Beyond Adolescence - part 4

[SpanielsGalore]

Didn't realise we were that close to the end of part 3. 😂

@tizwozliz I think most of Europe has similar things about dogs on leads. I know in lots of countries they have to be muzzled on public transport and there are designated 'dogs off lead' areas. I don't think they have freedom fields either, so like you say must be a bit of a nightmare to try and exercise high energy breeds properly.

Denmark does have dedicated dog areas, though they vary in quality and size. There's a couple of decent ones near where we stay and a dog swimming lake (the photos with the heather are in one of them) but they're still a 30 minute drive. They're free but not for exclusive use rather than the sort of dog fields you'd hire out in the UK.

The bit that annoys me the most is that there are huge beaches you drive on but dogs aren't allowed to be off lead in the summer months. Hundreds of metres from the dunes at the waters edge on a beach with hundreds of vehicles driving on it, it seems implausible that the rule protects wildlife.

I miss the good old days when talk of coffee was banned. 😂 I used to get laughed at for taking my mug on holiday with me and here you all are taking coffee machines away with you.

I definitely wouldn't have working cockers if they couldn't be allowed off lead. I love seeing them running through the woods, having fun. I'd probably stick with one small dog.

P has not had a good day today. She was very whiny/squeally all morning, despite being on sedatives. And she refused to go outside after her 4pm meal. She refused yesterday too. I hope she gets the all clear on Thursday.

@TheHungryHungryLandsharks I ignored that 'I ask for KC registered dogs to be de-registered' post. It was too ridiculous for words. If you don't want to buy a KC dog, go and get a proper Heinz 57 mongrel.

@TheHungryHungryLandsharks thankfully no one was in the garden, I was only a little worried they would ‘release the hounds’ on us.
@Bupster what is your brothers dog like? Temperament wise I mean. Are they trainable? I can’t imagine having something that tiny running around, I’d be terrified of treading on it!
My DH also takes the coffee machine on holiday. He only ever drinks espressos, and needs about a hundred of them to get going in the morning. I don’t know how he is still alive.
I was also going to ask @tizwozlizabout her portable one as a possible Christmas present. Thinking he could take it on his train commute…
Also suffering from the humidity at the moment. I can’t believe how clammy I feel all the time. Not pleasant.
@SpanielsGalore sending lots of gentle loves for P. Really hope she’s feeling better soon.
I lost Merry yesterday morning. Or maybe she lost me. She went down the riverbank where it is quite steep so I was just striding on ahead, in fact a passing bloke had started chatting to me and was showing me photos of his cats (!) so I lost concentration on where she was. I think she then came back to the path, couldn’t see me and panicked and ran back the way we had come. By the time I caught up with her she was properly scared, poor girl. Maybe that’ll learn er to keep me always in sight, but I doubt it.

@tizwozliz that would frustrate me as well! I guess at least there are some places you can go that are sort of close, although it would get very exhausting having to drive 30 minutes each way twice a day to dog walk...

@SpanielsGalore I won't mention coffee again 😶Although I am very smug that so many people seem to take their coffee machine on holiday!

Ohh poor P. She really is having a rough time of it. Do they know when she might be better? Feels like she's not been herself for a while now🙁

I have to say, the first thing I thought when I read it was 'if someone asked me to de-register one of my dogs because they disagree with the KC, I wouldn't sell them a puppy.' But I resisted saying that 😂

@Struckbylightning At least no one saw you burst into their garden 😂

Does your DH want to start commuting with me? We can share the portable coffee machine (sorry Spaniels, I know I said no more coffee talk). 😃

Bless Merry! That'll certainly teach her - she'll stick to you like glue now. Were you yelling her name whilst she carried on running the other way? Hen does that sometimes but that could be because she's getting a bit older. I feel like some dogs just aren't good at processing where a noise is coming from and go the wrong way. Really embarrassing when people watch you do it as well as they clearly think the dog is badly trained, but they're just not good at placing noise.

Three more days of work. Not that I am counting down.

@TheHungryHungryLandsharks K ran the wrong way a couple of weeks ago. She always nips under a fence to flush pheasants that are hiding in the crops. She came back out at the middle point and I was at the left corner. I blew the whistle and she went racing up to the right corner. Found I wasn't there, so ran back to the centre point. She did it several times too. I had to fetch her in the end.
It was really weird, because she's not done it before or since. She'll ignore me altogether if she's on a scent trail, but she was trying to find me this time.

