I love his face! I want to kiss him right above his nose. Handsome feller. :)

Sweet!

Tril he does look absolutely lovely. And that's from a card-carrying cat-person (does it still count if I made the card myself and it's drawn in crayon?)

No cat can ever replace Diz for me now. Doesn't mean I won't get another one - if I can get this alcofrolics thing licked I will certainly outlive him. Much as I mourned the loss of Dylan (and still do) I had a very similar cat already around to love me. Having been my one and only for a few years now, I know it will be so hard to lose him. And Autumn did leave in a very violent way (sorry if I make you cry there, hon.)

I guess I'm saying what the others are saying, but without the experience.
I left Gabriel and Raphael when I split with my husband. Hely already had a rehoming offer when I left London, and that was Diz's choice not mine - I literally could not keep both of them because he's not a sharer. Gerbils and fish and rabbits you can't cuddle don't count. I mean they do count in that they need love, respect and care, but they don't own a piece of your heart. Diz does. And that piece will numb when he dies.

But as has already been said - hearts are might large organs, and there's room for more in there, even if it's not exactly the same place.

again, thank you all for your heartfelt, thoughtful comments.

Dana-you nailed it. I live in my head, too, (REALLY?!?!?! you are all asking yourselves about now) and Mr. Scout is a high energy level being who LOVES to chase my very favorite cat Spiderman which annoys me and frightens the cat. I don't want her hiding in the basement all day worried she'll be eaten. He just wants to play but he outweights her X 100. she acts like, "why did you do this? we were happy! Just US!" but I was heartbroken----still sorta am. I want a GOOD DOG not like the haphazard way we had them when I was growing up and dogs were, due to my dad, dogs and not pets but had to be useful and pull their weight (I'm surprised he let us have one at all but my sister, whom he likes, LOVES animals and he probably expected to have the dog bring game to the family table as if we needed it) and live mainly outside tied to a post in the yard. He asked me the other day while he was fixing the part of the fence that was broken "What's wrong with tying him to a tree? Is that a stupid idea?" and not in a nice way, either; in a You Think You're So Smart but I Have All The Money/Power way. He had dogs growing up and he says, proudly, 'we NEVER bought dog food!" so I guess they were strays who stuck around hoping for a chicken bone or something.

This experience has taught me a very important lesson: my abandonment issues are still with me full force; my father hates me really a lot more than I thought (which was a lot) I am rash and impulsive to the detriment of my own self though I've been working on it for it seems forever; I am impatient; and above all, I am tired.

thank you for allowing me to wallow in such self indulgent crapola and to let everything be about ME ME ME. The only person who has ever suffered on the face of the planet.

chuh.

PS - please indulge me once more here: when I was ten my dad threatened, right in front of me, to kill my dog.

He's such a bastard I wonder why he lives at all. He gets zero enjoyment out of anything and he, like Mikey, hates everything. Nothing is ever "good" or "fine" - it's all just one big let down with him and his fucking Scottish blood. Nessie should come get his old hide.

Parents can be such fuckups. I struck damn lucky with mine, but my Dad's parents were total fucks. Culturally so as much as anything else (boarding prep school from the age of 5, stern father who would never dream of expressing love and affection and who my Dad shook hands with when we visited etc etc).

As to whether it's a stupid idea to tie a dog to a tree and leave it there....well, if the number of dogs who end up strangling themselves to death whilst tied up unattended is anything to go by, yes, it's a stupid idea. I personally know of two people, one in rl and one on a forum, who lost dogs this way. And they weren't leaving them out there in any cruel way, just in good weather when they were working during the day.

It can work as an added bit of security if you are popping in and out and don;t want to be watching the dog like a hawk, but also want it to have that bit of freedom. But leaving a dog like that for extended periods unattended is dangerous.

Oh he sounds a total charmer.



[eta] Tril, read Jon Ronson's The Psycopath test.

Get a water pistol or squirty water bottle, fill it with water, and whenever, every time, he chases the cat say firmly "No!" and squirt him in the face, the eye preferably, when he chases the cat. Or if you're near enough, whop him on the nose with a rolled up newspaper.
They'll settle down and sort themselves out one way or another, it's early days yet, but try the above.

