BDJ

week 2 - a close up of an agave in my front yard

I like the sound of the inflatable e-collars, investigating that now, thanks Muzzle would not work with her as she would just use the muzzle to scratch it rather than her teeth :-) ta

Hi all, I have a collie with a hot spot on her rump, which she wont leave alone. She is wearing one of those plastic collars, but when it is long enough to stop her getting to her hip, it is that huge that she can only drink out of a bucket, and normal stuff (laying down, eating, walking through doorways etc) is quite an ordeal. Does anyone have any ideas on an alternative? I cant cover it (difficult spot and the air needs to get to it), so it is all about stopping her using her long (and lovely) muzzle to get to it :-) Perhaps something that tastes awful that can go on open skin? She had a steroid needle last night, and is on tablets and topical cream, so if I can get her to leave it alone it will clear up quickly I will give the vet a call and see if they have any ideas, but thought the brains trust may have some ideas thanks

thank you Scottsmum :-)

Happy New Year all I started last year and dropped out (again) very early - I am going to try very hard this year to make it to the end. This is a photo I took last night - he was trying to chat up a couple of peahens, he was very pretty :-)

Alarming a dog when it is doing something you don't want it to do can work with some dogs - but can also cause so many other issues. When I was young our dogs were 'bomb proof' - very strong and resilient temperaments and I didn't realise that was not the norm. I thought all dogs could be put in any situation and their attitude would be 'ok - there are fireworks going off next door, no problem, what's for dinner?' or 'ahh - I am now mixing with 20 unknown dogs with different attitudes, ok - hi' or 'yep, I am now standing next to a 6 lane highway with B doubles going past - sure, I will do a 10 min out of sight drop stay'. Now I realise I had amazing dogs who I didn't fully appreciate. And now I know that many dogs can be seriously rattled by a single incident. I have not tried the things suggested by Pandi-girl, and not having a go as they may be effective in some situations - just thinking about what a string of saucepans could do to the confidence of a pup

You have not got a lot of suggestions on how to stop the behaviour (just how to avoid the situations) - and unfortunately, I think that is because it is very difficult to stop :-). Some dogs just do it, so removing temptation is the only way. The good news is that it may stop as he gets older. But there are no guarantees. My brothers whippet stopped stealing and chewing stuff when he was about 3(ish). My SWF is 9 and he will still shred a tissue if he can get hold of one (thankfully that is not damage, just messy), and the beagle I had 30 years ago never grew out of stealing. And you are right - he would not realise he is doing anything wrong. 'Cos in his mind he isn't. I would suggest not reacting when he does it. Simply pick up the bits (without speaking/eye contact etc) and remove them (then go outside and kick the rubbish bin ). If you do interact (chase him to get it back, snatch it from him, yell etc) he may see it as a game/attention. Apart from that - it does at least drive a tidy household and neat kids (agree though - very frustrating)

An incredibly hard decision. You are to be commended for deciding not to rehome. I know there are some examples where it has worked, but often it is just a delay and causes the animal more stress in the interim. Making the decision to PTS is never easy, and is clouded by guilt. However, from what you have described you are not taking the 'easy way out' - you have tried, but your chi is not the only one in the picture. You also have your child, your family, the other pets and YOURSELF to consider. Let alone what is going on inside your girl - both physically and mentally. Small dogs can tend to be reactive, but not usually at nothing. So something in her mind or her body (or both) builds up until it spews out in a bite or a charge or whatever. The unknown is how long she is dealing with it internally before you see it externally. You need to do what you believe is right - for everyone. Look after yourself

I don't know for sure - but agree with Anne that it is not logical. Just think of the costs - if every flight that had a dog in cargo had a vet onboard, then it would cost many hundreds, if not a $1000 or more , to send a dog from Adelaide to Melbourne. There would be the cost of the seat, the wages of the vet - twice - as I am sure the vet would need to get home :-)

