Our Cosmic Autumn Rebellion (Adolescent Support Group)

[MonCoubousMonTourmalet]

Okay folks, let's head into late summer/autumn.

@Nella68 he’s not very fond of water so doesn’t go near the edge thankfully! The river runs along the side of the canal so we loop around there and he will occasionally plodge in a shallow bit if he’s feeling brave 😄

@SpanielsGalore I would feel the same way re what you said before about the vets not really believing you or taking it seriously (to the tune of a consolation fee!), so I think I would do the same and keep an eye on it too.

Vinny is also scared of the bins! We live in a mid terrace and everyone has to drag their bins to the bottom of the back alley and he hates the sound of it. He used to be the same with wheelie suitcases but seems to be less of an issue now. He is suspicious of them but won’t bark any more. The vacuum cleaner is a whole different ball game though 🥲

@YorkshireFelix P isn't too bad with people putting the bins out, but the noise of the lorries scares her. We live in a quiet village, so she can hear them from streets away. Unfortunately today all the bins are emptied - we have 4 dustbins and a glasss box, so from 8 - 11 she's on edge. She trembles at the glass collecting, so I try to be out for that one.
She is also frightened of the vacuum cleaner. She won't come into the room, even if it is switched off. No problems with the lawn mower though. She'll bloody lie in front of that and make me go round her.

@SpanielsGalore Oh bless her, I can imagine having all the glass separate is a right racket. I have to vacuum every day and I absolutely hate it because he goes nuts. He doesn’t cower, he lunges at it barking and trying to bite it. If I use the hose to do any corners he then bites me because he’s even more scared of the hose. I can sort of manage it by having a handful of treats and chucking them his way whilst I move the vacuum with the other hand but as soon as I hesitate with the treats he freaks out again. I started doing that as I saw it recommended on the Dog Training Advice & Support group on FB but it’s been months and it’s not made any improvement… I was going to start a thread about it actually to see if anyone had any advice!

I have to say, it's much easier to have a pup who takes herself off somewhere else when the vacuum is on over the one who just lays on the rug even when you bump the vacuum into her! I have one of each.

@YorkshireFelix That does sound difficult. I have no advice I am afraid. P takes herself off to another room. N ignores it totally. And K is now confident enough to sit on the settee and watch from a safe place. But I didn't train that. She's just got used to it over time.

Pupsy doesn't like the hoover when I hoover and likewise lunges and bites it but is fine when the cleaner hoovers?! Riddle me that.

Are you telling me that the solution is to get a cleaner? I mean if I have to 😂

Brie just gets out of the way of the vacuum but Algy was in love with it and wouldn't leave it alone 😳

Perhaps she is protecting Mummy from the noisy monster, but couldn't care less if it attacks the cleaner.

Last time I walked Bill along the canal he jumped in and I had to haul all 23kg of him out by the long line and harness. Then the little sod jumped in the pond on the way home, twice.

@Bupster Makes me glad Vinny is such a wuss 😂

@Aubrielle Snark Sister no.1 (assuming that’s me as I’m the most snarky) was on top form last night pointing out that four breeding bitches who will have three litters each does not a ‘good breeder’ make. I really don’t know how people can recommend these breeders witha straight face. 😑

It’s easy to buy a puppy that’s not from the best circumstances but surely with some it’s so obvious…

On the plus side, WFH today which meant the dogs went to our local (30 mins drive) lake. Now I have five happy stinky dogs. Twatdog forced his way up from the foot of the bed last night (past Pen and Hen who snapped at him). And snuggled into me, with his head over my face, so deeply that I almost suffocated. I know I should encourage some more independence from him but after having so many girls who were a bit more independent it’s hard not to bask in it. But he’s nearly three, so I’m telling myself he’s too old to train out of it. I’ll just have to allow him to be a little koala.

Is this one of the Australian Labradoodle things @LandSharksAnonymous ?
I was on full snark also (although I still have the snark training wheels on, admittedly), with regard to old breeds no longer having a useful purpose. Brie is now officially a dinosaur 😆And yes, that was the actual word.
Not that I named my breed or would ever recommend it to anyone, I never ever would, and it is most definitely not a good first dog.

Sadly, people will never learn with the puppy buying thing. No matter how many times you warn them, they'll ignore the red flags because puppy is cute.

5 happy stinky dogs first thing in the morning sounds like a wonderful thing! Being smothered in your own bed - not sure.
Must admit to never sleeping with a dog on the bed. The first 2 PMD did share my parents bed though, because their stairs had a halfway point so it was doable even for a large Pyr. The cats were always in with me. Because we're end of terrace here, the stairs go straight up and it's just too steep for the dogs. They can get upstairs fine, but the descent is a struggle because of their long back legs. So unless we move to a bungalow I'll never know the joy of being suffocated by a big soppy boy dog 😢

@Aubrielle it was! And the other person has just linked 5 clear puppy farms - 15 breeding bitches for goodness sake. How can anyone actually promote these breeders!? And these are meant to be the 'leading' ones for that 'breed.'

