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My two 9 month old kittens have been castrated today and the vet said I shouldn't feed them cat food tonight. She said that I could maybe give them some whitefish or chicken, but I don't have either at the minute. Does anybody have any advice on what I could feed them?
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May 13, 2011 19:06
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2508084 posted:Why exactly do you want a dog because your entire life seems to be the complete opposite in regards to the needs of a dog. You're going to be gone 12 hours a day, lets assume you sleep 6. 18 of 24 hours that a social, active animal will be left alone. Thats not including time spent leaving the house, going out with friends, errands, etc. You don't have to spend 12 hours a day with your animal, but it seems that you really do not have the time for a dog. You're probably right, which is why I was asking these questions in the first place. It sounds like it's really hard to own a dog if you live alone. edit: I was kind of surprised about the bathroom thing though - there's really no way to train your dog to go to the bathroom in a specific place that's indoors? actionjackson fucked around with this message at 19:33 on May 13, 2011 |
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May 13, 2011 19:27
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actionjackson posted:You're probably right, which is why I was asking these questions in the first place. It sounds like it's really hard to own a dog if you live alone. Its not that bad, but a 9-5 job is a lot more do-able. Not only that but going to the gym right afterwards makes it harder.
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May 13, 2011 19:31
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wtftastic posted:Its not that bad, but a 9-5 job is a lot more do-able. Not only that but going to the gym right afterwards makes it harder. I think if I could come home right after work and combine talking the dog out with an exercise routine of some sort that would be okay.
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May 13, 2011 19:37
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FretforyourLatte posted:I saw an ad for a new flea repellant yesterday, Pet Armor - apparently it's exactly the same ingredients as Frontline and can be bought OTC at Wal-mart & Sam's. Just wondering if anyone had checked this stuff out yet and if it's really as effective & safe as Frontline. If it really is just as good, seems like it could be nice to save yourself a trip to the vet/vet fees. Here's the link: http://www.petarmor.com/works/how_it_works.php Ask your vet first. I'm sure it's fine if the ingredients are the same, but that's just what I'd do if no one here knows for sure.
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May 13, 2011 19:40
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If you get someone to walk the dog mid-day make sure you're really clear with them about how much time they should be spending and how much exercise the dog needs. Just saying this as someone who had a "job" at 13 walking the neighbor's dog and in retrospect really wasn't giving her the time she needed (huge strong black lab puppy in a crate all day, dragged me around after her for as long as I could stand it, dislocated my elbow once because she was SO EXCITED TO GO OUTSIDE OMG).
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May 13, 2011 19:41
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actionjackson posted:edit: I was kind of surprised about the bathroom thing though - there's really no way to train your dog to go to the bathroom in a specific place that's indoors? You can but do you really want to tell guests "yeah don't get close to that corner it's where my dogs shits and pees because I'm not around enough to take it out on a regular basis during the day" Which is to say, it's kinda gross man e: I don't know why Kerfluffle says you can't train them to go to the bathroom in one spot...I imagine it'd just be like housetraining a dog in general. If you can train them to know they can only go outside, you can probably train them to know they can only go on this pee pad in this corner. Like I said it's still pretty gross though and your house will probably smell like dog piss/poo poo Also remember that getting a dog means that you're gonna have this little thing that's going to want ALL of your attention when you're at home, when you probably want to relax and not have to worry about doing poo poo. Levitate fucked around with this message at 19:48 on May 13, 2011 |
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May 13, 2011 19:45
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Levitate posted:e: I don't know why Kerfluffle says you can't train them to go to the bathroom in one spot...I imagine it'd just be like housetraining a dog in general. If you can train them to know they can only go outside, you can probably train them to know they can only go on this pee pad in this corner. Like I said it's still pretty gross though and your house will probably smell like dog piss/poo poo The impression I get (not a dog owner) is that they're not very good at distinguishing places where they can pee from where they can't. So inside = anywhere inside, and outside = anywhere outside. The only reason cats can live inside and use a litter box is because they are naturally inclined to dig and bury their waste. It's not so much that you train them to use a litter box as you show them it and say "hey I got you a good digging place." actionjackson: I know you say you've never got along with cats, but if you just want someone to hang with, a cat is much more likely to fit your needs. I'd suggest you go visit a shelter or adoption day and ask to hold/pat a cat who is "dog-like." That is to say, a big smushy mush who loooves you and loves getting petted, and might follow you around a bit, or cuddle. They do exist, just as much as bitchy, standoffish dogs exist (but no one ever calls them cat-like  ). Anyway, see how you feel about it.
