Little Gifts

Anvet Beenleigh is quite good with friendly staff. It has excellent modern facilities too. Cheers Greymate. I think that may be the one my brother takes his dogs too so will check it out. My vet is Beenleigh Vet Hospital. I prefer to see Renata as she is a straight talker but Sidney is young and very good as well. One thing I like there is that they stagger appointments and when you go the waiting room isn't full of people and other animals, which is great if you have a vet hating dog. I think their prices are also reasonable.

I'm feeling a little like I've been run over by a truck today waiting to see the vet. We've had our appointment now and the outcome is that we are playing the waiting and watching and just enjoying each others company game now. Seems Ricky may have had a small stroke on the weekend. She also has very large tumours under each armpit which are what is affecting her walking.. Heart sounds good for her age, lungs slightly congested (which is the cancer spreading). No temp and not in any pain. Her appetite has also increased and she has only lost half a kilo since her last appointment. The vet said that while she has multiple serious health problems going on she wouldn't recommend pts yet based on the quality of life she still has. And yes I bawled like a big baby at the vets. I really thought she'd say to me that her organs were shutting down and it had to be done then and there. We went for a walk before her appointment and she pooed and peed to her hearts content. Loved being in the car. Loved saying hello to the other animals at the vet and is currently right under my chair here snoring. This is the part about being a dog owner I hate. I'll have to calm myself down now and be vigilant but not a worry wart and just get on with life for now. Thank you to everyone for their advice and support. Big hugs to those of you going through the same thing. It sucks.

Everyone who works at my vet is fantastic. There are certain staff who generally answer the phone and not only do they know my voice over the phone but they remember my dogs names and what medication or diets they are on and what we usually order. It is really comforting as a pet owner. Even though some of the vet nurses have changed they have all been amazing. I've been going to them for 20 years now and am a VIP customer! And if I need to speak to the vet it is very rare that I can't access her. If I have an emergency and the staff are there they will let me in before appointments start. They care about the clients who care about their pets. I also like that the staff bring their own pets in from home and they have a resident cat who lives at the vets. She scares the hell out of some clients when they go to get food off the shelves and she is sleeping behind it. Recently she lived under the christmas tree so happily that someone thought she was a stuffed display.

My vet has been flooded in and I wasn't keen on having life and death discussions with a locum so we have a new appointment for Ricky for tomorrow now. She has been ok but spending most of her time just sleeping in the air cond. Still gets panicky if she isn't with someone. Has been eating and drinking and going out to toilet and also had a bit of a play with me and Stussy on the bed this morning. I've had to come to work today so she is being babysat at mum and dad's. I'm off tomorrow though so we'll have all day together again. Greytmate I'm very sorry about Goldie. Big hugs to you. One of my co-workers had to pts her old dog on christmas eve. She's always supporting all my fund raising for rescue and I'm hoping that when she is ready she might actually become a foster carer for rescue dogs.

Everything in our house is behind closed doors still as I have a staffy girl that eats anything and everything. She has been very lucky and had no surgery - it all comes out the other end. Her worst have been an energy saving light bulb, a wire basket, a mobile phone and a drawer full of medication including the contraceptive pill. My vet has been horrified. I have been horrified as she is my heart girl and I have to replace everything she eats! She is now 3 and a half and is a lot better but tissues and ear plugs still regularly go missing despite the care we take. None of our washing baskets have handles, all of our outdoor furniture has teeth marks (she loves hard plastic) and she's eaten the arms of several indoor lounges as well. She has also eaten tampons but likes to pull everything apart before swallowing so I think that helps.

Thank you all again. Your posts are making me cry again but are also very cathartic. And Jed, it wasn't so much your doggy diary entry that got me but the reminder that you lost dogs you loved in a fire - not from illness or age. That put things into perspective for me. And when redangel talked about dignity - that's something Ricky has always had and losing that would be more insufferable to her than anything else. We actually had a really bad night with her. She ate her dinner, had some metacam but then went beserk at the younger girl when she tried to have a play with her. Then she wouldn't settle and kept pacing between myself and my sister. So I got into bed and put the air cond on and read while she settled on her blankie next to me. I wasn't allowed to touch her though or she'd keep moving. Given it was only like 8pm (I'm a night girl) I got up at one stage and was in another room talking to my sister and we heard this dog awful scream coming from the bedroom. We ran back in but it seems she was just panicking that I wasn't there. So all night I really didn't think she'd still be with us by morning and I kept reaching over to make sure she was still breathing. This morning she woke me with face licks and her breath smelt rotten so obviously something unpleasant has been going on in there. But then she wanted to play her favourite chase the hand game with me on the bed and we got up and went out to the toilet and had brekkie. She has been mostly herself for the day but still has to be right next to someone at all times. She's laying on the floor next to me now and it might sound wierd but everything in her torso has kind of relaxed and she looks like a big shapeless blob. It's funny the things you notice when you are looking for signs of impending doom. I did want to take her to the park today in case it was her last opportunity but think that might be more about me wanting that memory than her experiencing it. Do you guys think other dogs know when one of their pack is going? Since being chastised last night the younger girl has left Ricky be and is also giving me space to focus on her rather than needing all her usual attention. My sisters dog is also staying close but not intruding. Anyway, off to the vet tomorrow morning for a medical prognosis, which will then make the picture clearer. At least since she got dementia she has forgotten she hates to go to the vet! Last time we went that tail didn't stop wagging!

