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Archive through January 21, 2008

The TVClubHouse: General Discussions ARCHIVES: Jan. 2008 ~ Mar. 2008: Hairball Haven: Dogs: Archive through January 21, 2008 users admin

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Ophiliasgrandma
Member

09-04-2001

Wednesday, January 16, 2008 - 7:25 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Ophiliasgrandma a private message Print Post    
One thing I noted watching Cesar is he thinks you should not let the young dogs get too wound up for too long. They get a bit manic and are hard to calm down.

Dahli
Member

11-27-2000

Wednesday, January 16, 2008 - 11:01 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Dahli a private message Print Post    
Yes, they do show each other the ropes. My understanding is that pack leaders always follow through and that is how they get complete obedience. Humans tend to stop short in fear of 'hurting feelings'

SS, the vet said the meniscus was gone and that in about half of the surgeries that is the case. I'm not sure how this will work but I guess there is no choice. Knee replacement is not an option for dogs :-(

Seamonkey
Moderator

09-07-2000

Friday, January 18, 2008 - 8:23 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Seamonkey a private message Print Post    
I didn't have a knee replacement and I think they repaired what was termed a "complex tear of the <i forget which one> meniscus, when they did the replacement for the ACL, but they also used a cadaver cartiledge graft.. but frankly I don't know where that was placed..

And War, what Dahli said and what you are observing.. older dogs do "train up" the younger ones.. I've seen it again and again and it doesn't have to be the mother of the pups at all, just the older dogs in the same pack/household.. And little pups really do watch the bigs ones.

And are correct that you have to protect both your nephew and the pup.. give them each the chance to be away from the other too.

Sounds like she is firmly ensconced in your family by now.

Kearie
Member

07-21-2005

Friday, January 18, 2008 - 10:23 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Kearie a private message Print Post    
Here's Gizmo....

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Friday, January 18, 2008 - 10:48 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
OMG Kearie, Gizmo is a cutie!

I think the prob with my nephew is that he's never been around small dogs or puppies. Other than my sisters Ozzy, the family dogs are all older and big dogs who like playing with the kids and don't mind a baby who's not sure yet how to be gentle with them. And with her being so young and well, at least not here, having to deal with a baby all day it's a new thing for both of them. They'll learn though.

Monday it'll be three weeks since we found PJ on the porch and there still hasn't been a hint of anyone looking for her. She's pretty much a part of the family. Darren and I decided that we will call and set up an appt with the vet for spaying and a chip next weekend. And then off to the groomers for a haircut, lol. Poor little thing mats up in nothing flat and she's getting brushed nightly.

Harvey is definitely schooling her, lol. Last night he was eating and she came over to try to eat his food...he put his paw on her head to keep her from his bowl! I was cracking up. We did decide though that we'll put her in her crate and let him eat in peace and then put him out back and let her eat. He likes her puppy chow as much as she likes his big dog food.

Ophiliasgrandma
Member

09-04-2001

Saturday, January 19, 2008 - 8:05 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Ophiliasgrandma a private message Print Post    
Oh, our little Gizzy. Sweet, sweet boy! It's always a treat to get to see him.

Seamonkey
Moderator

09-07-2000

Saturday, January 19, 2008 - 12:55 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Seamonkey a private message Print Post    
We used to feed each dog in a crate because we had a range of ages and a range in speed of eating .. not that anyone took all that long, but some just inhaled it and others actually chewed.. and we wanted each dog to get the right meal/supplements. And the two cats.. one had to be crated so the other didn't snarf up all of her food. And of course the dogs all would have vaccuumed up the cat food if given a chance.

I suspect that PJ might have been dumped in your area, but I also wonder if she has now spent more time with you than with previous people, certainly more quality time!

Biscottiii
Member

05-29-2004

Saturday, January 19, 2008 - 9:24 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Biscottiii a private message Print Post    
Gizmo looks like he's Blowing a Raspberry! What a treat! He's just so CUTE!

Wargood, I don't know here (expect others would/should give better idea). But wouldn't it be better to get her trimmed FIRST, before the spaying? Seems like less potential for nicking the incision or hurting sore muscles or extra trauma? Would allow time for healing before the next trim? Who knows if she's ever been trimmed before. Hoping someone will offer their input.

