Ness1409

Hi Finn, Sorry I don't come in this forum very often but I would absolutely love to meet up. I have two Labradors and no "doggy" friends so we'd enjoy a meetup at a park or beach :) I'm just over the bridge from you in Brighton. I have subscribed to this thread and hope some others will join in too Cheers Vanessa

That's not guilt, that's appeasement behaviour.

Hmmmm.... Maybe not Red Rock after all. The DERM website says you're not allowed to swim in the river due to crocodiles. After considerable deliberation (e.g. 0.25 seconds) I've discounted that site! :)

LOL yes, I did mean Gladstone in Qld, sorry had no idea there was another one :) Thanks very much for the tips, I am off to a camping shop this afternoon have been told about a specific camping with dogs book fingers crossed I can find it. Red Rock sounds lovely might check that one out a bit more. Cheers!

Hi all, The dogs and I are off to visit my dad in Gladstone at the end of September, and we'd like to head out from his place for some camping for say 3-4 nights. I will have already driven 6 hours from Bris to Gladstone so we don't want to drive much further - maybe 1.5 hours-ish further on? Can anyone recommend somewhere that is dog-friendly in the area? (My dad keeps on making general camping recommendations, but they are all in National Parks and thus not dog-friendly!) This would be our first time camping in Australia so I'd prefer a 'proper' campsite with electric hookups etc, but I am willing to consider anything! Many thanks for any tips. Cheers Ness

I'm a bit of middle-ground here. I don't ever say things like "Come to Mama" - it's just "Come" (or, more often, 3 whistle pips). I would never refer to myself in the third person like that. I would also never refer to myself as their mum in public! But at home, if I am yabbering away to the dogs of an evening (I live alone), I will sometimes talk to them and say stupid things like "Mama loves you" or "Are you Mama's bestest boy?" etc. But I absolutely would NEVER refer to them as my kids or furkids - they're dogs! Totally conversely to the above… They both have a Facebook account (only so that myself and my doggy friends can tag them in photos - they never post or make status updates! LOL), and on there they are listed as my sons :) Oh, and my soon-to-be-ex-husband also has them listed as his sons… and they currently have his/my married surname on Facebook, and I have gone back to my maiden name, and now I'm wondering whether to keep them with his surname or give them mine now! LMAO Oh that's so stupid. I feel foolish writing it :) I have recently come home from living in Europe for the past 7 years, and I am getting to know my nieces and nephews over here… and one of my nieces was so upset and sad on Christmas Day because I didn't bring "my boys" over for Christmas Lunch… she had been patiently waiting for 3 months for me to introduce her to her cousins - she misunderstood, because the boys are always referred to as "the boys" or "the lads", by everyone in my family, she thought I had two little boys, her cousins :) So instead I pulled out my iPhone and showed her photos of "my boys" and I think she now understands that they're boy dogs, and not boy people :)

I can't speak for the Adelaide Moonlight Cinema, but I know for a fact that at the Brisbane one you can take your dogs to ANY showing, not just the Red Dog one last night which was advertised as dog-friendly. I have been to the Brisbane one a few times, in fact I was just there on Friday night watching Puss In Boots with my neighbour and her daughter. The organisers love seeing us as the boys are so well behaved, they always get a greeting and pat from the ticket-collectors :) The area is a lot smaller than I was expecting it to be when I went for the first time, but realistically it's not an issue as all dogs are on lead all the time. And realistically, the dogs don't really have enough room to get very far from your blanket :) I always make sure we're towards the front as I don't want my dogs to be surrounded on all sides by people, so we try to be in the front row of blankets. I bring a water bowl & bottles of water, and a rawhide chew or frozen Kong for the dogs. I give it to them right at the end of the ads, just before the movie starts… this keeps them quiet for the first 30-45 mins of the movie. After that they tend to just have a drink and then they cuddle up to me and snooze. I try not to sit near a family with loads of kids as I don't want the dogs being patted and played with throughout the movie. I also try to have the dogs sit on the opposite side of the blanket to anyone with food - as I have labradors and they are sooooooo food oriented it's not funny! Every time we have been we've all had a brilliant night, I am all for supporting it as long as it runs because if we give it good support then hopefully it will be back next summer as well. It's so rare to find someplace you CAN take the dogs in Australia for a good night out (we're from the UK and I'm just so used to the dogs coming absolutely everywhere with me) that I want to support it while I can. If you go to the Brisbane one, just remember the aeroguard though - the mozzies descend and begin their feast about 3 mins after the movie starts :) Found out last week that I can also take the dogs to our local drive-in cinema as well, so it will be Moonlight Cinema in the park in summertime, and the drive-ins throughout the winter :) I hope those of you who went to Red Dog with your dogs last night really enjoyed it (they cancelled it here in Brisbane as we had torrential rain).

NSW: Just wanted to add a recommendation for a B&B at Coffs Harbour - Wagtail Cottage (http://www.wagtailcottage.com.au/) We stayed here in October when I was driving from Sydney to Brisbane as a place to stop and break the journey for a night - and we will absolutely be back again, for a week next time! A gorgeous spot in the countryside, there's a small kitchenette with fridge/freezer, microwave, sink etc. There's a BBQ for your exclusive use. The courtyard is secure and for your sole use. Dogs cannot be left alone there, but with cooking facilities and recommendations for local dog-friendly eateries you don't need to leave the dogs there. Dogs can go inside and on the furniture but you need to take your own covers to protect the sofa or bed etc (an old sheet is fine, and all I took). Entire area is tiled so easy to sweep/clean etc. Loads of dog-friendly walks and beaches nearby, I absolutely adored it and can't wait till we go back for our holibobs :)

Thank GOD they used birth control!!! :mad

Thanks so much for all the posts guys, I will organise registration with CAR (Central Animal Records) and leave it at that - I did think registering them with all the registers was a bit of overkill, but wasn't sure what other frequent travellers did Cheers!!

I would not be rushing to chemical castration... a girlfriend had a labrador who had aggression issues, and was advised to try it. It made him worse!! If he were my pup I would be getting him a full vet check (pain/illness can manifest itself in many ways) and then if he got the all-clear from that, an appointment with an experienced behaviourist.

I just googled it, I think this is the right case, the child's name was Tyra Kuehne

Hi folks, I have recently moved to Australia from the UK. I have 2 labradors and they are both microchipped (and the chips are currently registered to our old UK registry). I currently live in Qld but I tend to move around a lot so I wouldn't discount living in another state in the next year or two. I also go on hols with the dogs a lot so I can see us visiting NSW and Vic at the very least in the next year. I have been researching registries in Australia and I understand there are 5 of them? Madness!! We travel a lot and I was wondering if it might be worth my while to register the boys with all 5 registries. Has anyone else done this or am I insane for thinking of it, and really only need to register with one? Is there one which is better than the rest? Cheers Ness

Would you mind PM-ing me some info about the cafe you have been to where you can take your dog? I have just moved to Oz from the UK and am finding it very frustrating that I can't take the dogs out with me much - they literally came everywhere with me in the UK, to work, the pub, the local shops, to the post office, the bank, on buses, trains and tubes... I'm dying a little inside when I realise what a huge lifestyle change it is for them, and seriously reconsidering our life here... Would love to find somewhere we could go for Sunday Brunch to catch up with friends and have the boys laying quietly at my feet like the well-socialised dogs they are Cheers Ness

I'd love to know where in Qld this new off-lead dog beach is, if it's anywhere from Noosa south please can you let me know as we like to get out for drives on the weekend and another place to visit on either Sunny or Gold Coasts would be great! Cheers Ness