Mudlark

So sorry that you lost your beautiful feathery friends I have ducks too. We breed and show them but they are mainly pets. I love them to bits. They all have a unique personality, just like dogs. I watch them for hours. They are just wonderful, inquisitive, intelligent, entertaining little people. I'm sure you miss Harmony and Rosalie terribly. Big hug from me too.

Thank god it all ended well. Credit to you that you have a trusting relationship with your boy, such that he sought your help. A few months ago I had to put my hand down my dog's throat to get a paddle pop stick he'd picked up and swallowed. I just got the tip of it as it slid down out of sight. Heart stopping moment.

Just want to say I'm so sorry for the loss of your beautiful dog, Blacky. Your tribute to her was extremely moving and filled with the love you felt for each other. My heart goes out to you and your family.

I dunno, my mum whistles by sucking air in...it's the weirdest sound ever So do I. It seems to work. I can't do it the other way.

It'll be around 7 degrees at night and around 22 in the day. So, no ice. But still cool. Hope your boy does well and that you both have lots of fun :)

Puck is a lovely, cheeky looking lad :) Am now officially regretting not calling my dog Puck. Maybe I need to get a second Labrador....

:laugh: LOL. I guess I have to get comfortable with the fact that my thinking is a little bit low class, then :laugh: We were actually looking for a name from A Midsummer Night's Dream (dog's name is <insert prefix here> Knight to Dream), so that's why Puck was on the shortlist. But we went with Oberon (the king of the fairies). Hubby also suggested 'Bottom' (I think that is the guy who gets turned into a donkey) but I suspect that he was joking... Hopefully no-one has called their dog Bottom - if you have, I apologise now at any offence that my comments may have caused ;)

Lol. Thats really funny. Imagine yelling that at the local dog park. One of Kirislin's whippets is named Puck. I'm not telling my hubby that there is a precedent. (Although I do actually think that it is a really good name for a dog as Puck was a cheeky, playful and mischievous character. I just wasn't game to shout it :) )

Names that rhyme with rude words are an obvious no-no. And yet I still had to convince my hubby that we could not name our Labrador 'Puck'.

What a nice birthday treat. My Lab loves prawn heads :) I'm vegetarian, so my OH peeled them and fed them one by one to the pugs :laugh: I wondered if they could eat any part of the shell or heads or bits that we normally chuck out, but decided against it as I wasn't sure. That's great. Yes, the heads are pretty spiky.... I'm sure my dog wishes I'd eat the heads and give him all the soft bits :) I did try him with raw squid once and that was not a winner. When we have a smoked trout he gets the skin (minus fins) and that definitely does get a big 'paws up'.

What a nice birthday treat. My Lab loves prawn heads :)

I gave my Lab some whole, raw fish last week to see how he'd like it. I gave him a garfish (with the spiky bit at the front removed) and a small whiting. He wolfed down the garfish head-first but he would only eat the whiting after I'd removed all the scales Based on the response to the garfish I will continue to experiment by adding raw, whole (scaled) fish to his diet now and then.

It is the oil type that is good for their coats. The tomato flavour tastes nice but doesn't give the same benefits. I'd stick to the basics - the dogs love them regardless! I think that the type of oil in the actual sardines is the main thing, otherwise you could just add vegetable oil to their food for a cheaper way of achieving the same outcome (maybe that'd work as well - I don't know). We do always aim for the ones in oil, though, but sometimes Coles runs out of those so we get the tomato ones :)

Also, just thought I'd add that we used both the sardines in oil and the ones in tomato sauce :) Black and gold (or whatever the cheap brand is).

What a handsome boy. So sorry that you lost your smiley lad.

My old Lab had a tin of sardines every single day for dinner. That was on the vet's advice. He lived to 14 and always had a wonderful, glossy black coat. We reckon that he ate over 5000 tins of sardines over his life. And, yes, gave just as many sardine kisses.... :)

Kikopup :)

Wow, that's fantastic! A great achievement for all involved. Your girl will be world famous :)

My Labrador enjoys Vets All Natural mixed with kangaroo and chicken or else the BARF patties. He also gets chicken frames, chicken thighs, raw whole fish, lamb necks and various bits of brisket. No leg bones as they can break teeth. He also gets human leftovers - not scraps but food good enough for a human meal (eg leftover chicken risotto or roast meat and veg). Any of the former could be a whole breakfast for him. For dinner he gets a tin of sardines. For treats (training) he gets roast chicken, cabanossi, cheese cubes, or liver. For snacks he gets large raw chunks of pumpkin and sweet potato or a pigs/cows ear, beef tendon, bully stick, misc. dried body part etc. The only things I steer clear of are too many preservatives and the usual no-no's like chocolate, macadamias, onion etc.

We recently got two BD ones and they work fine but we were told to keep the hinges oiled to make them last. Downside is not much space for other bits and pieces. Plus the waist step is really long and not made for smaller persons. We use a sandwich zip lock bag in them (for the treats) and that works well. Agree that other BD products are excellent (we have collars, leads, tracking harness and tracking lead - all well made and durable).

What a beautiful, gentle boy. You obviously loved each other dearly. Thinking of you at this extremely hard time. It's a special thing to understand first hand what it's like to have a mutually adoring relationship with a dog. It makes us all the richer, even though part of the deal is the awful pain of saying goodbye.

We go to CDC at Symonston/Narrabundah and I used to teach puppy classes there. There is an emphasis on both socialisation and good behaviour in puppy classes (i.e. it's not all about formal obedience). Your membership gets you a year's classes (4 x 8 week sessions - Kindi, Beginners, Intermediate, Advanced) for about $250. The grounds there are fantastic and they also do flyball, Rally-O and agility if those things are likely to interest you in the future (but so does Belconnen - also a very good dog club). Dogs can start at any time at CDC or Belconnen (post vaccinations) so they could do a puppy thing elsewhere and then go along to a bigger dog club once they've finished the puppy classes. I;m sure that any club would be happy to answer questions over the phone about how classes are run and what pups do in class :)

Hooray, that is excellent! Having rented in the past with dogs I can sympathise about the extra effort required. Like many people here I used detailed pet CVs which I think really made the difference as I never had to look for very long. Sounds like you put together a great package of information about your dog and it has paid off - well done! I hope that you and your lovely doggie really enjoy all that Melbourne has to offer :)

I think you did the right thing. It sounds like you were all (human and canine) anxious and afraid with that dog around. A rescue organisation that has has already assessed a dog in foster care and that also allows you to trial a dog in your home might be a better option. Or a dog from a breeder that is past the puppy stage and is needing a pet home?

Glad to hear that dogs over 1 yr are still allowed. I wonder how risky puppies are to elderly people compared to the health risk that other people pose? I'd think that most illnesses caught by humans come from other humans. Still, I can imagine the response if pups continued to be allowed in and then some poor person died from something linked to a pup. I'm sure that the people living in that home really miss their puppy so hopefully a pets as therapy program can help out there with some visiting adult dogs.