For the love of Pod

[HangingOver]

All aboard Podsquad, it's Pod thread number 4.

In case you were wondering:

• What is this (surprisingly) long-running thread about? A unique lunatic rescue Podenco, known as Pod. Featuring his pals, Stanley, GentleHowl, BabyPod, GentleBounce, Fastest and Princess and many more.
• What makes you so special that you get your own thread? See above

Seriously, if anyone is considering getting a teenage/rescued/sight-hound/Podenco/all of the above and has NO idea what they're doing, please enjoy the previous instalments from the day we brought him home, to now, six months later. Posts will oscillate wildly from euphoric to mental breakdown and back again.

Here is thread No. 3 https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/thedoghouse/5248472-they-love-a-bit-of-him-podlife?page=1

Here is thread No. 2 https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/thedoghouse/5197068-the-pod-cast?page=39&reply=141216881

And thread No. 1 https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/thedoghouse/5177112-oh-my-giddy-god?page=1

Pic of the handsome prick in question.

Well, I'll be damned 😁

Yay! There's nothing like a good night's sleep. How is Pod this morning?

My DH is well and truly involved in following Pod’s progress and health. He was happy too when I told him that Pod had a normal poo. 😆

Dogs, babies, children - it’s always a relief when they have a normal poo!

@HangingOver That’s amazing! I bet you feel like a brand new person after such a good sleep. Incredible what the right medical treatment can do for a household’s sleep.

All's right in the world, Podsquad 😍

Pod's tummy is good, tails on the mend and the amazing, frequently tested by the bastardly universe Hanging, has actually had a decent night's sleep 💤

Thank you Jesus/Allah/Joseph Smith (?), Superman....my school wasn't so great 😊

Now if someone told you this time last year that a really handsome dog was moving in soon, would you have expected it to be such an ....experience?

Wow. That's a fab night's sleep. Well done Pod 🦴

Might the bitter apple spray be any good as a car-harness-eating deterrent?

Hello Podsquad!

I don't want to jinx it but we're on day three of totally healthy poops. I'm delighted! His tail has been inspected and the vet says it's healing beautifully. She rebandaged it and hopefully it can come off Friday!

Lovely to hear.

Fingers crossed. He can hopefully have a really boring summer with no more vet!

If anyone had ever told me I'd be delighted about a dog pooing normally...🙄😅

So glad to hear you and Pod are doing better, Hanging. Just a thought - could there be an environmental trigger for Pod' getting poorly? I ask because my D Dog dug up some daffodil bulbs in the garden and I panicked because they're poisonous. I appreciate the Giardia is the much more likely cause but just mentioning fwiw xx

Pod is, even by his standards, in a spectacularly odd mood.

Last night he broke our winning streak of good nights by taking a staggering 3 1/2 hours to settle. I ended up taking him for a run at midnight, where he duly bolted and pooped, but then surprisingly did the most vicious land-shark attack he's done in ages. Ripped my coat pocket and my arms are bruised.

So I mentioned it to the vet as she was changing his tail bandage today and ask her to check his bum glands, which were apparently very backed up, so hopefully that's the explanation. She's going to show me how to do it next time.

He's also for now reason I can see decided to up his usual noise output by 2000% today, including a new broadcast that features shrieking dramatically out the car window like he's being kidnapped. It hurts my ears but it really is quite funny, especially waiting in traffic. One car's passengers cheered.

Pod finished his Friday by tearing around with his friends, but sadly the new bandage was wagged off in moments. It bled a bit at first but it's stopped now. The vets is shut so I sprayed on some doggy antiseptic spray and made a makeshift one from our ancient first aid kit. Hopefully that will do until the morning.

Top bandaging there Hanging, it sounds like rather a bizarre day! Anal glands have to be one of the reasons that I love dogs vicariously. Do they ever work properly? Had dogs growing up but never owned my own. Now love visiting other people’s and reading about Pod!

