Vent!

[jacksdad]

Not much sadder than a totally broken working bred border collie......
Oh wait - there is - there could be a family with 3 of them.
All girls.
Close in age (2 litter sisters)
Scrap regularly.
All in choke chains, and electric bark collars.
Stressed beyond belief and walked 20 mins a day, if that.

sounds like an opportunity and a project for you

[emmabeth]

Silly vent...

When you decide its a good idea to come check the forums whilst free-ranging TWO dastardly rats on your desk at the same time...

As I type there is one clinging to the top of my monitor, grinning and bruxing at me, the other has just been told he may NOT hunt my fingers as I type and bite them (only gently but still it doesn't do my WPM any good!)..

Now Fantapants is gleefully scoffing a Sugar Puff he found left over from yesterday (yes my desk is a TIP) and Soap is trying to gently prize my mouth open so he can steal the vit c tablets I am currently sucking! GAH they have no concept of personal space, or boundaries or NUFFINK.

......... Oh apparently my glasses need removing, eyeballs MUST be examined and Soap has just run off with my only working cigarette lighter.... gonna get that before he burns the house down!

[emmabeth]

Update - trading goodies works with rats too.

Also... HOW long did it take Panksepp to prove rats giggle? Any rat owner coulda told you that - Soaps laughing his ratty little wossnames off ~(actually they arent that little!) sat here on my shoulder!

[Nettle]

P'raps they want you to play your flute for them, Emms

Amazing what we find 'normal' that scientists suddenly discover enough to make a rat laugh.....

[gwd]

Amazing what we find 'normal' that scientists suddenly discover enough to make a rat laugh.....

Recent study at University of California san Diego found that dogs experience jealousy...............I could have told them that and saved some grant/federal funding money.

[WufWuf]

Two little fatty fat dogs that I'm close to have just gone from being raw fed to this hell

Ingredients

Chicken By-Product Meal, Whole Grain Wheat, Whole Grain Corn, Corn Gluten Meal, Pea Bran Meal, Soybean Meal, Soybean Mill Run, Dried Tomato Pomace, Chicken Liver Flavor, Dried Beet Pulp, Flaxseed, Coconut Oil, Pork Fat, Lactic Acid, Powdered Cellulose, Pork Liver Flavor, DL-Methionine, L-Lysine, Iodized Salt, Dried Carrots, Dicalcium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), Niacin Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement), Lipoic Acid, Choline Chloride, minerals (Manganese Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Taurine, Mixed Tocopherols for freshness, L-Carnitine, Beta-Carotene, Phosphoric Acid, Natural Flavors.

On the Vets say so of course

Feed them less and they will lose weight it's pretty bloody simple

[Erica]

Feeling similarly, Wufs...Zeus was just at the specialty vets and they put him on Iams and Royal Canin to try to help his itchy feet.

Yeah, good luck with that.

(There are also medicated wipes and soaps and all sorts of stuff, but still nobody but me asking WHY it started. Thankfully his owners are fed up enough to have ordered Nutriscan, finally, and hopefully that can help. )

[JudyN]

Chicken By-Product Meal, Whole Grain Wheat, Whole Grain Corn, Corn Gluten Meal, Pea Bran Meal, Soybean Meal, Soybean Mill Run, Dried Tomato Pomace, Chicken Liver Flavor, Dried Beet Pulp, Flaxseed, Coconut Oil, Pork Fat, Lactic Acid, Powdered Cellulose, Pork Liver Flavor, DL-Methionine, L-Lysine, Iodized Salt, Dried Carrots, Dicalcium Phosphate, Potassium Chloride, vitamins (Vitamin E Supplement, L-Ascorbyl-2-Polyphosphate (source of vitamin C), Niacin Supplement, Thiamine Mononitrate, Vitamin A Supplement, Calcium Pantothenate, Biotin, Vitamin B12 Supplement, Pyridoxine Hydrochloride, Riboflavin Supplement, Folic Acid, Vitamin D3 Supplement), Lipoic Acid, Choline Chloride, minerals (Manganese Sulfate, Ferrous Sulfate, Zinc Oxide, Copper Sulfate, Calcium Iodate, Sodium Selenite), Taurine, Mixed Tocopherols for freshness, L-Carnitine, Beta-Carotene, Phosphoric Acid, Natural Flavors.

Well it ought to result in weight loss because I can't spot any actual food in it

[WufWuf]

Well it ought to result in weight loss because I can't spot any actual food in it

Yeah or because they won't eat it they know what real food tastes like

[Nettle]

Just a small quiet banging of the head here.

Helping some people with the most scrumptious stafford puppy.

Trying to get it through to them that yes she DOES follow you everywhere now but the time is not far off when she will run off on walks chasing birds etc. and having much more fun, just like your last dog, so we have to work on the recall now.

Trying to explain that when I say super-high-value treats I do not mean kibble and wondering why they only bring a few pieces
Wondering why she only has one toy
Wondering why they got the cheap harness that rubs her and has the lead fastening on the back not the padded one with the lead attachment fastening on the chest that I told them to get
Wondering why when I say bring the tuggy with you they left it at home


They are really nice people and far better off than most of us, but so bloomin' tightfisted that the dog doesn't even have a proper bed

Thank you for listening *sob*

[WufWuf]

Nettle I've the same situation with a guy who sought me out for advice when getting his second dog - who is now a reactive adult (they have his reactive sister ). Kibble is NOT going to cut the mustard and you could have had a spot on recall by now if you'd bloomin not kept saying "but he's great at coming back to me" when he was a pup. Grrrr

I'm curious if they bring the kibble in a pocket rather than a baggie or treat pouch as I wonder if this might be why people won't even use left-overs from their own food, and same with the toys, do they just not want to carry "stuff" with them?

