Roova

I bought an Orvis dog bed a few years ago and couldn't be happier. It's an overseas company so I bought the cover only and stuffed the inserts with polyester from spotlight when I got it. The bed looks as good today as the day I bought it and it's had two dogs sleeping and playing on it. It unzips and goes through the wash and you can decide how firm you want it by the stuffing you put in. It is really comfortable (yes I say this from experience lol) and the dogs choose this over the couch which I love. It's worth looking at the range, there's so many shapes and sizes. The customer service was the best I've ever had too. http://m.orvis.com/store/product_search_tnail.aspx?keyword=Dog+bed+cover+

Aww poor Puddin, staying still is hard for a puppy lol

Completely missed this sorry Scottsmum. Fantastic idea! I'll see if a light exercise ball does the job first (assuming a Treibball is not just that). Thank you :)

17 hours and no sleep! Have fun and enjoy every one of those baby moments. Lucky you

Hmmm they're currently gnawing on deer antlers which I wish were cheaper considering the deer no longer wanted them. Also we had a three way tug of war game last night with one of those cheap pink bunnies which lasted two minutes. It took me longer to pick up the stuffing afterwards than the game itself lol. Lastly and I don't know why I do this, I bought them a cheap blow up beach ball. They go nuts when I throw it to them and push it around but the second they herd it in to a corner it gets punctured. I can't find any other light ball they want to pay with though.

Very cute and clever!

I meant a dog crate so both get alternate time in and out of it though, not a small crate only the kitten was in. I had to do this with my Frenchie who was very intense toward our new kitten and that was after keeping the kitten in a spare room so she would get accustomed to its smell first. With the crate I could see when Maggie started to ignore the kitten and that's when things started to improve.

She's adorable, love the paws in the air puppy sleep!

Do you have a crate? Alternate time in the crate with dog on lead when it's kittens turn out can really help. Keep plenty of great treats handy so you can create a positive association and praise good behaviour. It could take days or weeks until the kitten is accepted as part of your 'pack'. Until the kitten is much older I wouldn't allow any chasing games to happen and the kitten should have plenty of escape routes. Good luck, is worth going as slow and slow and steady as you have to, to ensure years of stress free time together.

Ok then, change of tactic when I leave the house now. Instead of saying 'be good girls' I'm just going to say 'don't do opportunistic things I may not like' lol

Id like to think there is some reasoning going on in their heads, although it's hard to tell what is hard wired and what they have learnt by rote. Last night I watched Poppy and Maggie have a mad play session where Poppy ended up running in to my room at one point (out of bounds) and then back out again while Maggie stood at the doorway waiting for her. They both 'know' the rules but Maggie who is quite submissive followed them. Doesnt that show some type of reasoning or decision making to avoid getting in trouble which she hates? Why would one have done it when she could get away with it but not the other?

Wow!

I've cheated and taken this from an article on grooming. I have a border terrier and its a big no no to clip. I've seen plenty of photos of borders clipped and stripped and the hair colour and texture seems significantly different. In saying that I'm sure there's plenty of pets quite happily getting clipped. "Each hair follicle supports a single hard outer hair and several soft finer hairs that form the supportive undercoat. The characteristic rich color and hard texture is formed by the outer hairs. As these hairs grow out and become old, they become thin, soft and faded at the roots. More of the softer hairs push their way out of the hair follicle. The purpose of hand stripping is to remove the old faded hairs so that new growth can occur, and to muck out excess fuzzy undergrowth that may be jamming the hair follicle. When the coat is not refreshed by stripping out the old, several things can happen: The coat can lose color and become faded, the ratio of fuzzy stuff to hard hair can be altered so that texture is lost, and the hair follicles can become plugged up with fine hairs and oily sebum. This can lead to skin problems, such as the pimples or "acne" that is sometimes found on Miniature Schnauzers. If the hair is clipped or cut rather than pulled out, the growth of harsh new coat is inhibited, and the entire coat can become faded and soft. In some breeds, such as Airedales, the once black jacket becomes grizzled colored or greyish, the red brown becomes light brown and the leg furnishings become straw colored".

Great photos. I was drawn to really look at each one not just skim past. The iPhone one is spectacular!

