Dogs...

[Rugeley Villa]

On 21/06/2021 at 18:07, Rds1983 said:

Precisely why we're looking to get something as we're looking to get a ex-racing greyhound. It wouldn't be left alone often as we both work from home but I'd want something for when we did leave it. 

Will take a look at those apps. 

I see a lot of greyhounds about . Didn’t realise you had to muzzle ex race dogs for X amount of time. I kept seeing ones muzzled so I politely asked a couple why their dog was muzzled and why I kept seeing them muzzled. They explained to me the reason .

Edited August 15, 2021 by Rugeley Villa

[AlwaysAVFC]

We had a break in the Lake District this week and took our rescue Shar Pei. Up to this trip we were convinced she hated water. 

First of all we went to a waterfall and she wanted to explore the water at a level section. 

The following day we went to the coast. 

She very much likes to do things on her terms, seems water is no different. 

Would love to have her off lead but her chase drive is high, it's too risky. So a long line it is for the moment. 

[Rugeley Villa]

13 minutes ago, AlwaysAVFC said:

We had a break in the Lake District this week and took our rescue Shar Pei. Up to this trip we were convinced she hated water. 

First of all we went to a waterfall and she wanted to explore the water at a level section. 

The following day we went to the coast. 

She very much likes to do things on her terms, seems water is no different. 

Would love to have her off lead but her chase drive is high, it's too risky. So a long line it is for the moment. 

I dog I hope to own one day . Always liked them, and also their stand offish personality . You have got to be careful with them so I’ve heard and read. Not so much with people and children, but with other dogs and cats . We did happen to meet one on holiday which was off the lead and came and said hello to us and our dog, and that was a first seeing the breed off the lead and so friendly with other dogs. Beautiful dog.

Edited August 15, 2021 by Rugeley Villa

[Peckham Wanderer]

1 hour ago, Rugeley Villa said:

We were seconds away from losing our dog last night. He’d managed to get hold of a cooked chicken bone from out the bin. He was in the back garden with it near the back door. Luckily I’d just finished my dinner and I’d taken the plate into the kitchen. I looked out and I thought what the hell is he doing. It looked like his hair was standing on end on his back and he was also drooling a lot. All of a sudden he just fell on to his side and started having a spasm. By this point I’m out there and he’s literally choking to death . His eyes were fixed, his body all stiff, and he was emptying himself . Talk about panic . I was shouting the missus to come quickly, the kids were crying and the missus was a mess in what seemed to last forever and he seemed very close to dying , instinct kicked in and I just shoved my hand down his throat to see what I could feel and managed to pull the bones from out his throat which were covered in thick mucus . The only way I can describe what happened then was that he was like a bouncy castle being inflated, he just sat up kind of composed himself as it was a big ordeal for him and then he was ok . So lucky he’s still with us . Knocked us sick last night it did and I haven’t slept well. It took it out of him the ordeal but he’s back to his normal self today .

Jeez, Ruge - sorry to hear that. Hope the little mite is recovering well & the family aren't too freaked.

[Rugeley Villa]

3 minutes ago, Peckham Wanderer said:

Jeez, Ruge - sorry to hear that. Hope the little mite is recovering well & the family aren't too freaked.

He seems as good as gold today. Not going to walk him this morning as I think he needs to rest. He’s currently snoring his head off in bed with the missus. I keep going through it in my head, it was horrible . Thank you .

[AlwaysAVFC]

8 minutes ago, Rugeley Villa said:

I dog I hope to own one day . Always liked them, and also their stand offish personality . You have got to be careful with them so I’ve heard and read. Not so much with people and children, but with other dogs and cats . We did happen to meet one on holiday which was off the lead and came and said hello to us and our dog, and that was a first seeing the breed off the lead and so friendly with other dogs. Beautiful dog.

Cats, squirrels and birds she'd be off like a shot after them. There's a cat that is sometimes over the road at the front of the house and she gets really frustrated she can't get out to it. 

