For the dog lovers...

[cp fa]

I know there are many dog lovers in the crowd, and I thought some of you might be interested in this, which takes place up here next weekend:

http://www.winterdance.com/race/

This is Haliburton Highlands 8th annual dog sled derby. They get entrants from all over Canada and the US, and there's even a team from Jamaica! It is very serious business here - the group that hosts the event, Winterdance Tours, is going to participate in the Iditerod in March, and the purse for the derby here is $10,000.

[Charlie's Flying Dog]

Imagine! ...chained to your brothers, forced to pull a sled around in the snow, at a running pace, while someone's yelling GEEEEE and HAAAWWW at you...

...and liking it!?

Stupid dogs.

[FireFox]

The difference between dogs and cats;

Excerpts from a Dog's Diary.......

8:00 am - Dog food! My favourite thing!

9:30 am - A car ride! My favourite thing!

9:40 am - A walk in the park! My favourite thing!

10:30 am - Got rubbed and petted! My favourite thing!

12:00 pm - Lunch! My favourite thing!

1:00 pm - Played in the yard! My favourite thing!

3:00 pm - Wagged my tail! My favourite thing!

5:00 pm - Milk Bones! My favourite thing!

7:00 pm - Got to play ball! My favourite thing!

8:00 pm - Wow! Watched TV with the people! My favourite thing!

11:00 pm - Sleeping on the bed! My favourite thing!

Excerpts from a Cat's Diary.......

Day 983 of my captivity...

My captors continue to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while the other inmates and I are fed hash or some sort of dry nuggets.

Although I make my contempt for the rations perfectly clear, I nevertheless must eat something in order to keep up my strength. The only thing that keeps me going is my dream of escape. In an attempt to disgust them, I once again vomit on the carpet. Today I decapitated a mouse and dropped its headless body at their feet. I had hoped this would strike fear into their hearts, since it clearly demonstrates what I am capable of. However, they merely made condescending comments about what a 'good little hunter' I am. Bastards.

There was some sort of assembly of their accomplices tonight. I was placed in solitary confinement for the duration of the event. However, I could hear the noises and smell the food. I overheard that my confinement was due to the power of 'allergies.' I must learn what this means and how to use it to my advantage.

Today I was almost successful in an attempt to assassinate one of my tormentors by weaving around his feet as he was walking. I must try this again tomorrow -- but at the top of the stairs. I am convinced that the other prisoners here are flunkies and snitches. The dog receives special privileges. He is regularly released - and seems to be more than willing to return. He is obviously mentally challenged.

The bird has got to be an informant. I observe him communicating with the guards regularly. I am certain that he reports my every move. My captors have arranged protective custody for him in an elevated cell, so he is safe. For now................

[Charlie's Flying Dog]

Cats!? Where?! sniff-sniff-sniff?....grrrrrrr ...I don't like cats!

[Specs]

....there's even a team from Jamaica!....

I wondered why the Jamaican Bobsled team don't seem to be competing at the YVR Olympics? Guess the team went to the dogs?

[Kip Powick]

My youngest son's new dog..An English Labrador....about 8 weeks old.

[Kip Powick]

My youngest son's new dog..An English Labrador....now about 1 year old.

Salt Lake City..... after a snowfall. Dog's name is "Rumple.

[newgirl]

Kip

What's an english labrador? A new breed?

Gatekeeper

My 2 cats agree whole heartedly !

[Say Again, Over!]

So long as we're introducing our puppies; here's ours, Juliette. A rare white Bouvier of Flanders. She's 2 years old.

[Cargo Agent]

Let me get in on this as well. This is Cleo and Oliver, our 10 and 9 year old ShiTzu's and Zephyr our boomerang daughter's (she flew away but came back) 3 year old Pug. The three make for quite the active household.

[Kip Powick]

Kip

What's an english labrador? A new breed?

From the INet..

Labrador Retrievers are in two types namely the English Lab and the American lab. These are not considered as two separate breeds but have some differences in them. English Labrador retriever are shorter compared to American labs. They are very affectionate and have beautiful and expressive eyes. Labs have pendant ears that hang close to their head. Labradors have a thick powerful neck and their chest is a bit broad with a strong back. Tail of this breed is medium in size and distinguishable.