I wouldn't advise whopping on the nose with a newspaper. Depending on the dog's temperament and previous experience that could initiate aggression.

But the water pistol absolutely!

water pistol it is! I've even got one~!

Dana---my dad insists on shaking hands with his own grandsons. He doesn't hug them.
when you thank him for anything he never says 'you're welcome' he only says, "Okay."

When he was a youngster he lit his little brothers PRIZED wooden airplanes (they were, literally, a dirt poor family) ON FIRE and threw them out the window. Just to be mean.

I used a spray bottle, the same as they use in the hairdressers to re-wet your hair. Recommended by Monster. In the end I've "cured" his behaviour using this. I know now that when he wakes me for attention he is genuinely hungry or distressed.

Well. Distressed. Cat is as fat as a buttered naan.
But at least it's only 5 minutes before the alarm goes off, rather than 02.00.

Someone told me recently that when a young dog nips you should push your hand forward instead of pulling back, basically deliberately gag them for a moment. She said it will make them stop biting very quickly. [/not a dog owner]

Like with most things, it depends on the dog...and the owner :p Sometimes that can work well. But it can have the opposite effect: stop that particular bite, but then ramp up the tension/aggression. I've done it with Carrot at times. Pilau too.

Another way is to grab the base of their skull with your fingers in a clawlike shape, to mimic the feel of their mother's jaws.

There isn't a one size fits all. A lot of the stuff that worked with pilau, for instance, has the opposite effect on carrot and makes him aggressive instead of stopping the behaviour. With him I have to take a different tack. Something I am learning as we go along :p

Me again. With no helpful dog info.

When the boys were young I used to grab them by their scruffs and shake them.
Or cuff them (LIGHTLY!) on the ear. And/ or hiss.
That's cat-mum behaviour. And it worked. I would never hurt a cat. Even if tempted to give a right walloping.

But cats are not pack animals and as Diz has grown with me, the mum-role doesn't work as well.
In cat terms he's now a senior, and has no other young males to moderate his behaviour.

Cats aren't designed to live with many other cats, unlike dogs. Both animals have backing down procedures, but male feral cats are more likely to find a new area; equally domestic cats fight over their territories because they are anchored to a certain place.

So Diz and I still have tussles about who is the owner and who is the slave.
Of course, I'm really the slave. But I can't let him know that.
Occasional water in face at night when I have to go to school the next day.
Because one of us has to work in order to buy beebles.

Tril, glad you're ok, sorry your dad's a turd. I have no dog advice, but could post you a nice recipe -he looks quite tender ;)

Take him to puppy school. The sooner he knows his boundaries (in more ways than one) the happier you'll be, the happier he'll be, and the happier visitors will be.

Smart dog like that you don't want to eat all at once. No seriously, a smart dog like that SHOULD know not to dash after things. I am reading an article that says they're runners. A lot of dogs are. But they CAN be trained, because they are also intelligent.

Or trade him in for a less running away dog. ;)

Kidding. Please to read this posted article, maybe it will help.

Personally, I wouldn't be happy with a dog that doesn't walk by my side when he's supposed to, and doesn't know his boundaries when he's outside, and jumps on people and yelps. I like a dog that lays down once in a while. ;)

He's awfully cute, but the breed sounds to be a handful. Good luck!

Dog parks are where dogs can run wild, which a dog like that needs to do once in a while. I forget, do you have a fenced in yard?

http://www.examiner.com/article/is-a...ht-dog-for-you

yeah, I didn't get the min-pin. I got that big stupid shep/lab mutt who wants to play 20/7. (well, he does rest for about four hours)

I do have a fenced in yard but he's used to 12 other dogs (he was fostered) and he's lonely, I can tell.

two cats STILL in basement.

provide cats with rocket boosters?

Just love him Tril.
Train him, but love him.

He'll stop being not-Autumn soon.
And start being him-indoors-I-must-obey.

Diz probably thinks his name is Jesus-Christ-Diz.

