Whippetsmum

Ok, so I've packed everything in my house (almost. Of the 3 NSw gazettes still laying around....I found one Miniature Pincshcer Article: Spotlight: Miniature PinscherBreed , Dogs NSW June 2011, 2 page article Article describing the breed. Temperament, Appearance, Maintenance, Health Suitabilty. PM me if this is the one, I can scan it and email it to you.

Even if it is Homecare, you have the final say who comes into your house. In the long run it may be better to be assertive and insist on a different worker. By all means, padlock the gate, I never leave my gates unpadlocked, regardless. If you don't feel strong enough to refuse the worker, insist on a protocol of the worker phoning before they arrive. If it's the problem lady, you can leave the gate locked; if it's one of the Ok ones, unlock the gate. If you can't manage locking and unlocking the gate, get a combination lock, and only give out the combination to the workers you trust. The problem lady will have to wait at the front door until she learns to behave. Edited for spelling

Hi Kirislin, We have just bought a 6 bedroom 3 level Whippet Palace with sundeck, so of course we need a new Whippet throne. Photos of the new Whippet throne installed at your place including sundry royalty would be very helpful for all us Whippetologists, especially those of us who have Whippets expecting Grand Designs. Please share more photos as soon as you can prise yourself from under the Whippet huddle. Whippetsmum Edited for spelling as well ad lack of brains

Or of you have a hammer and a nail............

Do you crate your girl? We have the same Pee Princess act when it's raining. Our 2 spend most of their time outside, and usually only come in for a couple of hours of an evening, even if it's cold and wet(yes, they are real Whippets). Last week, it was so wet outside I had to bring the crate in even though its under cover (in heavy rain the covered area leaks). For some reason, once the crate was inside and the dogs had their den, it was much easier to persuade the Princess to Pee outside.

Sorry if this comes up twice... Does anyone have tips for sewing Velcro? The thread always seems to break And Where can I buy waterproof fabric for dog coats either online or in Sydney? Thanks

It depends on the dog's natural coats....our Whippets have no under layer, so get coated during the cold weather when it's cold enough and they are outside and the temps drop. I'm sure ours are wusses and if they were in Europe, they'd have to "suck it up". If ours are inside the coats come off. If I had a nice big GSD (which we did as kids) I'd be less worried as they gnerally have a lovely thick coat, just keep an eye on each dog, if they are losing weight with the cold, either add food or add acoat or both....weightloss is a sign that something is challenging the metabolism. As with any dog, make sure they have a nice snuggly area that is protected from wind and rain when they are outside.

I just checked the 2 local councils near me: Blacktown NSW"Generally residents may keep an unlimited amount of animals as pets, provided they do not cause a nuisance through containment, noise or hygiene issues. If complaints are submitted to Council and proven, then restrictions on the number and how they are kept may be imposed as Council sees fit." Hills Council NSW has a 4 dog limit in houses but has stricter rules for Townhouse dwellers

Following the post on Palmerstone council NT: It ocurred to me that a lot of families get moved around Australia for work; ADF, Police, etc. Can we start a Dogzonline list of councils that have a 2 dog limit? It could be pinned, sort of an opposite version of the pinned "dog friendly accomodation " topic.

Your poor dog just did what he's supposed to do, catch rodents. It's sad for your stepdaughter, but GPs are strange litttle rats as far as a dog is concerned. Your Stepdaughter needs to hear that you are upset with the situation, and very sad for her loss, but please don't let her or your partner blame the dog. Please don't let the Stepdaughter have any more GPs, it could happen again quite easily. Whippet#1 caught a rat the other day, I would never consider disciplining him for it.

It isnt that things happen in good kennels, it's that good kennels care enough to notice things like this and to be honest, and to inform the owner. e.g. at pick up time warn and inform you. Definately complain to the kennel and also let your vet know about your concerns (in case they may have thought to recommend the place). Let anyone you know who has dogs know about your experience in honest terms so they can make an informed decision about using the facility. If a dog had a serious injury would they have noticed? I'd expect at least an explanation and a history of wat was done once the injury was noticed E.g.: "We're not sure what happened but we noticed the scratches first thing on Saturday. We checked the dog over and applied betadine, we considered calling the vet, but decided it wasn't serious enough for the vet. We kept a lose eye on her, she wasn't overly distressed, we made sure she wasn't making it worse. We would have called you if there was any sign of an infection/need for a vet/change in behaviour. Hope you understand." I hope poor pup is on the mend.

My mother's dog is a barking mad looney- literally. He does visit for a few weeks at a time. We crate him when he gets overexcited, use good training- sit and wait etc it works well, and keeps the neighbours and our dogs happy. It doesn't matter if the dog lives permanently at the address, we would be horrified if our dogs or another dog we were caring for was a nuisance.

We should also have a "Meet the DOLers" stall, I'd love to meet some of the regular posters.