Insanity.

I fully support the idea of you moving to a bungalow just for Brie 😀Smothered hugs first thing in the morning or late at night are the best thing ever tbh. I saw that...Brie is definitely not a dinosaur. Dinosaurs aren't that pretty and, more importantly, Brie actually has a purpose and has technically stood the test of time as she's kept her instincts.

@Bupster I know you're lurking (because I am creepy). How are you and Bill doing? You mentioned doing lots of waiting around to try and get him used to it - is he getting better?

@LandSharksAnonymous I think it's lovely that TD wants Mummy cuddles at bedtime. 💖 Better than having an independent one that openly snubs you. 😫
How does he cope when your DH is home? Does he mind sharing? TF that is, your DH gets no choice.

@Aubrielle I have missed the dinosaur comment. Some people are funny, and not in an amusing way.

Talking of breeders - I do think it is extremely difficult to find a breeder who reaches @LandSharksAnonymous very high gold standard. My dogs' breeder certainly wouldn't. But I would get another puppy from him in a heartbeat, as I think they are fantastic little dogs.
Equally as a buyer, @LandSharksAnonymous wouldn't sell me a puppy as I fail her checklist for prospective buyers.
So I guess who have to find the best breeder you can and think about what compromises you are prepared to make. So perhaps silver standard ones. And obviously breeders that are miles away from puppy farms and greeders.

Here endeth the morning waffle. 😁

@SpanielsGalore When DH is home, it's actually not too bad. Hen absolutely adores him and sticks to him like glue, so if anything it free's up more space for Twatdog to snuggle against me. But Twatdog does noticeably cling to me when DH is home more than the others do, but as I said before I did coddle him far too much when he was a baby. But I know DH misses the dogs so much when he's away because once we've spoken about DDs, the first thing he does is ask about the dogs.😆

Don't forget Clem snubs me! Doesn't even get on the bed, and this morning didn't even greet me - just left the room when I opened the bedroom door.😂

Definitely not waffle!

I wouldn't say I am gold standard! But I do care about the breed so much after so many years involved in the breed - it's hard not to get a bit carried away and I have a bit of mania, so I do get very carried away about making sure they are as healthy and perfect as they possibly can be. And I guess the benefit of having been around for so long is I can be inordinately fussy about who I sell to - and it's certainly not because I don't think other people wouldn't make good owners, but because there is always someone that bit better. It's a bit like adopting, isn't it? Someone could be an excellent match...but there is always that 'perfect' match that comes along.

I think this is the point though is 100% correct: So I guess who have to find the best breeder you can and think about what compromises you are prepared to make. So perhaps silver standard ones. And obviously breeders that are miles away from puppy farms and greeders.

So many people don't even do that. It's so easy not to buy from a puppy farm or a greeder...and yet they do. And I just cannot understand why. Surely if you love animals, and dogs (because why else would you get a dog) you wouldn't want to contribute in any way to abuse?!

How were your rabble on their morning walk? I hope it's not pouring down for you like it is for us - having spent months whining about the heat, I am now whining about the rain 😁

Good morning all. It’s beautiful here but the rain is coming later. We’ve just been on our first really muddy walk of the autumn. I just need to wait until the mud dries so I can brush it out.

I’ve been debating whether to write this or to just let it go but I’m feeling a need to get it out.
Would it be possible for any ‘snarky’ comments and the ‘doodle’ debate to be kept off this support thread? I have found it a really useful source of non judgmental support but I am increasingly finding it tricky as I am feeling judged for my choice of dog.
I have absolutely no problem with you being judgmental on other threads- I find myself looking forward to the next instalment but it would be great if it’s kept there.

Anyway, that’s off my chest now; I’ll go back to doing the very best I can with bringing up my dog.

It is totally absurd @LandSharksAnonymous that 13, 15, 16 breeding bitches can be viewed in a positive way. All our pups came from small kennels with only one or two bitches and a few oldies in residence.

If it's any consolation @SpanielsGalore , I'm pretty sure we would also be turned down as puppy buyers by @LandSharksAnonymous . Every time we enquire about a PMD litter I'm terrified that we might be turned down 😨We'd probably also be rejected by a rescue I should imagine.

Sorry if you are upset by things here @Nella68 , it is understandable that you would be sensitive, but the "snarky" comments the other day were nothing to do with a doodle. It was a completely different thread on a completely different subject. It was about a Labrador.

Hi everyone,

Little update after everyone's kind advice on my teenage twat dog not recalling.

