For Mike: Puppy pix
POSTED BY: Niki2
UPDATED: Sunday, December 20, 2009 18:19
VIEWED: 8874
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What wonderful dog pictures and stories everyone. I have to say it really warms the heart to see how much love you all have for your dogs. I have totaly respect for all of you.
My dog Pepe passed away two years ago now. He lived for 19 years and 9 months. He was with me since I was 17 and frankly he was the best friend I have ever had. Can't tell you how many ups and downs I had in those years and yet always by my side was Pepe. A tri colour Border Collie. Realiable and true. I miss him but understand it was his time to go.
Right now I'm not in the right place to even consider another dog but I do love those animals. They're the best.
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You've got it, Mike; the ONLY training that really works is positive reinforcement. Most people don't get that, and get pissed at the dog when it doesn't come, then wonder why the dog isn't "getting it". Hah!
I hate choke chains too, and even more hated those "spike" training collars with the spikes turned inward. But the trainer I've been working with swore by them and had me get an original, from Germany (which isn't actually much more expensive than what you'd get at Target or PetCo)...the ends are rounded off and it's made carefully so as not to hurt the dog. We ONLY use it for training, and you don't pull the dog, just give a sharp jerk, so it's like another dog biting them. It's worked wonders for Tashi, and I've overcome my hatred for them. But only for training; when I see people walking around with either those or choke chains on their dogs, I want to throttle them!
Also people who misuse e-collars (shock collars). Used for training, they're also wonderful (even Cesar Milan uses them on occasion, as well as training collars), but too many people misuse them. Wish there was a law that the PEOPLE had to be trained in order to get a dog or one of those collars...the problems virtually always come down to the PEOPLE, not the dogs.
Was Jeepie a rescue? That could easily account for her problems…they say dogs live in the “now”, but traumatic things stay with them, and sometimes are reeeely hard to overcome. Poor baby, that must be stressful for her. She’s lucky she’s got you guys; many others would take her to the shelter.
Gino, Kaylee must have been ADORABLE as a pup…labs always are. Well, hell, all puppies (and kittens) are adorable… She’s gorgeous, and she’s incredibly lucky to live where you do…that’s Dog Heaven!!! What beautiful eyes—so intelligent. Labs may not be for me, but I adore meeting them. Such enthusiasm, and always happy! Got a friend on my website who’s screen name is “to be golden” and he’s always had golden retrievers. I’ve said it’s my contention that Goldens and Labs are born without the unhappy gene…they just don’t know how to DO IT! 
Somnam, my heart goes out to you, too. I’ll never stop missing my Kiya. You probably know by now that Borders are the smartest of all breeds…they aren’t for me, either; if they’re not given things with which to challenge them, they can go neurotic; I’ve known far too many of those in my time! Again, problems created by the HUMANS, not the dogs. Too many people get dogs as “possessions”, figuring they can just own them and the dog will do what they want and not be “seen or heard” when they don’t want them to be, and will be quite content with a back yard and never going out. Makes me want to 
and 
--or worse!
Borders are as much "a breed apart" as huskies are; unique in so many ways. I've seen shows on the things they can learn, and it's almost scary. Saw one about a sheepherder who had trained his borders to herd the sheep (who wore lights) into all kinds of patterns in the dark. I couldn't believe some of the things they did! But they HAVE to be mentally and physically challenged, and I've never been good enough to own one.
Almost 20 years is a helluva gift—we’ve never gotten one past 15; of course ours have been larger dogs, but I sure wish… Darlin’, missing them but understand it’s their time to go doesn’t assuage the pain one whit, as you know. It’s the price we pay for loving them (and cats too, and others). Always tears your heart out, if you were the kind of person who really loved your pet and saw them as another creature with feelings. They’re more than worth every bit of pain, but it’s the price we know is coming.
Given how much they’ve found out in research about how valuable dogs are psychologically, I’d love to see them use more in convalescent hospitals and mental health wards…it’s coming, but too slowl
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Quote:
Was Jeepie a rescue? That could easily account for her problems…they say dogs live in the “now”, but traumatic things stay with them, and sometimes are reeeely hard to overcome. Poor baby, that must be stressful for her. She’s lucky she’s got you guys; many others would take her to the shelter.