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May 13, 2011 20:02
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Yeah, I'll do that. I guess I did run into one cat I got along with, but the rest just snarled at me. But certainly their bathroom habits would be much more convenient on my end, especially in situations where I'm out of town for the weekend. I don't know, I've just always loved my interactions with dogs much more, but I'm clearly mostly clueless about them. For the bathroom thing, if you take them out in the morning and right when you get home from work is that usually adequate, or do they need to be taken out in the middle of the day as well?
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May 13, 2011 20:46
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Eggplant Wizard posted:I'd suggest you go visit a shelter or adoption day and ask to hold/pat a cat who is "dog-like." That is to say, a big smushy mush who loooves you and loves getting petted, and might follow you around a bit, or cuddle. I've seriously always had cats like this. My cats are the ones that people who don't like cats say are the exception. They really do exist!
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May 13, 2011 22:47
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Fire In The Disco posted:I've seriously always had cats like this. My cats are the ones that people who don't like cats say are the exception. They really do exist! Seconding this. I grew up with (mostly outdoor, poorly cared for  ) cats and with one exception, they were all super affectionate and clingy and "doglike!!!" And I'm saying that as a catless dog lady. I think the reason most people who "don't get along with cats" think this is because cats are a lot less likely to be affectionate and are often skittish towards strangers than dogs. I think most people, if they just met the right cats (or got one) would see that most cats ARE really affectionate and cool. (don't tell wraithgar I said any of this, gently caress cats  )
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May 13, 2011 23:58
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FretforyourLatte posted:I saw an ad for a new flea repellant yesterday, Pet Armor - apparently it's exactly the same ingredients as Frontline and can be bought OTC at Wal-mart & Sam's. Just wondering if anyone had checked this stuff out yet and if it's really as effective & safe as Frontline. If it really is just as good, seems like it could be nice to save yourself a trip to the vet/vet fees. Here's the link: http://www.petarmor.com/works/how_it_works.php Merial's fipronil patent just ran out last year. I know PetArmor has been marketing heavily to veterinarians as containing the exact same ingredients as Frontline, and they did have to demonstrate chemical equivalency to the EPA. You can see some of their technical data at http://vets.petarmor.com such as their (sponsored) study here. There's also another brand called Fiproguard/FiproGuard Plus that is made by Sergeant's that has been out since March that is sold now as well as a frontline equivalent. It's probably smart to double check with your vet first, of course. For what it's worth, most of the online pharmacies seem to be unloading all their sizes of Frontline in the face of incoming generics, so you can buy that at a price that's somewhat comparable to the generics atm.
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May 14, 2011 00:10
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FretforyourLatte posted:I saw an ad for a new flea repellant yesterday, Pet Armor - apparently it's exactly the same ingredients as Frontline and can be bought OTC at Wal-mart & Sam's. Just wondering if anyone had checked this stuff out yet and if it's really as effective & safe as Frontline. If it really is just as good, seems like it could be nice to save yourself a trip to the vet/vet fees. Here's the link: http://www.petarmor.com/works/how_it_works.php I buy Frontline Plus OTC, and have been for maybe the past year and a half. I am in the US, so maybe it isn't OTC everywhere. Is this not common?
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May 14, 2011 00:23
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RurouNNy posted:I buy Frontline Plus OTC, and have been for maybe the past year and a half. I am in the US, so maybe it isn't OTC everywhere. Is this not common? It's not supposed to be common, but there's a lot of grey market diversion that Merial ignores while saying that they don't allow product diversion. It's supposed to only be available from a vet. A series on parasiticides, product diversion, OTC sales, and such.
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May 14, 2011 00:40
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Would you guys recommend this book? http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Singles-Guide-Being-Owner/dp/1598697234 Sounds like it'd be useful in deciding whether a dog would still be right for me.