Peresphone - just letting you know that your last post was mean to us peoples who really need glasses ......... I was thinking 'what do you mean she lives in the car !!!!!!!!!' - then I clicked on the picture and it made so much more sense

thanks again for the nudge/information - have confirmed that they will accept the C3 done yearly as keeping the C5 valid for the three years. This is a change in their policy (yay to them), and a good reminder for me to always ask and don't take old information on face value as businesses do change policy :-)

Hi Showdog and Papillon kisses - I might give them a call and ask if they have changed their policy. I haven't boarded their since last year, and that was their (very) firm policy, but perhaps they have changed Thanks for the nudge - I shouldn't assume :-)

Ness - thanks for the info about the vaccination day on Sunday - brilliant Showdog - understand that they need to do a health check - was not trying to infer it was an inconvenience, just meant that any vet I go to is not going to be able to notice a difference in how they look as (thankfully) I don't have to go to a vet often enough for them to remember the individual animal. Vets are highly trained and have more info in their small finger than I have in my whole head. Unfortunately I need the C5 yearly. I am not a fan of frequent vaccinations, but where I board does not allow 3 yearly (even with titre tests) - no yearly vacs, no stay is their motto. They are brilliant with the animals and I feel so comfortable with them, so yearly vacs it is (at least in the year I travel )

thanks Ness I rang Noahs Crossing and they were one of the 'no discount' places, but that may be because i don't have a relationship with them (which i sort of understand). I will give Adelaide Plains a try

Hi all, I have tried to do a search without success, so starting a new thread. Normally I don't 'shop around' for vet stuff as price is not my driver, but I need to get 4 animals vaccinated at the same time (all adults - 2 dogs C5 and 2 cats F3 or F4) I thought that considering it would be quite a time saver for the vet (all 4 would be done in not that much more time than it would take to do 1 considering the 'hi, whats happening and bye part of the consultation will only need to be done once ). So i thought that I would ring around to see if anyone would offer a discount - I have rung a few and had a response of either 'no discounts' or a few $$ off. I don't think I being a cheapskate - they are needles, so all the same product. If I have an animal with an issue, or who needs treatment - then I go to who I feel is best, not who is cheapest. They are all healthy, and I know enough to pick up anything that the vet would with their standard 'vet check' (this is not vet bashing, just saying that anything that stood out to a vet in the 3 mins they are looking at ears and gums, checking hearts and taking their temperature I would pick up enough to go to them proactively for help). I am Adelaide NE (Modbury way), but happy to travel a reasonable distance (but no point in the kms to get the outweighing the difference in price) Would love to know if (a) I am being impolite and it is not the done thing, or (b) any suggestions on any recommendations on who I should call thanks

Hi Airedaler I only have experience with one dog - so no idea if this is the norm or not Elderly sheltie, suddenly could not use a hind leg - it was off the ground and she was hopping. The vet described it as '3 leg lame' :-) Vet had a lot of trouble locating the issue - manipulated it a lot and no reaction or sign of pain. Another vet came in and same issue. It was only after a lot of twisting and turning that she reacted (and then it was a huge reaction). Was advised it was definitely a cruciate ligament issue, but that to know exactly what the issue was, then she would need to be x-rayed. They refused to do it without an aesthetic(which I did not feel was safe or appropriate for a 16yo sheltie without absolute justification - and they said she was too old to recommend surgery, so regardless of the diagnosis the treatment would be painkillers and rest). Therefore cant say exactly what level of damage there was After about 6 weeks (by this stage the vet was starting to talk about 'decisions' (code for PTS) as there was no improvement) she started to use the leg a bit. Prior to that she did not use the leg at all when upright, and struggled to get up unaided - even with reasonably strong pain killers. She was uncomfortable, but we believed that when she wasnt using the leg (laying down, or hopping around) she was ok. From 6 weeks on she improved steadily, and by 3 month post injury was back to normal. Dolly was with us for another 2 years and had no relapse, no symptoms or anything - she was active to the end and ran around on 4 sound legs. No idea how she did it, just suddenly on 3 legs - and cured by rest. But a younger or bigger dog may not have had the same outcome Good luck if the question relates to a dog who is injured

