ravenau1

Just saw the owner talking on the news, he is absolutely devastated. It did look like a pure Bullmastif by the pics of the dog they were showing. Witnesses said that the dog had been tied up for 20-30mins and seemed very placid and a few people had patted it etc, the news guy mentioned that some security footage showed that the dog got "spooked" somehow by the kid. They also said that the owner will be prosecuted.

Much tastier! We eat a lot of it. Erny, got mine from here http://www.whelpingsupplies.com.au/index.p...at&catId=40

Astrids toileting: She doesn't sniff around or anything anymore like she did when we were first housetraining her and she definitely seems to understand fine that she is to go outside to the loo. It's just that she won't let us know, like KTB's pup she just goes to the door and when it doesn't magically open she doesn't know what to do . A dog door would no doubt solve the problem, but we have two inside cats to that rules that out. I've started to teach her to scratch at the door when she wants to go out so we will see how that goes. The bell thing sounds like a good idea too! In other news, yesterday she learned to bark and growl! In the past we've had the odd bark here or there but yesterday :rolleyes: she sounded like a scary dog lol. It started when I washed a little door mat and just draped it over the fence to dry and Astrid decided it was against the natural order of things and went nuts! Barking and growling at it. And then she went around the whole yard barking at almost everything from her kennel to a cable tie thing on the gazebo. She seemed quite pleased with herself. Kyliegirl: Echo is gorgeous, so handsome! Go the Dobes . Astrid is my first Dobe, my last dog was an Alaskan Malamute and she's a dream to train in comparison. I think maybe boy dogs are harder? Not sure but Astrid could sit, wait, high five, target touch with her nose and drop within the first couple of weeks we had her. She seems to pick things up really quickly... apart from 'stand' that is! Astrid loves ice too! I give her her lunch frozen most days and she's hilarious to watch if you give her ice cubes, chases them all over. It will be interesting to watch them both as they grow as I think they will be quite different! I expect Echo will be much, much bigger (Astrid is working line). betsy: Sounds like Ziggy had an awesome time :D Niques: Oh gosh, I just read about the whole James thing! That must have been terrifying for you! Glad he's now home safe and sound. wuffles:The bike sounds like so much fun! I am looking at one of these http://www.trike-bike.com.au/ for when Astrid is old enough to run beside a bike. Is Ava worried by the bike at all? Clastic: Hope all goes well today with Pepper getting her stitches out! Lovely house! And I have the same Velociraptor toy as you My Dad bought mine for me a few years ago now and I love it! Cats hate it though Max#1: FLyball looks like so much fun. Astrid picks up on my general moods for sure! KumaAkita: Kuma is so smart! I can picture the picking up and pushing, that's exactly what I used to have to do on occasion with my Mal!

Some great advice, thanks everyone! :D

No idea, Nekhbet. She's violently ill whenever we've fed her anything raw but she's fine with cooked meat. eta: Just saw your edit True, but she doesn't eat the antler as such, just kind of gnaws on it. She hasn't made enough of a dent in it to ingest more than a tiny speck I believe.

Hi My Dobe can't have raw meat of any description, including bones etc. I am wondering if anyone has a suggestion for something that she could have to keep her teeth clean instead of the bones. We've tried the plastic type nylabone things and other chew toys but she's not particularly interested. She does chew her antler but it's more of a scrape with her teeth, if that makes sense. Thanks eta: she mainly eats Black Hawk kibble mixed with some cooked meat/veggies etc.