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May 14, 2011 03:06
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actionjackson posted:Yeah, I'll do that. I guess I did run into one cat I got along with, but the rest just snarled at me. But certainly their bathroom habits would be much more convenient on my end, especially in situations where I'm out of town for the weekend. I don't know, I've just always loved my interactions with dogs much more, but I'm clearly mostly clueless about them. For the bathroom thing, if you take them out in the morning and right when you get home from work is that usually adequate, or do they need to be taken out in the middle of the day as well? I would definitely recommend getting to know a few more cats, we have one who we even take for walks now (although it might be embarrassing if there were anyone around to see us). He was raised by our dogs and seriously is pretty much one of them, except he uses the litter box and requires a lot less effort to train and care for. I never considered myself a cat person either for a long time, but now I love them. I still prefer dogs, but that's largely a lifestyle thing. If I lived in the city and had a real job instead of working outside all day, I'd probably only have cats. If you're gone for what, 10 hours? I think that is too long for a dog to be inside. You will need to find a way to let it out in the middle of the day. I mean, my dogs are sometimes inside for 8-9 hours overnight, but they're outside literally all day and even then they usually go 5-6 hours tops without going outside. I'd be worried about being gone for 10 hours, then sleeping for 6-8 hours...that's a lot of time where your dog can't go to the bathroom and isn't getting much interaction. For what it's worth, before I was married, I worked a job where I did 4 10 hour shifts each week. Usually was gone for less than 11 hours because my commute was only 15-20 minutes. I had a dog at the time and I dealt with very frequent accidents and chewing in spite of him getting at least 1-2 hours of intense activity (playing, running, etc.) a day. Of course I was stupid enough to adopt a blue heeler (who I still own and whose behavioral problems mysteriously disappeared when I got a job where he could be with me all day) to live in an apartment with me, but many breeds are pretty high energy and will do poorly in that type of situation. He was around 4 years old when I adopted him, so not old but definitely an adult.
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May 14, 2011 03:36
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So people who have dogs and work normal hours I assume pretty much all hire someone to tend to the animal during the day on weekdays? Even if you come home right after work, that's still about nine hours at a minimum between being let outside in the morning and when you get home.
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May 14, 2011 03:56
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It depends on the dog. If you have a lazy, older adult dog of calm, non-destructive temperament you can usually get away with leaving them alone for 8-9 hours, but the tradeoff is that you have to devote all of your morning and evening and weekend time to the dog, no exceptions. That's the price of dog ownership. Hiring a dog walker to come two or three times a week to walk the dog in the middle of the day is always recommended and highly encouraged, but no, not every owner does that or has to do that. It's just sometimes needed and it's what you should expect, going into owning a dog. If you want a younger dog, or a high energy breed, or aren't willing to hire a dogwalker/devote all your extra time to doggie stuff, I wouldn't recommend your situation, so when you look at dogs you need to be aware that you're looking for a personality type, not a certain look or breed. You want a calm, relaxed dog that won't need too much from you. A rescued Greyhound would be a good fit, IMO. It's definitely like considering whether or not you're ready to have a child, to be honest. You have to consider whether or not you can offer the best possible situation, not just an acceptable one, because that will affect your relationship with your dog and your dog's future health/happiness. ETA: And dogs definitely shouldn't/can't really effectively be trained to eliminate indoors. I wrote this up for the Yappy Rat OP and I think it applies here too: Yappy Rat Thread posted:The concept behind pee pads is flawed; the idea is that you teach the dog to eliminate only on the pads, gradually reducing the size of the area to one single pad, so the dog then only eliminates on that pad. But dogs don't think of things this way. Dogs are not cats, who see the litterbox as being a clearly defined bathroom area, because they do not have the same instinct to always relieve themselves in the same area. (Mostly, dogs relieve themselves around the perimeter of their territory, not in just one space.) Dogs do not differentiate between 'bathroom area' and 'rest of the house', and even dogs that are claimed by their owners to be '100% pee pad trained' usually miss the mark, or pee on the pads but poop somewhere else, or etc etc etc. There are some cases of dogs being successfully being trained to eliminate in a box or a plot of grass inside a house, but these are few and far between and the odds aren't in your favor. It's by far the smarter and safer bet to rely on conventional schedule/crate training. Captain Foxy fucked around with this message at 04:09 on May 14, 2011 |
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May 14, 2011 04:04
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Yeah I saw that. I would definitely only consider an adult dog that was pretty  The Greyhound suggestion sounds like a good avenue to explore. I always associated them with needing a lot of exercise because they're so drat quick, but I guess not. Does them being an exception have to do with their racing background? actionjackson fucked around with this message at 04:17 on May 14, 2011 |
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May 14, 2011 04:12
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actionjackson posted:So people who have dogs and work normal hours I assume pretty much all hire someone to tend to the animal during the day on weekdays? Even if you come home right after work, that's still about nine hours at a minimum between being let outside in the morning and when you get home. Most people don't take very good care of their animals.