Thank you everyone. This is all very helpful. We have got an appointment for the vet early next week anyway - it was a check up visit. We already have some toileting issues due to the dementia, particularly if it is raining she wears a nappy now or just goes wherever she fancies! But it's the cancer side of things that worries me most I guess. I don't know what's going on inside her body. I can feel the masses on the outside and am guided by the fact she still eats and drinks and excretes so her organs must still be functioning. She has lost some weight and some body condition but I don't know if the new mobility probs are the cancer spreading or the onset of arthritis (which she has never had before). She is a very tough dog - always has been. She has mammary cancer and the vet said it is likely to show up next in her lungs but apart from some minor choking when eating (which we manage) her breathing and snoring has not changed. But like you have all said - if she has basic functioning and is happy even doing nothing then that's ok. Christmas Day she was running around with the other dogs wearing a big bow and today she is just loping from person to person and flopping down next to them like that's all she has in her. It just seems like such a big change in her like it is all going to go downhill fast with me not being ready for it. I had to pts her son 3 years ago due to injury and knew that was the right thing for him. I still go to call him sometimes.

It is the start of a new year and I should be feeling on top of the world but my heart is very heavy today. I have a staffy who is just shy of 16 years and 5 months. She has dementia and cancer and is blind and deaf (from old age). Prior to xmas we had so much rain that she spent most of her times just lying around indoors. But it has been mostly sunny for all this week and I have come to realise that she hasn't bounced back to her normal self. The vet said when she goes downhill from the cancer it will be quick and I think I am witnessing her deterioration now. She is still eating but her mobility is poor - like she is just too tired to bother now. She follows us everywhere and will just flop on the floor next to us rather than lie on one of the dog beds sprinkled conveniently around the house. She doesn't have the strength to play with the other dogs, although she did start a food fight 2 nights back. First fight she has ever lost but she did cause an injury to the younger dog before going down. She has lost her spunk - it's gone from her face. My vet will be open again on Monday so I will give her metacam until then in case she is in any pain (don't think she is but don't want to risk it). There may be something they can do to keep her comfortable in case this is just a temporary thing but my heart is telling me her time is coming. I didn't know I would feel this sad because she has always been a tough, non-smoochy kind of dog. But I have had her in my life for over 15 years and now that just seems like it isn't long enough. She isn't my heart dog but she committed to me and I committed to her a long time ago after she came into my life unexpectedly as my first ever rescue staffy. I have read posts on here from people saying they wish they had let their dogs go sooner than they did. I am not wanting to be one of those people. But now I am facing it I am not sure. If she is not in pain and is still eating and drinking and toileting is that still enough of a life? If she is wanting to still be around us even though she doesn't want to play or walk is that still enough? We've made a lot of allowances for her ageing so far and will keep making them as need be but how far is too far? Up until the last couple of days I never had any doubts that I'd know when the time was right, but that's because it still seemed like such a long way off. So I'd appreciate others advice now. Thank you Alyson

Goldchow could you add a pic? Were they done on those bright plastic circular thingies? I tried to knit one using needles with the plastic string bit in the middle and it was a disaster so I've always wondered how to do it.

I just went back to the beginning and read it all right through as well. Mya was meant to be with Jenna and your family. Right from the get go those two bonded. Beautiful story! Beautiful save by Rach too!

A very sad story Paddy but also inspirational. You did an amazing job to be so organised 'just in case' and it saved lives - yours and your animals. Big hugs to you and your family. Paddy will always be a special dog that sounded that important warning and got you all to safety.