Hullooooooo everybody! So much for me having more time to spend on the computer, I swear I haven't had a moment to myself! I've been popping in when I can to have a read of the forum but just haven't been able to post anything. Loving all the pics and stories in here as always My parents came and stayed this week and it went a lot more smoothly than I was expecting! They were both really taken with Astrid and kept remarking about how well behaved she was, which was nice. The real test will be this weekend when we go and stay at their place for a few days! Nice long drive (3 hours or so) then a strange new place with different cats for Astrid but I am feeling optimistic! lilli_star: I love the gazebo for Ruby! We are going to have to do something similar for winter as we have plenty of shade but not much area that's waterproof. betsy: Love the story about the bbq. My uncle had a Rottie cross that once stole a side of beef! KTB:It's a wonder Hoover didn't wake up with a stiff neck! KumaAkita:awwwww! Love that pic! She's growing like a weed, her legs just keep getting longer and longer. OH bought her a giant stuffed frog and she loves it, beats it up and snuggles with it for hours. She loves to dig! Her ears are doing all kinds of weird things. We started a new puppy class on Sunday with some gorgeous dogs. A Staffy x Kelpie (who we knew from before), an amazingly cute and fluffy Border Collie, and a lovely Portuguese Water Dog. Astrid has a great time playing with the other dogs now, a far cry from when she squealed and hid the first week I'd love a bit of advice if anyone can help out? We are having a bit of a toilet training issue! Astrid often won't let us know when she has to go out. I'm going to try and teach her to scratch at the door and make some noise but she just sits and stared forlornly at the closed door. She had an accident inside the other day when she went to the door, saw that it was closed and before I could get to the door she walked a few paces away and did a wee. No whining, nothing. Odd because most of the time she is very vocal.

Thanks so much, everyone! You all know so much It's pretty warm here in Perth, the forecast for this coming week is Sunday Sunny. Min 18 Max 35 Monday Sunny. Min 21 Max 34 Tuesday Sunny. Min 20 Max 34 Wednesday Sunny. Min 19 Max 34 Thursday Sunny, humid change. Min 21 Max 35 Friday Mostly sunny. Min 18 Max 28 And we have heaps of mozzies around here, though I was told at the vet yesterday that they don't see much heartworm. It's hard to know what the best thing to do is. I'm not really comfortable treating for fleas if we don't have them. My cats stay in a cattery once a year and they are flea treated (Frontline) when they come home as a 'just in case' but that's the only time they are and I would prefer to just treat the dog if we develop a problem. And we don't get the same sort of dangerous ticks here in WA.

Hi all I was told today that even though we don't have fleas, I should start my 12 week old Dobe puppy on a flea treatment like Frontline etc (the type that you put on the back of the neck) because it will stop her getting heartworm because it also stops mozzies biting. It didn't sound right to me so I thought I'd check with the DOL Brainstrust

Hello everyone! Just a flying visit! Mr Raven went back to work today so I may have some more time online once the house no longer looks like a bomb has hit it We had our first big 'scare' with Astrid on New Years Eve. OH woke me up in a panic in the middle of the night because he had been woken by the sound of Astrid vomiting. She also had explosive diarrhea (nice... ~blech~). Of course, the first thought is Parvo :D as it's rife over here at the moment. But thankfully it wasn't, it was "just" an upset stomach. Poor little thing was miserable for a few days though. She's back to her normal bouncy self now though, which is good.

lilli_star: I found an online tutorial for the collar and lead a while ago, found some supplies then dusted off my old sewing machine. It's made with ribbon stitched onto webbing, I'm going to try making a fabric covered one also at some point. Fantastic pictures! Has Ruby always liked swimming? wizzle:Thanks! Is Genevieve more attached to your OH than to you? I just ask because Astrid will patrol a door if I'm on the other side of it. It's not like she ignores my OH or anything, but her main attachment seems to be to me We've been getting OH to feed her etc but it doesn't seem to be making much difference. Your ultrasound dream, that's scary! betsy: Oh, a DSLR, how exciting! I'd love a fancy camera but I can barely handle the simple one we have The pics look good, is it hard to use? KTB:Took me about half an hour I guess, but I had to stop in the middle because my sewing machine temporarily went *pfft!* luckily it was simple to fix as it's from the early 70's :D Sounds like Hoover and Elbie had fun at the markets and store! Can't wait until we can get Astrid out and about properly. We take her for a car ride every day and a 'carry' (we walk, she's carried) but we are looking forward to being able to walk her. KumaAkita: Akita body slam!! Ouch! Hope your OH isn't too sore today. Here is my Vampire-Dobe! I was taking some pics of her and caught this just as she was closing her mouth after a bark. Love the lil teeth poking out

Thanks all We haven't had any more problems with the poop since Saturday so I'm thinking it was the beef bone or something else weird that she ate (bug or something perhaps?) that irritated her stomach, or the worms because I've now wormed her a couple of times.

