Pets chit chat thread

[anunitu]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

I have heard of shelters that require the person spend about 2 weeks socializing with the animal at the shelter to determine the comparability of the person and the animal. This practice has cut way down on people returning the animal because of problems after they get the animal home. Mainly to be sure the adoption is a good fit.

[Herbert]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

The one I got my adorable Boxer/Beagle from made us answer questions about fencing and such, but there weren't any deterrents against just flat out lying, so I doubt it was very effective.

[Shahaku]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

I don't know if it's like this with every shelter, but the one I work with has the pet meet your family and other pets, in case of aggression/allergies/whatever. You can't just pick a dog and take it home the same day, because they need to check you out as well.

One shelter around here I got a dog from, I walked in, filled out a form, paid twenty bucks, and walked out with a dog. No verifying reference, we only met him for about 5 minutes, and that was it. We have a few really good shelters that will actually deny unsuitable owners, but most of them are specialty ones for animals with long term issues. FIV cats, dogs with health issues, etc.

[Rae'ya]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Yeah, we're prepared. I have strict requirements that animals fit in with our family. We have a child. We have cats. We'll likely almost always have more than one dog. I don't want a puppy, because I want to have an idea of its adult temperment when we get it. I'm not going through that again. Any dog we get, I'm planning to demand a one week trial period, in which we can bring the dog back and try out a different one or get a refund if they don't fit in with our family.

That's a good plan. Unfortunately you guys have learned the hard way, but it means that you are unlikely to end up in trouble.

Sometimes what I talk about getting trials and being able to take the dog back if it doesn't work, I feel like people are gonna think that I'm treating them like a pair of pants that you're exchanging because you don't like the way your butt looks in them. But it's not about that at all. It's like roommates. If you're looking for a roommate, you don't pick one based on what race they are or how they look. You pick them on personality and whether you can all live together harmoniously. If it doesn't work out, you ask them to leave, or you move. Dogs are the same. If it doesn't work out, they are actually better off in another home. Forcing them to live in a home that they are not happy is not in their best interests, or yours.

Sorry... I think you and I have had this conversation before. I'll shut up now

I don't know if it's like this with every shelter, but the one I work with has the pet meet your family and other pets, in case of aggression/allergies/whatever. You can't just pick a dog and take it home the same day, because they need to check you out as well.

This is the way all shelters should do it. The RSPCA and AWL here do it this way, and it normally works out great. The little rescue places often don't though. We have several rescue places here in South Australia that frankly, I wish could be shut down. And I've heard from veterinary staff in the US that there are shelters and rescue places over there who are similar. And I can tell you some horror stories from Torey's family adopting dogs from their local shelter in Louisiana.

[habbalah]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Yeah, we're prepared. I have strict requirements that animals fit in with our family. We have a child. We have cats. We'll likely almost always have more than one dog. I don't want a puppy, because I want to have an idea of its adult temperment when we get it. I'm not going through that again. Any dog we get, I'm planning to demand a one week trial period, in which we can bring the dog back and try out a different one or get a refund if they don't fit in with our family.

I don't know if it's like this with every shelter, but the one I work with has the pet meet your family and other pets, in case of aggression/allergies/whatever. You can't just pick a dog and take it home the same day, because they need to check you out as well.

[Shahaku]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Yeah, we're prepared. I have strict requirements that animals fit in with our family. We have a child. We have cats. We'll likely almost always have more than one dog. I don't want a puppy, because I want to have an idea of its adult temperment when we get it. I'm not going through that again. Any dog we get, I'm planning to demand a one week trial period, in which we can bring the dog back and try out a different one or get a refund if they don't fit in with our family.

[Rae'ya]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

LIFE EXPECTANCY. Here's the real downer -- like most giant breeds, you're lucky if you get them to 10. I know that there are some heart valve problems with some of them too, which takes them at an early age. We fed ours a pretty healthy diet of glucosamine and chondroitin to keep their joints as healthy as possible since, like R said, they have hip problems and all kinds of other problems. I am obviously not a vet so I'd wait for her input on whether or not giving them G&C was helpful or even worthwhile, but we felt like we were trying to be proactive and keep them greased up.