Good point. Although I suppose it leads back to that "there are no selfless acts" debate. A friend's Maremma attempted to stop her daughter from going out the back door by trying to herd her away from the door. The child continued and opened the door, so the dog pushed past, picking up a snake from the back step. The snake bit the dog and he died. I consider that to be a selfless act, but I can't think of too many others! My sister has seperate maremmas both for their sheep and goats but also to protect her when her hubby is off working. The dogs bond with their flock, including human flock. Noone can get into the house yard with Frosty loose. So when her daughter (who also lives on a remote property) started having children she got them a maremma too. This dog's purpose is to stay around the house and watch the kids. Their oldest daughter was quite the wanderer so this dog has spent a lot of time rounding her up and pushing her back into the house yard over the years.

Part of the problem is also about hygiene management for animals in evac centres as well as being able to control them. Animals can panic and be unpredictable in these circumstances too. They will also take up space there and require food and water and toileting - different resources to those of the people who will be housed there, possibly for several days. Some of those people at the evan centre might also be allergic to animals, scared of certain animals and probably in shock from what has happened to them and their losses. I adore my dogs and have emergency evac gear always ready in the shed so that rather than face a forced evacuation I could leave under my own steam with my animals. If you leave it too late or if the emergency is sudden then the reality is human life needs to be saved first. An animals crate on a rescue boat is in fact a seat for another human being at risk of harm. I don't think it is fair to put rescuers (who are often volunteers) in a position like that. They are working hours upon hours trying to save as many people as possible and if you take up a boat with yourself and your pets that is another trip they have to make to save the next person. Unless you have been in a true disaster then it is easy to say you are not leaving without your animals but the reality is that hundreds or maybe thousands of people HAVE TO. Having done disaster recovery one of the most heartbreaking memories I have is of an old man out at Charleville. He loved his chooks and left them in a pen with a roof thinking they would be alright. The water rose and drowned them at the top of their pen. That man was grief striken when he was able to return home and see what happened. So while my dogs are my world that man's chickens were the same to him, yet we probably wouldn't be too keen to see a crate full of chickens sharing floor space with us at an evac centre. So sorry but based on experience I can see the need to focus on people and not animals during a true disaster. I do wish there was a national animal evac org as well as I do think there is a specific need to move animals away from harm. Even cattle don't deserve to drown. But if you can get them out yourself earlier then do it. My emergency plan includes camping gear so we can set up somewhere with the dogs well outside of the danger zone.

This relates to a dog I currently have and one that was pts a couple of years ago. They were mother and son rescues (who came to me at different times). The son was scared of everything and the mother had been raised to be a tough dog for hunting trips. I've posted in the heroes thread how they got help for me when I had a bad accident and lived on acreage. But about a nine months after we moved to the suburbs both dogs were down in the back lounge with me while I was watching tv, fast asleep after a very long and active day. Suddenly they both jumped up and ran up to the top of the house making noises I have never heard before. They sounded like rabid police dogs. I followed them up there and quickly realised someone was in my house. I grabbed the portable phone and legged it out the back door with the dogs following me and rang triple 0. The awful part was the police were all out on other jobs and couldn't come to the house so the triple 0 guy made me walk back into the house with the dogs (who were clearly on full alert and snarling) and check each room one at a time and shut each room as I had checked it and lock all the windows and doors. Dog knows what I would've done if there was someone still in there. Absolute scariest thing I've ever had to do. My sister's boyf at that time was a security guard so at least he came over and checked every nook and cranny again for me. Even though I am highset three men had gotten in a window by standing on my wheelie bins. They had torn all three bedrooms apart looking for stuff (which they threw out the windows) and had even unplugged all my computer gear and where moving that out through the front door when the dogs heard them. No police came until noon the next day and all my stuff had to stay like it was. They took fingerprints and at least one of the men was caught because when the dogs went crazy he'd jumped from one of my windows and broken his ankle. He was caught trying to rob another house the same night where a guy beat him with a plank of wood. And I can still remember to this day the smell of alcohol in the house from them.

I was just thinking back to how I exercised my dogs when I lived on acreage and realised we went for very long off leash meanders most days then. The area I lived in was being developed and I used to like to go and check out the new houses being built. There was zero traffic so we'd just go walking and being nosy until it starting getting dark and then head back home. The dogs would be running here and there chasing things in the long grass and checking to see if there were any horse hoove clippings to eat. I'm lucky here in the suburbs now to have a very large park and creek right near me so I don't have to walk past houses with dogs barking at fences. I have had to split walks now though because I have a 16+ staffy that loves to walk but can't go far. We bought her a dog pram so she could come with the other dogs but she refuses to use it. She tends to just get a slow walk around the block and lord knows where she gets all that piddle from but she makes it last the whole walk!