The amount of people who I met during the hot weather who didn't even bring drinks for their dogs as they didn't want to carry it really amazed me, I always have water (winter and summer) because if I'm going to be giving food rewards frequently I know that for me there's only some much I'd be able to eat without being able to have a drink at some point (and Honey agrees) especially if it was dry toast so I'd be offering Honey a drink and I'd have a queue of thirsty dogs clamouring to get a turn*

*Just for clarity I'm very careful with Honey around other dogs and high value resources, water is a primary reinforcer and therefore very important to thirsty dogs. I only offer it to her around dogs who I know *I* can predict and control.

[delladooo]

I sympathise Nettle. It must be hard when people pay you and then don't listen. My cousin's girlfriend (Luna's owner) doesn't have many toys for Luna because she doesn't want to 'spoil her' and 'treat her like a baby' and all the toys I've seen are plastic but then when Luan chews the cushions and / or blanket in her bed she can't understand it. As far as I know, Luna is again without a blanket in her (too small) crate because she chewed it, I don't see what difference it makes now if the blanket has a hole in it, or what it mattered that she peed on it so she has to wash it before giving it back to her. Currently, everything is 'I don't have the money for that at the minute' but she knew she was going to be a large dog and knew she wouldn't fit in one cage forever and knew training would be hard. Yet she still has a dog that pulls because she won't put effort in because she doesn't want her 'treat dependant'. I will never get my head around some people.

My other rant(s) of the day (it's one of those days) are people that muzzle their dog and children. If it's a basket muzzle then fine but a lady was out today with two dogs in mesh muzzles in the middle of the day! I know it's not the middle of summer anymore but still not suitable and what's worse is I think our local pets at home recommends them! At least they did to a friend with a staffy x lab that she thinks is slightly unpredictable with new dogs (I've never seen a problem but then I've only been out with them a couple of times). Thankfully it's a good friend who trusts us when I say a fabric muzzle is a big no-no on walks and got him a basket one but how are you meant to say all of this to a stranger!? A for the kids, on multiple occasions when kids just came up to us and started touching without saying a word to me. Better education is seriously needed!!!
Right, I think that's about it for the day

[JudyN]

people that muzzle their dog and children. If it's a basket muzzle then fine

Yeah, but you stick a basket muzzle on children and they still won't shut up

But seriously - yes. And the children still approach even when the dog has a muzzle on, without their parents saying a word

[delladooo]

stick a basket muzzle on children and they still won't shut up

Tell me about it! I had a random child ask if she could walk my dog one day! You're lucky if you see a parent around here, a lot of the kids go to the park on their own (seemingly regardless of age). I don't want to see rude to them when we're out but at the same time they have less self control that Laufey and are lucky they still have all their limbs. If I were a dog I would definitely have taken some child's hand off

[DianeLDL]

Tell me about it! I had a random child ask if she could walk my dog one day! You're lucky if you see a parent around here, a lot of the kids go to the park on their own (seemingly regardless of age). I don't want to see rude to them when we're out but at the same time they have less self control that Laufey and are lucky they still have all their limbs. If I were a dog I would definitely have taken some child's hand off

I see you are in England. Here in the US, parents are too scared of pedophiles to even let their kids roam around the park unsupervised. Parents even wait at the school bus stops and some drive the kids to school. In some areas, so many kids are no longer walking to school, they are eliminating crossing guards!

And, people wonder why their kids get bitten by dogs or grabbed by pedophiles.

In one of my graduate psych classes, one of my classmates worked as a life guard at a public swimming pool, and he said that parents would just leave their kids and drive off. He saw many pedophiles there and as a lifeguard, he had to keep his eyes on the pool and couldnt police the kids. And even for unruly kids, he had to call police since there were no parents to talk with to take the kid home.

So many parents just act like they want the kids out of the house and don't think of the consequences. I would hate to see what would happen to a dog owner if a kid, without permission came over to a dog and got bitten. Of course, the dog owner would be blamed even if the dog had a muzzle. You know how easy tiny fingers can get through the muzzle.

Many parents and kids today do not take responsibility for their own actions and consequences of their actions.

And, this morning at 7am, OH was walking Sandy in the street and as they passed the neighbor whose dog nearly attacked Sandy and OH a few weeks ago was again out in the yard off leash and without a fence and began charging from the side to the back again. This time the neighbor's husband called the dog back and the dog, who we now know is named "Cowboy" responded to him (last time would respond to the wife at all) and recalled.

So, now Sandy is even more wary of "Cowboy" . I also noticed in our back and front yards which appear that may be poo from "Cowboy". So it is no wonder they have not been friendly when we are here. (And our neighbor husband saw my husband with his poo bag walking home:)

Diane
Still at our house near Bangor, Maine although the neighbors aren't happy. Sandy is having fun trying to chase squirrels and chipmunks. He saw one run into a drain pipe, so now everytime Sandy goes by it, he looks for the chipmunk who is now long gone