An English lab retriever is solid and muscular and it is slightly tall than a normal retriever. These labs can accompany you for a beach side holiday as they are excellent swimmers.

They are observed in a in off white, black as these two are commonly found. Silver and brown colors are rare in Labradors.

From what I undestand from my son, his English Lab's color is called "Fox Red" and is quite rare. He bought it from a specialty breeder in Indiana I think and believe it or not my son was vetted before he could buy the dog !! (He had a chocolate Lab...lasted 15 years and a blond Lab...lasted 11 years and after being almost two years without a dog he researched and decided on the English Lab...oh both types still shed a ton of hair !!)

[Mitch Cronin]

Arabian Mute? That's one I've never heard of... He's a handsome looking little fella!

Since this is the right thread for this, I'll re-post this one here... a little different...

Marley is just over two now... Gibson and he have been like brothers from the moment Gibson came in the door.

Gibson's almost 8 months now.

[mo32a]

Our Arabian Mute....

At least he's quiet.

[newgirl]

Say Again, Over

Just curious as I had a friend with a Bouvier. They lived on a farm and she was the greatest watchdog ever. She was so protective that when we'd visit we just sat in our car and honked until my friend came out of the house to bring us in.

Unfortunately Lulu became very aggressive and had to be put down after biting several people including children. They are a very dominent personality type dog and originally bred as guard dogs or so I was lead to believe. Does your dog have any contact with small children? I would watch the dog like a hawk if it does.

Just my 2 cents worth as evey dog is different and Lulu was a beautiful dog. It was a pity.

[Say Again, Over!]

Hi New girl,

They are indeed GREAT guard dogs. Very protective of children but, in the case of our Juliette anyway, not mean spirited. They were bred for herding and ours is a champion. She becomes very restless when the kids are scattered at the park as her instinct is to have them all in a group. She'll bark a lot and try to herd them but she's gentle about it. She has nipped a couple of times as it is her style of herding (others will throw themselves at the "beings" they want to herd) but other than that she's good.

You are absolutely right that it is a dominant breed. They are confident and courageous and therefore need an alpha in the house or they might become agressive. Juliette has been trained from the beginning to be submissive and it's something you have to train for every day with a dominant breed. If you wait until they exhibit signs of dominance, you're asking for trouble. So everyday we do obedience training and submission training. And she hasn't so much as growled at any member of the family.

We have 5 kids between the ages of 2 and 13. Of course all of them need to be "trained" in dog handling as well. Here's a pic of our youngest with her. ;-)

Bye,

Felix

[conehead]

Felix, you got a big chip in that tile!

[newgirl]

Felix

She's lovely!

[Say Again, Over!]

Conehead,

Yup, that tile is project 235-a!

My plan is to cover the whole floor with a radiant heating mat then nice looking linoleum. I've had enough of ceramic floors.

Thanks newgirl,

Felix

[newgirl]

Felix

I've mulled over this for a day or so but I need to say the following as you have a very young child in the house.

My friend's son was about 3 when they got Lulu as a puppy and the two of them were best buddies. The 2 older children were seen by Lulu as superior pack members right from the start and she was submissive to them. The problem with the son started when he was around 8 years old and was now taller than Lulu. He became a threat to her status in the pack and did what she could to keep him the Omega member.

The parents contacted the breeder and ended up speaking to a dog behavioral specialist. Their son was not to feed or even try to discipline the dog. Basically he had to ignore her.It worked but then she started becoming aggressive to non family members. My friends came to the horrible conclusion that she had to be put down. It was an awful decision to have to make as any pet owner knows.

So please watch carefully after the little guy as he ages.

As Kip and the Bean would probably say " Oh it's just Olga the pink pill-box hat wearer worrying about nothing!" But I do worry.

[Kip Powick]

As Kip and the Bean would probably say " Oh it's just Olga the pink pill-box hat wearer worrying about nothing!" But I do worry.

Errr..hm..............wha....??? I would never " poo-poo " anyone who may voice concerns about pets either..... We have to remember they are animals and as such may often hark back to the "call of the wild".

