The Chillout Zone (Off-Topic Thread)

Zapperzy

Brought Jesse to the vet, only thing off with her she could find was she was a bit tender in her abdomen. Antibiotics, anti inflammatories, bland food and just wait and see a few days.

tk123

Pumpkinseeds wrote: »

Poppy and Toby have been getting very close. She's started jumping up on the sofa next to him, not cuddling in, just sitting close to him. The other day I'm almost sure he gave her a wash. She looked shocked.:D They get on really well together, then again Toby is the only one of the 4 of them that isn't neurotic and skittish.:)

Yeah Bailey and Lucy have been the same - makes me suspicious lol! :pac:

Pumpkinseeds

Neighbours of ours have 2 young cats that go for walks with their 2 dogs every day. They let the dogs out onto the large green and while the dogs are playing in the grass last thing at night the cats follow them on the footpaths.:) Poppy and I were watching them out an upstairs window last night and she was fascinated by it. The look on her face was hillarious, a mix of curiosity and shock.:D

tk123

I despair at my friend sometimes. Dog has been RC sensitivity since before xmas - mini rant - that food contains soy which is a banned substance for Bailey because of his thyroid medicine and no matter how many times I tell her not to give it to him she does - rewarding him for barking in the process!!!! :mad:
Anyways dog has been on the RC, got an ear infection and is itchy again so they take him to the vet where he's given an injection and a bag of RC for skin complaints (€170 all in) and told not to walk him - so they're trying to see if it's environmental or diet and what's the first thing she does? Take him for a walk because he'll go mad without having a walk! :rolleyes: I tried explaining to her that there's some really good dry foods in the pet shop 15 mins from their vet that would be the same price if not cheaper than the RC eg Acana and Orijen but in one ear and out the other

SillyMangoX

Cream caught a mouse, he was carrying it around and trying to get my attention at the same time by meowing, it sounded hilarious. I went outside to swap him a treat for the mouse because I don't want him to eat it (it was well dead). He dropped it, ate his treat, then went back to the mouse and started throwing it up in the air and doing flips after it. Poor mousey

Pumpkinseeds

Mr Pumpkinseeds was away for a few days and he's Felixs' person. Felix was almost insufferable while he was away. Poor guy was totally unsettled and when Felix isn't happy he likes to make sure the other 3 aren't happy either.:rolleyes: So I had a few days and nights of freaked out neurotic cats.

nala2012

This day last year Bruce came to stay with me! Can't believe it's only a year feels like he's around forever

SillyMangoX

Is it my imagination or was there a thread on here with a poll a good while back about renaming the forum? What ever happened to that? Or have I missed something :pac:

Pumpkinseeds

Toby decided to sprawl in the middle on my husbands side of the bed last night, had no interest in that side when Mr Pumpkinseeds was away for a few days:rolleyes: Mr P then had to slide under the duvet and slip a leg under either side of Toby under the duvet in a weird contortionist effort to get into the bed. Honestly, we're total suckers in this family, never fails to amaze me at how much room a cat can take up in a bed.:D

Graces7

Pumpkinseeds wrote: »

Neighbours of ours have 2 young cats that go for walks with their 2 dogs every day. They let the dogs out onto the large green and while the dogs are playing in the grass last thing at night the cats follow them on the footpaths.:) Poppy and I were watching them out an upstairs window last night and she was fascinated by it. The look on her face was hillarious, a mix of curiosity and shock.:D

When I first came to Ireland my three Siamese used to follow me on walks. In a line.. then I got twin lambs and they joined the line and then a hen with a foot deformity tagged along. It was a long steep walk up to the gate and post box all seven of us....way before the dogs arrived