But IM hit upon a truth, even in jest.
If you really try but still feel you can't provide the best home for him, he can be re-adopted. It's really hard, but giving up a dog to a more suitable home doesn't hurt them like giving up a child. I do have experience in that at least (pet not child.) I doubt Hely still dreams of me in her little cat brain. I hope.

Oh, I'm sorry. I do see now that is ain't that dog.

Still, I think you'd enjoy puppy school.

Give him a big nose kiss for me. :kisspink:

You know that makes me sneeze.

Our little rescue, Aesa is still a challenge some days and we have had her since May 5th 2012. She is a cute girl, with a great personality, but she still has fight or flight issues ( with her its talk back more so than anything) She still barks at air, and will still eat half the house when left alone. She doesnt do it every time... but enough to still be an issue. She has eaten light bulbs, books, paint, she will open brand new boxed crock pots just to see whats inside, that sort of thing. She is a huge counter surfer and will get into any glass or plate left anywhere near her reach. There are days I wonder why us? why can't she just be like our Freya.

My Freya girl would never have done any of these things. I am learning, while they are the same breed...Aesa is not Freya.

Aesa wants to be a loving dog, and curl up with you, and does. She tries to listen. She is a sweet heart, and loves going for walks. She sleeps with me, spine to spine. She is my shadow. She knows sit and wait. She will shake a paw. She is Loki's best freind. They play well together and sleep side by side, if not on top of each other.

Aesa would have had several more homes by now, simply because of the destuction when we are not home, and the aggressive play ( its just boxers, she's just noisier than most). We can handle her, we love her. Sometimes its the different that we need.

There is a poem out there, that makes me cry every time... because its true. While I don't know where you got your new baby Scout from, I do know I got Aesa from a home 2 hours before she was taken to the SPCA. This poem hits home, and maybe when you have your " wow, do you ever rest?" times with Scout you can think back to it. Its helped me with my "rescue".


I Rescued A Human Today
Author: Janine Allen

Her eyes met mine as she walked down the corridor
peering apprehensively into the kennels.
I felt her need instantly and knew I had to help her.
I wagged my tail, not too exuberantly, so she wouldn't be afraid.

As she stopped at my kennel I blocked her view from a little accident
I had in the back of my cage.
I didn't want her to know that I hadn't been walked today.
Sometimes the shelter keepers get too busy
and I didn't want her to think poorly of them.

As she read my kennel card,
I hoped that she wouldn't feel sad about my past.
I only have the future to look forward to
and want to make a difference in someone's life.

She got down on her knees and made little kissy sounds at me.
I shoved my shoulder and side of my head
up against the bars to comfort her.
Gentle fingertips caressed my neck;
she was desperate for companionship.

A tear fell down her cheek and I raised my paw
to assure her that all would be well.
Soon my kennel door opened and her smile was so bright
that I instantly jumped into her arms.

I would promise to keep her safe.
I would promise to always be by her side.
I would promise to do everything I could
to see that radiant smile and sparkle in her eyes.

I was so fortunate that she came down my corridor.
So many more are out there who haven't walked the corridors.
So many more to be saved.
At least I could save one.

I rescued a human today.

That's brilliant.

Great poem!

OK. I'm giving him ONE MORE WEEK.

he just chewed a forty dollar pillow....sigh. I am rash, irresponsible, lazy and stupid. Why did I DO this?

I did love the poem, Jaydaan, and I thank you for it. I wanted small and older and I got big and younger. The Universe laughs and laughs. I must learn to relax.

Carrot ate my toothbrush yesterday (the second one).

If I totalled up the damage he's done over his year it's into the hundreds of ££s.

Never had a dog who was destructive before. Pilau would destroy any toy that came near him within moments, but he didn;t chew my stuff or the house. Though he did steal food.

Carrot is very respectful of his toys. he has toys there still that he had when he was 10 weeks old. The house and random stuffs are whole other story :p

Sometimes that's their bag. They all have something. Some quirk, physical or behavioural. The thing that sticks around for ages that you think they're never going to fucking well grow out of, until they suddenly do. usually :p

Ride it out, he's a baby. You've taken him on now. Either that or take him right back, tomorrow before he's had a chance to fully settle and feel secure. Don't let the lad start to feel settled and then take him back or it'll take him twice as long to settle in his next home. And if they run out of patience and take him back after 4 weeks, it'll take twice as long again the next time, and so on.