Specialty stalls, not Pet Barn etc e.g. Sighthound gear......good quality collars, leads and proper Sighthound coats

New link for hooded hound coat...... go to http://www.duncanspca.com/ enter the site , find the link that says more, then go to animal clothing lots of stuff here: cabled jacket.pdf carolines dog sweater.pdf doggie sweater.pdf fleece dog sweater.pdf hooded greyhound coat.pdf puppy sweater.pdf puppy sweater1.pdf puppy sweater2.pdf puppy sweater3.pdf small dog sweater.pdf

Don't take it on yourseof to approach this person and enlighten her, it may not go well, especially if ytour kids are at the same school. Is she a regular offender, it seems form your description that she may be a frequent off leader and clueless, in her own world....call council ask that they have a polite chat. Describe the pup and owner and the event, If you know where she regularly walks and the times etc, it should be no problem for a clever ranger to tap her on the shoulder.

Hope he's recovering well! I'm guessing he's fine, so don't worry, saying No didn't harm him. It's a bit mean to offer the dew claw op without any pre planning, what are the after care needs etc, and were you prepared etc, what possible complcations? Sounds a bit unprofessional to me. If I'm ambushed I shut down and say no to everything. If you send him to the same vet again, tell them you want to discuss all possible costs in advance. Or you could try another vet if you are really miffed.

I hope this advice is un needed, but just in case........mine didn't travel well at all, and it was only 60 minutes. When we picked up our pup almost 12 months ago, we should have taken lots and lots of towels, in fact, we should have layered the crate/car with them so that each and every time she threw up we could peel away a layer. And a drop sheet under the crate in case someting leaks. And don't forget to take wet wipes or damp towels in case you need to clean the pup after a mess. Good luck

I taught one of my Whippets to play with a Totem tennis set (Tennis ball tied to a rope on the end of a pole), he learned to throw the ball and catch it. It kept him amused for some of the time.

I agree that a specialist needs to assess Babe. The earlier you can intervene in the behaviour the better the outcome. Seperation anxiety may be one explanation or boredom, there are so many possibiilities, but the solution is the hardest part and that's why you need a behavioural specialist. If you use the wrong ingtervention, you can worsen a problem.

Check that the pup hasn't got any "still" water in old pots etc, that can make them ill too, ours got sick from drinking from the pond. Don't forget magpies and other birds sometime drop their meals in flight.....I found a lovely mummified rat once. I was convinced that the neighbour was throwing bones over the fence at one point until a bird started bashing it's feast on the gutter, glad I hadn't said anything.

On the way home this evening I saw some little kids with a really big dog on leash- definatley no adult anywhere in sight (points for having a leash at least). The eldest child would be around 9 years old, and this dog would weigh more than both kids combined. The dog appeared to be walking with the children, but I wondered how effective their control would be if the dog decided to do something unexpected, like chase the ducks at the lake they were walking towards. To me, kids can't anticipate/plan ahead so even a small dog could be a problem for a child to handle out in the world. I woulod hope that adults (when paying attention to their dog) might anticipate it's reaction to an approaching person for example, so even a light weight adult might be more in control than a child of a similar weight. Which brings me to the question: What constitutes "On leash"? e.g. are there situations when having a leash attached to a dog not "On leash"? Does the legal definition of "on leash" mention the age of the handler? P.S. I'm not talking about Junior handlers at a show, obedience or agility trial.

Urine that is left to dry stains/discolours the carpet, so you need to get to it before it dries, it yellows a cream carpet and bleaches blue carpet from my experience. The urine penetrates to the under felt and carpet backing and seems to leach out, e.g. when it's rewet, even if you think you've got it all out. I have used Urine Off with no problems at all, but it's best when the accident is fresh. It hasn't discoloured the carpet, I've used it on beige and light blue carpet, as well as dark blue carpet. I always get as much up with paper towels or old cotton towels before applying anything else. The instructions do need to be followed though, I think it mentions saturating the area, so even if it is expensive, it's worth doing it properly. A friend got a bulk pack, of a couple of litres which made it more afordable. I also use Bissell Pet Stain remover when I shampoo the carpet. I've used it in the hired carpet cleaners and have just borrowed a bissell shampoo machine from a friend. If there's a fresh accident, and I'm out of the other product, I mix some of the Bissel cleaner in a bucket of water to clean up.

My 22 year old blind and deaf cat has both Whippets terrified, she only has to look at them and they whimper.

Don't go plastic, if need be, make a wooden kennel from pallets. Whatever you do, make sure you get something insulated, so that rules out the Plastic ones, even raw timber is better insulation than plastic. I did buy a plastic kennel for my cats a few years back, I now only have one cat thanks to the plastic kennel. There were lots of blankets, and she had he sister for extra warmth, but she was elderly, and at the time a plastic kennel was all I could afford, we moved to Sydney and financially were really in a hole. The plastic wasn't even adequate for a mild Sydney Winter, while the old timber hutch we had in below freezing Bathurst had protected the cats from minus 8 temps, I wish it hadn't fallen apart. I still feel so bad for her, the vet said it was exposure. I should have grabbed some old pallets and made something myself, even if it looked horrible.