tk123

Something mad is happening as I type! I've been trying out a ttouch calming band with Bailey the last couple of weeks slowly getting him used to it - we've built up to using it on walks. It's looks like a head collar with an elastic strap around his muzzle - you don't attach a lead to it or anything. It's meant to release tension in their muzzle and if they bark the elastic (which is very loose - his mouth isn't clanped shut or anything lol ) is supposed to 'make them aware'/provide gentle feedback.
Anyways there's a guy here to look at our boiler and Bailey is sitting beside me quietly in the other room having eaten a pizzle stick...before he would have been very uneasy the whole time if we had anyone in growling and barking and definitely wouldn't have taken a treat!! I put the band on him ahead of time, took him inside when the guy knocked at the door, then took off the band and gave him the chew. I had to reassure him a just a couple of times but he's finished the chew now and gone asleep!! Now it could be a mad coincidence but I think the band is helping :pac:

borderlinemeath

Benson sometimes does "stranger danger" barking at things he doesn't know or recognise*, but if I put a TTouch band on him he would stand stock still until it was taken off! He's getting better though, years ago the first time I put a harness on him he used to stand there, the only thing that moved were his eyeballs! He used to be the same if you put a blanket over him, but through game playing he now wriggles out with encouragement. But I reckon the TTouch would be too much!


* The last memorable thing was at Christmas when somebody came to collect their dog and they had a set of antlers on their car. Benson tootled out, happy as larry to be meeting people and stopped dead when he saw the antler sticking out of the top of the car door and went into a mad stranger danger bark at it. We couldn't do anything but laugh at the poor fella! I'll have to get a pair next year to acclimatise him!

bluecherry74

That's really interesting. I've seen TTouch in action and it's fascinating how well it works. Henry gets a bit worked up when he sees other dogs sometimes (we've been meeting a lot of angry little dogs lately for some reason and he's started to copy their behaviour :mad: ). I think the band might be worth trying. Where did you get it tk?

toadfly

TK will you please let me know where you got it? Lex has some anxiety issues, usually she's great with other dogs, she asleep now in a crate with my brothers dog but in certain situations she doesn't cope well. If she is in the car/room first and we bring other dogs in, she doesn't appreciate it, things like that. Maybe that's more possessive than anything. Would there be anything to help with that it would that be more behavioural help we'd need?

tk123

You can just make a band yourself out of elastic BUT I wanted something that I'd have on him on walks and that didn't just look like I'd tied elastic to him lol :pac: I got mine from Tiley Farm (that's Sarah Fisher's center/website) but Mekuti make them too.

He's accepted it really well but he's used to wearing a basket muzzle from hydro and sometimes at the vets - he visibly relaxes with one on so I thought he'd be ok with the band. He will go to take it off (which he can) when I let him off lead but once I tell him to leave it and give him a treat he's happy to have it on. Another weird thing that happened one of the first times I had it on him in the park - there's a man we used to chat to years ago then suddenly Bailey got afraid of him for some reason and would bark at him if he saw him. His own dog is very nervous (it was kicked by robbers ) so I think at times the guy is nervous too and Bailey picks up on it? Anyways... I saw him and we took a detour, only for him to end up across from us chatting to a friend.. Crap I thought except Bailey did nothing(?!) so I started taking baby steps closer and closer and ended up beside the man chatting - next thing Bailey stands in against him for a cuddle!! :eek:

Next big test will be the dunes on saturday - he'll bark at certain men there who don't care thank god since they have dogs themselves it but I'd prefer if he didn't do it - I won't take them to the dunes on my own because of it.. And I'll be leaving him home alone with Lucy for 5-10 mins as we start our training all over again because we had to stop with illnesses and operations etc etc

http://en.tellington-ttouch.org/content/face-and-head-wraps-calming-bands
http://www.tilleyfarmshop.com/acatalog/Calming_Bands.html
http://www.mekuti.co.uk/calm_bands.htm

Pumpkinseeds

I know roaming dogs can be a big problem, but some dog walkers really do over react. I was out for a walk earlier on and a woman had a lovely chocolate lab on a leash, a large old black lab came running up to her dog(I recognised it as a neighbours dog). Now the roaming dog couldn't have been friendlier, both dogs had tails wagging and were happy as Larry but the woman was waving a heavy walking stick at the dog and looked like she was gonna hit him with it. :mad:

I politely shouted over to her that the dog lived in the area she was walking to, just so she'd know that (a) I was watching her and (b) that the dog was just making his way home. There really was no reason, there's never a reason to hit a dog. The dog has patches of grey so he's not a young chap and I don't know the owners, they just live in our street. Like another dog in the same terrace, same breed actually, the owners can't be bothered to walk them since they had kids.:(

tk123

Pumpkinseeds wrote: »

I know roaming dogs can be a big problem, but some dog walkers really do over react. I was out for a walk earlier on and a woman had a lovely chocolate lab on a leash, a large old black lab came running up to her dog(I recognised it as a neighbours dog). Now the roaming dog couldn't have been friendlier, both dogs had tails wagging and were happy as Larry but the woman was waving a heavy walking stick at the dog and looked like she was gonna hit him with it. :mad:

I politely shouted over to her that the dog lived in the area she was walking to, just so she'd know that (a) I was watching her and (b) that the dog was just making his way home. There really was no reason, there's never a reason to hit a dog. The dog has patches of grey so he's not a young chap and I don't know the owners, they just live in our street. Like another dog in the same terrace, same breed actually, the owners can't be bothered to walk them since they had kids.:(

In fairness the other dog could have been injured, have a history of snapping after even after a friendly greeting or countless other reasons why owner didn't want the other dog to approach. I walked Bailey with broken legs - nobody would have known there was anything wrong when they were coming over with their dogs to say hello until I said it to them. One of them cost me €200 and 2 weeks of stress and worry thinking the supporting bone around one of his implants was broken and the whole operation would need to be done again or worse it was broken beyond repair

bluecherry74

tk123 wrote: »

You can just make a band yourself out of elastic BUT I wanted something that I'd have on him on walks and that didn't just look like I'd tied elastic to him lol :pac: I got mine from Tiley Farm (that's Sarah Fisher's center/website) but Mekuti make them too.

Thanks for that - definitely going to order one. Henry used to wear a head collar when he was young and wayward, so he should adapt to this ok. It's so frustrating as he's always been great with other dogs, it's only in the last couple of months he's started acting this way. And it's ONLY when he's on lead and we approach or pass another on lead dog, as those are the only situations where he's ever been barked at. Thankfully he's still absolutely fine off lead, or on lead if another dog is off lead and runs up to him.

Pumpkinseeds

tk123 wrote: »

In fairness the other dog could have been injured, have a history of snapping after even after a friendly greeting or countless other reasons why owner didn't want the other dog to approach. I walked Bailey with broken legs - nobody would have known there was anything wrong when they were coming over with their dogs to say hello until I said it to them. One of them cost me €200 and 2 weeks of stress and worry thinking the supporting bone around one of his implants was broken and the whole operation would need to be done again or worse it was broken beyond repair

You're probably right, I just hate the idea of someone hitting a dog, especially with a bloody big solid walking stick. I'd imagine if the dog hadn't been aggressive before getting hit, he might very well be after getting a whack with a cane. I hate to see dogs roaming, especially the old ones and in this cold snap.:(

I needed a new cage for my three little ones (my budgies) because the base of theirs is all cracked and broken. I managed to get one this evening (though I went on a long trek for it, and had to take it home on two buses and a train). It's bigger than their current cage, so I have to go get new perches. But it's the same brand, just the bigger version, and since theirs cost €80, I can only guess this one probably cost €100 or more - I got it for €20!

I also bought a cat scratcher for little Amelia last week. I was wondering if she'd even bother with it. Soon as I unpacked it and started to assemble it, she was already playing with the various parts in the kitchen, like "Yep, this is for me!" I dread the next time I buy flatpack furniture that isn't for her.

SingItOut

I was cleaning up the kitchen earlier today and someone was knocking on the door, I was still in my pyjamas so I wasn't going to answer, both the dogs got up and stood at the door growling then came in to check where I was. Then they both went into their beds when asked, very proud of my protective girls

tk123

It's customary in my job to bring back sweets/treats from your travels and somebody just left out bags of jerky. I feel sneaky eating it thinking of what the dogs would do if they smelled it lol!

muddypaws

I'm sitting here on the pc trying to do some work, but Sky is snoring so loudly that its putting me off. She is such a princess except when it comes to her snoring.

tk123

muddypaws wrote: »

I'm sitting here on the pc trying to do some work, but Sky is snoring so loudly that its putting me off. She is such a princess except when it comes to her snoring.