I definitely think you did the right thing - council, pound, RSPCA and vets are the best options. People putting them in their backyard and checking social media freaks me out - imagine if the losing owner either doesn't use social media or there is a different opinion on the breed etc - the chance of a successful reunite is so small. I have found 3 dogs in recent years. (1) A greyhound who was wandering around a local service station at 7am on a Christmas morning - bought him home, call to the council who took my details and passed them on to the frantic owners - picked up 10 mins later with profuse thanks (2) A SWF sitting under a tree on a 42 degree day panting like crazy. Knocked on a few doors, no one knew the dog. Took her home and rang the council who picked her up within an hour. Don't know the outcome, but she was well cared for, so assumed a quick reunion (3) A siberian husky playing chicken on a busy section of Main North Rd (very busy 6 lane highway). Pulled over and called it - extremely friendly :-). Had a collar, rang the owner who was out and didn't realise he had escaped. She arranged someone to come an pick him up (we were sitting in a side street). Unfortunately sometimes dogs do escape - I haven't had it happen in 20 years, but that is not to say that it wont happen in the future - stuff happens. But i have no idea why some people think its ok for Fido to get out as 'he always comes home "-(

the sunsets were lovely this week - this was Thursday night at Brighton Jetty

sometimes trainability and obedience dont equate to intelligence many years ago had a Sheltie who had no formal obedience training - therefore had no 'stay' command training (as in - when told to stay that means dont break position regardless of weather or distractions etc). Was used to being groomed on a table, but that was all. One day she was being groomed on an outside table when a thunderstorm hit. Stopped grooming and ran inside. Looked out 2 mins later and she was still standing on the table in the pouring rain. That to me made her dumb (as in no independent thought) I think as a trainability register it has some value - but smart???.

thanks Scottsmum

and to (sort of) catch up - took this last week at the Port Adelaide fish markets - he got a good breakfast of tommy ruff innards whilst the fisherman filleted my dinner

some amazing photos. I dropped out very early last year, and a bit late this year - looking to stay inspired this year :-) Went down the beach yesterday - this is my brothers dog enjoying the morning

The basic 'business model' of the RSPCA is so wrong. I saw a story (facts were correct - all parties agreed on the facts) where a pensioner had a dog that needed surgery (severe ingrown eyelashes affecting its eye health and overall comfort level). She could not afford the cost of the surgery upfront and unfortunately could not find a vet to do the surgery and pay it off over time (not vet bashing - understand why). In desperation she contacted the RSPCA hoping they could help. They refused her request and in desperation she surrendered the dog as she knew it was suffering and she could not alleviate it. They took the dog, did the surgery and then put it in the pens for adoption. She was not allowed to 'adopt' her own dog out of the pens, and they openly vetted each potential 'adopter' to make sure it wasnt a friend/relative of the old owner. End result - a devastated old lady, a confused and scared dog who spent time in a noisy kennel environment unnecessarily (can only hope it settled in a new home) - and the RSPCA was out of pocket as the woman was happy to pay the whole amount of the surgery over time, which would have been more than the adoption fee. And the bloody annoying RSPCA person could find nothing wrong with what they do - her response was that they are 'there to save animals - not to bail out people who cant look after their animals'. Don't know how she didn't choke on the drivel the stupid *$**&&^ was saying. All the time she was sitting on her high horse there was vision of a shattered woman and a scared, shaking SWF !!!!! Unfortunately it was a few years ago before GFM and social media would have given the person some options

I was referring to dogs that maul people and children, by way of explaining why the authorities treat wandering cats as less important than wandering dogs. Do you seriously believe that a cat could do as much damage as an angry SBT? ____________________________ Yikes - how much easier it would be if everyone read what was written - grrrrrrrr. I never compared what damage a cat can do compared to a dog (especially one with a powerful jaw). But for the record, whilst a can can't (obviously) do the same amount of crush and rip type damage that a dog can due to their physical size and structure, I have seen a few dogs spend several days at the vets due to infections and/or eye damage inflicted by a cat. Cat bites and scratches can very easily become very very nasty.

And yes, cats can be as aggressive as dogs and do quite a lot of damage. In my opinion a roaming cat is no more acceptable than a roaming dog. Irresponsible ownership either way