Our real life pets

[HaiGan]

In almost all cases there are no bad dogs, only bad breeders and bad owners; it's not the BREEDS that should be banned.

At least in the UK there's a ban on selling puppies in pet shops. It's a start. Not sure how a ban on sales over the Internet would actually work, given how much the Internet is used. Not saying that it isn't used wrongly, but the Kennel Club website also enables contact via the Internet with registered breeders, which is still, in a way, selling dogs over the Internet.

In a return to the original post, I'd love to post a picture of our dog in his favourite position: on his back fast asleep while showing the entire world that he is a MALE dog. However, it's a family-friendly site so here he is modelling his Christmas sweater instead.

 

[Carey]

While it is good that the law on banning Stafford Bull Terriers was dropped it is a sad fact that, as noted in the article you linked to, they are one of the most abandoned breeds and most rescue centers have more than they would like. They are often difficult to re-home, not because there is anything wrong the the dogs, but because they are often associated with the wrong type of owner. This leaves potential new owners having to take into account of the stigma associated with the breed and some would rather not take the risk. Of course they are not alone as there is also great difficulties in re-homing older dogs who have nothing wrong with them except they have grown old.

Rather than spend time banning any breed of dogs I would much rather ban the sale of dogs over the Internet which irresponsible low lives ( I refuse to call them breeders) use to sell puppies, often too young, of ill health or both. If more people would take a tour of their local rescue center and adopt from there rather than spending around ten times the amount on a 'designer' dog then whole situation would be a lot better.

This breed of dog forms life long bonds, something many do not understand.....

 

[Carey]

Apparently so! How can you tell your parrots can tell time?

Our birds are on a schedule, with five cock birds and one female, jealousy runs high, so each bird has its own play time, they know when it is their time to come out and play and have the undivided attentions of mom and dad...five minutes late and they are yelling...lol

 

[Hornet3d]

In almost all cases there are no bad dogs, only bad breeders and bad owners; it's not the BREEDS that should be banned.

At least in the UK there's a ban on selling puppies in pet shops. It's a start. Not sure how a ban on sales over the Internet would actually work, given how much the Internet is used. Not saying that it isn't used wrongly, but the Kennel Club website also enables contact via the Internet with registered breeders, which is still, in a way, selling dogs over the Internet.

In a return to the original post, I'd love to post a picture of our dog in his favourite position: on his back fast asleep while showing the entire world that he is a MALE dog. However, it's a family-friendly site so here he is modelling his Christmas sweater instead.

View attachment 40281

Point taken, I should have been more specific with my description, buying on the Internet from a registered breeder is not the issue, the selling of imported dogs, often illegally, or the unregistered puppy farms that sell over the Internet is the issue. The Dogs Trust has campaigned against the illegal import of dogs for a number of years with limited success despite their best efforts.

 

[Hornet3d]

In almost all cases there are no bad dogs, only bad breeders and bad owners; it's not the BREEDS that should be banned.

At least in the UK there's a ban on selling puppies in pet shops. It's a start. Not sure how a ban on sales over the Internet would actually work, given how much the Internet is used. Not saying that it isn't used wrongly, but the Kennel Club website also enables contact via the Internet with registered breeders, which is still, in a way, selling dogs over the Internet.

In a return to the original post, I'd love to post a picture of our dog in his favourite position: on his back fast asleep while showing the entire world that he is a MALE dog. However, it's a family-friendly site so here he is modelling his Christmas sweater instead.

View attachment 40281

Great looking dog. Strangely enough our Lurcher has the same favorite position.

 

[Carey]

Point taken, I should have been more specific with my description, buying on the Internet from a registered breeder is not the issue, the selling of imported dogs, often illegally, or the unregistered puppy farms that sell over the Internet is the issue. The Dogs Trust has campaigned against the illegal import of dogs for a number of years with limited success despite their best efforts.

Too many owners of aggressive bitches are breeding them in conditions that make them aggressive, these are really great animals and because they breed well and with large litters they end up with the wrong type of care takers...

 

[Hornet3d]

Too many owners of aggressive bitches are breeding them in conditions that make them aggressive, these are really great animals and because they breed well and with large litters they end up with the wrong type of care takers...

