Whippetsmum

Seeing you're keen on native plants, have you contacted your local landcare, you may be able to oversow with a native grass? They may be able to suggest something that will work in your local area that meets your and your doggie needs, and won't become a weed in your area, match natural rain levels etc.

Sorry to hear about your situation Julzjc, It' time to call council and at least ask for information, they may suggest you put in a complaint. The dogs barking, he's causing damage to property (take a photo of the damage if you can) and they have penned him on the property border which I'm pretty sure is against regs. (animal enclosures have to be a certain distance from houses and boundaries.) Maybe the council ranger can make a visit and inspect the dogs living situation which sound far from ideal. If the living situation is bad enough, the RSPCA may be called.

I hate those situations... I'm always at a loss for the right things to say, so could someone on DOL print a T Shirt along the lines of: " Thanks for ruining our walk" " It's NOT OK, your dog is NOT friendly" " Your dog don't bite but I do!" " Off duty Ranger" (with Lucky I'm not a in small print before it) I know DOLers can come up with better, so any other suggestions for shirts?

Sorry to hear about Jorga, It takes time for a new normality to set in with dogs just the same as humans. He would probably be feding off your emotions within the human family too, not just responding to his own confusion about being alone. He will get bored too, so get him some busy toys for when he's alone, he's used to having someone to play with, or just follow around. My boy was about 2 years when his companion, and older girl who had probably been his mum figure passed. He did cry a lot while we were at work, so alerting neighbours and asking for understanding is really important. We did lots of walks and bonding games, kept him busy with frisbee etc when we were at home. When he was alone he had to manage his stuff, but when we were home, he was kept busy. He did get to sleep in our bed for a while, as he was used to company, and it was a bit of weaning him into being and only dog a day time first, then night time last. Hope things settle soon!

Just so the OH remembers, buy him a nice block of chocolate, leave it somewhere he's sure to find it. Wait until he's enjoyed it. Then AFTER he's eaten it make HIM swallow the electric soda crystals. I'll bet he never leaves chocolate out for the dogs again!

Thanks for the heads up

Hi, Can someone tell me where in Australia I can get a dog crate with an angled back? Savic make one, but I can't find one in Australia. I need a crate that will fit into my hatch back, and saw a Savic crate in the back of soemones car in the shopping centre the other day and thought it would be perfect, but the owner was not there to ask, so I took a note of the brand. http://www.savic.be/dog-residence-mobile-wide-76-cm SAVIC2.doc

That looks so cosy WJ, can Daphne get into the sleeping bag by herself? I'd love to get mine sleeping bags if they could get in and out independently.

Just to clarify (as you're new to having dogs) it's only the dog that has to do this..... If a dog approches me when I'm walking, and I'm at all worried that it won't play nice, I tell the dog firmly "No", as I step between my dog and the approaching dog. At an off leash park, you could try asking the owner's name when they do grab their dog, and then call their name when if you need them. Using the dog's name when telling it "No" can also make you feel and seem more in control. If your not comfortable telling people off, getting upset with the owner can make it awkward if you want to make the dog park a regular outing. If the owner says the usual, "It's OK mine's friendly" I usually respond with, "That's great, but mine's quite protective of me." ( He does stand all puffed up looking very macho for a Whippet...) If the owner apologises and leashes their dog or holds their dog, I always offer a positive reward, it works well with people too, so I usually say "Thanks for helping me out." There was a useful thread about how to respond if you're approached by a dog that you think could be aggressive towards your dog, without escalating the situation, so it may be useful to look that up in the DOL history.