Glad everyone had a nice Christmas For one reason and another ours was actually canceled and we didn't end up having my family come to stay after all. I'm now trying to decide whether to take Astrid away with us overnight this week where she will be in a new place and on her own for most of the day, or try to find someone here to care for her overnight. Not ideal either way! We are going to travel 3 hours to my parents house as a 'base' then attend a funeral and wake that's another hour from there. I made Astrid her Christmas present today, a new collar and lead quite pleased with how it turned out for my first try! The collar is adjustable so should last a bit of growth.

Astrid has some odd sleeping positions... Unfortunately some of them are fraught with danger! *No Dobermanns were harmed in the making of these photos, though there was perhaps some slight embarrassment

Thanks everyone! She still seems to be feeling fine, bouncy and 'full of beans' as usual. I recently wormed her but will do so again tomorrow then in a couple of days again, thanks! The only thing out of the ordinary that she has eaten was a beef bone on Thursday, usually she would get lamb. Her poop this afternoon was relatively firm with no jelly/mucous but I will keep an eye on it. Would something that she usually gets fed with no problem just start to cause some sort of irritation?

Hope everyone has had a lovely Christmas! KTB, we are thinking of you during this time ~puppy hugs~

Hi all I have a 10 week old Dobermann pup. Yesterday morning (her first poop of the day) we noticed that there was a clear jelly like substance around her poop and that it was softer than usual. The other poops of the day were still softer than usual but no jelly stuff. This morning her first poop of the day was fine, but her second had the substance in it and was very soft. No blood or anything like that. She seems to be feeling fine, absolutely no changes in her behaviour, she's as energetic and bouncy as always. She's been wormed etc. She's be eating Black Hawk for 10 days now and the day before yesterday she had a beef bone. Other than that she really hasn't eaten anything different than normal. Any ideas? I plan on taking her to the vet if it doesn't improve, but since she doesn't seem ill I don't think it's an emergency?

Oohhh! I was reading a thread somewhere here that mentioned that! Was it a Manchester Terrier? Ugh, or a German Pinscher perhaps! I can't remember lol

Did I miss the answer to this? How interesting!! Love the pics of Churchill with the poodles! Something else I didn't know. Both called Rufus too . Reminds me of my Grandfather who had a Mini Dachshund called Monty. Ever since I could remember! It was only when I was in my late 20's that I discovered that there had actually been three Monty's!

No gas here either!

Sorry for the double post, but check out some of the pics we had done at Houndstooth Studio on Saturday! They are amazing! Can't wait to see the rest They're on Houndstooth's Facebook, hopefully you can see them :D http://www.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#...id=177830156207

Minxy: Glad the fluffy guy is doing better, I really want to reach through the screen and cuddle him :D He's so lovely. Niques: He must have known the present was for him How funny! Have you confiscated the raccoon or does he have it now? Love the mud wallow pics! wizzle: Minties! That would have been hilarious to watch :D lilli_star: Sounds like you had a great weekend! I saw Bon Jovi in concert more years ago than I care to count :D they were pretty good back then! KTB: Glad it was a false alarm, but not good for you at all :D wuffles: I promise that if I ever saw Satch I would not kick him, I would probably try and cuddle though :D KumaAkita: Poor Kuma! Sounds quite painful, bet it won't be fun trying to keep him quiet! 46kgs, nice and big! How much will he eventually weigh? Astrid is enjoying her new kong wobbler so much so it was difficult to distract her. Only a few days to go until Christmas. I am a bit nervous about it this year :D my parents are coming to stay and my Mum (as much as I love her) can be a bit... difficult at times. She was initially VERY vocal about her opposition to us getting a dog and while she came around eventually I know that every time Astrid so much as puts a foot wrong while she is here I am going to hear about it over and over again (I still 'hear' about the dog I had that passed away 7 years ago!). I am going to get a nice juicy bone and some other stuff to keep Astrid nice and busy. I actually think I'm starting to come down with something, stress I think! Ugh. What are everyone else's plans for Christmas?