I believe in general that there are no bad dogs but bad owners, why I am so against the Internet trade of dogs from dubious sources is the dogs, particularly the puppies, are often ill when sold, in many cases they have been removed from the litter far too early so they do no have the resistance to many of the conditions that kill dogs and they are also not very well socialised. The stories of people buying dogs in this manner and paying a small fortune only to then be faced with massive vets bills only to have the puppy die within days is fairly common. On some occasions the puppies live but only after suffering a great deal and the bill to keep them alive can run into thousands. When we were adopted by our present Lurcher the total cost was less than £100 (UK), he had been checked by the vet, been chipped, neutered and had his vaccinations. There was one months free insurance and dog food also included in that price. Buying expensive breeds from criminals off the Internet only increases the profits and encourages more dogs to be bred in appalling conditions, but then I am biased. I am the sort of person that can visit a rescue center and want to take all the dogs home and it never ceases to amaze me how dogs can, given time, learn to trust humans after some of the horrific things done to them by other humans.

The Lurcher that adopted us had been used by poachers and abandon when they were chased by the farmer. He is now a healthy 25 kilos, which is the weight suggested by our vet, when we got him he was less and 20 kilos and the charity had been feeding him for almost three weeks so he was even lighter when first found. All his ribs and his backbone were clearly visible even from a distance. It is also fairly clear from his behavior that he was beaten at some point and it took a while for him to trust us. Had it not been for the Dogs Trust he would almost certainly have been put down years ago so it is great to see him running through the woods as though he did not have a care in the world, which hopefully is the case.

 

[mrsparky]

Totally agree there, and it's telling that when the Benji - a breed notorious for "small man syndrome" - has a yapping session people laugh at him.
Yet when one our neighbours staffi says hello , you see people almost climbing trees to escape the "devildog". So yea there's a real perception there, which as our neighbour says is really unfair and in many ways he's right.

Problem is the worst owners - and not just staffi's - like to play on this perception. Indeed our neighbour freely admit's he wanted a "big dog" because it makes him look like a hard man. Which, personally, I think just adds fire to the argument that the dog licence be re-introduced along the current microchipping laws and I'd also make training compulsory. Plus also licence trainers as well.

For non Brit's, until 1978 all dog owners had to buy a licence - for the grand sum of 37p - and now all dogs must have a microchip. Training here is optional, but the Kennel Club do a simple one - Good Citizen Dog Scheme. We put the Benji through the latter and because we wanted to address bad behaviours we got some trainers/behaviourists in. Not just for him, but us as well. What we found was anyone could set up a trainer/walker, no insurances nothing.

Then again we find this is often the case with everyday people. Like a guy in a cafe earlier, gets in the dogs face, even touches the dogs treat then wonders why the dog barks. Before expressing the view the dog needs more socialisation. So we ask are you a trainer etc and the guy replies no, but he's seen most episodes of the Dog Whisperer and it can't be that hard!

 

[mrsparky]

Hornet - that's not biased that's common sense. When my friend wanted a chi, we asked other owners and when we did find someone I got a friend to go and scope out the house we got him from a few days later. Purely as we'd heard from the vets it's not uncommon for designer dogs to sold via someone else's house.

 

[Janet]

Just found this thread - so gotta post Heres the famous Benji - "officially" he's not mine but belongs to one of the ladys I look after.
She can't walk that far, so I get the pleasure of walkies

What a cutie! One of my cats doesn't like human either. She was my brother's cat and when he passed away I took her in. She loves me I can tell and she comes up and gives me head rubs but NEVER EVER touch her back.

 

[HaiGan]

What we found was anyone could set up a trainer/walker, no insurances nothing

Yes, we took our dog to dog training and told them about a specific issue we needed to address, and not knowing any better at the time assumed what they were getting us to do would help. It made him way worse. A dog behaviourist with an actual academic qualification in canine psychology has since told us that dog training classes were totally the wrong thing for him, his obedience training is fine but being asked to do things that make him feel vulnerable, such as down-stay, in a situation with strange dogs around is really bad for his mental state!

In the UK the Kennel Club do an accreditation scheme for dog trainers. Hopefully they check that the trainers have the knowledge to be able to advise whether a particular training group is the right thing or the wrong thing for a specific dog.