She both WAS and WASN'T a rescue - She and her sister were dumped, as puppies, so my wife and I "rescued" them. By the time we found them, they were already feral, apparently living out of garbage cans (there was a city park next door where they found lots of food in the trash cans) and avoiding all human contact. We started putting food out for them, but could never catch them eating it; it would just "disappear" when we weren't around. :) Eventually, they let us see them, but that was as far as things went for a while, which was okay, but we both REALLY wanted to see these pups and get close to them - which took, literally, MONTHS. I eventually got them to trust me a little bit, and herded them into a van to took them to the vet to get shots and to get them fixed - which, of course, they felt was a betrayal, and wouldn't let me near them again for quite a while. :(
Bear in mind, all of this was happening while they were living at my workplace. They eventually got to where they'd come inside during the day, and sleep in the warehouse, and stay out back at night (we made sure they had access to shelter). We'd go up and feed them on the weekends, and make sure they had food and water before we left in the evenings.
This went on for quite some time, until the day I arrived at work to find that they'd gotten out during the night (the landscape yard we shared property with was gated and fenced, but the dogs dug under the gate that night), and Swee'pea had been hit by a car and killed. Jeepie was sitting in the road beside her dead sister, absolutely inconsolable, crying and howling, nudging Swee'pea with her nose to try to wake her up. It broke my heart, and Jeepie went home with me that day, despite the fact that I already had two dogs at home that didn't get along with each other.
Jeepie would fight me every time I tried to get her in a car afte that first trip to the vet, but that day I opened the car door to take her home, and she jumped right in. All the way home, she rested her head on my shoulder and cried. :(
We got home, and I introduced her to my Doberman, Uma, who didn't generally get along with other dogs at all, but LOVED people and cats - it was as if Uma could sense Jeepie's hurt. She opened up to her, and they started nuzzling each other, and later started to play. They were together for a year before Uma died of old age, but it was one of the best years of her life; Jeepie had her acting like a pup again, which was nice, since Jeepie never really got to BE a pup herself.
So, out of some bad situations, I got one extremely good dog, and a wealth of experiences with other great dogs. And she has now bonded completely to me, and to a lesser degree, to my wife. If I go to work without her, she's upset. If I go to LUNCH without her, she's upset. :) She doesn't like it when strangers look her in the eye, but she loves all over me, and she loves to be cuddled and babied, which is fine by me. Like I said before, I'll spend all the time I can trying to spoil her and make up for the rough life she had before. I feel I owe it to her.
Mike
Work is the curse of the Drinking Class.
- Oscar Wilde
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One thing with training I think is one of the best things you can do, particularly if your dog is a puppy
Socialize as much as you can
I was lucky one of my neighbors bought a puppy at nearly the same time.. ( a Border Collie / Greyhound cross ) man can that dog run, takes her the entire park just to get turned around...
We both took ours to a puppy play time put on by a local dog trainer. Imagine thirty or so puppys of a bunch of different breeds running loose playing in a gym. Crazy and cute...
I also took my dog out to meet every cat it the neighborhood, surprising how many cats will come over to sniff a puppy smaller than them...
Also people, kids, cars, etc
If you can expose them to as much as possible in a controlled way when they are young, they don't get scared or aggressive when they come across similar things later in life.
A trainer I talked to, recommended when teaching a dog to heal, have a treat in your right hand.. the dog stays in almost the perfect position keeping one eye on the treat. After a while in becomes second nature to walk there. I used a ball the same way with my retriever... the reward was the throw.
Niki I think I named her perfectly, like from the pilot... Nothing in the verse can stop Kaylee from being cheerful.
Had 3 Hungarian Vizslas when I was a kid... when they died it was... 10 years and my wife pushing before I could get another dog... I know your pain with Pepe
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Nice wolfpack Niki2.
Walkabout on 50 acres and still shits in the neighbors' yard:
Our fearless tomcat loved to play tag with the dogs, until some idiot ran him over. It's like they drive off the road to hit cats on purpose. Too much meth I guess.
