animals behave. If I'm a fouly, Kuma is often mirroring that. If I'm happy go lucky, so is he. Its all a bit cesar millan, but sometimes if I start out in a bad mood I try to switch to being 'happier' so that he's not so much of a shit. Niques - soooo glad James is home safe and sound, if somewhat altered. I'm sure that he'll be back to his usual self soon enough. Maybe a good bath and a good feed is all that is needed. Oh, and cuddles from mum often help Kuma is getting toooo smart for his own good. We've been watching old eps of Law and Order on Foxtel most nights (yes, we're boring old fusty fuddy duddies) and at the end of the episode it's bedtime. For the last few nights, Kuma has refused to go to bed and gone all limp spaghetti on us. We've resorted to picking him up and pushing him onto his feet. All rather funny, but not something we encourage. Last night he was very excitable and wanted to play most of the night. He only settled about 9:00 pm with L&O finishing at around 9:15. As soon as the closing theme started he jumped up and stood at the back door plaintivly asking to go out! Little turd. Didn't want to got to bed. We steered him in the direction of his crate and zipped him in. He gave us this "yeah, I know but I had to try" look. Wow, long post! I had better get to work... have a great day one and all

Wow! Look at Astrid! She's growing like a weed... glad to hear she went well with your visitors. When we travel somewhere new for the first time, we keep Kuma on lead for a little while so he has a chance to calm down. It may take Astrid a bit of time to get comfortable with new surroundings, but that's normal. We also take toys and stuff so Kuma is occupied... Re toiletting - Kuma didn't make much noise either when he needed to whizz. We had one or two accidents as he got older, when we he was trained, but he just didn't make it outside in time... Astrid will probably be giving you non-verbal cues that she needs to go out, sniffing the ground, being figetty, that kind of thing. Kuma still doesn't bark, but if he is standing at the door waiting to go out and we ignore him, he'll come over and nudge our hands. I have heard of people conditioning their animals to ring a bell when they want to go out - simply by ringing it every time they take the dog outside, eventually the dog learns that bell means going outside. Possibly something you could consider? Betsy - wow! That's some flooding!! I wouldn't be going in there either Lilli_star - Roby is looking lovely. Don't worry, i did consider getting shade for Kuma - something like a gazebo - but he seems to be good at finding all the shady spots in the yard. KTB - Kuma does that... the number of times I've gone over to make sure he's still breathing because of his positions you'd not know whether he's alive or not! The next shot in the sequence with Kuma and Mr Kuma is Kuma thinking he's a lap dog and trying to sit on OH's lap. Hope all's well

We had the same issues with Kuma. He'd eat a bit when he was young, but got to a point a few months ago where he wouldn't touch his food. I sought advice from several people, all of whom I hold in high esteem (my vet, his breeder and a behaviouralist). The Behaviouralist suggested that we were pandering to him too much... he asked me if I cooked a meal for my husband and he sniffed and walked away, what would I do? I responded that I'd probably whack him one... His response was "well, the dog's doing the same thing". On the suggestion of the behaviouralist, we got really tough with meal times. We feed him breakfast and give him 10 minutes to eat, anything that's not eaten is put in the fridge and served up at the next meal. Same goes with dinner. Also, new rules - Kuma has to sit, give eye contact on command and wait until being released to eat. He needed to understand that we provided the meals, and what we give him is what he eats. He is now sooooooo excited about meal times - he does crazy zoomies when the kibble hits the bowl. He also now licks his bowl clean most days - any time he doesn't the left overs get served up to him at the next meal. He knows that he's got a finite time to eat and that's it. We also started to mix in some wet food into his kibble, and will be switching that to mince as soon as this lot of wet has run out. His meals are 80% kibble and 20% "additivies". Sure, we're still pandering to him a bit, but we feel his meals are still nuturitious and meeting his dietary requirements. I know how scary it can be seeing a big dog that was growing quickly almost stop growing because they're not eating properly. Good luck!

