Beyond Adolescence - V

[SpanielsGalore]

New topic for a new thread, inspired by a post about poo bags.

Does your dog's poo smell?

I was under the impression that dog poo only smells bad if the food doesn't suit the dog. Same goes for flatulence.

The only time my dogs' poo smells or they have windy bottoms is if they've eaten something rotten they've found on a walk.

@Struckbylightning Cheese - Dujes absolute favourite. Dh did an experiment the day and unwrapped a Babybel in a completely different room to Dog. He was there in seconds.

Hope Merry is recovering well.

@CoubousAndTourmaIet Loving the tales of Odo. Although funny, it’s also kinda sad that Odo wanted some of his ‘mothers’ milk. Pease give her a hug from me.,

@TheHungryHungryLandsharks Glad you love Bexhill. It’s just a lovely promenade to walk along. Shall I change my user name to Judith Chalmets? (Showing my age)

@YorkshireFelix Did you get a black and white rug to hide all the dog hairs?! Lovely photo.

Thanks all for your concern, she isn’t ill though. It’s an anti flea, tick, various worms etc treatment called Lotimil plus. One tablet a month, then also 2 tablets every 3 months against (?maybe) lungworm. Do you guys not have such a tablet regime? I am fairly sure my old girl had 1 milbemax a month and they were chewy and tasty so she just gobbled them up.
Very Autumnal here the last couple of days. Blustery and showery. Weirdly, my grass seed has finally decided to grow. I wonder if it will survive?

@Silverbirchleaf my old dog used to come running if we so much as took the cheese grater out of the cupboard! Cheese tax was compulsory.

@TheHungryHungryLandsharkswhat a good boy Twatdog is, but surely the rule is; if it hits the floor it’s fair game?

@CoubousAndTourmaIet fancy Odo going for a suckle. Poor Brie! I am liking the shortening to Odo. Are you a Star Trek fan?

@YorkshireFelix so very shiney! Is that a trick of the light, or have you been busy with the brush?

@Struckbylightning We use Nexguard Spectra which is a monthly treatment. Dog being a Labrador just consumes it with his normal food. Think it covers lungworm as well as other nasties.

However, not sure if it’s a coincidence but sometimes he seems more hyperactive the day after. Ds said he seemed wired once, and another time he played up at training, so now I’m careful when I give it to him, and ensure we have a calm day (ie no training or big walks) the day after. May just be a coincidence.

I confess that we never treat for fleas, ticks or worms beyond the initial puppy wormers. We used to, but we had quite a few bad experiences of the dogs being highly sensitive to stuff. When you've had a healthy dog die from a vaccine reaction you tend to change your views on preventative treatments.

Not Star Trek fans at all @Struckbylightning , but was asked the same question by a neighbour the other day, when I was sitting on the step with pup, so I had to look it up. We're still trying Odo out, alongside Dill. I always find it strange at first finding the right name and getting them used to it.

Mine wear Seresto collars, because we are inundated with ticks up here. I've just ordered new ones, as I've picked 4 ticks off them this week.
I don't worm them.

@CoubousAndTourmaIet Can't you use his full name? Seems a shame to shorten it.

Weather has been very changeable here but we've successfully managed to dodge the worst of it. Run on the beach and the woods this morning and a mountain walk this afternoon.

Ours get wormed when they return to the UK as per the law but otherwise they don't have worm, flea or tick treatment routinely. They both gobble whatever it is down for that (milpro I think) but some tablets must taste worse than others, I know getting big pup to take antibiotics wasn't straightforward.

@tizwozliz Handsome dogs. Beautiful scenery.

@Silverbirchleaf oh she was fab! It was so lovely and good for the dogs to get out and go elsewhere.

@Struckbylightning we do drontal and bravecto, but I crush it up into their food (which they then don't eat). And nope! If it's dropped, it's not eaten. They all ignore it! They don't even eat from their food-bowls without a command. Partly because I know retrievers can be terrible scavengers and I don't want them eating something that makes them very sick but also it's something I teach as puppies so they always associate me with food (and therefore always come when I call)!