P is at the vets for a check up on Thursday. I'm hoping it's all healed and she's allowed freedom then. It must still be sore, despite the extra pain meds, as she squealed when going up the back door steps yesterday.

I didn't even know you could de--register a dog from the KC. Seems totally pointless to me. But yes. A great way to weed out the utter nob buyers.

@Struckbylightning Poor Merry having a panic. I doubt she'll learn from it. None of mine have.

Torrential rain here this morning. K refused to go out for a wee. Going to take her out for a quick walk whilst it's stopped. Knowing my luck, it will have started again by the time I have got ready to leave.

Don’t scare me by saying, ‘I lost Merry yesterday morning.’. I thought for a second she’d passed away! Glad she’s ok. Was walking in the wood with DH at the weekend and he asked whether that part of the wood was where I’d lost Dog. I said the same as you, I didn’t lose him, he ran off! Not the same thing.

Sending positive get well hugs to P.

Rain - still a rare commodity here. The odd few spots here and there, and the odd heavy shower, but even if forecast, it’s avoiding this part of the country.

Maybe dh could join you on your coffee commute.

There’s a brand of coffee called ‘Coffi Lab’ if any one wants a coffee/dog themed present. You can even personalise the packet. Dh said it was quite nice coffee (I’m not a coffee drinker).

coffilab.co.uk/collections/coffee

@Silverbirchleaf Sorry about that! I had a similar moment when I saw someone on Facebook had posted that their baby had died. Further reading told me it was a cat, still not nice but WTF.
@TheHungryHungryLandsharks she was out of sight by the time I realised she was gone. Some dog walkers (they had a PACK of huskies!) told me they saw her heading down-river. They had tried to get hold of her but she was too scared. By the time I caught sight of her she was heading back towards me. I was whistling and calling so maybe she had heard me, I’m not sure. I don’t run, but was hustling as fast as I could.

Bit of a nicer day today, less humid and some nice bits of sun mixed with gentle rain. I’m amazed how fast the grass has recovered… not the grass in my garden, it’s still almost bare earth with Merry-holes in it. I want to know what kind of magic grass the Council uses that bounces back so readily.

@SpanielsGalore maybe it's something todo with birds (she says trying to sound intelligent) or the wind or similar. Dogs definitely do get discombobulated at times...at least judging by this thread!

Let us know how P gets on. Sending good vibes.❤

I don't think you can (I'd have to google tbh)...but the idea of someone wanting to do it just made me go 'ew' (in a very petulant child way), hence not selling to someone who asked!😁

@Silverbirchleaf that's fantastic! What a fab present for any lab owner! I love the idea of 'party lab' coffee. The 'Golden' one is decaf though so I can't buy it...I'm sure I have an allergy to decaf. Every time DH buys it, I have this completely involuntary reaction and hide it in the back of the cupboard. Allergies. Awful things.

@Struckbylightning Ohh bless Merry. She's still a baby as well (well, sort of) so she was probably so scared. Nice of them to try and help her though 😊

I don't want to make you jealous...but the grass in my garden is fully recovered from being dead. But we've had a lot of drizzle (as with SilverBirch, not much rain but lots of drizzle and still v.muggy) which must have helped.

Bit of a traumatic time today. DWS got trapped in the garage and no one could find her. We think she snuck in there after DH when he went in, and he didn't notice her so locked her in after. I was absolutely convinced she'd gotten out the front gate and would get down to the main road actually I got completely hysterical and said the M25 which is about a 15 minute drive away and be hit by a car and die. DH thought she'd gotten in the woods so went to find her whilst I stayed behind on the off-chance she either turned up or someone found her and rang/bought her home. I found her in the end because Twatdog was crying trying to get in the garage. She was there. Fast asleep. And naturally my first instinct was 'oh my god, she's dead.'

Not irrational at all. She's now safely tucked up on the sofa opposite me where I can keep an eye on her.

@TheHungryHungryLandsharks OMG What a nightmare! How long was she missing for? How dare she sleep peacefully when everyone else is in panic mode! Good old TD to the rescue. I hope he was rewarded for finding his little sis.
Why do they never bark when they are trapped in rooms? Useless creatures.

I went with the wind blowing theory for K getting the wrong direction.