It's absolutely a good idea to give any dog who's expected to have joint problems a glucosamine and chondroitin supplement. I would give ANY giant breed dog a supplement as a standard. Also ANY dog or cat who has had joint surgery, any dog who has luxating patellas, and any dog or cat who has crazy anatomy (like the ones with the splayed out feet, or super bowlegged hind legs). If you follow the correct dosing (and cats need a special product, you CAN NOT use human or dog supplements for cats!), you can't do any harm giving it. There's no studies to show us whether it prevents issues or not, but the few studies we have on dogs that are already arthritic tell us that it can help in some cases. It wont make much of a difference to whether or not HD or ED actually develops, because that's an anatomical thing that is independent of the health of the joint capsule (which is what the G+C is acting on), but it should make the joint more resilient and lessen the effects of the damage to the joint.

I use a G+C supplement for my arthritic cat. Also for my arthritic husband, when he remembers to take it.

We might be interested in a pup, but I'm leaning toward adopting an animal that's around a year old. Either way, it will be adoption, not buying from a breeder.

Adoption is a great idea, but remember that when you get a cross breed, there's a higher risk that it will be atypical for BOTH breeds. You have no way to predict how the genetic predispositions of each breed will come through... so you can't truly predict what medical issues it might have, or what personality type it might be.

You also can't trust most rescue shelters to be upfront with you about it's health and personality. A big shelter like the ASPCA an similar should have good programs to screen those things (the RSPCA here does), but the smaller shelters vary. I've seen awesome rescue groups who are very honest and responsible, but I know far more that are completely dodgy and only care about rehoming the dog wherever they can.

So just keep your wits about you and don't assume that every shelter is like the one you worked at... make sure you get a vet check at your own vet in the first few days of getting it, irrespective of whether they give you a vet check certificate... and make sure you have the ability to return it if it doesn't fit into your family (and don't feel guilty about that... keeping a dog who doesn't fit your family is NOT doing it any favors, it's just denying it the chance to find a family where it does fit in).

Adoption and rescue is a double edged sword. If I ever get a dog, I will adopt one. 100%. But I've see SOOOO many people get duped by rescue centres, and end up with dogs that have major behavioural issues, or major dental disease, or chronic skin allergies, or a combination of things that they weren't told about. I've also seen plenty of success stories. I'm absolutely not against adoption and I don't want to put anyone off adopting an animal. I just need to warn you to keep your wits about adoption and assume nothing.

[Shahaku]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Yeah. I know a lot of the mixes are along the lines of lab mixed with newfie, in which case we'd really have to get to know them and they're temperment. I have found a few purebred dogs across the US, but we'd have to go quite a ways. One option is one of the newfie rescues that specialize with them, but I'm sure we'd have to be on a wait list. Not that that's not a bad thing. It'll be awhile anyway. And recovery time once the ones we have go.

[Bjorn]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

We might be interested in a pup, but I'm leaning toward adopting an animal that's around a year old. Either way, it will be adoption, not buying from a breeder.

Adoption. Got it. In that case you might want to research several breeds and how they intermingle with each other since I rarely find purebreds in the shelters in my state.

[Shahaku]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

We might be interested in a pup, but I'm leaning toward adopting an animal that's around a year old. Either way, it will be adoption, not buying from a breeder.

[Bjorn]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Hey, Rae'ya, are you familiar with Newfoundlands? The GF had a fascination with them and (at this time) it's the breed she's stuck on for when some of our animals die off (cause, unfortunately, they will eventually). We absolutely will not be welcoming ANY more animals into the house till our population goes down though... so 5-6 years. Approximately. The Boston/French mix is 5 and the German Shepard is 6 and the cats (three now) are all under 2... ugh. Anyway, Newfoundlands?

Basically, what we want out of a dog, is laid back, not a crack head (low anxiety), and low on the prey drive scale. Basically low maintenance and won't eat the cats.

I had Newfoundlands all through middle school and high school -- and they all had personalities that were unique to them. They were all relatively calm, friendly, a touch headstrong, playful, and fun loving. They are considered to be giants, but they are gentle, though I have seen a fight break out between two alpha Newfs and it was like watching two bears try to maul each other. My family and I went to conventions and knew a breeder personally (we got to see the puppies in the whelping box every litter, SO FRIGGIN CUTE) so I was around a lot of Newfs. The only fights I ever saw break out were between the dogs themselves, never towards their humans.