You've stumbled across hot spots for alien communication and he's picking them up via his microchip? edited for typo

Firstly, comisserations to you, I hope it doesn't go on for too long, and that your neighbours do make the effort. It's probably going to take a few weeks for the new dogs to settle in, keep the communication open with your new neighbour, the dogs are sounding a bit stressed by their move, as no doubt you are stressed by the noise. When I moved house it took at least 2 weeks for the neighbours Beagle to stop barking, my dogs were fine with the move, and weren't really barkers (reverse of your situation). I was in tears with the constant noise. The neighbours on the other side had ChiX and a Foxie that joined in too. It all bounced nicely off the colourbond fences. After the first 2 weeks the dogs got used to us and our comings and goings, the barking subsided but never really stopped, but was manageable. I did arrange a meet and greet for the dogs on our front lawn so they could do the sniffing thing, that seemed to help a bit and I did resort to water bottles when the little dogs got half way under our fence to bark at us more directly, I also did try and reward the beagle any time it didn't bark at me when I was near the shared fenceline (it was easy because he stuck his head under the fence too!). Apparantly the people before us had a noisy dog, so I guess all the others were wanting was to get their usual response from it.

If you are mainly wanting exercise, I find that walking my dog(s) on lead is way better exercise for us all compared to me watching them run around an off leash park. I would be stressing about other dogs in a park, so on lead is a lot more calming for me and them. I also think there's less chance of injury when I walk me the dogs on paths compared to taking them to an off leash park. Many off leash parks have poor surfaces which can cause injury when a dog is at a run, eg: pot holes and sharp stones. You will often encounter random off leash dogs when you walk around a neighbourhood, but less dogs will bowl up to you than in an off leash area.

Cars all feel different, some are higher or lower, some have more movement around corners, maybe the new car has a different centre of gravity and therefore balance, or different visability. Travel sickness seems to be created when there's a difference between what our eyes tell us and what our inner ear feels (the semi circular canals give a sense of position in space and acceleration/deceleration....are dogs the same?). My dogs are better when they either have their heads under a blanket and can't see what's going on, or are high enough to see out the front window. If they stare at the dashboard or back of the seat which isn't moving, problems arise, their inner ear tells them to expect something different to their vision.

They are filled with water soaker crystals, the stuff you add to pot plants to retain water. The fabric is a ripstop nylon outer and I think a polycotton inner. I made the mats with a plain colour, then made a removable patterned cover so they'd be easy to clean. I soaked the inner mat, then placed it in the dry outer cover. So the outer cover is made with the ripstop? I might have a go at making one, can you get ripstop at spotlight or lincraft? and the crystals are at bunnings right? lol, such a noob at this, I might even have a go at making collars if I get really creative, the jackets however will be coming from clean run I think There are instructions on the 'net somewhere for cooling scarfs (if being used for non furred 2 legged types)/collars (4 legs and fur). It seems that a lot of people were making them for soldiers serving in hot climates. The trick is not to put too many crystals in the collar/ or scarf . Here are 3 links that might be useful. The 2nd also has a cooling vest for people.....could be adapted possibly for a dog. http://www.ehow.com/how_5102398_make-cooling-collar-dog.html http://watersorb.com/polymer_cool_neck_bands.htm http://thesmallobject.com/stenopad/wordpress/?p=2509

Hi Waffle, Sorry about your news. I think you've got the right idea. I'd do all the things that your dog loves, if that's chasing rabbits, or a ball, go for it. My girl loved sleeping in human beds, so she got spoiled that way, until my husband complained. But as she also loved the sofa lounge, I converted that into a bed and slept there with her. It was lovely having her so close, and it meant I could take her out if she needed help, which sometimes, she did need the help! We did that for as long as we could ( a couple of months). Eventually, she didn't want company.... I also made impressions of her paws, took lots of photos. And don't forget the cuddles!

Oh god, I've just read through the posts. I hope Yogi is home soon, you poor thing. I just went out and hugged my two, and did a "stick patrol" for good measure. Lots of good healing vibes being sent your way!

If you are around Sydney, World for Pets at Vineyard (near Windsor) have runs for hire.

My Whippets love the squeaker that they ripped out of a toy, so it's in my pocket usually. If they are in the yard barking at a bird, they still run for the squeaker. As someone else said, whippets can climb and jump. Tall fences are a must, preferably solid so they can't see the prey on the other side.