I have brought P's appointment forward to tomorrow, as it looks like she may have ripped out a stitch.

To be honest, my ‘lawn’ has always been a bit crap. It is overshadowed by next doors 2 massive evergreens, one of them is a monkey puzzle tree, I hate it. And last year it was infested with sedge grass so I had to totally dig up about two thirds of it. I then re-seeded it, but then the puppy and my menopause arrived and all garden work went out the window. I was going to try again this year but then the heat-wave…

I managed to traumatise Merry again today. We were having a lovely game of tug and she ran full pelt into my fist. She looked so shocked and then turned tail and legged it upstairs and under my bed. Poor baby.
But at least I didn’t lock her in the garage. Poor DWS. No in fact poor you, she was clearly unbothered. Why on Earth didn’t she woof?? That must have been so stressful! I’m glad that Twatdog was such a hero. On the other hand, how did your DH not notice her? GR’s are not exactly small. Does she tiptoe? Glad alls well that ends well.

@@SpanielsGalore best of luck at the vet. Really hope P is ok xx

@SpanielsGalore just over two hours! She didn’t seem bothered at all - barely raised her head or twitched when I entered. Gave me more of a ‘why are you disturbing me’ vibe than anything else.

Twatdog got lots of lots and cuddles and prime position on the bed.

DH was less than impressed as it was the middle of the working day and he had to explain that the dog had been in the garage the whole time to his team when he came back!

Oh poor P! She really is in the wars, isn’t she? 😕 fingers crossed all is fine! Or do we want something to be wrong so it can fixed and we have a proper diagnosis?!

@Struckbylightning now is a good time to re-seed! I’ve done that at the front(ish) and it’s taking really well. Lots of dandelions though, which are like my arch nemesis at this point. I’m on a one woman mission to kill them all.

Poor Merry! Surely she knew it was a mistake?! She’s such a sensitive girl. Perhaps that’s because she’s so smart?! I’ve punched mine, kicked them, shoved them out of bed onto the floor (in my sleep admittedly) and they don’t even bat an eyelid.

We keep their food in there…so I guess she was quite content in the knowledge that a human would appear eventually! I think DH was probably in a rush and the garage is quite oddly laid out, so if he turned right and she turned left and went behind the cars he wouldn’t have seen her!

I’m getting my payback today though. Already on the train into the office with DH, so dogs are off to spend the day with Satan 😂 yes I’m punishing the many for the sins of the few, but perhaps they’ll use this as an opportunity to keep DWS in line

@TheHungryHungryLandsharks That's ages! No wonder you were panicking. I'd have posted on Dogs Lost by then.

We're hoping P hasn't ripped a stitch and won't need to go back in to have it redone. And it's just taking longer than normal to heal. Her spey wound took longer too, so perhaps she's a slow healer.

@Struckbylightning Poor Merry. She's not having a good time of it lately. Hopefully it didn't take her long to forgive you.
I've trodden on paws before and made them squeal. Oh. And I've kicked P in the face. We were on a walk and she darted in front of me to eat a dandelion. Think that one upset me more than her.

Two dogs followed us round on our walk today, ended up having to walk them home with us as no sign of owner and they would have just followed us onto our fairly busy road.

Collars but no tags so they're in our garden waiting for the dog warden to come. Friendly enough but pestered my two a bit. Rottweiler and a German Shepherd, both intact males. Suspect they've escaped from somewhere.

@SpanielsGalore yep!! And she was all nonchalant about it. The more I think about it, the more I think it was protest over something…

Oh that’s sort of good news then? Nothing serious like infection etc. P is quite a sensitive soul, isn’t she ❤️

@tizwozliz jeepers! Are they still there?! Good on you for bringing them back! I wouldn’t have been able to, but that’s cos 7 dogs might be a tad unmanageable…

Did your girls tell them off when they pestered?

They've been picked up by the dog warden, chipped but details on the chip don't match current owner. Little pup is a wimp so she screamed when the Rottie went near her and they weren't listening when big pup told them she wasn't happy with the attention so I suspect they've had limited interaction with other dogs.

Luckily was out with the OH so I walked ours home on one lead and he used the other lead for the other two. They walked very nicely on the lead so obviously used to it. Both very thirsty and they found a couple of Kong toys in the bushes I didn't know we were missing 🤣

Big pup not happy about being shut in doors whilst they had the garden, but they weren't in the best condition so I didn't want them mixing too much.

