My Rockford. Apparantly I only take pictures of him when we are camping
If you have a lot of pictures of Rockford, do you keep them in ...
wait for it...
your Rockford Files?
The Dog Thread: Our Furry Family and Friends
- Thread starter cooleddie74
- Start date
If you have a lot of pictures of Rockford, do you keep them in ...
wait for it...
your Rockford Files?
^
Just for that, I'm not leaving a message after the beep.
Just for that, I'm not leaving a message after the beep.
Good luck with the newbie, Pegaritaville!
Thanks. Brought her home last night and things are going well so far. My Azul just loves her. Here's Azul (right) and her new sister Wilma:
Wilma what a nice name One white paw?
One white paw?
Azul has one white paw and one blue eye. I don't care for the name Wilma, but I didn't want to change her name (she's been through enough already). And the name is starting to grow on me.Wilma what a nice name
Here's the two at play. Azul looks like she's about to leap on Wilma:
Both on the same side? (the white paw and blue eye)
Opposite sides: White left paw, right blue eye.
they are two beauties!
I like the name Wilma. I once had a hamster from a sanctuary who was called Wilma. She kept rattling on her cage day and night and drove everyone insane, hence the name - "Wiiiiilmaaaaaaaaa!!!!!"
Turned out that she was incredibly intelligent and simply bored to death in her cage. With the aid of a bag of almonds it took her 5 minutes to understand that she ought to come when called. She then kept following me around (why should she run to me for an almond when it was quicker and more efficient to stay near me - and the almond bag?) - All I had to do was to connect this behaviour with the command "heel". Teaching her all the other dog commands (except for "attack!" - rodents have razor-sharp teeth that leave nasty wounds) came as a natural consequence. Within only 2 evenings she got them. And better than many a dog I've worked with. She was really amazing =)
I like the name Wilma. I once had a hamster from a sanctuary who was called Wilma. She kept rattling on her cage day and night and drove everyone insane, hence the name - "Wiiiiilmaaaaaaaaa!!!!!"
Turned out that she was incredibly intelligent and simply bored to death in her cage. With the aid of a bag of almonds it took her 5 minutes to understand that she ought to come when called. She then kept following me around (why should she run to me for an almond when it was quicker and more efficient to stay near me - and the almond bag?) - All I had to do was to connect this behaviour with the command "heel". Teaching her all the other dog commands (except for "attack!" - rodents have razor-sharp teeth that leave nasty wounds) came as a natural consequence. Within only 2 evenings she got them. And better than many a dog I've worked with. She was really amazing =)
My brother and his wife have two French bulldogs, one of which's name is Stella. Unfortunately they did not name it based on On the Waterfront. But, rather, the beer, which I consider unimaginative. 
Here is my brothers pooch Sadie.
A "Hamster Whisperer"- That's pretty cool. I had no idea you could train hamsters to that extent. Then again, I never tried training the ones we had as kids.
normally you can't. I'm sorry to say that most hamsters have a rather low IQ. Wilma was a huge exception. However, every hamster can learn to come when you call him/her. With a few treats you can get amazing results The trick is to find out what treat your hamster would kill for. Almonds or sunflower seeds usually work with gold hamsters. Freeze-dried mealworms are popular with dwarf species. My current one has a weakness for smoked trout and for wholemeal cookies - but then he's always been rather eccentric
The trick is to find out what treat your hamster would kill for. Almonds or sunflower seeds usually work with gold hamsters. Freeze-dried mealworms are popular with dwarf species. My current one has a weakness for smoked trout and for wholemeal cookies - but then he's always been rather eccentric
Just curious....has anybody in the thread ever owned a dog that lived to the age of 20 or even beyond? I know that's a rarity with any breed and an uncommon story to hear from owners, but I've known a couple of families whose dogs lived rather exceptionally long lives and made it to ages such as 17 or 18 before they passed away from natural causes or had to be euthanized because of illness.
alas no. We always have German Shepherds. This breed usually has trouble going beyond 10 Jears. 12 is rare and the oldest one we ever had was 14.
They tend to age rapidly once they passed the 8 year mark and then develop cancer, serious heart conditions or arthrosis. As far as I remember none of our dogs died of old age but every single one had to be put to sleep for medical reasons.
As a general rule mixes between different breeds are much healthier and longer lived than pure-bred ones. Often more intelligent, too.
They tend to age rapidly once they passed the 8 year mark and then develop cancer, serious heart conditions or arthrosis. As far as I remember none of our dogs died of old age but every single one had to be put to sleep for medical reasons.
As a general rule mixes between different breeds are much healthier and longer lived than pure-bred ones. Often more intelligent, too.
It's funny...I'm a lot more scared of small dogs than I am of big ones. Almost every mean dog I've encountered has been a small one or even a toy dog. Large dogs like Labs I am not bothered by. I would never, ever own a dog, but I do enjoy playing with others' dogs. As long as they go home to their owner when I'm worn out.
Unfortunately when I was little, I was terrified of the family dog, a Labrador with poor training and absolutely zero self control. My parents couldn't understand why it was terrifying when a dog twice my weight would come running at me. So unfortunately I only got to really know and like the dog when she got old and slow, and more like having a really, really large cat than a dog. I like to hope that at least that made her last year of life that bit more pleasant.
You mean A Streetcar Named Desire, right?
(That's okay. Recently in another thread, I got Leonardo da Vinci mixed up with Michelangelo.)
Purebred dogs are inclined to suffer all sorts of genetic defects due to inbreeding. Musculoskeletal disorders like hip dysplasia are especially common in large breeds like German shepherds and Dobermans. If you want a happy, healthy pet, you're better off getting a mutt.
Whichever one has Marlon Brando yelling STELLA!!!!!!!!! (I haven't seen either one. God only knows where I got that title.
)
^^ I am not sure about the kennels outside of Germany, particularly those in the US, but over here, the hip dysplasia problem is under control now. For about 30 years, dogs inflicted with that problem have been strictly forbidden from breeding and the frame of the dogs has been altered as well: no more falling backs but straight ones now. It takes some weight off the hips and prevents the development of joint problems in very young dogs.
Arthrosis and spine problems due to old age are the main problems now. And there's still a certain tendency towards intestinal cancer.
Arthrosis and spine problems due to old age are the main problems now. And there's still a certain tendency towards intestinal cancer.
In my experience, small dogs are more aggressive than big ones. I can only guess at the reason but I think they propably believe they must make up for their lack of size and impress possible opponents with their aggression rather than an impressive look (like larger dogs can)
As far as the hips and knees go, it's a crap shoot. My dog has OFA certification for her hips (Labs are known for hip dysplasia so I wasn't going to get one that wasn't), but all it means is that the stud and bitch had no hip issues.
This sadly means nothing about the pups, just that the parents had no issues. She has already had one ACL replaced, her other knee looks like it will need one at some point when I have the money for it, and her back legs sound like a bowl of Rice Krispies when she walks - snap, crackle, and pop.
She's only 3, but she is already arthritic, stretches her back legs constantly, and goes lame for a day or so if she gets too much exercise. I have to be very cognizant of this when we play.
This sadly means nothing about the pups, just that the parents had no issues. She has already had one ACL replaced, her other knee looks like it will need one at some point when I have the money for it, and her back legs sound like a bowl of Rice Krispies when she walks - snap, crackle, and pop.
She's only 3, but she is already arthritic, stretches her back legs constantly, and goes lame for a day or so if she gets too much exercise. I have to be very cognizant of this when we play.
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