Our Australian Kelpie got hit in the head by the UPS truck, and kept on chasing it. Dingo/wolf blood makes in want to herd cattle by biting in the neck. But gentle like a hand hold. Very cuddly, but a little psycho. PTSD as a pup at the pound, where they denied having it locked up, hidden in a back room. Very Alpha on the Lab, but best of friends. Need a shock collar when it tries to herd the neighbors. Need a stronger fence, but the electricity works 99.9%. 75 lb Kelpie, 85 lb Lab. Dogs used to come in the cat door as puppies.
Mice like to come in the cat door, with the cat watching 12 inches away. Cat loves to bring snakes home to visit. Baby possums used to sleep in a bowl on the kitchen counter, but couldn't get em house trained.
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Funny story about the " invisible fence " collars John
the guy with the farm one over from my dads has a huge Rottwellier, sweet dog, but only the invisible fence to keep him in.
Took him a day to discover if he ran he only took a smallish zap going across the fence, he would then go bum a treat from my mom. wander about for a while then go sit it front of the driveway and wait for them to shut off the fence to let him back in.
Laughed when I seen it
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Actually I'm referring to shock collars by remote control. You carry the remote control and zap em when you see em bite the neighbors. Which might make them bite harder, I suppose.
We have an actual electric fence, at the base of the regular fence if they try to go under it. Funny to see em try.
But less pain that getting hit by a truck or shot by a drunk neighbor.
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Mike, your post devastated me…I got too good an imagination, and the picture of poor Jeepie by her sister just tore me up. Why do you say she both was and “wasn’t” a rescue? That’s about the most prefect story of rescuing a dog I’ve ever heard!
Actually, I had a somewhat similar experience with the cat I loved most of all those we had. Missy lived with a neighbor across the street who keeled over dead in aerobics class (and was young, too boot). Her family came and cleaned out the house, took her other cat, but Missy ran. A while later I kept seeing this little black cat across the street, in the driveway. Wouldn’t let her approach me, but I started putting food in the driveway which would “disappear”, as you said. Neighbor told me where she’d come from and her name. Eventually found she slept under the house, and put blanket and food in regularly.
New family moved in and covered the house for fumigation. I worried about Missy, but she reappeared. Asked the woman who now owned the house, she said she had wondered, ‘cuz she heard something crying under the floors (stupid woman…I’d have been down there looking instantly!) When I tried to continue feeding Missy down there, she called the cops (!). Real nice cop came, explained while he sympathized, it was trespassing.
So I started putting food in the passenger side of my car (parked on the street in front of our house) late at night (hoping no cars got her); left he window open and she’d jump in, eat and jump out again. Once she got comfortable with that, I moved the food to our pickup, and one night I stood in the rain and waited for her to get in to eat, then flew across the street and slammed the door.
The pickup had a window onto the bed, which was covered and had several “tool compartments” in it. Had a friend who knew a lot about cats, had rescued MANY, and told her I was afraid if I went in to get her, Missy would attack me. She said no, given what I’d said, she’d probably roll over and submit. Found her curled up in one of the tool compartments…and damned if she didn't roll right over when I opened it, kind of like "I can't run way, do with me what you will".
Missy was always tiny, and never left my bedroom. She was the most adoring cat I’ve ever had, and when she was diagnosed with cancer (I’m betting from the fumigation), I nursed her right down to the very end…have a vet who believes they know when and stop fighting, and to let them live until then is right. Will NEVER do that again, but this one time I did want her to have her best chance, so took it to the end. Thousands of dollars and I had her less than a year, but she was worth it (luckily our vet lets us pay off over time!).
Animals are incredibly instinctive about stuff, I’ve learned over a lifetime--like your Uma. One night she was even closer to me than usual, and snuggled right up against me all night (sometimes she came and crawled under the covers, but rarely stayed more than an hour or two). The next day Missy came up the stairs from my bedroom of her own accord (I’d begun to carry her up once she got weaker and put her in the back yard, where she’d lay in the sun and bask). She went to my husband and rubbed against his leg, purring. She went to my brother-in-law (who lived with us then) and did the same. She then went outside on her own and basked. That night she died.
