Her Majesty Dogmad

Judy and Kev - i'm here to help you! I've replied with my phone no and look forward to chatting soon! This boy is good with other dogs and lives with a staffy type girl currently.

A great page but some of the people's comments have been really inappropriate. Keep the faith, some of the replies sounded promising!

Judy and Kev, my condolences on your loss, what a terrible shock and how unfair life can be sometimes. Hugs xx

He will only suit a very active owner, he's a working breed, so plenty of space in the yard and time with an owner. 3 other dogs could be too much.

I've been asked to help owners rehome a 4 yr old Springer male. All vet work done, good with other dogs but living with young children under 4 yrs of age and not coping with being poked and pulled around so no children. He is fine in a single dog home, a consummate ball chaser and can be exercised that way as he wears himself out. He's housetrained and all vet work done. If anyone is interested, please pm me. Owners have done their best but he needs a different home.

Might be handy to know that many Jack Russells aren't great with other dogs and often have to be rehomed as single dogs. I've had a few and been lucky but some are better as single dogs. Jill of JRT Rescue does an amazing job, she's a wealth of knowledge on the breed as well. Don't hesitate to reach out, I was out there about 3 weeks ago for a visit.

How are you going with the rehoming?

The Facebook page that Powerlegs shared is where I post all Poodles looking for homes. There would be heaps of members in VIC just waiting for a poodle. Ask a lot of questions - with poodles, I look for breed experience, ask for a groomer's reference, a vet's reference and I do a yard check. I want to know they've been properly groomed. I've rescued a few poodles and they've always been badly matted and in need of a dental so I want to find the very best for them next time around.

I've now read about 3 deaths in dogs recently that were caused by them eating fungus growing in the backyard. I've always pulled it out as i found it but my dogs wouldn't eat it however pups and other curious dogs obviously do and it's fatal.

I was in a Facebook thread this week where a dog needed rescue. Someone came on and said contact Petrescue for help. I replied that Petrescue isn't a rescue group but it provides a platform for all the rescue groups to rehome their dogs. Person answers "they have foster carers". I said well if they've crossed right over into the realm of actually rescuing animals, i'm unaware but it is a fact that many rescuers would be interested in finding out about. So much misunderstanding out there. These people were also donating money to them to keep saving lives ....

I was in the vet tonight and admiring a Corgi puppy, what a beauty. I asked them where she was from and they said they'd searched all over Australia and then found a breeder in Dural so have a search.

I've been told many of the surrendered dogs i got were "housetrained" - not sure in who's universe because none of them were. I've housetrained them plus very elderly dogs who have never been in a house, kennel dogs and Italian Greyhounds - one of the trickiest breeds to housetrain and they are much slower than others. I have to work full time so i really focus on Sat and Sun and the time before and after work, it's the best i can do. I close all doors, pick up all rugs etc before dog comes (I may have next one arriving on Monday). I get an old ice cream container filled with a Napisan scoop and water. I have plenty of white vinegar on hand (1 part vinegar to 3 parts water). Males are easier than females i find usually but terriers are the brightest generally. I just assisted another foster carer with a female poodle x that wouldn't wee when taken outside last thing at night but would then go during the night as the carer doesn't provide access to get out. This went on for weeks and the carer was really hacked off about it. I suggested when she took her outside to give her a treat as eating/drinking are a precursor to weeing. Feeding her the treat worked perfectly so no more toileting in the night. She's gone to a new home where she has a dog door thankfully. If the dog isn't freely going out the dog door - and most aren't, i spend 5-10 mins each morning and night training them to use. My current foster dog simply would not get it (an Italian) so i had to tie the door up and use shredded plastic over the gap and she was straight in and out, amazing after coming home to wee/poo filled house for 3 weeks, i'd had enough and for me that is saying something! Happy to help but i think all the clues are in what i've written above. Cleaning the mats and rugs with something like the Napisan rinse is crucial. If you aren't removing the scent properly then it all smells like the dog's toilet to them.

Please do plenty of research into the breed if you aren't familiar. As a breed they are often not ok as an only dog. I set up Iggy Rescue with another DOL member - Indigirl - back in 2009. We recommend taking out insurance on them right from the start. They are frequently not suitable with young children etc. Have a look at our website - www.iggyrescue.com.au. Alternatively Google and type in "is an Italian Greyhound the right breed for me" and you'll come up with a "warts and all" look at them. Sadly they have become fashionable these days. Costs of a puppy are $2,000 plus and i recommend you don't buy one from a non-registered breeder due to hereditary issues and if they don't suit you, they will not take the dog back.