@YorkshireFelix hope DD feels better soon! Isn't V a handsome little chap? Every time I see a little black cocker spaniel I just go 'ohhh' not sure what it is about black ones in particular...

@SpanielsGalore by about 8 i'm usually ready for lunch 😂

@tizwozliz your photography skills are too good!!! Girls are looking lovely as always.

Dogs have been helping DH In the garden this morning. By helping what I mean is he is digging up a tree and they are, very helpfully, dragging the bits of branch he's sawed off around the garden and leaving leaves everywhere. It's been so nice here the last day or so, nice and crisp. Feels like autumn. 😍

@TheHungryHungryLandsharks Whereas I'm not ready for breakfast until lunch time. 😂

I hope your DH appreciated the dogs' help.

We've missed autumn (and summer) and gone straight into winter. Bitterly cold up here. I'm going to have to start wearing my gloves soon.

What happened to the cockerpoo thread? It had one reply saying to rescue instead when I saw it and now it seems to have disappeared. I'm guessing the poster didn't get the replies they were looking for, so asked for it to be deleted. Saying they knew the negatives, but wanted one anyway was never going to go down well.

I noticed that thread had disappeared also @SpanielsGalore although I had miraculously resisted the temptation to open my big gob.

Chilly here too and the little one opted to sleep in the kitchen last night (warmer than the extension) right up against the dog gate and close to Brie.
They had a play session today and she has actually stopped turning her head away from him now. She seems a lot more relaxed and normal, currently asleep on her back. So hopefully we're over the worst.

@SpanielsGalore i misread that as cockatoo thread! Wondered why you were reading about rescuing birds!

Morning Folks,

Hope all is well. Heavy drizzle here this morning. Miss B stepped from the back step onto the garden bench then turned around and came back in without toileting, having refused to go near the wet grass.

Well that was a fun night. O awake every two hours and unless I respond immediately, he howls like a tiny wolf. Fortunately, our neighbours seem to be away but I need to get on top of the vocalising pdq. Last time we introduced a puppy to adult was 2009 (!) when I was only mid forties and I think I had underestimated how exhausting puppy/adult would be now I'm early sixties 😩 I've kind of got that baby/toddler thing going where every time baby settles, the two year old wakes him up 🙄

Pup has become very bitey and hyper, I think overstimulated from having both of us all weekend after a quiet first few days with me while DP was working. They're so sensitive to tiny changes in routine. I'm trying to teach settle without too much stimulus and keeping it all nicely quiet and calm. Why do we always forget how horrible puppies are during the landshark stage? I mean they look cute but bloody hell it's no fun walking around with a puppy's jaws clamped onto your trouser leg.

Still got no idea how a certain person here manages to carry a massive GR pup around to coffee shops etc., but she's clearly made of sterner stuff than I! This one is only 9 weeks and defeating me already - even sitting on the front step to watch the world has become challenging.

@SpanielsGalore He did not appreciate their help. I think he's well and truly gotten over the 'I really missed the dogs' thing he had going on when I returned from holiday.

I think they asked for it to be deleted. Just like this current sprocker thread will go. People only ever want to hear the good but when they're faced with the bad they just clam up or strop off. Reminds me a bit of DD1 when I tell her she can't have chocolate spread sandwiches at lunch if she's having a twix for breakfast 😳

@Silverbirchleaf I'd love a cockertoo! But ownership of any sort of bird seems like such a commitment as they live so long...plus i'm not really sure how I feel about birds living inside. Feels a bit cruel? But then I am also anti zoo and anti 'wildlife park.'

Tbh at this point I'm basically anti-everything.

@CoubousAndTourmaIet Bless Brie for not wanting to tiddle outside. Wish mine did that. Most of them have been outside in the rain all afternoon...just laying there. Being pointless.

You'll get there! It's a bit like riding a bike. And, of course, puppy probably extra clingy and needy as he wants Brie (I imagine?). I read somewhere once that puppy smell is like baby smell - you're geared to loving them, which explains why despite everyone knowing how horrible the Landshark stage is, people keep getting them! And also explains why ages ago we were all saying how much we love puppy smell. How's are him and Brie getting on?