Other dogs we're still quite wary of her with. We try to meet as many as possible. She gets very excited to see other dogs, again can get frustrated if she doesn't meet them. The majority of the time she is very friendly when they do meet. Some other owners and their dogs are put off a bit as she is eager to meet. 

People and children she is great with, but can be a bit too licky. 

Did have one kid ask if he could stroke her, which is good for a kid but then he put his face in hers and his hand virtually in her mouth. She was good as gold as always but parents need to guide their kids more. I won't let my kids doing that with her, let alone an unknown dog. 

[Peckham Wanderer]

36 minutes ago, AlwaysAVFC said:

We had a break in the Lake District this week and took our rescue Shar Pei. Up to this trip we were convinced she hated water. 

First of all we went to a waterfall and she wanted to explore the water at a level section. 

The following day we went to the coast. 

She very much likes to do things on her terms, seems water is no different. 

Would love to have her off lead but her chase drive is high, it's too risky. So a long line it is for the moment. 

She's lovely. We had German Shepherds at home for years & had to use choke chains with them (and even then they'd sometimes, still try and rip your arm off).

[Rugeley Villa]

9 minutes ago, AlwaysAVFC said:

Cats, squirrels and birds she'd be off like a shot after them. There's a cat that is sometimes over the road at the front of the house and she gets really frustrated she can't get out to it. 

Other dogs we're still quite wary of her with. We try to meet as many as possible. She gets very excited to see other dogs, again can get frustrated if she doesn't meet them. The majority of the time she is very friendly when they do meet. Some other owners and their dogs are put off a bit as she is eager to meet. 

People and children she is great with, but can be a bit too licky. 

Did have one kid ask if he could stroke her, which is good for a kid but then he put his face in hers and his hand virtually in her mouth. She was good as gold as always but parents need to guide their kids more. I won't let my kids doing that with her, let alone an unknown dog. 

Sounds like you’ve got her in hand anyway, and sounds like she’s a friendly dog . I’ll post an incident which happened with our youngest in a bit when I have more time, but it’s related to kids putting their face in a dogs face and grabbing around the neck . We always tell our kids never just go up to a strangers dog and expect it’s ok to stroke, because it sometimes isn’t. 

[Rds1983]

1 hour ago, Rugeley Villa said:

I see a lot of greyhounds about . Didn’t realise you had to muzzle ex race dogs for X amount of time. I kept seeing ones muzzled so I politely asked a couple why their dog was muzzled and why I kept seeing them muzzled. They explained to me the reason .

Rehoming centre's usually give you a muzzle when you collect the dog. 

They've not been socialised with anything other then other greyhounds and don't realise small dogs or cats aren't the lure they've been trained to chase and they will catch and potentially kill them. 

The neighbours cats might have a bit of a surprise when it saunters into our garden to do yet another crap by our kids trampoline. 

[Rugeley Villa]

Right then , our male French Bulldog. He’s a stubborn randy git . He’s also very possessive of his toys and the kids toys if he gets hold of one. Literally you will try and take it off him and he stiffens up and starts growling. Didn’t realise how strong they were tbf, he’s still only a puppy. We’ve  got a method in place for when this happens for when he gets hold of one of the kids toys. A few months back he got hold of something that my youngest was playing with or had left on the floor. My youngest then did the wrong thing and went to grab it off him. He went for her and marked her face. Daughter now knows not to do that again and we are still working with dog to train it out of him to be so possessive. This was the other month . Then Monday  our new puppy was annoying him , so he got up on the sofa out the way. I wasn’t in the living room so didn’t see this, but my wife was and she said our youngest kneeled over him and put her face in his face and started grabbing him around the neck. Before the missus could intervene, the dog didn’t bite her as such but warned her and again marked her face. I was fuming and was seriously considering getting rid of him. We took him the vet to get him medically checked because a dog behaviourist will not see him until it’s been ruled out it’s not medical, but behavioural. My daughter who is 4 is very hands on with our pets, too hands on infact and we keep telling her to stop it. 
 