She loves me I can tell and she comes up and gives me head rubs but NEVER EVER touch her back.

Does she like tummy-rubs? Some cats do, others really hate it! I've never met a cat that was indifferent about it.

 

[Janet]

She doesn't like to be touched at all. Not even head rubs. She seems happy though. Loves Fancy Feast broths which she gets every few days.

 

[Hornet3d]

Hornet - that's not biased that's common sense. When my friend wanted a chi, we asked other owners and when we did find someone I got a friend to go and scope out the house we got him from a few days later. Purely as we'd heard from the vets it's not uncommon for designer dogs to sold via someone else's house.

That is quite common in the UK now as people have become more aware of puppy farms, they have a house that they use when selling the puppies and they take a pup of the breed the buyer in interested in to make it look as a genuine sale. Gangs have been filmed doing just that and when the puppy farm has been raided they have found multiple mobile phones with the breed marked on the back of the phone so they can respond correctly to any calls. There is even some evidence that drug gangs have moved over to this type of crime as the profits are good and the penalties are a lot less onerous that supplying drugs.

 

[Hornet3d]

What a cutie! One of my cats doesn't like human either. She was my brother's cat and when he passed away I took her in. She loves me I can tell and she comes up and gives me head rubs but NEVER EVER touch her back.

Our dog was similar, you could stroke his head but not his back and any raised arm or loud voice would have him cowering in the corner. These days he is much better but still easily spooked if there is a noise behind him such a the wind blowing something along the path when out on a walk. I remember one incident on a walk a few years ago when I was not looking where I was going and stumbled over a tree branch. He backed away as far as the lead would let him and would not walk with me for some minutes. No way of telling the truth but the behaviorist (qualified) suggested the person that abused him in the past might have done so when drunk and he saw me stagger and thought he was in for a beating.

 

[Janet]

Our dog was similar, you could stroke his head but not his back and any raised arm or loud voice would have him cowering in the corner. These days he is much better but still easily spooked if there is a noise behind him such a the wind blowing something along the path when out on a walk. I remember one incident on a walk a few years ago when I was not looking where I was going and stumbled over a tree branch. He backed away as far as the lead would let him and would not walk with me for some minutes. No way of telling the truth but the behaviorist (qualified) suggested the person that abused him in the past might have done so when drunk and he saw me stagger and thought he was in for a beating.

It's funny how you can get a sense of what kind of abuse an animal has suffered before. We adopted a dog, Bobo from the humane society about 10 years ago. They told us he was from a home that went into foreclosure and they couldn't keep him. He's really sweet but for years he was always so timid and refused to ride in the car. If anything upset him he would just start shivering uncontrollably and try to hide. It was obvious that he had been abused in some way. He was out in the front yard where my brother and I were sitting and three boys about 9, 11, and 12 came up to the fence and wanted to pet him. He ran as far away as he could and cowered and shivered for the rest of the day after seeing them. So I figure he was teased and possibly hit by some kids in his old home. Gotta figure there's a lot of stress when a family is losing their home. It's only been in the last couple of years that he's learned to enjoy car rides. He's doing great now. No shivering in about 4 years.

 

[Hornet3d]

It's funny how you can get a sense of what kind of abuse an animal has suffered before. We adopted a dog, Bobo from the humane society about 10 years ago. They told us he was from a home that went into foreclosure and they couldn't keep him. He's really sweet but for years he was always so timid and refused to ride in the car. If anything upset him he would just start shivering uncontrollably and try to hide. It was obvious that he had been abused in some way. He was out in the front yard where my brother and I were sitting and three boys about 9, 11, and 12 came up to the fence and wanted to pet him. He ran as far away as he could and cowered and shivered for the rest of the day after seeing them. So I figure he was teased and possibly hit by some kids in his old home. Gotta figure there's a lot of stress when a family is losing their home. It's only been in the last couple of years that he's learned to enjoy car rides. He's doing great now. No shivering in about 4 years.