If he’s not pooing right (as he hasn’t been, then surely they’ll get full, as think they’re emptied naturally by a good poo (not liquid) Forgivr me if I’m wrong (I’m obsessed with my dog poop😳)
does he still get nutracalm? X

I saw a video of a greyhound with a bandaged tail tip the other day - and they'd taped it to the belly strap of his harness (you can either go between the legs or round the side to which ever side is most comfy) so he could not wag the tip, but could still wag the base. I wouldn't want to do that long term but short term it seemed like a smart solution!!

I reckon I'd push for anal gland removal if his reaction to them being full is THIS bad, I know its normally only done if they're repeatedly infected but I'd have another chat about that!

Need help.

Looks like we're going to be giving respite care to two spaniels temporarily. DPs FIL extremely unwell.

What do I need to know re. introductios? They're gundogs, live in kennels but poop outside. Unbelievably soppy and affectionate, adore being allowed inside and will cuddle all day long. They're not great on short leads so mainly let off in enclosed fields.

I'm no expert, but is there somewhere neutral nearby that would be a suitable meeting place? Once they're familiar with each other, they would probably be better in the garden, for a start ( that's what I'd do, anyway).

Good luck, Hanging 💐

Oh boy...

Pet Remedy/Adaptil.
Any familiar stuff like bedding and sticking to routine where you can, if practical, if its not causing distress (so perhaps kitchen beds for them, bed elsewhere for pod, or Porch bed for them assuming you have a porch of course, with access to the garden)...

Or they may be better crated in covered crates wherever suits..

Introduce in whatever environment will be as calm as possible and if not calm (Pod... Calm..) then as much space as possible, so that may be a secure field hire, might be garden, avoid meetings in tight spaces or where there is potentially stuff to argue over.

Walk together - go in together rather than new dogs coming into Pods space with pod already in it.

Move most treasured items so theres nothing to argue over - give Pod a safe space where they will not go, where his stuff can be.

Seperate walks! So pod still gets his one to one time.

Thank you, thank you. Ok a field is a good idea. I think we'd need to go get them and bring them here and let them all play together for a bit in one of our local fields. I think two cars would be a good idea too, their crates will likely go in DPs van.

Pod's got pretty good at ignoring dogs who don't want to play with him now which is a big improvement on how he used to be. Pod is very good with other dogs in his space at home, so I'm not worried about him from an aggressive perspective. He didn't like my friends dog being here much but that's mainly because she was mean to him and took all his bones. I've never seen either Spaniel be remotely aggressive but you never know. No idea if they resource guard either. I know their prey drive is off the chart. The girls sleeping together in the kitchen and Pod in the living room on his sofa would be a good idea so he's got his own space. He will try and bunk in with them otherwise and they might not want that.

They're mum and daughter. Mum (Meltydog) is extremely submissive and gentle, adores people, just wants to be petted all day. Daughter (Wiggle) is insane, Pod probably will like her actually.

Obviously if they can't get on they'll have to go back although Christ knows who else would be able to take them. DPs family not doggy people at all and all work out the house.

It might not definitely happen, or it might happen and only be for a day or two.... Or It could be more like a week or two IYSWIM 😞

Side note but do you think Adaptil works @WiddlinDiddlin ? I considered the plug ins but the reviews were quite mixed....

Also to add I think my local dog walker could take them out for some walks, they're far smaller and easier to manage than Pod

I think the spaniels will seem like a walk in the park after Pod 😂

They will soon be friends & partners in crime.

Hope so. They're incredibly sweet dogs. Meltydog in particular just dissolves at human attention into a puddle of happiness.

Stuff like Adaptil, Pet Remedy and also Zylkene are (I realise they work differently but..) in my category of 'worth a go, doesn't always work, won't make matters worse'.. things.

I've seen some astonishing results with all... and I have seen them do the square root of fuck all!

(All of this in conjunction with sensible expectations and management of course).

Plan sounds good, let them work out where they all stand with one another, who likes what/doesn't like what, in a big open space that isn't anyones in particular, doesn't have 'stuff' to worry about and then back at home everyone should have clearer ideas of whats ok, whats not.