ETA: I remember just how painful my hysterectomy incision was for months (bikini cut). That's why I thought this.

Will be so happy when she's chipped and clipped and your 'forever furbaby'! I so love the Harvey stories, what an exceptional 'big brother' he truly is to your kids as well as new little Sis PJ!

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Sunday, January 20, 2008 - 1:20 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
That's not a bad idea and it also might help keeping the area clean if she's trimmed first. I'll be happier when she's trimmed, she spent a lot of time outside playing today and when she came in I was pulling twigs, leaves, and fox heads out of her.

Harvey is probably the best dog I've ever had. He was so easy to train but more than that he's the perfect mix of calm and energy for the kids. He's just as happy to lay on the couch with them as he is to play chase in the backyard. I have high hopes for PJ, so far she's been just as easy going and playful as he has.

Biscottiii
Member

05-29-2004

Sunday, January 20, 2008 - 2:18 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Biscottiii a private message Print Post    
I came in kind of late in the Dog thread. (I'm a Cat person but kind of avoid the Cat thread due to losing my two kitties this year, still feeling kinda raw, needing to mostly lurk there for the time being.) My Sister has 3 Shitzus, one male named Merlot that she's brought up to visit a couple of times. I dearly love them all, when I visit they ALL sleep on top of Aunt Bisc! Thelma & Louise (my kitties) were NOT too pleased with their Beasty Boy Cousin, but he sure liked them - especially their Fancy Feast!

How did you find Harvey? How old is he? Like before/after your kids were born? He's just such an exceptional guy!!!!

Monday I need to go to the bank nearby the Joanne's. Were you ever in the vicinity to be able to find the "Princess" ribbon? I realize it's probably LOW on your priority list. Will be happy to pick some up if it wasn't available for you. If not, no doubt I will do a bank run another day.

This little girl PJ just gives me such a giggle. So wonderful that she found YOUR family!

Biscottiii
Member

05-29-2004

Sunday, January 20, 2008 - 2:48 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Biscottiii a private message Print Post    
Oh, about the caging thing. Merlot has his plastic cage thing too. THAT's his Den/Cave, nobody ever trained him to it. However, any toys he can scrape up he grabs and runs to his Cave and protects them mightily. Macho Merlot!! Before he got fixed, Sis would have to send him to his Cave a few times too aggressive, but to this day it's still his Turf. Hard to figure out how he can find room to curl up amongst his trophies.

When I send presents down, he doesn't want the phoophoo stuff (Hen & Honey, the two girl pups, LOVE to dressup, he HATES the Halloween costumes or any form of dressup!). But every time he grabs right out of the box the TOYS Aunt Bisc sends (ALL OF THE TOYS!) and runs to hid them in his own private domain. Heaven help anyone who messes with his turf.

Then came the day that Grampa lost his upper pair of dentures. Sisters/Nieces/Grandkids tore the house apart looking for a couple of weeks. Dear Merlot, ...well, what can I say? A guy and his remote kind of thing (opps, I meant his toys!)

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Sunday, January 20, 2008 - 3:35 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
Ack, no I haven't made it to Joannes yet though I really need to.

Harvey's story is kinda funny. He's, hmm, somewhere around 6-7 (I never can get it right cuz I can't believe he's that old.) We had several home improvement projects to do, one of which was the back yard fence which was in pretty bad shape, boards falling off, gaping holes, etc. We were planning on fixing it but put it off a few months waiting for all the guys to get off on the same weekend to do it.

Around the same time, the house next door to us was a revolving door of new tennants. Seriously, some of those folks only stayed a month or two before they were gone. Then we got a family that ended up being there about a year. We met them the first or second day they were here, dad and young daughter came over (parents didn't speak english so she was the translator) and asked if they could fill up some water bottles cuz the water company hadn't been out yet to turn on theirs. Anyways, they had a couple dogs and eventually had a litter of 7 or 8 puppies that were kept outside most of the time.