Tbh, I'm just glad I've never had a Mali puppy. They are awful, I flat out refused to go near my friends Mali when it was a puppy. It made my Goldens look placid.

I'm just very strong in the arms 😂Feable in the legs though. Like pointless little twigs. Plus it's sheer determination and I reward myself with cake.

Oh that puppy smell, they should bottle it. When I carry him down the back steps I nuzzle into the back of his little fluffy head or an ear. Scrumptious. Then he comes in and sits in front of me and I realise that the back half of him smells of wee...😒

I'd never cope with a Mali in a million years either @TheHungryHungryLandsharks , despite being very much a pastoral breed person. Speaking of which, someone has just moved to our village with a couple of Briards. Now that's a dog I could happily own if I wanted to downsize a tad from PMD. They're gorgeous!

Sounds like you're the physical opposite to me. I have strong legs like beech tree trunks but bony ribs and shoulders and long thin arms. My workouts with Brie have strengthened my upper body to some degree, but clearly I need to work much harder at it. Odilon is a mighty solid pup though. 12kg now 😬

Yup. Anti everything just about sums it up for me too I'm afraid.

@CoubousAndTourmaIet that perennial problem with puppies: half smells nice, half like wee. Twatdog used to roll in his wee wee puddles. Grim little bastard. How is his house training coming? I always assumed bigger breeds are easier to housetrain (Goldies are a dream as was my friends Mali, but people I know with smaller dogs seem to struggle more), but would be interested to know if you've found giant breeds easy-ish.

Are you doing any training with him yet (sit, stay etc) or more focussing on getting him comfortable with Brie and the house? Conscious it's probably very different in terms of raising a Pyr to a Goldie on what you do when.

Oh Briards are lovely!!! Quite unusual though, you definitely don't see many of them. Someone I work with used to have one, then she got a pug. Bit of an odd choice after a Briard, I thought...

I’ve pretty much forgotten how much I loathed the puppy stage!

I saw an incredible dog yesterday but no idea what it was. It was massive - probably one of the biggest dogs I’ve seen IRL and it was white and fully dreadlocked. I think might have been a Komondor after googling it. But it was magnificent so I totally get why people are in awe of yours @CoubousAndTourmaIet!! It was one of those dogs that people stop and stare at 😄

Well I don't know @TheHungryHungryLandsharks because I've nothing to compare them to, but to me they've all been pretty good. Boy puppies I find hold their wee better than girls do at 8-12 weeks, but no idea if that's a general thing or not. With poo, they've all been faultless. But he's doing well.

With the training yes, he knows sit/come/leave it/wait. He'll walk to heel with no lead, just because he's my shadow currently, but that could change. His manners are very good and he already sits to wait for his meals like the adult dogs have, he's pretty disinterested in food and treats but a lot of LGD are. His main motivation is attention/affection and it should be easy to train him without using food. The only thing I can fault him on is the barking 😬

I'm sure you saw two Komondorok near you about a year ago @YorkshireFelix , I think possibly one fully corded adult and one shaggy puppy...? You are very lucky to have them in the area as it is an extremely rare breed indeed. Only a handful registered each year, if any at all.

@CoubousAndTourmaIet Yes you are right but they weren’t corded!! I remember now. How funny that I saw another one (unless it’s one of the same duo but now corded, is that a thing?!). They were very fluffy like giant English sheepdogs. I’ve not seen them for yonks but I stopped walking V in the woods because he’s a nutter, and that’s where they usually are. The man walking it was different too - he was in full waxed country garb but the duo have two owners who are very much not country garb type people 😄

Oh, how interesting. Maybe there's a breeder in the area then @YorkshireFelix . I haven't seen a Komondor since our dog showing days, so probably 20 years ago now, but they are an impressive sight when fully corded and on the move. I can't imagine it being easy to keep one in a normal house though, I have to say.

