Clyde

I don't routinely worm either Erny. I occasionally drop poo at the vet but have yet to have worms.

A friend of mine has Greys. They were all brought in as rescued adults. She has free ranged chooks and peacocks. They are fine together but she still locks up all the birds when she goes out. Even if a dog is 100% with them I still wouldn't go out and leave them. Have read way too many horror stories on chook forums of peoples adult dogs who have been raised with chooks, massacring the lot suddenly one day. My house dogs are perfectly fine with all my birds but I still lock the dogs up when I'm out, I'd rather be safe than sorry.

I wasn't blaming her as such, just saying that mistakes were made (hope this makes sense?!). I don't mean it in an accusing way (we all make mistakes), just pointing out that the dog hasn't been given any stability yet. I agree. But my point was that the OP has said her Whippet is elderly and also unwell. So in this instance, to bring a giant breed puppy in to the home was a bad match. I'm not saying 'any rescue' should take on the dog, and I have conceded that it could potentially be very difficult to find someone breed experienced to help, all I am saying is that the OP needs to try to seek further breed experienced assistance before she makes that call as it doesn't seem as if she is overly experienced herself. I am genuinely not pointing fingers of blame (difficult to make that clear online) but I still feel the dog deserves a proper and experienced assessment. Who knows, maybe the OP would only meet closed doors in her quest for help with the dog but at least all efforts would have been made before calling such a final shot. I'm not suggesting she keep the dog herself and attempt to rehab her - I understand this is costly and potentially dangerous. It would just be nice to think the dog was given a fair chance with someone experienced first. I realise that there might not be anybody with this breed background in a position to take her on.

I wouldn't rush out and euth her. While I don't think aggression towards a child is acceptable she is a nervy dog and was tethered. I think this was a mistake. Also a mistake dropping in anywhere on your way home. A nervous dog needs to feel secure and confident in their pack leader. She wouldn't have known what the heck was going on and was more than likely scared witless. Sounds like she's had a lot thrown at her in such a short time. While I am not recommending keeping a dog that size with any level of aggression I still think she needs a chance. Just finding that chance might be difficult!! First thing I would do is contact Sas who is a member on this forum and very knowledgeable with the breed. She might have some suggestions of people who can help. You will be able to find Sas through the messaging function. I would also contact the breed club to see if they can trace her breeder or any breeder who is willing to take her on and assess her properly. There is no way I would ever run her and a Whippet together. She's been let down by her owner and, no offence, but put in the hands of someone inexperienced with the breed who has gone too hard, too fast. She deserves a proper assessment by someone experienced before losing her life. Good luck and I'm sorry what should have been such a happy time has come with so much stress. I would probably re think the size of your Whippets new companion next time around. Please keep us posted.

Tough breed to take on but yes, they do need all the help they can get. If not already, please be aware that the breed is pre disposed to dog aggression and the dogs should not be run together as a general rule, especially in the first instance and/or unsupervised. Very careful assessment needs to be made before pairing dogs up. They are not a breed I would run as a pack in a rescue situation. You would be rewarded ten fold though by helping one at a time, quality not quantity. :)

I thought he looked like a PMD, not a Maremma. Only saw it briefly on in the background though.

Yes, that's what I saw too. They also said the dog has always been a problem, menacing neighbours, loose etc. The owners were previously fined for not containing the dog.

I agree. One example being, a wild rabbit moving in to my property. At first the dogs would bark and chase along the fence line. Bunny persisted and continued to graze at the fence line. Now I have the same bunny scampering around the paddock with the dog. Dog knows it's not a threat, bunny know it's safe with him - he's not bonded to it at all, he loves his sheep. Bunny is safe by association and building up a normality over time. We also have a Magpie who visits every day. I swear to god the dogs know when it's a different Magpie and they get chased away. Our regular visitor is allowed to hop around the yard.

Yeah, I'd be requesting a rough towel off only for him to avoid the dryer :) Seems a bit silly to have to reassure someone that I am willing to pay for the job I want done, before they even tell me if they'll do it. Out of curiosity, do you say no to Mal's because you find the effort of the job not worth the $ return? The dryer will be the best thing for him. It blows out all the loose coat and enables the groomer to brush out the undercoat. If you dont want him dried with dryers its not worth your money IMO. He needs to be groomed before his bath or the coat will just be washed in IYKWIM. I say no to Mals because their disposition can be stubborn, they can be noisy and it is back breaking work. Plus it's almost impossible to clean up all the coat which flies out under the high velocity dryers. It's not a personal thing, I like the breed but I would rather groom two smaller dogs in the same amount of time, same money, less clean up and not have to visit the physio. It is hard I know. I had a hell of a time finding someone to groom one of my Maremmas. I didn't want to do him myself and rang all the other groomers in town. Only one would groom such a large full coated dog. If you PM me where you are I can ask on a grooming forum if anyone would be interested if you like. I agree it does seem silly but when people ring me for such big dogs and state they are aware that it will cost and they are prepared to pay for it then I would back down from my no XL dog stance. Well, I used to, I now just say a really firm no sorry. You'd be surprised how many people freak out at the quote and expect to pay around $40.

