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Post by knollwood on Apr 9, 2009 14:56:08 GMT -6
Does anyone else have a pet dog? I have a Jack Russell Terrier named Nina. She is so much fun and so smart. I used to have Chesapeake Bay Retrievers. They were really good dogs. This is the first small dog I've had. I would love to share dog stories with someone.
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Post by colonelbuckrobely on Apr 9, 2009 16:13:05 GMT -6
We have a yellow lab. My wife has him trained now so that he unloads the dryer for her, item by item. He is a pip. Unfortunately he insists on getting up at 3:00 in the morning so one of us has to get up and let him out. He then goes back to sleep.
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Post by knollwood on Apr 10, 2009 8:33:14 GMT -6
I love labs. That is so funny that he unloads the dryer! What is a pip?
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Post by colonelbuckrobely on Apr 10, 2009 9:43:02 GMT -6
Good morning, Knollwood,
Beautiful day here in Minnesota. Pips are seeds of fruit. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote a Sherlock Holmes short story once called, "The Five Orange Pips". These were seeds of an orange. Somehow in slang it is often used to describe an "irritating character or rascal". It is most often heard in British comedy. Our boy is a pip. We love him dearly but it is so frustrating getting up in the middle of the night. There is no way to ignore him. He won't allow it. This describes him perfectly. Can you say sleep deprivation?
Have a wonderful weekend!
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Post by colonelbuckrobely on Apr 13, 2009 10:31:04 GMT -6
Let's change the topic to 'Dogs are not much fun'. Our yellow lab woke my wife at 3:30 this morning needing to go out. He was only out a few minutes but what a stench permeated the house when he came back in. He had obviously rolled in something. While the rest of you slept we administered a bath.
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Post by knollwood on Apr 13, 2009 10:51:08 GMT -6
I've had that experience before. Or the wonderful smell of a skunk! I have a wonderful solution to rid the smell of skunk. It really works.
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hasset
Master Member
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Post by hasset on May 28, 2009 9:54:08 GMT -6
I have a young rat terrier and I think he must be sort of like the Jack Russel. Can you tell me when the chewing is over? My dog ate a big hole in a valuable quilt last night. I discovered he is chewing the bottom of a living room chair. I give him chew toys and try to wear him out so he will take a nap and let me do something other than watch him. He seems to like to chew cloth. My dog is just wonderful about other things though. He has never made a mess in the house and he knows to pester me when he wants to go outside. I found him on Pet Finder. I always had golden retrievers but from now on I am getting a rescue dog. Not only are they cheaper but you could be saving a life.
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Post by knollwood on May 28, 2009 10:34:12 GMT -6
The rat terrier is a lot like the Jack Russell. How old do you think your dog is? They do go through a chewing stage - some longer then others. Just try to find a toy he likes to chew and encourage him to chew on that. My dog really likes the dingo bones. One thing she likes to do is chew on stuffed animals. She tears them up and pulls the stuffing out. But she will only chew on it if I give it to her. She doesn't chew on anything that is not hers. Good luck!
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hasset
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Post by hasset on May 28, 2009 15:51:01 GMT -6
My rat terrier is about a year old now. I got him in January. He ate the stuffing out of an antique comforter when I first got him and I was about to take him to the vet for surgery when he finally passed the stuffing. He had it in his throat for a few days too. What is a dingo bone? We give him large raw hide chew things but when it gets small enough to swallow, I take it away from him. A friend has a Jack Russel dog that is 10 yrs. old. He said he is tired of "being the other dog" and wishes he had gotten two of them. He walks that dog twice a day for 3 miles and the dog still demands to play. We sort of wish we had gotten two rat terriers or a golden retriever but at the time we looked at dogs, I put my blinders on because I felt so sorry for the ones who were not picked. I think things will get better when we get our yard fenced. We have "quarter store" in my town (everything is a quarter) and they have lots of stuffed animals. I guess I could get some and let him chew those but I sort of wonder if I shouldn't let him chew on cloth since that is what he likes best.
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Post by knollwood on May 29, 2009 10:16:52 GMT -6
No it probably it not a good ideal to let him chew on stuffed animals - especially if he eats the stuffing, and it might encourage him to chew on other cloth things. It might be a good ideal to crate train him until he learns not to chew on everything.
"Dingo" bones is a brand name. They make different sizes of rawhide in different shapes.
I can totally relate to your friend with the Jack Russell. They have so much energy and needs lots of room to run. I think rat terriers are very similar. These kind of dogs make excellent farm dogs. They love to run and hunt gophers, mice, etc.. My dog Nina is a good hunter.
One thing I would recommend NOT doing is using a laser light as a toy. They sell them as pet toys and it is fun to watch them chase the light. But terrers can become obsessed with them. I read about this too late - and already used one with Nina. She became obsessed with it and gets really nervous and over excited. Now she chases anything that makes a light or a reflextion. She even knows the objects that make reflextions from the light and comes running when she knows you have that object. For example CD's, aluminum foil, pans, etc... If we use a flashlight even - she goes absolutely nuts!
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hasset
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Post by hasset on May 29, 2009 17:46:06 GMT -6
The rat terrier I had previously would not go after rats. My chicken house had lots of rats in the rafters and we would go out there at night and my golden retriever would catch the rats and kill them and then the rat terrier would carry them out and drop them in the plastic bag. They were a good team. Both dogs died on the same day. The rat terrier was 17 and the golden retriever was 9. That was the saddest day of my life! The rat terrier had had diabetes for 7 yrs. and we couldn't keep his blood sugar controlled at the last. My golden retriever had cancer. I wanted another retriever but the last two had cancer and I was told it is common in that breed. I hope diabetes is not common in rat terriers. It was not fun to plan events around shots twice a day.
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Post by colleen on Jun 5, 2009 23:49:39 GMT -6
I have a pair of Irish Wolfhounds, and a couple of Border Collies. It's a real horror show some days.
Used to have Afgans. Now they are the dumbest creatures to ever grace the planet. Boundless endurance, speed, a love to chase anything, and an IQ somewhere between a hamster and a box of hammers.
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hasset
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Post by hasset on Jun 6, 2009 7:00:31 GMT -6
I LOVE THOSE WOLFHOUNDS. There is a club in Cedar Rapids, Ia., that is for wolfhound lovers. They bring lots of those dogs to the annual St. Patrick's day parade. I bet those dogs eat BIG! They are huge, bigger than my goats. Aren't they used for cleaning varmints out of barns?
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Post by nobama on Jun 6, 2009 11:54:48 GMT -6
We have 2 dogs. The first dog we got is a dachshund,,he is 1 1/2 year old, have had him since he was 2 months old,, very good small dog,,but also a chewer. Just a few weeks ago we 'adopted' him a playmate, an almost pure black lab that is 3 years old. A friend had her but she had gotten shot so she is gun shy and he no longer wanter her,so we took her in. She is probably the most well behaved dog I have ever had. They make quite a pair and are good for each other,,except,,the lab, Belle,,is learning some of his bad habits. It is always fun to get home though and have that wonderful welcoming committe there to meet you.
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hasset
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Post by hasset on Jun 6, 2009 12:45:59 GMT -6
Having more than one dog is a good idea. They do learn bad things from each other but I really think they can learn good things from each other too. I do like getting an older dog (that is still young enough) so you don't have the puppy behaviors to contend with. I think two dogs have more fun.
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