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May 14, 2011 04:12
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My dog is panting heavily, but it's only 53 degrees. What's up with that? edit: nevermind, apparently we're just terrible owners who don't realize that their mischievous dog ate 5lbs of cat food and then had an empty water bowl all evening. Emasculatrix fucked around with this message at 05:16 on May 14, 2011 |
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May 14, 2011 04:53
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actionjackson posted:The Greyhound suggestion sounds like a good avenue to explore. I always associated them with needing a lot of exercise because they're so drat quick, but I guess not. Does them being an exception have to do with their racing background? They are sprinters, not marathon runners, so afaik they prefer short, leisurely walks to hard hikes, etc, as long of course as they are regularly given the chance to really RUN. All of the greys I know are relaxed, chilled out dogs. Plus, you'd be helping by rescuing one of the breeds that are very, very common in shelters (usually greyhound specific rescues); and a good rescue would help you find a dog that would best match your lifestyle.
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May 14, 2011 07:40
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Yeah I was looking up more info and it sounds perfect for me, especially since they like to spend most of the time just lying around and/or sleeping. The fact that they can be fine by themselves for the duration of a typical workday is key. Where would you be able to let it run though (given it's running speed gets up to 35-40 mph)?
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May 14, 2011 07:47
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actionjackson posted:Yeah I was looking up more info and it sounds perfect for me, especially since they like to spend most of the time just lying around and/or sleeping. The fact that they can be fine by themselves for the duration of a typical workday is key. Where would you be able to let it run though (given it's running speed gets up to 35-40 mph)? If you live in the US, I think private land, dog parks (NOT at on-peak times, so your dog focuses on running rather than playing) or your own yard are you only options. A lot of people I know walk their dogs constantly muzzled, because ex-racers can have a huge prey drive and can't always distinguish between small dogs, cats and rabbits and would kill any happily, but not all have the massive prey drive.
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May 14, 2011 07:52
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Also sighthounds are not to be trusted off leash either, ever. Fenced dog park/area is obviously ok though.
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May 14, 2011 08:02
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I went through http://gpa-mn.org/faq.php and that stuff was mentioned. They have "meet and greets" every Saturday at various Petco's, so I'll probably go to one of those at some point. On their application they ask "why do you want to adopt a retired racing greyhound?" I'm trying to think of how to answer that without just sounding lazy, because honestly the main reasons are that it would be easier to take care of relative to other dogs, especially for someone who lives alone. Greyhounds seem to prefer to just sit around and chill a lot rather than demanding your attention every waking hour of the day.
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May 14, 2011 08:58
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actionjackson posted:I went through http://gpa-mn.org/faq.php and that stuff was mentioned. They have "meet and greets" every Saturday at various Petco's, so I'll probably go to one of those at some point. On their application they ask "why do you want to adopt a retired racing greyhound?" I'm trying to think of how to answer that without just sounding lazy, because honestly the main reasons are that it would be easier to take care of relative to other dogs, especially for someone who lives alone. Greyhounds seem to prefer to just sit around and chill a lot rather than demanding your attention every waking hour of the day. Well, just word it differently: you want a calm, relaxed adult dog who can keep you company on brisk walks and in the evenings at home, and who can deal comfortably with being alone for a full working day. The shelter will know which dog is right for you though, so just be honest (but positively honest) as you can if and when you go to see them.