@CoubousAndTourmaIet I wish I’d have stopped to talk to him but I had in my head that I bet he gets stopped all the time and is sick of it 🤣 if I ever see him again I will be brave and ask!

@CoubousAndTourmaIet looks like I might soon be joining you in puppy purgatory (DMum has finally decided to press ahead with a new puppy to keep Satan company and, naturally, we'll be doing super slow introductions which means muggins here gets puppy most of the time until Satan has decided she likes puppy...).

Sigh.

He sounds like such a smart boy, bless him! I must say I do like it when by 8 weeks they're pretty good on their bladder control. Wiping up wee constantly gets a bit tedious! Do you think when you do first walks he'll be your shadow or not? Will he go off lead? Sorry, so many questions!

@YorkshireFelix Ohh they are a lovely breed. But can you imagine the grooming!?

Speaking of which, I saw an old english today...fully clipped. Shaved down. Poor bugger.😅There are some dogs that just should not be shaved.

Been rainy by sunny here today but a bit warm, which is not nice for dog walking. Hope everyone is having a lovely day 😊

Ohhh @TheHungryHungryLandsharks Do tell!!! What sort of puppy? Is it a cocker or a GR? And won't you and your girls bond with it too much while you're waiting for Satan to become amenable to pup?

While I was out for my podiatry appointment this morning, Brie & Odo apparently had another play session. So that's very positive. Unfortunately, the boy followed it up by having a mega shouty meltdown when DP put him in the extension behind the dog gate. He's a very bright boy, but we won't know until we start getting out for walks just how people friendly he is. A LGD that's too sociable can be a struggle to trust off lead because their curiosity can mean they (understandably) scare people. All the Wolf Killer sensationalism on social media doesn't help much with that, it has to be said.

Very blustery here, blowing a hoolie and pouring.

@CoubousAndTourmaIet She's getting a half-sibling of Twatdog (so same sire). She was tempted by another cocker but Satan is so 'special' evil and nefarious and her soulmate (as much as I sort of hate that sort of description) + Satan typically tends to prefer bigger dogs...

We think (subject to Satan and her evil dictator ways) that puppy will probably be at mine for a a few weeks whilst Satan visits and gets to know them and then once puppy can go out, it will move in with Satan. Better not to have Satan trapped in a house with a puppy. At least when puppy can go out properly it can be more easily exhausted and can go on walks with Satan etc, and by that point my lot will have installed some 'nice' manners in a way Satan wouldn't - her version of installing manners is rather...forceful. That being said, for a miserable old bag, she is pretty good with puppies but we're just going to move slowly with her.

We see Satan 3-4 times a week, so mine will be okay when puppy moves out as it'll basically be the same thing that happened with Twatdogs littermate that my sister owns.

Do you think Odo is testing to see if he makes a noise people give him his own way? Or just naturally a vocal boy? Will keep my fingers crossed that he stays in that perfect 'friendly but not social' type thing that mine seem to gravitate towards! Glad to hear they had a bit of a game❤

@SpanielsGalore how is N doing? Still laying outside?

Oooh, more puppy pictures to enjoy. Hope you don’t all desert us for the puppy survival thread!

Your descriptions of Satan are hilarious @TheHungryHungryLandsharks . But I can fully believe she is every bit as "unique" as you describe. I'm sure I've said it before but she sounds like my mother in dog form 😨However, I cannot blame you at all for jumping at the chance to instil manners into a lovely, snuggly, sniffable puppy.

Odilon is just very vocal. His breeder kind of warned us when the pups were 4 or 5 weeks old that he was going to be a noisy one and prone to tantrums. Then later she was saying he's stubborn and strong willed. Initially I was favouring the quieter brother, but DP had his heart set on this little chap right from the start. I'm hoping some of it is just puppy exuberance and pushing boundaries to see what he can get away with and that he will eventually quieten down somewhat.

In the long run, he should be a good match for Brie. She's a quiet watchful guardian type and he'll be more pro-active and vocal. She'll be happy to let him take the lead in responding to noises, but will hopefully be a calming influence on him.