@tizwozliz a rottie and a German Shepherd? That was brave of you. Poor dogs! Someone must surely be missing them! At least they paid for their keep by finding the toys.

@tizwozliz lucky your OH was there to help and that your girls are so mild/well-trained! Did you let them take the lost toys, or will they be washed off and given to the girls?

Hope those dogs find their home again! Their owner must be really worried. Clearly fairly well-trained and well mannered if they only pestered a bit but walked nicely with your OH.

Absolutely lovely morning walk today. I had to join a super early meeting (6am UK time)! so I took a break from 9-10 to dog walk? Did I get drenched on my walk? Yes. Was it the best walk in months because I didn't see anyone and it was cold enough to wear a coat? Also yes. 😀There's something very invigorating about walking in the rain.

@SpanielsGalore @Bupster you will be proud to know, Hairy Coo has STILL not been shredded. He is officially out-lived every other toy I have ever bought Twatdog. Thanks for the recommendation! He keeps greeting every visitor with it in his mouth and squeaking. He absolutely loves it.

@TheHungryHungryLandsharks I have to disagree. Me and K got soaked to the skin the other day. It was not invigorating. Perhaps the novelty wears off when it's a regular occurrence.

Really glad TD loves his Hairy Coo. I imagine it's much more suitable for him than for K. She trips over it when she carries it around.

P went for her vet check yesterday. The nurse said the stitches look alright. One may have come out, but doesn't need replacing. She did have a temperature though, so they gave her a 48 hour antibiotic injection and want to see her again tomorrow.

K finally seems to be back to her normal self. She's trying to play with the other two and running amok on walks.

@SpanielsGalore oh that's brilliant news about K!!!!! So so glad she's better and causing chaos again. Fingers crossed she finds some nasty sniffs to roll in as well as deer (or something) to chase to really make up for a few weeks of not being herself😊Are the others playing with her, or still both not 100% and ignoring her a bit?

How is P doing today? Any sign of improvement or do you think the vets might need to do some more tests tomorrow?

Perhaps if it becomes more regular I'll grow sick of the rain. But today was bliss. Just felt quite refreshing after so many months of it being muggy

Sadly I suspect the owner isn't all that responsible. It looks like they're serial escapees from the responses to the Facebook post I've got.

I also think you’re very brave rescuing those two dogs. They’d scare me!

Glad all the missing dogs were found.

We had misfortune as well yesterday. Dog got stung by a wasp! We’ve had an influx of wasps recently, who seem to be hovering above the grass. I was playing ball and Dog suddenly shook his leg and his whole demeanour changed. Next minute he was licking his foot, and had that wounded soldier look. He limped inside, and I gave him a pigs ear which he didn’t devour. For a while, there was a lot of heavy panting but eventually he calmed down, ate his pigs ear, and seemed happier in himself.

@Silverbirchleaf Poor dog. Must have been painful.
One of mine was stung on the face by a bee once and it swelled up to the size of a tennis ball. I keep Piriton in stock now.

P has been back to the vets. Her temperature is back to normal and they have taken the stitches out. They've advised to keep her babygro on for a few days to stop her licking the wound. They said some of the stitches were a bit tight and digging in, so it would have been quite painful and sore. She's allowed two ten minute lead walks a day and I think I'll keep her on lead in the garden still. But she's allowed out of the crate, as long as she's not too wild. So I'll leave it up for now, just in case. I'm sure it won't be long before K is jumping on her head, trying to get her to wrestle.

Glad to hear P is making progress. No wonder she was out of sorts if the stitches were painful. She’ll probably appreciate the freedom.

I am alive (not that I think anyone was that worried).

Took me 3.5 hours to get to Norfolk yesterday, so super quick. Downside was I got there by 10:00 so had 6 hours to kill before I could get into the cottage (but the cottage company did ring at 2 and said I could get in early). So dogs and I had a walk around Holkham and into Wells and then sat in the dog walking field for 2 hours! Off to Holkham beach shortly, once I've finished my morning latte and DDogs have digested their breakfast.

@SpanielsGalore glad to hear there was some diagnosis for P although that sounds like it definitely must have hurt her! How she's doing now?

@Silverbirchleaf hope DDog has recovered from his wasp sting!