We have been fortunate, our two boys had dogs, 2 each and they, (the dogs), were mild mannered and were good around children. Earlier in life, Scuba 02 and I had two dogs as well and they too were mild mannered and we got the two when the kids were 3, 5, and 7 and..... again no problems.

My son's new English Lab (seen up top) is a very, very placid dog and wonderful around kids. Attached is a hysterical photo of Rumple being used to demonstrate a climbing hoist so climbers can take their dogs up mountains. Photo was taken at a climbers retail show in the US ......he was also on TV for the same advertisement...doesn't he look vicious ??

[Say Again, Over!]

Newgirl,

Thanks for the info. What you're mentionning is certainly food for thought and we'll be mindful of it. Thanks for caring!

Felix

[newgirl]

We too have been very lucky with our Shelties. They can be terribly yappy which is annoying and are totally indifferent to strangers ie they will allow themselves to be petted but if your not from their herd, they could care less about you. And another downfall is that if there are no family member at home then any one could come in and clear the house out, they don't even bother to bark. However if we're home the barking begins if someone shows up at the door. Strange wee beasties as my granny would say.

Kip, I think that look says "Ok ,I'll put up with this again but I don't understand why you keep making me do it!" It's a great photo.

[Mitch Cronin]

Felix... Newgirl...

I'd like to offer my two cents...

Any dog (that's mentally and physically healthy*), no matter the breed, will be a product of it's instincts, environment and training. Whatever instincts and predispositions it may have, due to it's bloodline/breed, can either be reinforced or negated.

The most important factor in training a dog whose aggressive/defensive instincts are strong, is how the owner(s) show it it's place in the "pack". (the "pack" being all the members of the family it lives with)

A dog with a predisposition for some aggression - German Shepherd, Doberman, Rotweiler, etc, - need to be shown, in language they instinctively understand (dog language), that their place in the pecking order is below that of the humans in the pack.

Often, the best way to accomplish that is, at the first sign of any challenge (growling at a child, for instance), immediately throw them on their back, firmly grab their neck, get right in their face and very sternly tell them off. That action has to be immediate though, so there cannot be any misunderstanding of what prompted that reaction. Often (in my experience), you'll only need to do that once. Sometimes though, it might require some occasional reminders... If a dog is a bit slow to grasp the notion that even smaller two legged members of the pack are also "above" itself, they'll have to be watched closely by the elders to catch those moments of challenge, and then "reminded". Again, those reminders must be immediate and sure.

Over the years, I've known many dogs of varieties that some people would say shouldn't be trusted with children, that have been fabulous family dogs. We've had three Shepherds, each of whom, I know would have died to protect any of us, should an occasion have warranted. When our kids were born, we had a very large one (120 lbs. when slim), who put up with all sorts of things without even the quietest "rrr". I remember our son crawling over his side and yanking on his upper lip to see his teeth... he just looked up at me as if to ask, "are you going to stop this, or do I have to walk away?", then he got up and walked away.

I've also seen dogs that most would consider "perfect" family pets that have been horrible with kids... due to improper, or non existent training. It is entirely up to the owner(s)!

*

As well as the obvious, diseases like distemper or rabies, which change everything, so too can more subtle, mental ailments. A dog that's being mistreated, either by physical cruelty, or neglect, can suddenly change how it wants to behave. They do have free will.

What makes them such wonderful pets is their own enjoyment of making their owners pleased with them, and their capacity for unconditional affection and devotion.

All just my opinion, of course. ...Though for once, having lived with good dogs for 48 years now, it's one I can call an educated opinion.

Cheers,

Mitch

(ok, maybe that was 4 cents?)

[Say Again, Over!]

Mitch,

I agree completely and for that reason we're always on the look for signs that she might need to be reminded of her place in the "pack". I appreciate your, and newgirl's input. Nice conversation on an obvious "dog lovers" thread.

Good night,

Felix

[Azure]

Not the prettiest puppy, but he sure did take care of his pack.

http://www.kpho.com/news/22609878/detail.html#

Then, there are these kinda dogs.

http://www.wusa9.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=97332&catid=158

Mitch, your right. It's all in the training. Someday I would love to have a dog again but refuse to do so until I have the time to commit to that kinda relationship. Leaving a dog housebound 9 hours a day/five times a week is not something I could do to a member of the family.