The dog has been very well socialised and he’s great with people. Fine with my elder two and mainly fine with my youngest . My elder two don’t bother him and smother him like my youngest does. I’m not concerned he’s a nasty/dangerous dog, but I don’t want it to happen again because next time he could scar her . Dogs give off signs that untrained humans cannot pick up. For instance our new puppy now knows when to leave him alone and doesn’t go near his food when he’s eating. She did initially , but she’s obviously picked up signs dog to dog that’s telling her , it’s not a good idea if I go near his food. 
 

French Bulldogs have an excellent reputation, but what I’m learning about this so called designer breed , is that they are bulldog by name and bulldog by nature. Stubborn as hell and our male can be territorial . As I said I’m not overly concerned for the safety of my kids, because this breed won’t kill older children , but we need to work with him more so we are getting a professional in. She’s coming to our house for the day to work with the dog and us and see why he’s like this. Other than that he’s good as gold and we nearly lost him last night as I explained in a previous post. His problem is he is resource guarding and that needs to be addressed. 

Edited August 15, 2021 by Rugeley Villa

[AlwaysAVFC]

You can see why rehoming centres don't have many dogs they will let families with young children have. Like dogs they can be a bit unpredictable. Our 4 year old girl is pretty good at knowing what she can and can't do with ours and other dogs and we'd consider ourselves responsible owners. We still caught her this week putting her denim jacket on her and putting a book over her head like a tent while she was lay down. 

Ours is quite endearing when she takes the girls toys, you can tell she's just done it as she has a certain pace as she scampers past, or you hear her upstairs. It's not too much of an issue though as she's not possessive and never chews or rags them like her own, just sort of mothers them and gives them up when she sees one of us. 

[Rugeley Villa]

Many would say get rid of him , and although we have a responsibility towards the safety of our children , we also have a responsibility towards the dog. We are confident it’s an issue that can be resolved . If not and it does happen again then obviously we will need to think about what to do next . I’m not worried though . 

[Rds1983]

Now thinking waiting until our son is a bit older before rehoming a dog and going to get a golden retriever instead. 

Does anyone have any tips on finding a reputable breeder?

[Rugeley Villa]

1 hour ago, Rds1983 said:

Now thinking waiting until our son is a bit older before rehoming a dog and going to get a golden retriever instead. 

Does anyone have any tips on finding a reputable breeder?

Yes avoid online sites like Pets For Homes. Go through the kennel clubs. Not only is it more reputable, but you’ll probably find it’s cheaper too. Proper breeders don’t charge as much as your normal person who’s just knocking the odd litter out here and there. 

[Mark Albrighton]

Recently I’ve found myself being chased by dogs while out running so I’m not feeling well disposed to them (or their owners) presently.

[Rugeley Villa]

1 minute ago, Mark Albrighton said:

Recently I’ve found myself being chased by dogs while out running so I’m not feeling well disposed to them (or their owners) presently.

You sure they were running after you and not the woman you were running after whilst carrying a bottle of GHB in your pocket ? 

[Phil Silvers]

I've had enough of this little bugger teasing me on walks. I know you've got reaction times like Bruce Lee, bugger, stop showing off. Keeps putting his ball on a rope down so I can  throw it, he looks the other way and as soon as I reach down to pick it up, in the blink of an eye he runs off with it ha ha very funny.

[PussEKatt]

Sounds like he is trying to train you.

[Brumstopdogs]

 

[Amsterdam_Neil_D]

My dog is ill,  unknown at the moment.  His back legs and stability are reducing and no one knows why.  He is only 5. 

No other symptoms at all but he has to think about going up stairs now.

Blood test at Vet,  nothing found.

Blood test at specialist lab,  tested for as much as possible,  nothing found except a bit anemic which is odd for his age.

Echo at 10.00 am tomorrow.  Properly struggling today,  I have got a pain in my tummy.  I am **** petrified.

 

Edited August 26, 2021 by Amsterdam_Neil_D