I try to not anthropomorphise my dogs behaviour but I've wondered for a while can they make deliberate decision to be 'naughty' or are they just opportunistic? Three examples Ive been wondering about... I was eating something on the couch and got up to do something so popped the food down on the seat and walked away. My partner said the moment I left the room Poppy (12 month Border Terrier) was feet up on the side of the couch about to eat the food! Whilst I was sitting there she was lying at my feet seemingly oblivious to me eating something. Also in an attempt to wrestle back free for all access in the house, she hasn't been allowed down our hall which leads to bedrooms for maybe six months (unless invited). When I have a shower she clearly goes in the room and drags things of mine out of the ensuite to her 'waiting' spot at the beginning of the hall. Clothing, a slipper etc. I come out of my room and there she is innocently sitting or sleeping on her mat with clothing strewn about her lol. I've never actually caught her in the act of being in the room or selecting what item to drag out lol. Lastly she sometimes sneaks in one of our spare rooms (also in the out of bounds area) and brings out a small cactusy plant I have and pulls it apart in the lounge. I can put it back together because she doesn't chew it but she seems determined to get it when she can. She would never go in the room if I was in there, its always if I'm preoccupied or if I've left the door open when Im out. I don't growl at her when I find it because its my own fault for leaving the door open, but why? She always stops and sits on her mat if we're in that part of the house so she 'appears' to know she can't go beyond that point and down the hall. So, is she being naughty, a typical teenage dog picking her moment to 'rebel', opportunistic or none of the above? I should mention she is normally very obedient and easy going.

Gorgeous, I love nasturtiums. I planted one many years ago and now have them popping up everywhere at this time of the year. They're so pretty and cheerful.

please finish this sentence! (Frenchies are I breed I've been following for friends who are interested but I've never been able to wholeheartedly recommend the breed to them, low litter sizes, health issues, I would love the breed to thrive and not be such a novelty, but from what I've seen the high prices per pup are completely necessary for good breeders, but on the flip side are making $$ $$ flash in the wrong type of breeders eyes) Just adding my two cents worth. Even 'well bred' Frenchies seem to need operations such as nostril widening and soft palate being done. Im part of a Frenchie facebook page and Im pretty sure most on there have had this operation. Its kind of astounding there are huge waiting lists for people prepared to pay $3000+ knowing there will also be future operations needed (none of them particularly cheap). Are breathing issues even something which can be avoided through different breeding decisions? Should a dog be included in a breeding program which needed its nostrils widened or its palate done? How is the breed being bettered if this isn't happening? If you consider a litter of six puppies bringing in $18,000 and breeders Im sure have more than one female, doesn't that give so many more option to afford to really focus on improving the breed or even eradicating these known breed problems? On top of that most end up being treated like delicate flowers and not exercised hard or allowed to extend themselves too much. Im not sure how many get to enjoy a life other dogs might, but in saying that their nature is generally adorable and I wouldn't be without mine lol.

Those pups look like they have a great life out there. Plenty of room to romp, climb, dig, have fun and learn from mistakes. Lucky little guys! Do they all stay there Perse, or will all but the chosen one be homed?

I really like this method for teaching no jumping on people, or rather it teaches a preferred behaviour of four on the floor. There's a video with a lab puppy half way down which demonstrates it beautifully. http://www.clickertraining.com/how-to-teach-your-puppy-not-to-jump

Happy birthday Didi. Where has the time gone? Please tell her, her photos brighten my day :)

Great photos. I love the floppy ear look when running, very cute. They are some big feet and ears to grow in to!

Can you say you have friends who can go and see the puppy on your behalf? They may come up with excuses if there is no puppy. I wish you the best of luck though, I don't feel safe buying anything from Gumtree I can't go see (from past experience). Is it a refundable deposit?

I think I've got some dust in my eye. What wonderful care you're giving your darling boy!

Vets will always err on the side of worse case scenario. Yes, definitely avoid high traffic areas and be sensible in the places you put puppy down but she needs to be exposed to the world to start learning too. I may have missread your post and wrongly assumed you meant she's staying in your house for 18 weeks so please ignore the following if that's not right. She needs to be taken out and about as there is a small window of time where puppies are more accepting of new things. During this time its easier to make it calm and positive when they're absorbing new sights, sounds, textures and experiences. After 12 weeks they start to be less accepting and your job becomes harder to avoid them being frightened and having a long memory of that unpleasant experience. If you're not game to put her on the ground are you still getting her out and about in your arms or a pet pram? Its also of course lots of fun taking your baby around to be admired!

Just gorgeous. The light is amazing, in fact everything is amazing!