Our dogs don't get walked everyday mainly because sometimes it isn't light enough (I don't feel safe night walking and I am not a morning person) or like now when it is constantly raining. But we have play time with all three dogs morning and night either in the yard or house using whatever thing stimulates them the most (one loves being chased with toys and playing tug). In the mornings play is always followed by a a body massage. So walks and outings are always on top of the daily play. We do try and have a special outing with all 3 dogs every weekend to an agility park or the beach or to a park where they get to play in water. Often we will meet up with friends who also have dogs at these outings.

Thanks for the online info Mystiqview. In my head I was picturing these BYB's and puppy farmers having their own websites with page upon page of the pups they have for sale. Didn't even think about the obvious 'for sale' sites but shouldn't be surprised - maintaining your own website would eat into those puppy farming profits! I don't trust BYB's, puppy farms or pet shop owners when it comes to honesty over money so can imagine them working together to ensure a supply of popular breeds is available, so I can imagine the misrepresentation of a breed or cross breeds happening from both sides. Two pet shops local to me regularly advertise litteras of pups as pure breeds and there have been occasions when I can easily tell by looking at them that they can't be. They put whopping big prices on them because of this and I think it is wrong and that it can have repercussions for the animal. Unless the parent dogs were both guaranteed pure breed then they shouldn't be claiming a pup is. I'm not saying it needs to say it is a cross breed, but it shouldn't say pure breed. As for cross breeds there have been several 'what breed am I' threads on DOL from people who bought a pup and it has grown to look like something other than what the pet shop said was in it. I think this is a risk for anyone buying a cross breed dog of course given we know a bitch can whelp pups that have different dads. But say mum was a dalmation then advertising a pup as dalmation cross is the best that can probably be done. And a cross breed is a cross breed and sale price should reflect that. So many people actually think designer dogs are an actual breed and that their moodle is a pure breed dog!

Mystiqview I have no idea how a normal person can buy a puppy online. I wouldn't even buy plants for my fish tank online let alone a companion animal! But if that does happen then an outcome may be that less people see a cute puppy at a shop and buy it on the spur of the moment without considering the realities of dog ownership. And if you buy a dog online I'm assuming you may have to wade your way through the choices and wait for delivery so some people might also be put off by that. Or is that just me being a wishful thinker? The other thing for me is that if I see animals in a pet shop in poor condition not only can I complain about the pet shop but I can also make a complaint about the 'breeder' (using that term very loosely). If that 'breeder' gets enough complaints then maybe they get put out of business? And it's not just the health of an animal but even the breeds they list them as. That pet shop owner was already saying he didn't want amstaff's so I can already see 'breeder's trying to pass off amstaffs as SBT's (just one example). That is not right for the dog, the new owner or reputable breeders of either breed. And if I see anything saying it is pure bred when it clearly isn't then I will also be complaining about that kind of misrepresentation. A cross breed is a cross breed and people shouldn't be paying for a pure bred if they aren't getting it. Surely that has to be some kind of legal misrepresentation of goods?

Just some veyr quick tips for right now. If you touch your dog to get its attention then I suggest 2 light taps each time - anywhere but on the head. If you only do one the dog may be unsure if you just bumped into it so always two so it can differentiate. I don't recommend your dog be off leash until she has visual recall because you can't call her back if there is danger. So I'd avoid that for the saftety of your dog at present including in your driveway, near roads or on walks. Be careful around other dogs as your dog wont be able to hear them giving her back off growls. If you have timber floors at home stamping your feet will get her attention. I still talk to deaf dogs as I think they still respond to the positive body language and expressions. The key is having that dogs focus on you wherever possible so it can learn and follow hand commands. I have a deaf dog (due to age) and recently met two wonderful deaf ACD's who were very obediant (one only a young pup). One thing I've noticed though is if a deaf dog gets in trouble from their human they can make a hell of a racket. Tell your neighbours your dog is deaf in case it gets out of the yard or in case it kicks up a stink sometime and they think you are trying to throttle it! Good luck with your girl!

Last one - having a rest after lunch:

Aeroplane tail!

And of course Silly Stussy. All of these could be considered out takes - there is nothing she couldn't do in her frock!

Now our old girl Ricky:

All our dogs got washed yesterday so we could do Christmas pics but the weather was so dark and awful it didn't happen. And with so much going on today we couldn't organise all the dogs in one place at the one time so it was just mostly ribbons around the neck and random photos. Stussy (my silly heart girl) wore her christmas fairy dress all day and was hilarious. First here is my sister's dog Wolf:

I've got a pied staffy girl who I think is the most beautiful dog in the world but she hates the camera so I always get scared face. It sucks when you can't capture the essence of your dogs so I feel your pain! Stanley looks like a proud chap in his pics above!