Sorry, that sounded judgemental, it wasn't meant to. But it's a real problem pattern for these dogs once they start to go through the rehoming process. If the first rehome doesn't work out, people often lose patience after a couple of weeks. So the dog gets sent back into the shelter just as it started to feel like it was in a pack. The next time they go to a new home, they won't even start to relax until they've got past the length of time (roughly) they got to the first time out.

Which means the next adopter is now more likely to lose patience (4-6 weeks maybe of really unsettled behaviour this time around) and take it back, and maybe now here's a dog that has serious abandonment issues and becomes difficult to rehome at all.

Happens distressingly often.

Loki ate a cordless drill charger, hubby's phone charger and blue tooth headset and 2 books, all in one day when he was a puppy. I know hubby was not happy but we did leave them in view. We quickly learned to puppy proof the house! Helped with the normal dog eatables, you know, shoes, pillows, purses... but then came Aesa. She opens cupboards, and takes apart boxes to get things. Not normal dog eatable things either... craft paint, all over both dogs and my new carpet, CFL light bulbs out of the box in the cupboard, ceramic coffee mugs from on the counter... LOL.

Give him time, especially if he is teething. We found Rollover filled real bones at Walmart, and the dogs love them. Normal teething type stuff didn't work for us, the dogs were bored with them very fast. Another thing.. a bored dog is a bad dog. Try to take him for a few walks a day, and make it routine to train him for a few mins each day too. They love the challenge. We are still working on the "sit, wait" and my dogs are almost 2 and just over 2. I do notice huge changes when we go for more consistant walks. Its harder for me with a bad hip and two dogs that are very strong if they want to be... I need a second person to go with me. But its worth the nagging to get someone to go too, the dogs love it. Gets us up and moving too, see a win win!

Just remember:" its just a pillow, Mom. I didn't mean to make you upset... here let me kiss you and make it all better".

Good luck with him, I am sure as you bond, and he gets used to being an only dog, he will settle down.

carrot occasionally chews walls...

Dana, Loki ate a door once, now I don't feel so bad. Its funny.... LATER, I suppose. What posseses these cute little babies to go all tazmanian devil and eat the strangest things? I understand the cigarette buts/ dirt, etc as the vet explained most times that is for a missing nutrient.. but walls? I am certain they know damn well there is nothing good or helpful in that wall/light bulb/ etc.
I wish just for one day I could have my two talk, and tell me really what they think, and why thye do the things they do.

Had a dalmatian once, Chief (not original name, just the original owner's appellati on for the dog). We fed him plenty of dog food, but that wasn't enough. Shoes, a baseball glove, several remotes, the bottom parts of lots of furniture, etc. The most infuriating snack was the destruction of ElderSon's hearing aids--$1800.

Ouch.

Yeah. Not so much of a dog person.

Rusty once chewed the tongues out of the Old Man's work boots.
I figure the leather was processed differently.

Benny got started on a down comforter two days ago but must have been put off by the feathers cuz he stopped at one hole. He is a stealer of socks btw so we'll have to stop blaming the wormhole in the dryer.

Best toy ever for busy dogs

http://www.itchmo.com/dog-toy-review...l-dog-toy-1534

Pearl chewed the plastic ends off a $100 pair of eyeglasses. Puppy energy... it is best met with crate training.

Thank FSM for sensible UT! Some people think crate training is restrictive and mean. I have never used it to punish my dogs I use it as their space their place to be and they will own it. I give them bones when I am home and they get them in their crate. Big sloppy cow bones are messy. I have ACDs and Belgian sheepdogs the ones that stay in the house know when I leave they go to bed. I don't want to be mad at them for destroying things.