She really got to me, I’ve never loved a cat as much before or since, and I’ll never forget her. Things like that and what you experienced touch us in a way little else does, I know. They make us appreciate things—like the love and trust they give us, and the simplicity and elegance of that kind of love. It’s a gift. For all the months of pain and effort of caring for her and hurting for her suffering, I remember her love most. Jeepie was a VEY lucky dog, and you’re a special person for what you did—and no doubt you're basking in the unconditional love like I did.
Gino, sounds like you did come across the perfect name for Kaylee, and I
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Well, Niki, I say Jeepie was and wasn't a rescue, because she wasn't "rescued" from a shelter - she was, quite literally, rescued from the streets.
And yes, Uma *did* know when it was her time. She'd been having mobility problems (dysplasia), but she was game, and she fought to keep herself up and about. Then, one day, she just couldn't anymore. She couldn't get up to go to bed, so I had to pick her up and carry her upstairs. The next day, I had to carry her downstairs, and I could just see that she had no more fight left in her. She was in pain, and she was exhausted, and she'd been the best girl her whole life. She died later that day, and I knew it was coming, but it still hit me like a truck. It still does.
It kills me every time I lose a pet - I wish they lived longer! But as Zoe said, I'm not so afraid of losing a thing that I'm not going to have it. All of my dogs and cats have taught me things, and they've made me the better for knowing them.
Mike
Work is the curse of the Drinking Class.
- Oscar Wilde
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Yup, yup, yup, in spades.
My dog before last, Tanya ("Gaetano", Spanish for gypsy, and "my" first dog, given to me by my best friend, the ranger I speak of) was a fighter, little sheltie/shephard cross, and she, too, got dysplasia in her old age. When she couldn't get up--front legs worked fine, back barely--we made a sling and were her back legs for her. She loved the beach, and I was working out at Marine Mammal Center on the Coast, so I took her to work with me every day, she sat in our VW bus with the doors open, and before or after work we'd go down to the beach for a sniff and a "walk".
When it came her time and the front legs started to go, I was lucky to be working there, beause the on-site vet had come to love her, too. So Jim came with, we went for one last walk on the beach, then we put her on the back seat, with her head on my lap, and the vet put her to sleep. I've always felt wonder that Jim cried like a baby, while I shed not a tear (only time that's ever happened). Somehow to me she'd been "gone" quite a while, I'd done all my crying knowing it was coming, and she hadn't died frightened in a vet's office, instead out there with the seals and sea lions where she loved it. She's buried out there.
Of course, I cried for some time after that once we got home...yes, it kills me every time we lose one, too, but the joy is well worth the pain, even tho' it doesn't feel like it at the time! I can't be without animals--maybe that's cowardly of me, but in many cases I prefer them to people, our interactions are totally honest, and being bipolar, they've gotten me through a number of depressions that, well, I don't know if I'd still be here had it not been for them. I hurt for people who've lost one, but all I can offer is "I hope the pain fades and only the good memories remain".
"I WISH THEY'D LIVE LONGER!" has been my cry time immemorial. Also "I wish they'd stay puppies longer"...Kochak is growing like a weed--did I say she's gone from 12 lbs. to 18+ in over a week? And she's not fat!
One of my problems is I've never cottoned to little dogs, and larger dogs have shorter lifespans. We've never managed to get one past 15, no matter how hard we try, tho' all have made it to at least 14. And all, until now, have been rescues.
Speaking of which: Mike, darlin', that IS a rescue! In the most perfect sense. We "found" a number of our cats, got others from the shelter and a couple friends found and we took in. That's rescue--any time anyone adopts an animal that otherwise might not have a home, suffer or be put to death, that's rescue. Period. If someone cares enough to save a dog the way you did, rather than just go to the local shelter and pick a dog, that's TRUE rescue. Never forget that.
Kochak pics coming...look out! Give Jeepie a biiiig hug for me...a very, very lucky little girl!
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