As advised we went absolutely back to basics. Long line, whistle and high value treats and we've had a really good couple of weeks now. We are keeping him long line in big open spaces and letting him off in woodland / quieter areas and hes come back every single time. Still keeping up with leading and u leading him randomly and hes now seems to have forgotten about his little bouncing game.

Really reassured that he is just being a tit and hasn't forgotten all the training! Basically because it's been bloody hard work!

He is chewing up everything in sight at home so hes obviously feeling rebellious lol. Costing me a fortune in toys as hes getting through them so fast but otherwise has been more settled.

We've booked him onto an 'older dogs' 6 months plus dog training class that begins at the end of the month. Its the beginners class that goes on to a KC levels. Its 7 weeks. Looking forward to doing that with him and hopefully developing some of the stuff we have been doing at home with him.

He recently started at day care 1 day a week and the feedback about him has been lovely. Apparently he is always happy and social but has good manners with other dogs. Is respectful and is lovely to be around which is nice to hear that something we are doing is going well atleast! Really pleased this has worked out. We dont actually technically need the day care but its a chance to let him spend time with other dogs and also they offer boarding but only for known dogs that use them regularly for other services. Knowing hes happy and settled means if we do need to go away without him we can do so.

I actually also reached out to the rescue and asked for support and they were actually so great. Advice was pretty much all what I got here so nothing new but they did have their behaviourist do a video call with us to offer us support and ideas and training advice and I was glad they had good follow up care when we asked for help. Its reassuring even if it is just teenage antics!

Hope you are all also enjoying the rainy walks and feeling that autumn is on its way - my favourite time of year!

Genuinely thank you to those that took the time to offer me advice and help and listen to me rant. I really appreciated the support at the time having had such a hard few days.

Apologies @Nella68 . I am sorry if I have said something to offend or upset you. I'm not anti doodle. I'm anti puppy farmer of any breed.
My previous comment about breeders was because for a while, I have been feeling something (not pressure as such. Maybe defensive. 🤷‍♀️) about my own dogs' breeding. Mine are from trialling kennels and not bred in a home.

But as you say, we are all here because we are trying to do the best we can for our dogs.

@Nella68 as @SpanielsGalore it's not anti-doodle at all. A lovely doodle is a beautiful thing. What we've been discussing are labs (As @Aubrielle said) and also puppy farming (i.e. 4 breeding bitches up to 16, as just linked in another thread - both of which are completely indefensible. I'd say the same if it was Golden Retriever breeder.

Sorry if you feel that way though! I shall bow out of this thread as I think it'll be hard for me not to reference poor breeding practices as it's just an intrinsic part of providing advice/support - if your puppy has had a bad start to life, or less than stellar breeding, it will be harder to manage things as the first 8 weeks are so crucial.

But as I said, bowing out now.

@stillchasingdereksheppard That's a lovely update. So glad things are going well for you. It's also good that the rescue have been so supportive. Good to know we know what we are talking about too. 😂 I bet you were beaming with pride with the day care's feedback. 💖
I hope the training classes go well. And if ever you meet another obnoxious person, (You will. There are a lot of them around!) come back and read your own post to remind yourself how well you are doing.

Likewise @LandSharksAnonymous , I'm not very good at having to censor myself, as you may have noticed. So I'll wander off for a while too.

Bad breeding practices are inexcusable and sadly no breed is ever totally immune from that.

It's sad. You will be a massive loss to this thread, because you've offered so much guidance to new puppy owners. I feel it benefits us all to be able to have in-depth discussions - sometimes about difficult subjects - and I've learned a lot from you. Thanks for having my back on other threads as well 😉

I hope you'll change your mind and wander back in at some point, but if you're done here I totally get it x

Pupsy’s breeder wouldn’t meet others’ high standards either but she was my first dog and next time I will look at different things. She’s still fantastic though and I wouldn't change her for the world.

I seem to have missed a lot of the background here but lots of love to you @Nella68 and lovely Midge who is, after all, like a human in a dog suit! <3

@brushingboots thanks- it wasn’t anything personal towards me; it was just a request for this thread to be a support thread celebrating the highs of adolescent dog ownership and getting advice and understanding with the lows, rather than one discussing dodgy breeding practices and the owners that engender this.
There’s absolutely a place for these discussions but I personally would rather them not be in this thread.

The human in a dog suit disgraced himself at agility yesterday. The bitch in season was there again. Last week M and the other intact male ignored her but this week she must have smelt particularly alluring as the 2 boys were absolutely giddy. M is usually the calmest, most obedient dog in the class, but this week he was feral; charging around, not listening, trying to hump me and nipping my arms. The other male was much the same, but as he’s half the size of M it wasn’t so bad for his owner. The poor boys just didn’t know what to do with themselves!