If he's scared of the vacuum chances are he'll be scared of the groomers dryers. I doubt groomers are saying no due to facilities, more just because of the breed. It's a huge job, the nature of the breed plus the clean up - people baulk at paying whats it's worth. If you find an experienced groomer it will help if you let let them know you are prepared to pay accordingly. Expect to pay around $150. I learnt very quickly to say no to mal owners. Good luck!

Just a few observations (and welcome to DOL). Is it possible to have one section of her pen which is not boarded so she can see out? Also, as mentioned she needs more, smaller feeds each day - the Supercoat is a poor quality food and this could be attributing to her large amounts of poo you mentioned. There is a lot of crap in that food which her body wont use so it goes out the other end. You have gotten a high maintenance mix of breeds so the dog will require a lot of training and attention. You have a baby on the way, just be aware that cute puppy now which probably be a a teenaged menace from about 6-14 months I am guessing your baby will be due at the time your dog tests all boundaries. You and your husband will need to plan ahead to ensure the dog still receives plenty of stimulation when the baby arrives. FWIW, all my dogs start off sleeping with me in my bed. I have no problem transitioning them over once they have settled in and gained more independence. You might want to do some research on crate training. It helps pup to hold on and she will more than likely alert you to the need to toileting if she is crated as they don't usually like to toilet in their bed. Crate training is also very useful when you have small kids in the house. Good luck! :)

I think your inbox is full.

Is this the same vet who told you to wash sutures?

Can you post the pic here? I'm interested to see it. I didnt realise we had them here. Such a shame they're being exploited already.

I haven't started feeding it yet but just opened the bag last night. It's already a no from me regardless of how my dogs do using up this bag. It absolutely stinks and I don't want to have to touch it to break the pieces up for the Pug. All my dog/cats food is stored in quality storage bins here in my study. Pet food smell has not ever been an issue and I'm sitting in here now with the smell of dog food all around me. Will have to move it out in the garage.

Nope, he wouldn't have been. If the vet told you that I would find a new vet, the whole thing sounds weird to me anyway.

Great, thanks for that

Oh really? I've got some waiting collection at the post office, bought it for my pug and SBT. I'm guessing it will be a no go for the pug then?

It is definitely scarring from his illness, not a physical altercation with the dog. It is common and there is nothing you can do expect make sure he doesn't get too hot. I have 2 with the scarring and bring them inside on the super hot days, I also discourage them from going broody.

Sounds like he has scarred lungs. It often happens after a respiratory disease (CRD). You don't always know when your chooks has CRD or similar as they dont always display symptoms. It can give their lungs long term damage though which makes them wheeze, sometimes a lot sometimes when just exerting themselves, when stressed or too hot. Best to put your Roo on some quality antibiotics "just in case".

It's never really practical here at feed time. Six dogs need to be totally separated here. One inside, one on verandah, one in back yard, one in paddock, one in front garden and one in driveway. If you have food aggressive dogs meals become about management rather than whats quicker, easier and more practical.

I love the way three pairs of wide wide eyes are focussed on the same thing :laugh: Ed for spelling. They were all watching TV! Creating bad habits for them when young :laugh:

Yup, I know Maremmas who have you to thank for their awesome homes. :) You also did a terrific job with them while they were in the shelter. For the breed, they were very well exposed to things by the time they came here. It really helped to match them to the right homes accordingly. Plus having them in foster care helped expose them to a wide variety of stock and socialise them with family life - thus giving them more options as to potential homes and less likely to boomerang. I see one of them a fair bit still and she still adores children, her owner said she gets particularly excited about little girls. :)

Link for Merlin:

Even though it was previously run by LDH it was very well run. The old manager (LDH employee) did work with rescue, in fact more rare breeds she contacted breed rescue groups personally. Rehoming rates have always been strong. I'd suggest that that letter has been supplied by council. Nobody wanted council to take over the reins, the whole thing has been a bun fight. The shelter has an awesome volunteer group.