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May 14, 2011 11:02
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While we're on the subject (and I'm sorry if this is a can-of-worms thing), how realistic is it to imagine that a greyhound rescue would be able to match a person with cats up with a greyhound that was reliable with cats indoors? (I gather familiar cats indoors don't necessarily register the same as cats spotted outdoors, at least with some dogs.) In my dream future where I magically have time for a dog as well as birds and cats and children, I have a soft spot in my heart for greyhounds. (...dogs, cats, and birds. I feel like up next I'll be asking "so, have you heard about any lion breeds that get along really well with calves? How about wolves and lambs?")
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May 14, 2011 13:06
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Andrias Scheuchzeri posted:While we're on the subject (and I'm sorry if this is a can-of-worms thing), how realistic is it to imagine that a greyhound rescue would be able to match a person with cats up with a greyhound that was reliable with cats indoors? (I gather familiar cats indoors don't necessarily register the same as cats spotted outdoors, at least with some dogs.) In my dream future where I magically have time for a dog as well as birds and cats and children, I have a soft spot in my heart for greyhounds. If you get an ex-racer that has been in a foster home, the fosterer may have had cats (or brought the greyhound, while muzzled, around cats), so may be able to tell you if they are cat-friendly or not. And it's always possible to find a grey that was put in a shelter not because it retired from racing, but because it didn't have enough of a prey drive to race for the lure, so might be able to cohabit peacefully with cats. Cat-friendly (not sure about bird-friendly) greyhounds are going to be rare, but it's possible to find one. Just contact a rescue and ask about if they check for cat friendliness indoors, etc!
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May 14, 2011 13:11
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Andrias Scheuchzeri posted:While we're on the subject (and I'm sorry if this is a can-of-worms thing), how realistic is it to imagine that a greyhound rescue would be able to match a person with cats up with a greyhound that was reliable with cats indoors? (I gather familiar cats indoors don't necessarily register the same as cats spotted outdoors, at least with some dogs.) In my dream future where I magically have time for a dog as well as birds and cats and children, I have a soft spot in my heart for greyhounds. My PetsMart hosts monthly greyhound meet'n'greets. I try and visit every month because I really love the breed. At whatever future point my lifestyle can actually support a large breed dog, it's going to be a greyhound, no question. I've spoken to many of the folks over time about the prey drive issue, because I have chihuahuas and likely always will, and they're smaller and faster than cats, and I have to imagine it would be hard for a greyhound and a chi to coexist. I've been surprised at the consistency of the experiences these folks have related, many of whom are foster parents of greys while owning one or more themselves. I've gotten repeated stories of greys living peacefully with cats, with dogs as small as mine. They've told me that fosters are VERY specific with potential owners as to the degree of prey drive. Some greys apparently, off the race track, just don't care. Some never lose the drive. And some are kinda in-between and because it's such a huge part of what greyhounds are about, fosters are VERY observant of the behavior (or lack of) when they're prepping a dog for adoption.
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May 14, 2011 14:02
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Fraction posted:Well, just word it differently: you want a calm, relaxed adult dog who can keep you company on brisk walks and in the evenings at home, and who can deal comfortably with being alone for a full working day. The shelter will know which dog is right for you though, so just be honest (but positively honest) as you can if and when you go to see them. Exactly. I don't deal with greyhounds but for years I fostered for an Australian Cattle Dog rescue and I'd say the most important thing is to be honest. At the same time, don't be too hard on yourself because you don't want to trigger any red flags in the rescue people you're dealing with (as in, making it seem like you'd never walk the dog, or whatever). Err on the side of honesty though, just don't say something like "I want a greyhound because they're supposed to be pretty calm" without further explanation. Also I'm totally jealous. I have always wanted a greyhound but unfortunately with our lifestyle the whole "not to be trusted off leash" thing is a dealbreaker. They're such beautiful dogs though.
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May 14, 2011 14:17
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Fraction posted:Well, just word it differently: you want a calm, relaxed adult dog who can keep you company on brisk walks and in the evenings at home, and who can deal comfortably with being alone for a full working day. The shelter will know which dog is right for you though, so just be honest (but positively honest) as you can if and when you go to see them. Good idea, thanks! I'm not going to be moving until the end of the year, but I'll keep all this in mind.
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May 14, 2011 16:30
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Fraction posted:Cat-friendly (not sure about bird-friendly) greyhounds are going to be rare, but it's possible to find one. Just contact a rescue and ask about if they check for cat friendliness indoors, etc! Pretty much all of the Grey rescues I've ever looked up in the US had cat-tested dogs or at least ranked their dogs from tolerant to non-tolerant of cats. Shouldn't be too hard to find one, actually. 