Just a flyby post to drop in a photos... A man and his dog: Cheese! by shibburd, on Flickr

Awesome photos everyone! Wuffles - Ava looking stunning as usual! WA - Halo looks like she's got a bit of a norty streak! her eyes are almost 'darn, I was caught...' Evolving - Bob's a classic. You can see his personality in your photos. Just great! Kirislin - Puck has such expressionful eyes! Primedogs - Watson and Deakin looking marvellous as usual! ETH - Poor Esky. Hope she's on the mend soon! Doesn't look toooo happy at all Who did I miss? I'm sure I did... sorry, really great photos! W2/52 W2/52 Poser by shibburd, on Flickr

Have you tried sardines? The oil goes all over the dry food and you can mush the sardines in with it. Ours go crazy on sardine nights. Satch isn't big on plain kibble but once he realised that was all he was getting (and he only gets fed once a day) he happily ate it. Ava thinks kibble is the OMG BEST THING EVER. She even eats it before any meat or bones that are in her bowl. I am currently using supermarket kibble (Beneful) as her training treats Yep, he used to bonkers for sardines night... then once, he hadn't eaten much for a few days and we gave him kibble and sardines... about 30 mins later they were presented to us on the rug on our living room floor. Noice. Since then he won't touch them. Kinda like my OH and bananas - loved 'em as a kid, ate too many and now can't even stand the smell of 'em! Once he's a bit happier about eating in general we will probably phase out the daily additives. But for the time being, I'm putting a big tick in the win column when he actually licks his bowl clean at the end of a meal. It's a double tick when he gives you those "more, please" eyes at the end I can see Satch and Ava now. Satch: Kibble? Just Kibble??? You CANNOT be serious! Ava: Kibble? omg KIBBLE!!! Satch: Ok, If there's no steak forthcoming, I'll eat it AVA: OMG KIBBLE! nomnomnomnom

See Kuma nudges the things he doesn't like out of the way and leaves them in the bowl, only eating the things he likes. Kinda like eating a BigMac but taking out all the "healthy" bits That's why we now mix in the wet food/mince and make sure all the kibble is coated otherwise the dry plain old kibble stays behind! He especially loves when we mix in beef mince and its a bit bloody. Oh, but i think his absolute favourite thing would have to be left over pasta bake. Especially if it has chicken and/or bacon and is covered in melted cheese - doggy heaven! That's his real junk food

Frodo's Mum - You have to make a calendar out of your photos for this month. Your dogs are hillarious! Great photos one and all *returns to lurking*

Kuma's issue is that he's a fusspot. He gets about 1.5 cups of dry kibble and a few scoops of wet each meal - but for ages he'd turn his nose up at plain kibble (only eating a few mouthfuls) and wasn't excited about eating. We had a chat to his breeder and after that decided to add some wet food and now he's happier. We mix it up with mince, chicken mince, left-overs... that kind of thing. Basically he never got excited about meal times. Now, he gets excited about 80% of the time. i.e. crazy zoomies and being really bouncy about his dinner. We are now also strict about the 10 minute rule, which we didn't enforce before. He used to eat a few mouthfulls and then leave it, then come back and have a few more, etc... now, if he leaves his meal its because he's busting to pee. If he walks away, he isn't coming back to finish it off and we assume he's on a fasting day. We were getting worried that he wasn't eating enough. He's just not that into plain kibble!

I love the Ezydog collars.. the poodles got new ones for Christmas! I just got Kuma an EzyDog collar and have their limited slip one on back order. It's awesome... The neoprene is better on his ruff fur than others. Can those who don't like them explain what they don't like? Just curious... I was considering ordering a bungee lead but got the soft trainer instead, by the sounds of it I made the right decision. Again the neoprene handle is soft on my fingies!

@ Hoover modelling... sooo cute! Been thinking about Niques and James too. Hope they're all ok. Betsy - smart kitty for hiding under the bed. Hope they one day learn to get along with each other Nice one Minxy! I've had days like that. The ones where they would have been best spent in bed! Speedy Healing Kuma had a bit of an up-chuck last night. Only the once and then back to bouncy. We think he was hungry and chucked up some bile. He's been all over the place with his food lately. Boiled up some chicken and rice for his dinner last night and you have never seen a cleaner bowl. He was super stoked this morning when I served it up again for his breakfast. He might finally be starting to be a regular meal eater! Yayyyyy :D

when we first started looking for a dog, I had a strict "outside dog" policy. That's what we had growing up - animals were outside. The more I researched my breed, the more I understood that they need to be with their people. I relented. Luckily, he's independent enough to be happy all day outside and comes in with us when we/he wants to. Sometimes our expectations don't align - i.e. we want him in, he's galavanting around the backyard. He sleeps inside at night - simply because he kept alerting us that our neighbours were coming home, or going out, or had friends over, or walked down their driveway. Drove me batty and henceforth he is crated.

Whaddayamean I'm adopted??