Considering the abuse some dogs go through they have a remarkable ability to learn to trust again given time patience and space to do so. Our dog is remarkably friendly with people, particularly the ladies and looks at them with a stance that says 'you know you want to stroke me'. Yet for all that he will pull away from some men and they are always appear to be in their forties of fifties, short and with a stocky type build, all other men he will happily approach wagging his tail madly. Does make you wonder.

 

[Janet]

OMG I just remembered a story my brother told me about a dog his girlfriend owned. The dog's name was Bernie and he often rode around with them on trips. Apparently every time he saw a UPS truck he would go nuts, growling and barking. No other trucks, only UPS trucks. As I recall he didn't like men in uniforms either. Yah it does make you wonder.

 

[mrsparky]

... his obedience training is fine but being asked to do things that make him feel vulnerable, such as down-stay, in a situation with strange dogs around is really bad for his mental state!

That's interesting, ours is the same with a down-stay - just won't do it. Maybe because he generally doesn't lay down like that. Though he'll happily give the submit (lie on back) pose to people he really likes. Which if you want to pass the KC silver/gold dog scheme is an issue, as that's one of the things they have to do without exception. So he only got the bronze.

There is even some evidence that drug gangs have moved over to this type of crime as the profits are good and the penalties are a lot less onerous that supplying drugs.

Sadly wouldn't be surprised there and it's not just the crims. Before we had the bigman snipped (which all our pets are) nearly everyday someone would ask if we planned to breed him. Innocently we always replied no, he's part of the family - indeed same when told we could get him KC papers.

Afterwards we had less people asking and a few telling us in no uncertain terms where {naughty words} idiots as we could've made 250-300 a time for each puppy. Personally ? I'd rather be skint with a happy smelly dog on my lap!

 

[Hornet3d]

... his obedience training is fine but being asked to do things that make him feel vulnerable, such as down-stay, in a situation with strange dogs around is really bad for his mental state!

That's interesting, ours is the same with a down-stay - just won't do it. Maybe because he generally doesn't lay down like that. Though he'll happily give the submit (lie on back) pose to people he really likes. Which if you want to pass the KC silver/gold dog scheme is an issue, as that's one of the things they have to do without exception. So he only got the bronze.

There is even some evidence that drug gangs have moved over to this type of crime as the profits are good and the penalties are a lot less onerous that supplying drugs.

Sadly wouldn't be surprised there and it's not just the crims. Before we had the bigman snipped (which all our pets are) nearly everyday someone would ask if we planned to breed him. Innocently we always replied no, he's part of the family - indeed same when told we could get him KC papers.

Afterwards we had less people asking and a few telling us in no uncertain terms where {naughty words} idiots as we could've made 250-300 a time for each puppy. Personally ? I'd rather be skint with a happy smelly dog on my lap!

WOW a bronze, that is still impressive I think ours would struggle to get any award, even recall is difficult when he is 'in the zone'.

Most rescue centers have the dog or bitch neutered or spaded in an attempt to decrease the number of abandon dogs in the long term. Our Lurcher was therefore neutered but we were advised to actually have this fact noted on his tag (which he has to have by law in the UK) the reason being they are often stolen for breeding. Horrifically this does not make them immune to stealing as, being most are of a very mild temperament they are sometimes used by dog fighting gangs to train fighting dogs in the first stages, a fact that turns my stomach to even imagine.

 

[Janet]

In real life I have a dresser just like this. About 20 years ago I had a cat named Rozalyn. She was part Siamese. Once she went out and got bit by something and nearly died. So as soon as she was better and able to go out again the first thing she did was walk around the house, climb up on the screen door, reach over and ring the doorbell! And she continued doing that, especially when I was on the phone.

So at the same time I had a Norwegian Elkhound named Iggy. For several months I would come home from work and find Rozalyn stuck in a drawer in my dresser. I would check my dresser before going to work everyday to make sure she wasn't in there. Then I would come home from work and find her in there. Then one night was sitting at the computer and the dresser was to my side. I heard something, looked over and saw Rozalyn reaching up and grabbing the handles on the third drawer up. She pulled the drawer open, jumped inside. The dog was right there watching her. As soon as she was inside he jumped up and closed the drawer with her in it. Mystery solved!

A few times I caught her in the highest kitchen cabinets pushing food out to the dog who was waiting below.