I just wanted to say, I've been using a citronella based deterrant and sprinkling it on the lawn to encourage digging elsewhere, it seems to be helping along with the other suggestions, eg: the poo in the holes, and the allocated digging area. The deterrant I'm using is "Skedaddle" I got mine from Bunnings. If I find a hole in the lawn, I sprinkle the stuff around the hole. The poo alone wasn't always effective, as a hole sometimes was dug close by. I try and sprinkle the general area too, so that a new hole is less likley.

I hope your sister recovers from the whole ordeal, and thank Dog for the passers by who stopped and helped your sister! It does show that some people are still decent.

I wish people spent as much time socilaising their kids as we spend socialising our dogs!

I have the baby gates as well as some fencing made from a puppy pen that is on loan, if I seperate the panels into sets of 3 panels, and zig zag them a little, they are self supporting. Just be aware that the dogs can and will get over anything, or even through a bit of a fence by just pushing it. Any gate is only a reminder of the barrier that you are imposing as the "pack leader", so you need to be very firm with your training. Work on your wait command so the dog doesn't burst through on you into the wrong area of the house. Make sure you also establish a base area that you can send the dog to when you need it, eg: mine have a bean bag, and as soon as I say bean bag, they stay there. You can use a mat or bed or crate too. Mine will always return to their safe place as soon as they are told! You can then reward the pup for doing the right thing instead of fuming when they get onto the carpet. My dogs know that if they break through the gates they have done the wrong thing, but sometimes, they can't help themselves, eg: when daddy gets home and spends 30 minutes on the wrong side of the gate without acknowledging them....(time to train daddy). I know that they know, I don't even have to say anything, after they get a pat from daddy, they sidle back to the bean bag a little sheepishly.

Hi Sharee, I can't say I know the answers, but this is my experience: Having done this earlier in the year, I have good and bad news for you.....you could end up with 2 "puppies". Our boy has been fantastic with our girl, but having said that, he has been more boistrous than when he had his first puppy hood. There was no regeression in toilet training or destructive beaviours in the adult, just a lot crazier in play. Our boy dotes on his baby girl, it was love at first sight, and there have been some fantastic moments that we have really enjoyed, eg: the first time he presented all his toys to her, one by one, dropping them at her feet! I personally decided to feed seperately, as things can get out of hand quickly. Neither the pup or adult exhibit resource guarding. From previous experience when our now adult was a pup, you can get some unpredictable behaviour, eg: what we refer to as the mashed potato incident (bomb proof geriatric Whippet + Pup + generous serve of mashed potato = Torn ear) the other problem is maintaining portion control, with ours, the pup is a faster eater and the adult wouldn't get a look in if they were fed together. Sleeping has been an issue with our 2, they have one huge bed, and get along most of the time, but the pup can be annoying and the adult gets up and cries halfway through the night when the pup steals the blankets, or takes the best spot, or the adult can't stretch out because the pup won't move. We have a second bed available so if one gets fed up, they have somewhere else to sleep. They had a week where tehy refused to sleep together, but have gone back to sharing as their preference. With play, ours played unsupervised after the first 2 weeks, but we did have a very bruised pup on one occasion. The puppy growls and play fights get very real, and occasionally, even though it's good natured, stuff can happen, even with ours being the same breed (so a good match). If you can find a video of what play fights and growls can look like, you may be better prepared than we were, we really watched our 2 and had to learn what the signals were, and learned not to intervene. From what we have seen, they have never had a real fight. With food, we stuck with what our breeder recommended and managed to change our adult to the same brand as we were getting such good results with the pup. Ours are fed Kibble, but also get chicken wings. Good luck and enjoy the ride!

Thanks, I've even tried white pepper in her 2 holes that she has managed today.....she seems to like the pepper, isn't deterring her at all. She is definately hunting for rocks, I saw her find one prize pebble and proudly cart it off to her den. I am really thinking about chicken wire now, and then topdressing the lawn.

The first thing I did was go to my neighbours and explain what happened so that they didn't call the council on me. The crying subsided after a few weeks, we gave lots of bones to chew and toys to play with if we weren't home.