One day I came home and found several of the puppies in my backyard, they'd escaped under the fence, lol. They did this on a regular basis for weeks! We'd scoop them up and take them home and if the daughter wasn't there would try to explain that the puppies had come over to visit again. We came home one Friday afternoon and found all the puppies again...except that time the people weren't home for like three days. We tried to put them back under the fence and block up their escape route but they kept finding new ways to get back in our backyard. We ended up keeping em for the weekend until their owners came home.

Fence was fixed the next weekend and the puppies didn't come back to visit. Then about 2-3 weeks later the daughter and her dad came over and she said, "Dad wants to know if you want a puppy?" She said he said that he thought he'd ask because we'd been so helpful and if we wanted one we could come over and choose one. I think dad was really having trouble finding homes for the puppies personally, I know they kept several of them.

But we talked about it and decided since the kids were around 5 and 3 that it might be a good time to get them a puppy and one they could grow up with. We went back and said sure! They're boxer/lab mixed pups, all looked exactly alike except one of them had a short little nub tail while all the other ones had long tails and the nubby tailed one was the calm puppy. While all the others were little balls of energy all the time, he played but was just as content to sit in your lap and cuddle. We picked him and his personality never changed, lol.

He's just great with the kids and loves them. If one of them is sick, he is their constant companion and won't leave them alone. Dakota has asthma and I swear that a lot of the time he knows before anyone else if she's going to have breathing problems. One time we had to take her to the ER because nothing was working at home to help her, he was her shadow hours before she was having any problems. When she sat down, he climbed up next to her and put his head in her lap, when she got up, he was right behind her (she even complained that she tripped over him coming out of the bathroom, lol, he'd followed her and sat outside the door!) Later that night she started having breathing problems and he continued to stay right with her. We were gone several hours and got home somewhere around 3 in the morning, I expected him to be in bed with Caleb, yet when we walked in he was waiting right by the front door for her. It may sound silly, but now when he starts acting that way around her, we start to keep a close eye on her.

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Sunday, January 20, 2008 - 4:05 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
Oh PJ is really loves her crate. She knows when I grab it, it's time for bed and will follow me to Kota's room (Harvey usually sleeps with Caleb.) She still goes in whenever she wants to during the day and usually has either her octopuss or her ball in there.

LOL about the dentures kinda (that can get expensive!) Pj still tries to run off with stuff (shoes are her favorite) but she seems to be getting better about that. Or else the kids are getting better about keeping them picked up, lol. It is kind of funny to see this little puppy take off with a big shoe hanging out of her mouth.

Oh, we have noticed that she's gotten bigger. She's definitely gained a few pounds. I knew she was small after her first bath, but now I'm thinking she was more scrawny than anything, her ribs aren't as pronounced now as they were when we found her sitting on the porch. Darren picked her up earlier and said she feels like 6-8 pounds so its not just me noticing it either. Given that and the fact that no one seems to be looking for her, I'm leaning more and more towards Sea's guess that someone dumped the poor little pup. She's so sweet and good though that I just can't wrap my head around that.

Biscottiii
Member

05-29-2004

Sunday, January 20, 2008 - 4:16 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Biscottiii a private message Print Post    
Yeah, about the dentures thing. Not only expensive but not that easy to get a good fix/replacement. Grandpa's in a nursing home now. But then it was a problem. Sis scrubbed them out big time. Merlot was doing the cheesy grins all the while.

Biscottiii
Member

05-29-2004

Sunday, January 20, 2008 - 4:38 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Biscottiii a private message Print Post    
Oh YES! That's some of the stories that I just love about Harvey!

A lot of "Service Dogs" are used for protection, like knowing beforehand when a person may likely have a Epilepsy attack or whatever different types of medical issues, it's not only services for the blind. The dogs have senses that no human could ever acquire. Harvey didn't need to be 'trained' - you just were smart enough to understand when Harvey's telling you "something's not right here!" You were so lucky to get him!!! And he was so lucky to find YOU too.

Wargod
Moderator

07-16-2001

Sunday, January 20, 2008 - 2:45 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Wargod a private message Print Post    
Ah, see we always figured he was just attuned to her because when he first came home, she had frequent problems. She was diagnosed at 1, but mostly had probs only when sick. Then when she was about 3 it got really bad and took us 1 1/2 to 2 years to find the right combo of asthma and allergy meds for her to bring it under control. So for the first year, year and a half he was here, the two of them spent a lot of time cuddling on the couch with her sick. To tell the truth, we just figured it was another sign that he was the perfect dog for us, one who really watches out for the kids in all ways.