Rescues are still doing what they were doing 10 years ago - I wish it wasn't the case. Many of the old members found that DOL wasn't so productive any more so found other avenues I guess. A lot more is done on Facebook for instance. My own rescue resisted it initially but in the end we set up an FB page. I'm also a member of different FB pages that advertise dogs in need and have taken them from there.

Have you tried the Cat Protection Society at Enmore?

I'm pretty positive i've seen some listed on FB recently or in Hawkesbury Pound - have you looked at the pounds at all? They have huge nos of cats / kittens at this time of year.

Very sad for you and sweet Trouble

I've been unlucky enough to have loved and lost many dogs as I've taken on older dogs but that has been my choice and I wouldn't change it. In 2016 I had to make the decision 3 times (in spite of all the vet care in the world). I've never been someone whose dogs have "gone in their sleep", I've always had to make that hard call. My vet's advice to me is that you cannot do it too early but you can leave it too long. I've tried to keep this in mind when getting diagnoses and making decisions. It's never easy and I wish you the strength to do the right thing. Keeping them going is for us rather than them, I've definitely stayed my hand when the distress was too great and it wasn't the right thing to do sometimes.

What a sad situation. I'm pretty sure you can't legally rehome a dog that has been declared Dangerous? I'm sure that one of my dogs would bite if a child fell onto him, he's a cruelty case and if he thinks he's going to be hurt he will lash out, a child falling onto a dog would be terrifying, they wouldn't understand what was going on and in their fright would possibly bite. It will be a battle whichever way they decide to go but if the dangerous declaration stays then i would abide by the regulations but within my yard i would provide enrichment (could add agility equipment / ball play etc) and exercise with on leash walking for a good distance, depending on the dog's requirements.

Which is why I took the dogs out in the first place - no walker and it was 24/7 in an inside kennel. No other dogs were ever met on walks, it was a country lane environment with nothing around for miles. No dogs ever escaped my control. My point was that it is hard for most people to hold onto two larger dogs IF they see something they are interested in and not completely trained. I know of very few owners who have dogs that are completely under control and that's why I say it is risky to walk two large dogs under those circumstances. I've seen a man pulled over by a Shepherd cross, another pulled over by a Malamute - in both situations their dogs had seen other dogs but the guys managed to hold on to them from a flattened position luckily. If they had been holding 2 dogs worse could have happened.

In NSW it is illegal to be in public with more than 4 dogs under your control - the law came about to stop dog walkers from causing danger to others around them. Having volunteered at a shelter where i was the only dog walker, i sometimes took 2 larger dogs walking and believe me, it was very hard to hold on to some of them at times, it worries me when i see certain people out and about like a local with 4 large staffy crosses, I prefer to hide when i see this person coming for the safety of myself and my dogs - if they decided to act up there is no way this guy would be able to hang on to them.

I just reported a dog walker to the local council - using a local oval - NOT an off leash area (apparently every day of the week) to walk a differing no and type of dogs. Parks in an unfenced car park, lets dogs out of a jeep (none have leads on and some no collars either) and they go into the oval. Another person with a van does the same thing at the same location i'm told by a neighbour. The dogs I saw ran all over the oval, completely out of control while person sat on a mobile phone. I didn't risk getting my dogs out of the car. Person wasn't even watching them. The amount of dog poo in this oval is disgusting and people/kids play sport there, gross. Just so unsafe, I doubt this "walker" even understands dog behaviour at all but is getting paid well by owners who are also clueless.

The Animal Welfare League branches have them too. Pounds like Logan for instance have small dogs but i think the law in QLD means they are only held for 3 days, not sure if they are still euthanasing at that stage ... I'd also keep an eye on Gumtree too for people rehoming at this time of year as they want to go on holiday ......

Can i ask if you have previous Chihuahua experience or is this your first Chi? I thought you always had poodles only.

Possibly, dogs are sensitive beings. I understand you love her, you've spent a fortune on keeping her well but i honestly think she needs a different home. She's a tiny little Chihuahua, things can be terrifying when you are that small however i also agree that she's doing some resource guarding as Persephone said above. Since you've had her your home has also changed, a baby now a toddler is a HUGE change for any dog to deal with, let alone a tiny Chi.