Whippetsmum

Hi, Yes, It's ME!!!!! So Katdog, have you got a little bundle too? I am really slack and should post pics. My girl's doing really well, lots of chasing toys, lots of sleeping, a bit slow with eating until last night. I will post pics soon.

Hi Nushie, Re: Puppy Loos I just bought a puppy home on Saturday and she was "newspaper trained", there were several spots in the puppy den that she could choose from. She's adapted really well to the puppy loo, and started using it on the first night, we had both 1's and 2's on the tray. We just put newspaper in instead of the grass layer. She had a second paper only spot that she didn't get praised for, so she learned pretty quick that the loo was the place to go. She's using it 90% of the time, and the other 10% goes next to the tray which is inside on the tiles. I'm putting a little bit of paper around the tray today and will reduce this over the week so that she gets more accurate. After that it working, I'll put the grass layer in with the paper on top. I'll let you know how it's going.

If he won't keep a coat, maybe try someting under the crate to reflect body heat back up, I did see a blanket that has a thermal reflective backing, but if it was under the crate he couldn't chew it. Keep an eye on his weight as the temperature drops, as it will give you a good idea of how he's managing the cold.

Has anyone had a good experience recently with Puppy Preschools anywhere within the NSW Hills District- Castle Hill, Kellyville, Blacktown, even out Windsor way? Are there weekend classes, or mainly evenings? I'm happy to travel to the right school. Puppy is an 8 week old Whippet. Thanks

Have a look at the thread called "My First Scary Dog Park Experience" (I think it's on page 2 at the moment). There was a bit of a discussion about dog body language and the ways that different breeds can present challenges when meeting other dogs. Hope it helps

Thanks Tilly and Justlovedogs, She's a Whippet. I raced up to Bunnings last night after I'd warmed up poor puppy, my son looked after her while I raced up the road. I have now covered the pond, which is a good thing since she tried it again. With the mesh covering, the most that happens is wet paws. I'm not worried if the Azaleas survive or not, so long as if she chews them, she'll be OK. I've been moving more pot plants to the front yard, not that there are that many, but apart from the Azaleas, there's star Jasmine which is a bit sappy, and an Arum which I knew would have to be moved. Whippetsmum

So, I've been puppy proofing the yard, started a few weeks ago and pulled out any thorny or spiny weeds, picked up anything that looked chewable or sharp, I pulled down cob webs to reduce spiders, etc. Nothing over the top, just sensible. Then, I got a Proplan puppy booklet that lists common dangers, which incuded dangerous plants. I knew about all the high risk plants except one, Azaleas. I've always had them, and had dogs and not had a problem. I have a couple of potted Azaleas which are now in the front yard, but there are 3 in the garden that can't be moved. Has anyone ever had a problem with Azaleas? Has anyone heard this about Azaleas from any other source? Is it the flower, leaf, wood or everything that is a problem?Do I put a wire cage around each plant and hope the leaves don't get blown through the mesh? Thanks in advance, please tell me if I'm getting too paranoid. :D Apparantly more paranoid.......I thought I'd pick up all the Camellia flowers just in case, even though they weren't mentioned and SPLASH, into the fish pond she went! A warm bath, and some hugs and she seems OK. (Edited for spelling)

Were there any bloods done or pathology? Were there complications? It's more than my boys op. and he had to have his testicles found in his abdomen, (bilaterally undescended) and very high up the tract, he had a special anaesthetic and an overnight stay. No aditional costs, post op meds were included, as was the follow up visit. I think his was more complex than a a spey, the total cost of the op was under $400, I had budgetted $600, (I think my vet is worth his weight in gold)

I agree that she would have to be a total nut case to expose her dog to those risks, totally irresponsible. There are positives 1. Dog survived situation 2. Owner at least had a lead and eventually used it, 3. Owner apparantly didn't give you a string of expletives as many off leashers do when they are startled or embarrassed in what is clearly an on leash situation. NB: I don't know if Bunnings is legally on or off leash, but the situation itself, dog near cars wheels called for a lead.

We put in a pet refererence, with 2 previous agents vouching for us. Our covering letter described our family and interests very briefly, but included our dog as a family member. eg: Your name, occupation interests, partners name occupation and interests, child and interests (remember that some children do more damage than the pets), dog and temperament and interests (lying in the sun, sleeping on his bean bag). The idea was to present the whole package and broaden the focus, not to focus on what the agent/ owner may see as a negative, this way, you can present your good qualities eg: you may like gardening, which can help balance out the potential negative of the pet. You may have a really good employment history which shows that you have a solid character, and a covering letter can highlight these positives. A friend recently did the same, and offered to pay an additional bond as an act of good faith. The owner was impressed by her honesty (some people don't declare pets), and although not initially wanting a pet family, accepted the application. When we rented our house to a family, even though we had dogs previously at the property, we still asked for the tenants to provide their dog reference. Their dog was a digging breed but quite elderly, the agent checked out their previous property and gave a good report. We just highlighted the clause in the lease that the garden and yard had to be returned to the original condition. It's already included in the lease, but we wanted to draw the agent and tenants attention to this, and to show that even though we accepted the dog, we did have certain expectations. Good luck