wizzle: That could very well be it, she wanted some pampering too she did have a manicure earlier that day! Aww, snuggly Genevieve! A wine IV sounds like a damn good idea :D CleoJ: I've seen the freestyle before on tv I think, in Britians Got Talent or some such, a border collie called Gen or Gin. Was pretty impressive! Niques: A cane toad! I guess dogs must find them pretty interesting. We don't get them over here (yet), how do you keep the dogs away from them when you're not around? lol Astrid is pretty gentle and sweet, except for the times she turns into a Demon Dog! Ha! Naughty James stealing things from the mantle. Christmas with all the trees and gifts etc must be exciting if you're a dog. Max#1: Great pics! Max looks like a natural in the water! Minxy: Hope Kojin's tummy is all ok! wuffles: Love the vid, that looks like so much fun! Well, we had a busy weekend! Had an awesome time at Houndstooth Studio getting pics taken yesterday morning! Today we had our second puppy school and while Astrid was better she still wasn't completely happy. I wonder if sometimes dogs have a different energy or something and that affects the way they interact. There is a lovely Staffy cross in class who is quite outgoing and confident. Astrid is really quite scared of her. But there is also a Shih Tzu cross that's more placid and laid back (like Astrid) and she and Astrid played really well together and had a great time. We have a play date for Boxing Day with the trainer with Astrid and the Shih Tzu. Now, the Staffy cross isn't being obnoxious or rude in doggy terms, she's actually quite good socially if you know what I mean, but Astrid does not want a bar of her! Astrid this afternoon, having a break from running zoomies outside with OH. I think our grass needs cutting

She eats it

wizzle: Avocado dip on the maltesers? Sounds interesting! I love salty and sweet things together, I put salt on my honey on toast Genevieve is SO pretty! Love the new 'do' A scan, how exciting! Did you get stills? I think the whole pregnancy thing is amazing, it never ceases to amaze and boggle my mind! You're growing a person. I know it's just seen as a normal kind of thing, but to me, it really is incredible, even if I've never been tempted to do it myself. Glad it's going well for you ;) lilli_star: I guess by now you are free Yay for holidays! Cleo_J: I think Dancing with Dogs looks really interesting, something I might try with Astrid down the track. Perhaps just at home to start Unfortunately here most of the classes in interesting stuff seem to be on weeknights, and since I can't drive and OH works shiftwork it means I can't really get there. KumaAkita: awww, that's so cute! Kuma waiting for you! That's a wonderful pic of Kuma in the calender, a lot of character in that gorgeous face Niques: Great pics! :D I love the first one in particular, the look on his face. betsy: I would LOVE a pic of Astrid with Santa! That looks so great, will it be your Christmas card? :D Max#1: LOL, the frisbee is like an Avant Garde collar. KTB: LOVE the Chrismas pics, I desperately wanted pics of Astrid in a Santa hat or antlers, but no , your pups looks SO cute, even if they look a bit unimpressed. Well, we picked up a sample of Black Hawk yesterday and she eats it! It's weird because I was feeding her exactly what her breeder was, what I had watched her eat at her breeders but she wouldn't touch it. I think maybe the lack of that competition with having other puppies around or something. I'm feeding her other things as well but she really needed to eat the dry food too. So we're happy now :D She barked for the first time yesterday, I nearly fell over! It's a big deep bark for a puppy. Yesterday it was one bark at Tosca because she was ignoring Astrid, and today for some reason the heat mat that my straightener sits on needed barking at, about 4 or 5 times. Tomorrow morning we are off to www.houndstoothstudio.com.au for a photoshoot, should be fun! Today after her bath, laying in the sun :D Attempting to kill the microfibre towel