Biscottiii
Member

05-29-2004

Sunday, January 20, 2008 - 8:36 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Biscottiii a private message Print Post    
YES, that too! Harvey IS the perfect dog for you! What will be curious is to see if he passes along the "something's wrong here" behavior on to little Sis PJ, if he senses problems in the future.

What I've read of the service dogs giving 'early warning' like before an Epilepsy attack is so that the person can get to a safe spot. Turn off the stuff boiling on the stove, get to a soft couch to lay down. The dogs know these things and give the warning a while BEFORE the person themselves even has an inkling. You made such a perfect choice in puppies!

Biscottiii
Member

05-29-2004

Monday, January 21, 2008 - 1:09 am   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Biscottiii a private message Print Post    
Kearie, EVERYTIME I come into this thread, I hit Page-Down and there's Gizmo doing THE Raspberry in the middle of the screen. Laugh EVERY time! I read of your problems and how he might not even survive. What a horrific ordeal you both went through.

It's just so wonderful seeing him look so GREAT!

Jasper
Member

09-14-2000

Monday, January 21, 2008 - 6:12 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Jasper a private message Print Post    
It's been a long time since I posted, but I have been following everyone's stories. I am attaching a couple of my latest pics. (sometimes I wish I was Oscar, what a life)



I don't know how he made himself look so small!

Merrysea
Member

08-13-2004

Monday, January 21, 2008 - 6:26 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Merrysea a private message Print Post    
Jasper, he's so cute! He looks like a real sweetie!

Ophiliasgrandma
Member

09-04-2001

Monday, January 21, 2008 - 6:41 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Ophiliasgrandma a private message Print Post    
That is interesting how he manages to look half his real size.

Jasper
Member

09-14-2000

Monday, January 21, 2008 - 7:33 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Jasper a private message Print Post    
OG - Can you beleive he turned three on Xmas day?
Time flies. Merry he is a sweetheart, like hugging a giant teddybear.

Vacanick
Member

07-12-2004

Monday, January 21, 2008 - 7:47 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Vacanick a private message Print Post    
Ohhh my goodness, Oscar is so stinking adorable!!

Watching2
Member

07-07-2001

Monday, January 21, 2008 - 8:38 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Watching2 a private message Print Post    
Always great to see a new Oscar pic!! He's so cuddly looking. :-)

Seamonkey
Moderator

09-07-2000

Monday, January 21, 2008 - 11:30 pm   Edit Post Move Post Delete Post View Post Send Seamonkey a private message Print Post    
Oscar is looking great!! Good to see a new pic of him.

War.. Harvey clearly was meant for you and the kids and also clearly is one with those senses about his people. Little one may pick it up, or it may not be one of her talents.

As for why she was dumped.. people are crazy. Critter was found running loose in Garden Grove and picked up, obviously had been nursing kittens, even though she was probably under a year old.. she was so tiny! And she had the best temperament, bold and unafraid. Later I read that I should take her to a small room in my house, well I didn't know that. She was in one of those cardboard carriers when they handed her over at the pound. I remember I walked around and got some free food samples and then loaded her into my truck. Shut the doors and thought I'd better look to be sure I got the right cat.. being all black it was hard to see much besides her eyes through those holes.. so I did look and of course she wanted out, so then she yowled all the way home. Brought her in and opened the carton and she just strutted out and OWNED my place. I live alone and really never have visitors, but every time there is one, she just walks up to them .. except for small kids.. she sizes them up and if they run toward her, she's gone! I remember one little girl who came with her mom and stayed for Christmas and she was pretty active and had three cats at home. I convinced her that if we just sat on the floor in the doorway of the room where Critter was hiding, she'd get curious. Sure enough in no time, Critter walked right up to Cacie..

I always thought that whoever let her loose really missed out on a good thing.

Same with PJ's situation.. and there isn't a doubt in my mind that she has gained so much.. all the kids and great adults, love, a yard, her own crate, toys and HARVEY!