Sounds like Lucy.. Her favorite thing to do is slither off the couch in her sleep, smashing her legs on the ground when she lands in her sleep and usually farting on the process. :pac:

tk123

So an update on the band. I tried it in the dunes this morning and he didnt want to wear it all all so I took it off...Until I saw the old man who he normally barks at (it's usually a man carrying a bag?!) anyways I slipped it on to see what would happen - normally I'd bring him in close and put him in a sit until the man passes (even though the man always says good morning etc and doesn't care if he barks) - he walked towards the man wagging his tail for a pet....!?!? :eek:

Even better I'm just back from waking around the block - I left them with a long beef chew (gullet I think?), Kong quest filled with peanut butter and treats in the holes, TV on AND seperated by the new barrier I picked up during the week so Lucy can't snatch his treats if he gets up looking for me....I was gone 12 mins and he was absolutely fine - no worrying or barking and no guilt trip crying when I came back like what usually happens 'How could you leave me?!?!?'

The only thing is with him taking the band off outside is that I'm worried it'll get lost. I've been putting it thru is collar but I can see now that a piece of elastic would be less to worry about say if we're out in the open where I'd have no chance of finding it if it did fall off.

Zapperzy

Zapperzy wrote: »

Brought Jesse to the vet, only thing off with her she could find was she was a bit tender in her abdomen. Antibiotics, anti inflammatories, bland food and just wait and see a few days.

Now think this could be mild pancreatitis. She's still very fussy with what she eats. Regular bloods showed mild chronic infection, fiv/felv thankfully negative, they're running more bloods next week to look at her pancreas. She has to be sedated each time to take bloods as she isin't very cooperative. €250 later I'm wishing I got her insured

tk123

Poor Jesse.

I'm taking Bailey to the vet this week. He's due in at the end of the month anyways for his 6 month checkup after his op but he's still not happy to go for a walk during the week (he was fine this morning because we go to the dunes) and now seems to have a sore front paw since yesterday morning - but I can't decide which one! He seemed fine all morning but was limping when he got out of the car so he'll get his wish now and be rested for a few days. Before I would have thought it's just a sprain etc but after the jaw I immediately think of the worst case scenario

Graces7

was glad to find my feral crashed out in his bed today as he has been missing 36 hours... must be spring in the air as he has been home all winter.. So of course I went go get food for him and he raced to get it.. then suddenly stopped eating and went through the fence... One of my house cats coming home and his nibs the feral goes territorial again.. I open the front door and cat dives in before feral can get back under the fence..close the door then.. high noon again!

Graces7

Pumpkinseeds wrote: »

Our Toby often ends up at the vet as a result of abcesses from fighting. His fur is thick so usually he has to be shaved, which freaks him out and sometimes means he has to be anaesthetised first. I can't see anything sinister looking so hopefully he won't need a vet trip. He's a bit edgy now so I'll have to let him settle and try and get some of the mud off him with some wet wipes later. Is the heavy clay mud. Felix was the very same until he was almost 4 and then he stopped fighting with neighbour cats, hoping Toby will do the same since he's about 3 and a half.

Those abcesses hurt.. I once foolishly put my arm out to try to prevent one of my cats attacking another and I was the one got bitten and the abcess was truly nasty. Both cats were horrified and made their peace.

Pumpkinseeds

Toby was in the wars again last night. Poor chap got battered in a fight and I had him at the vets this morning. Since he need anaesthetising we're 130 euro lighter this week.:( Seriously, if anyone is thinking of keeping their cat indoor only, you really should. The only reason ours aren't indoor only is that one of them was a feral kitten who as an adult, totally panics and freaks out if the cat flap is locked, even though he's a furry ball of cuddles and snuggles.