Basically, they're people-friendly and I think the only reason that these dogs fought with each other is because they were family and one alpha was coming into his own while the other was on the decline (that goes for males and bitches).

There are considered to be two types of Newfs: black ones and Landseers (black and white), which were considered their own breed but have come to be the B&W version of the Newf. I've noticed slight personality differences in Landseers and black Newfs, mainly that the Landseers I encountered were more assertive and the black Newfs were more calm. Also, the head shape on a Landseer is much less 'Newf' like because of the less prominent brow.

Attached is the standard Newf head and the Landseer, where you can see a slight difference in the slope of the brow.

There are also brown and grey Newfs but for the most part, you're gonna see these two varieties.

R already touched on the hip problems that all large dogs with long bodies encounter so I'll skip over that and go straight to a topic that no one has mentioned but was a very large part of my life: DROOOOOOL.

That's right. These pups drool. Landseers tend to drool less because their head-shape allows for more of their jowls to actually close, therefore their drool mostly stays in their big maws. However, the black Newfs, with their larger heads, tend to have jowls that do not close entirely which then creates drool. You can even see an example of this in the photo of the black Newf above -- that little circle doesn't close all the way and it WILL produce drool. A common chore in my household was cleaning the walls of drool that my dog had shaken, leaned, or swiped on. These dogs are NOT for the home-proud. You WILL be cleaning drool off of something, and their coats brings me to another point...

THEY HAVE TWO COATS. Yes. They're water dogs from Newfoundland so they were originally supposed to help fisherman up there, and save folk from drowning and rescue them. They even have webbed paws! Their evolution is pretty cool as far as I'm concerned, but those two coats make them twice as hard to bathe. The water would bead on their fur and then roll away as easily as if they were ducks instead of dogs, it was infuriating at times. It was quite a chore to bathe them but luckily they like the water so much that they didn't really mind it too much, though ALL of them hated the blowdryer.

LIFE EXPECTANCY. Here's the real downer -- like most giant breeds, you're lucky if you get them to 10. I know that there are some heart valve problems with some of them too, which takes them at an early age. We fed ours a pretty healthy diet of glucosamine and chondroitin to keep their joints as healthy as possible since, like R said, they have hip problems and all kinds of other problems. I am obviously not a vet so I'd wait for her input on whether or not giving them G&C was helpful or even worthwhile, but we felt like we were trying to be proactive and keep them greased up.

All in all, they were the best breed of dog I've ever had. I loved them. They would romp around with me in the yard, knock me over and shower me with drooly affection, they had very little interest in learning tricks but they liked simple things like tug of war, sticks to be thrown, and splashing in every puddle ever seen. I LOVED my Newfs. The only downside was that I loved them so much and they stuck around for so little a time. That life expectancy is something you should really consider. It broke my heart every time.

Also, I recommend getting them as puppies. You enjoy them longer, they become instantly loyal to you and yours, and you'll have a better time training them.

9/10, would have again.



P.S. They're not doofuses (newfuses?) at all. This breed is known for its intelligence, they just LOOK a little goofy.

[Shahaku]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

We feed a German Shepard on high end food no problem. She gets half and half dry veggie good to regular high end dog food, with a little wet mixed in to make it palpable. And we've been feeding a family of four kittens (finally got two of them rehomed). I figure, twice the size, twice the food. So we'll deal.

And with shaving, I know I was told not to with the husky because their natural insulation actually works better. I didn't know if the same would be true or not for newfoundlands.

Ah well. We've got five+ years anyway.

[Rae'ya]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

I don't think most vets around here do hip replacements. I might be wrong, but I've never heard of anyone getting their dogs hip replaced. I think most people more or less manage the condition or put them down. Cost wise, we're aware that it would be an increase in what we spend. Food wise, we know we can handle it. And vaccine and worming we can get through my gf's work, basically at the cost of the vaccine, which is much, much more affordable. Same with fixing them. And we'll likely be getting a mix of some sort, just with a hefty dose of Newfoundland in them, simply because we'll be rescuing rather than buying a puppy from a breeder.

Hip replacements are generally a specialist surgery, and most general practice vets wont have access to a vet who can do it. It's also really, really expensive. But it's the best thing you can do for a young dog with HD.

