Her Majesty Dogmad

Is it just me or does this statement ring alarm bells with anyone else? Yep and the out of control walking. I wonder which rescue she got it from and what kind of pre-adoption assessments the dogs go through. Utterly horrific. Sounds like a recipe for disaster with the dog living in a unit and not being walked, having no way to let off steam etc. Places are very small over there. Sounds like the warning signs would most likely have been missed. I've got a younger foster dog here from a terrible background, for work reasons I hadn't managed to walk him for the last two days (I've had him for 6 months) which is very unusual for me. Last night he got over excited and as I walked past him leapt up and nipped me on the leg, quite hard. I was a bit surprised but blame myself because this is what can happen, the dog starts getting frustrated ... They don't have pounds in the UK so he must have come from a Shelter, sadly they need to completely review their rehoming practices and make sure that dogs don't go into situations that don't suit them.

Perhaps her eyesight is changing her perception of things, shadows/light/shape of bowl all could affect her choice of bowls. I have dogs that like to drink out of one bowl in particular, I always wonder why ...

Excellent news!

My friend has a German Shepherd boy who is nearly a year. It's her husband's dog but unfortunately he isn't well and isn't likely to get better soon and she's really struggling to walk this boy as she has a bad back. He's ok for a while but goes mental when he sees other dogs - he loves all dogs of all sizes and just wants to play but she can't cope with this behaviour. They wanted to send him away somewhere but have been warned off this due to the possibility of bad training methods being used. Does anyone have any suggestions? Thanks in advance.

That's right, as a rescuer I do all my paperwork when dogs are adopted and send it off. I just asked for a list from the council of all the dogs registered in my name and guess what? Some of the dogs i have adopted out and completed Transfer of Ownerships on are still in my name ...

Dogmad, weren't you the person who once posted that a home-check you did... had an unfenced back of the house, giving onto a sheer cliff? Of course, not all would be as extreme... but that one's stuck in my mind. You're right, sometimes it's just small things.... that can be sorted. Might even be fine for the dog they already own, but wouldn't be so for the potential adoptee. Like having a big dog... but not being aware of the tiny 'squeeze thro' spots used by small dog. Or the other way round. Not being used to the jumping abilities of a bigger dog.... when having had smaller dogs. It is awkward.... what seems like a 'stranger' coming in to judge your home. But it'd depend on tact & some good communication skills to help ease the situation. Which is so necessary... to prevent dogs 'bouncing' or suffering nasty fates out on the road. Yes Mita - you've got a good memory, that was me .... I've also seen lovely green yards - full of Wandering Jew .... and many other things!

Call me cynical but I am wondering if there is a book in this story? Saw the headline today that this man "wants another dog" .... personally I don't think he deserves one. he made the choice NOT to take a satellite phone with him - why on earth would you not do that, particularly if you'd planned on staying a long time?

I really enjoyed the story on Landline, hope this opens up the way for many more happy outcomes.

Hugl, as a veteran of 100s of homechecks, I can tell you there's a great need for homechecks and the reason is that people seem to forget small things to mention that are actually really important. Sometimes they just don't know, sometimes they forget. I did a homecheck for a Jack Russell, the form said they had no other pets. Fair enough but Jacks are escape artists so best check the fencing is suitable. In that case, the Jack would have also really enjoyed the free range pet rabbits they had - they forgot to mention that under the "any other pets in the household' question. I kid you not! That's just one example, I won't bore you with the rest. For the most part things are fine but there is quite a big percentage where small adjustments need to be made before it's fine and then there are some that are quite dreadful but that is very few.

and so would I, he obviously didn't have all the skills he needed to be out in that environment.

I don't think he should ever have taken the dog with him in the first place, if you know these areas you'd also know they are full of bears and food attracts them. Poor dog.

It seems you are saying that education is needed for chips...going by that tactic, and in the same vein, isn't education also needed for the care of dogs? Sometimes it is just education and sometimes it may be a specific set of unusual circumstances that have developed. I'm not saying it is or isn't in the situation you spoke of but who are any of us to judge without facts. I know, I was gobsmacked that the pound thought I might like to speak to the owners who were so angry with me ... My vets (and others) send out newsletters. Perhaps a small footnote could recommend owners check their pets' chip details but something in the surgery noticeboards etc etc. People are all so busy that small but important details are forgotten.