As far as bedding I don't care if they chew up their own bed in their crate. I purposely go to GoodWill buy big comforters for $2-$5 and if they chew them I pitch them. Life is too short to be mad at a dog that never gets a mentality older than a 4-5 year old human. :)

Carrot was crate trained as a pup. But though he was ok, he never really liked it. Like a lot of beardies he seems to have a touch of claustrophobia (mum's first beardie, Brunt used to go mad in the back yard because it was high walls and carrot is freaked out if we go down the lane with high walls). And he likes to shift about during the night.

If I'd been able to get the biggest I might have kept it going, but I could only accomodate a medium crate in my house and that wasn't big enough for him to change his position and get comfy/cool as needed. When I stopped locking him in at night, I left the rate in situ in case he still wanted that as his base but he never voluntarily went in there once he didn't have to.

It was also a pain in the arse having a big crate in my little room :P

Maybe you should have slept in the crate and the dog could've had the bedroom, Dani?

hahahahahaahahaha

*ahem*

hahahahahahahahahahah

I locked him downstairs even without the crate til he was almost a year old.

But he kept making a bid for following me up at night and would go quite reluctantly to his own bed when told.

Overall, I prefer him being able to come upstairs. Though, once he discovered the comfy big bed that was that. He now stays on the bed for about half the night then buggers off for the rest of the time. Fortunately I have a double bed. I am slowly getting him to accept that he can't actually sleep at the pillow end of the bed. He always tries. I go off to have a wash and come back and he's there, head on the pillow looking blissfully comfy. He always gets moved and he always tries it again the next night :P


[eta] actually, about the half the time he's nominally 'on the bed' he's actually mostly on the windowsill (bed pushed right up to the window so he can look out without having to stand up on his back legs, and also to stop the occasional night time accidental rolling off the bed and landing on his back).

I haven't been able to read all the posts----running late for birthday lunch with son but dana, you are NOT being bitchy and I AM going to keep him----there was never any doubt, I just like to shoot off my mouth. just ask anyone; I do it all the time.

Next thing ya know Obama will ban shooting off your mouth! ;)

My bed is Diz's bed right now.

He's is a tiny cat after all (except for being fatty-kins) but since he CHEWED THROUGH THE WIRE TO HIS HEATED PAD he's wintering with me. He's a pretty good boy. Thanks to the water spray he's kinda understood that in the dark, food-lady needs sleep. He has his summer-house, next to the radiator. But that's not on through the night. He snoozes on top of it until the sun hits the windows.

Oddly enough I find he is less destructive now.
Because he's with me pretty much all night (being the only heat source) and with the 'rents all day - ditto.
Come summer he'll be back to chewing the inedible no doubt.
Or the edible. Poor Dad can't remember that leaving leftover pieces of cakes, crisps or scones on the TV table is a temptation. Nom nom nom says Diz. Wrappe din kitchen paper? Oh, even better!

Limey hit the nail on the head you Dana are a dog slave! :eek:

Not such a bad thing to be ;)

We've crate trained other dogs, but Benny wasn't buying either. He isn't very destructive, the comforter was a deviation.

Yeah, my bro's dog Ruby loved her crate and Sally the rescue greyhound is only happy if she has a crate to go to.

I got a crate from my All-Knowing Dog Goddess sister and kept him in it for one hour (it was a blessed hour, full of not wondering if he was eating the cat poop) and let him out and he volunteered to go back in and slept in it all night! He WANTS to be good-I can tell. He's got that bewildered 'what are you saying? how can I understand you? what do you want?' look. BUT! He still keeps doing some naughty things. but he's a good dog, overall. I am committed to him; i will not put him thru re-homing; he lives here now. I just wasn't ready for all the Tigger Bouncy-ness of him or his exuberance at life. As a jaded, cynical crone, I wanted a jaded, cynical dog, but the Universe gives us what we need; not what we want (As Mick Jagger so perfectly nailed it)


:apaw:

This sounds like progress! If you have a place where the both of you are happy that he stays (the crate) then the relationship between you will improve by leaps and bounds.

Ha! Give him time. All too soon he'll be far too grownup and cynical :p


Fast forward two years:

http://i.qkme.me/3re8lp.jpg

Yay! This is such a good thing!