To reply to some of the replies.... Firstly Wazzat, thanks for the company, I knew someone else would be awake at that ridiculous hour! And thanks for the link. The dog is usually inside and normally sleeps through, apart from tapping on our door to see if we're awake. He hasn't been roaming around the backyard at night until recently. Now when he hears the bats wings flapping he races outside. Since the bats started he also developed a reaction to an electric leaf blower that a neighbour 2 houses away uses. It must have something to do with the pitch. The dog is pretty much inside all night, but he has independent access to the outside for toiletting. He is probably grown up enough now (3 years) to hold his bladder and stay inside, and I'm shutting off his access tonight so I'm not up at 3am on DOL! I have already cut off as much fruit as I can reach from our side of the fence, I didn't bother asking permission as the neighbour doesn't acknowledge us when we say hello and wave when we are doing the lawns etc, so I couldn't imagine a sympathetic reception. There is still some fruit high up on our side which I'm attacking this weekend. He can ask for the fruit if he wants to, personally, I wouldn't eat something that a bat had pooped on. I have been removing the fallen fruit so it doesn't rot, I don't want a drunken Whippet, he's already crazy enough when the bats stir him up. Whippetsmum

I use Sentinel, and have only had a slight problem when I was late giving it to the dog. Our vet gives us Capstar in case we get hitchhikers (A very nice Samoyed shared some of her friends with us one afternoon). The Sentinel doesn't get all stages, as someone has already mentioned, but the Capstar knocks down the adult fleas in 30 minutes, I used it on my dog and cat when they decided to share friends from the Samoyed. Years ago someone suggested to me that Brewers Yeast fed to dogs repels fleas, a the time we lived in a bushland area and had a Gordon Setter. Can't remember if my parents let me try it out, they were very pro "Malawash", it stank, do they even make it anymore? Re: flea bombs- read the packaging, you should turn off the fridge and some packaging warn of pilot lights in gas appliances too.

I cant sleep so was curious! I found this link Bat cave ! Thanks for that, I still can't sleep and the bats are still there. Dog is now under my feet as I type, so he's safe for the time being. It looks like getting rid of the fruit is a good idea as it would have the saliva on it, I just checked the dog, no scratches or bites, so far so good.

Our neighbour has fruit trees that hang over the fence. The fruit attracts big bats. The bats annoy the dog. The dog barks and jumps at the bats. Then the bats take off and swoop at the dog (at least they seem to be, or are they just flying low at take off?). I am trying to keep the dog away from the bats and have been putting a spotlight on the trees to discourage the bats, which does help a bit. I am hoping the fruit will be gone soon, and the bats will go elsewhere, I removed the fruit that was hanging into our yard so that the bats aren't too low in the yard. Are the bats likely to cause damage to the dog, are there pests or diseases that he could get if they scratch him or is in contact with them? The bats also drop chewed up fruit on the ground which we clear up every morning, again, are there any disease issues if the dog gets to the fruit that the bats have chewed?

Slightly off topic, but, my husband has decided our Whippy should sleep in our bed, any ideas on getting the husband to sleep on the lounge or dog bed. Dog doesn't snore, Husband does, dog probably cuter too...........

I've seen the silent customiseable ones a Pet Stock and Pet Barn, you customise them yourself.

While it's probably not fleas causing the "reflex" scratching, I have had some hitchhikers come home from walks after we've met a nice friendly dog, and mine is on flea control (Sentinal). I'm lucky with Whippet fur that they are easy to spot and that our vet supplies complimentary Capstar to any Sentinel customers in case of hitchhikers.

What?????????

My experience was a bit like Muttlover's. Our old girl was, well, quite old, when we bought home a 4 month old boy, at the time I asked on another forum for advice and was told that most dogs love the company. He loved her, she tolerated him, only just. He would do anything for her, he even stepped in between her and a charging big dog at the off leash park when he was only 9 months old! They did get along after a while, but she always looked at me as if to say "why did you do it?". I think she was just too set in her ways to appreciate the company.

I hope you find out soon what's causing this, it's worrying that it keeps happening. Both my Whippets have had this happen, one it was easy to tell it was a wasp, there were heaps around the garden; the second time, not sure, but we have lilly pillies and use the clippings as mulch too, just like Katdog. Is it happening at a particular time of year which could suggest a particular pollen or a plant. The other things to remember is that some plants have prickles that burn and sting, eg: some thistles are particularly nasty. A lot of people are sensitive to Grevillea as well as Conifers, both can have small spikes on the leaf tip and then the oils in the leaves cause irritation, could it be the same for dogs? Insects are more active in warmer weather, is it always summer? Check for caterpilllars as well. I remember kids being stung by the spitting ones.

Charming cat!! Definately don't use anything with ammonia, or it will attract them to remark the area. Hopefully the door was well sealed an it hasn't soaked into the wood! I know that cat pee is really difficult, for the hard surfaces, if it were me, I'd go for something enzyme based. Enzymes breaks down the protein that cause the stink. When my old cat peed on something, I usually used washing detergent with "enzyme based" on the label, I have also used a carpet cleaner solution with enzymes (Bissell pet stain and odour removal for carpets) to clean up the laundry floor (tiled) when she had an accident. When the dog marked all over the concrete after a visit from mum's dog, I used a bucket of laundry soaker that had enzymes, making sure it is colour safe and not bleach based. The reason why people suggest vinegar is that proteins are denatured (broken down) by acids and theres a type of acid in vinegar. For the screen, replace the mesh, it costs only a couple of bucks to replace the flyscreen mesh, pop into Bunnings and get some screen and the little roller tool that you need.

quote name='luffy4688' post='4436644' date='3rd Apr 2010 - 08:01 PM']Can anyone post a picture of the bowl to satisfy my curiousity? Found this picture on Google

I wonder if it's exercise or stimulation that is the critical issue?

I wish I lived in Victoria!!