dididog

Didi is the drool machine. One day I will break my neck slipping in a slobber puddle. This one is pretty tame but she already has a puddle forming on her legs.

It's this weird little park with concrete pipes across the river from Fairbairn Reserve in Ascot Vale, I think it's called Pipemakers Park. That little section is not offlead, just did it for the photo but the reserve is, it's really nice and has a nice walk along the river which is partly off lead too.

I thought it kind of looked like that too... too bad she also has a bit of winter pudge :laugh:

She is adorable, pink also seems to suit her really well! I had a nice weekend with Didi, just wandering around and stretching our legs after being stuck studying for a while. I think she's started to like the camera a bit more, her poses are getting much better :laugh:

Never had much luck with the kongs so I got Didi a Bob-a-lot instead which she loves... she just uses it the wrong way :laugh: she picks it up by the top bit in her mouth and then drops it on the floor and the biscuits fly out. She can't use it inside anymore because the bob has a really heavy base and I don't wan't her putting a hole in the floor.

That's a real shame to hear AP So sorry you lost your little guy on top of everything else

Didi = the money vacuum. First vet appointment + 2nd vac = $100ish, follow up 3rd vac the same. $500ish annual pet insurance $50 for a crate she outgrew in the first few weeks. 2 x $15 trampoline beds $90 kennel + $10 wood base $30-40 for food and water bowls (inside and out) 4 collars so far, 3 el-cheapos and one martingale, $50 2 leads, about $25 Car harness about $20 Probably close to $120/40 on flea and worming stuff so far $20 a week for food roughly $60ish on treats? $120 for 6 weeks puppy school $50 annual obedience club membership Probably $250 on toys $15 nail clippers $15 grooming mit $50 weatherbeeta coat Increase in water bill and fuel usage too, every drive we take seems to be for the dogs benefit. So we're on at least $2,500 (including cost of dog) but next 4 months shouldn't be too bad as we have now made all initial purchases and bought wormers and stuff in bulk. Only ongoing cost of food perhaps some toys and treats. I could see how that would easily go up to $4000 with some health issues or special requirements. There are a few things I would not buy/do next time around but I don't think any of it was super unnecessary and most of it bar the toys and perhaps collars/leads will last her most of her life.

Didi doesn't do well on beef so we started giving her lamb marrow bones but there were too many incidences of her throwing up chunks of bone afterwards so we've sworn off those (as well as them being too fatty for everyday feeding). She gets lamb necks and chicken frames at the moment but I'm hoping to expand our horizons a bit especially as these two don't last her very long. I'd like to incorporate roo or turkey but find it quite hard to find those bones where I live.

Sorry for your loss DDD, she looked like such a sweet girl and it sounds like you did all you could do and more for her. She would've gone knowing how much you loved and cared for her.

I had been juggling a few names around before I found Didi but when I brought her home at 9 weeks nothing suited her as well as the name she already had (plus she already knew it) I'm so glad I didn't change it though, it suits her so well and it kept the family theme going of only ever owning female pets with names ending in an 'ee' sound. It's also really easy to adapt into multiple ridiculous nicknames which for me is an important quality in a name :laugh:

I know how you feel Esky. Didi is only a lil taller than Fritz and 36kg at 8 months (though finer boned and bit more leggy than your boy) and I'm always debating whether she should be just a little bit leaner. In the end I figure if she looks fit and in good condition with an obvious waist and tuck and I can feel/partially see her ribs then I don't feel too inclined to lessen her food. Also take into account he is a sturdy, heavy boned fella so he's going to weigh more for his height than other body types. Obviously I'm no expert but I definitely understand the not being sure if they're growing the right amount at the right rate, although for me it's a bit worst because I have literally no idea how she's supposed to turn out! At the end of the day you know him best... at least you can be certain that he is a very handsome boy :laugh:

Thanks Jo, I'll see you then :)

Damn! Knew I'd forgotten something If you're going to the park sometime soon just let me know and we can meet you?

Glad it's still going ahead, might get there a bit late as we have obedience in the morning but will be there. Forecast doesn't look too bad, as long as there's not that much actual rain a bit of mud is always fun. btw Jo could you accept my request to join the facebook group? thanks :)

Yeah she really is at the moment, all 4 of us are off work/uni so she's been enjoying all the attention. That could definitely be a possibility raineth although her other dog was also wearing one too.

or the Arctic ..sorry ..had to .. ;) I agree with you DD ... It looks wrong .... Glad the dog doesn't realise . I know! It was like 17 degrees and it has a thickish oodle coat... definitely not in need of a snow suit. I think Didi would refuse to leave the house dressed like that.

Oh I know but how can you say no to that face! Mum's softened up and even lets her get on her bed now so as long as I have an old sheet protecting my bed she doesn't mind.

Didi's 8 months old tomorrow! Not much has changed (except getting a bit of a teenage naughty streak) but otherwise still my lovely little girl. At the oval doing some training Speaking of training we've moved up to class 2 at obedience though Didi seems a bit unsure about her ribbon Our house gets really cold at night so you either have to stick a jumper on her or she'll climb on top of you for warmth. That's my unlucky brother she is squishing. Her actual coat is a bit big but still looks pretty cute. Been seeing some funny dogs in coats the past few weeks. I think Didi needs to be promoted to the boot now much to her horror. Her at 3 months vs. 8 months.

I can imagine, I just want my dog to be a generally good canine citizen but I couldn't imagine training her to fulfill a role (other than full time bed warmer of course). I'm sure you'll do great though :)

I think the other thing that really got to me, especially in the first 2 months or so was the intense fear that everything I was doing was wrong and that I was going to screw her up but that might just be a first dog thing rather than a puppy thing. I think I started reading DOL topics the first week I had her and everything I read freaked me out and made me think I was not up to the task and that I wouldn't have a perfect dog(but I have since learnt there is no such thing). Didi is not perfect and she has her flaws, some probably due to me not being very experienced but she is still a wonderful dog and I'm extremely pleased with her. I think now I'd be a lot calmer and less worked up and enjoy the baby puppy months a bit more, you can do as much reading as you want on bringing up a puppy but nothing compares to actually doing it.

That's a strange coincidence raineth, I might ask if the other girls in her litter/her mum have the same thing. Thanks perse, I knew 'the pouch' probably had an actual name, couldn't find it on any diagrams saying what it was though I'm not too worried about it but seeing as Didi doesn't have to go to the vet for anything for another 4 months it might be worth just having a chat about. She's been a bit gunky after peeing lately which has happened a couple of times before but never been consistent or severe enough to need a vet, but I think I'd like the peace of mind.

On the subject of hairballs... Didi woke me up by throwing up all over my bed this morning and amongst all the gunk was a hairball... of my hair Sorry pup! Good to hear Nova is on the mend though!

I'm really not sure what the logistics surrounding her desexing were as it was done before we got her, she only had two stitches so I assumed she just had her tubes snipped and still has her ovaries and uterus?

Thanks T, I'm a bit paranoid and she's my first dog so little things that don't seem right make me worried

I'm not particularly worried either more just curious as to why it's like that but the vet did say at one of her puppy check ups when she had vaginitis that her vuvla was a bit inverted/she didn't look super right down there and that it's probably nothing to worry about but to keep an eye on it. The pouch has gotten a lot bigger/more pronounced since that vet visit so I am a bit more aware of it.