I once picked a dog up from the middle of a busy road, did some door knocking but couldn't find the owners - it wasn't wearing a collar and tag. It was matted and had fleas. I drove around to a number of local vets who were all closed (Sat afternoon), finally found an open one - they refused to take the dog. Said it was chipped and they'd contact the owners. I was quite a long way from home - about an hour - so was forced to bring the dog with me. Didn't hear anything the next day so I drove an hour to get to the pound for the area where I found the dog. A couple of days later the pound rang me to see if it was OK to give the owners my phone no? She said that she needed to warn me that they were very angry with me for picking up their dog so I said no, they couldn't have my phone no. The pound gave them a serve for the state of the dog, needed grooming (it was summer)and had sores under the matting. I don't think those particular people deserved to have a dog personally, that's the sort of owner I would not want to give a dog back to. I'm not so hung up on the chip, if it is the state law then the vets should be explaining all that to the owners so it doesn't get missed. There needs to be more reminders in places such as vets that you need to update microchip details if you move etc.

Absolutely. I have friends that I cannot keep up with because they are always eating out and going away for weekends, I can't afford to do it at all and feel bad if what they are proposing is too expensive and I suggest a cheaper option for a special occasion ... I don't take holidays for years, just had a week's holiday, my first in 3 years and my company paid the flights for the work I did up there the week before, it was no more expensive to fly back a week later so that's how I managed that.

Same. Totally agree. I do keep my back yard gate pad locked anyway at all times. I don't trust anyone. They are just too precious. So do i and i thought it was secure but my a--hole of a neighbour told me he just used my garbage bins and vaulted over it. He didn't have what i consider a valid reason to do this (his dog was getting into my yard and could get out again if it wanted to as it could climb 6ft fences) and i have no idea how many times he did it but he doesn't do it now, he's still an a--hole though. Cameras are def. the way to go.

That's a lovely story!

There might be some other ways of cutting back on some expenditure. A few colleagues at work have stopped buying house cleaning items in the supermarket and are using things like vinegar and baking soda, they all say it's saving them money. If you've got a mobile phone you can shop around for a much cheaper plan - i'm now with TPG, it's saved me heaps.

If she had been cared for properly whilst they are away, it wouldn't have taken until Monday to find her. I just looked after a neighbour's dog - for nothing - she's an old girl and I went morning and night even though they had told me to only go once a day, she lives outside and is 18 yrs old ... nothing I can do about that but as they were away for 6 days, I wanted to do what I could. I would have taken her in my place but they said she doesn't like other dogs and at her age, it's too hard on her to do that anyhow. A younger dog should have had a lot more attention, walks included, during a 3 or 4 day absence.

I agree- why didn't the dog sitter contact them and let them know and/or ring all the vets/pounds etc?

I've voted "yes" but it would be highly unlikely that a story would be good enough for me to do so. I would not give it back to someone who had allowed their dog to roam the streets ever. As a rescuer I've had a couple of occasions where the original owner has contacted me and asked me for their dog back (they could have got the dog out of the pound but didn't want to pay fines presumably). Mostly the dogs I've gotten have not been in good condition so there's no way they'd ever get their dog back. In both cases I would have reported them to the RSPCA if they'd continued to pursue their dog.

That's OK, most rescues would desex urgently in that situation, particularly if they didn't know what types of dog(s) they had mated with, it would be dangerous to let a pregnancy continue.

dogs in the UK have died in similar circumstances ... can't imagine the agony and why no one is checking on their welfare during the process.

Aha!! Also just make sure that you are cleaning up with the right things - vinegar & water or Napisan and water mix will take away the wee smells - then you can use disinfectant or Woolwash on top but you've got to shift the smell for the dog first. If he's having trouble finding his way in the dark, get some nightlights along the route perhaps and practice!

VIC Whippet Rescue are also very helpful. I'm sure between us all that we could help them.

NSW Whippet Rescue help Whippets and if we have room so do we at Iggy Rescue. We are pretty full but I've got a no. of enquirers looking for Whippets including one incredible home in VIC where we placed a female Whippet a couple of years ago (with other Whippies). Can you please pm me some more info? Thanks!