Sounds like you have the sort of plan I was talking about in place. As long as you're aware of the possible costs and things you may be looking at... go for it. It's just that a lot of people don't think about that beforehand, then get caught out later down the track, or end up not deworming their dog, or feeding them crap cheap food because that's all they can afford.

Can you shave them? I wouldn't say our summer is nearly as bad as it could be, but we get up around 100 for a couple weeks, and hold steady around 80 for a month or two.

Yes you can, but with careful management you may not need to. A lot of cold weather dogs are actually pretty well insulated against general heat, and shaving them can actually make them less able to cope with the heat. As long as you don't walk them in the heat of the day, and they have access to a cool area while you're out (either air con at home, or a backyard with some smart passive cooling design), they do fine. Our summers get up to 45C here... most people with cold weather dogs keep them indoors during the heat wave, at least in the laundry. But I see all sorts of dogs who should be miserable in the summer, some who get shaved and some who don't. I've only ever seen Chow Chows, pugs and bulldog breeds with heat stress in summer here... all the Malamutes and Mastiff types seem to manage, even the BMDs, Newfoundlands and Pyrenees. Just be smart about where they are when it's hot and do things like ice bricks in their water, shallow wading pools with ice bricks (a Newfie should love that) in the SHADE, and only take them out at 6am in the morning.

[Shahaku]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

I know a few, and they are in a similar personality disposition group as BMDs... gentle giants. They are genetically prone to hip and elbow dysplasia (just like BMDs), which can be very expensive. They are also prone to genetic heart disease (not cardiomyopathies like some giant breeds, but an actual anatomical issue with the heart valves). They can also be prone to entropian and ectropian (rolled eyelids), but that's far less common in them than it is in the other Mastiff breeds. They tend to be calmer than most Mastiffs, much more like BMDs or a Pyrenees.

The thing with ANY dog, but particularly giant breeds and very large breeds, is that they are expensive. Expensive to feed, to medicate and to de-worm. I much prefer breeds like this from a personality point of view, they tend to be calmer, less genetically prone to anxiety and generally lower maintenance from a mental stimulation point of view. But you need to make sure that you are prepared for the possible genetic predispositions. If you end up with one that has hip dysplasia, could you afford to get hip replacements done? 'Cos if you can't, you'll either have to euthanase it, or completely rearrange your house and yard to make life livable, spend hundreds of dollars on daily pain relief, feed it a special diet and be able to carefully manage it's exercise and movement. Now all breeds have their genetic predispositions that can cost a lot of money, and that have long term pain and welfare concerns if left untreated. But giant breeds just cost that little bit extra to treat, and are unfortunately excluded for many things by pet insurance companies, so you need to be prepared for that.

If you can have a financial plan in place, or know that you'll be comfortable euthanasing it at 12 months of age if it has HD that can't be managed without surgery... go for it. I would be less worried about you getting a Newfoundland than I would with you trying another Husky type!

I don't think most vets around here do hip replacements. I might be wrong, but I've never heard of anyone getting their dogs hip replaced. I think most people more or less manage the condition or put them down. Cost wise, we're aware that it would be an increase in what we spend. Food wise, we know we can handle it. And vaccine and worming we can get through my gf's work, basically at the cost of the vaccine, which is much, much more affordable. Same with fixing them. And we'll likely be getting a mix of some sort, just with a hefty dose of Newfoundland in them, simply because we'll be rescuing rather than buying a puppy from a breeder.

Don't forget the drooling.... I love Newfies, but drool... (not quite St Bernard level drool). And shedding, the bigger the dog, the more they shed...if anyone has allergies (even if dogs aren't normally a trigger), they should go be in a home and handle a Newfie before you make the big decision. I say this from personal experience after dating a guy with two of them. Plus if you live somewhere with a long hot summer, they are sort of pathetically miserable.

Can you shave them? I wouldn't say our summer is nearly as bad as it could be, but we get up around 100 for a couple weeks, and hold steady around 80 for a month or two.

[thalassa]

Re: Pets chit chat thread

Don't forget the drooling.... I love Newfies, but drool... (not quite St Bernard level drool). And shedding, the bigger the dog, the more they shed...if anyone has allergies (even if dogs aren't normally a trigger), they should go be in a home and handle a Newfie before you make the big decision. I say this from personal experience after dating a guy with two of them. Plus if you live somewhere with a long hot summer, they are sort of pathetically miserable.