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May 14, 2011 17:44
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Fraction posted:Cat-friendly (not sure about bird-friendly) greyhounds are going to be rare, but it's possible to find one. Just contact a rescue and ask about if they check for cat friendliness indoors, etc! They're not remotely rare, actually. A rather large percentage of greyhounds won't react to a cat inside the house, although many of these will chase a cat outside (even if it's the same cat they ignored in the house). A smaller percentage of greyhounds won't chase cats in any circumstance. And there are even some that won't chase anything. A fair number of racing greyhounds actually don't have a very high prey drive, they just love to run and compete with the other dogs. That's all it takes to be a successful track racer, really. I know dogs that ran in a hundred or races and won plenty, but couldn't be bothered to chase a squirrel in the yard. I would say at least half, if not the majority, of rescues do not foster. It's just impossible to foster that many dogs. But it's still very possible to get a cat-safe dog. If a rescue can't tell you how they do temperament testing, run away. Even non-fostering greyhound groups will test the dogs with cats and often with kids. Tell them what you need and they'll match a dog to you.
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May 14, 2011 19:33
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Well, that's really good to hear about greyhounds and cats. Who knows if I'll ever be having a dog, but I really love greyhounds' personalities. I think the rescue around here mostly does fostering and has a lot of information about their dogs, so if dream-future ever comes round I can talk to them! They're very careful on their site to warn that they don't 100% guarantee the safety of other pets with any greyhound so I wasn't sure if it was too much to hope that it could be possible. It's certainly something I'd be able to wait on, anyway, till they had a dog that would be a good match. There's a man in my neighborhood I always see walking his elderly greyhound. It used to be two elderly greyhounds, both very creaky, very white in the muzzle, and I was so sad when one of them stopped showing up.
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May 14, 2011 20:40
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I am seriously considering adopting a Cairn Terrier from a shelter. I have emailed one of the Cairn Terrier Rescue volunteers for general breed questions (I am dog-familiar but have never been around Cairns except very recently to completely fall in love with the breed). In the meantime, anyone experienced with them? Specifically, is working a regular away-from-the-house schedule a caution with them? Edit because I saw it asked on the last page: I am out of the house from about 8:30 - 5pm each day and I am specifically looking for a dog which would run with me in the morning and walk in the evening. I am thinking a total of 2 hours of me playing/running/walking with it outside on the lakefront and a dog-walker coming in during the long, tedious workday. Not enough for a terrier, perhaps? I am a distance runner but would those little legs carry the dog for 8+ miles per day? I played with an adult pair (littermates, actually) at a shelter today and I just can't get over how much I like these sturdy, confident, happy little dogs. Uncle Salty fucked around with this message at 00:52 on May 15, 2011 |
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May 15, 2011 00:46
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Uncle Salty posted:I am seriously considering adopting a Cairn Terrier from a shelter. I have emailed one of the Cairn Terrier Rescue volunteers for general breed questions (I am dog-familiar but have never been around Cairns except very recently to completely fall in love with the breed). That's a serious amount of exercise for pretty much any breed. Most dogs from some kind of working heritage have the potential to be great running partners. (I would love it if someone besides me would take my Border Collie for a run!) As a regular runner - you already know the rules about not increasing distance by more than 10% a week, and all that sort of common sense advice. You'll need to do the same to get a dog into shape and to toughen them gradually. Even with all that, I'm still leaning towards saying Cairn might be on the small side for 8+ miles a day. Something else to consider is that it IS possible that you'll adopt a dog that simply doesn't want to run for that long. If a running buddy is really important to you, I'd suggest a medium-sized hunting or herding breed. I'm always hesitant to recommend herding breeds, but I'm going to go ahead and throw it out as an option here because they're hard dogs to adopt out - so few homes have the desire or athletic ability to actually match their energy level. As for logistics, you might find that a dogwalker is unnecessary with that schedule and exercise routine. 8.5 hours is on the high side of the length of time I'm comfortable crating my own animals, but if they're well tuckered out beforehand, they are perfectly happy with it.
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May 15, 2011 06:59
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Uncle Salty posted:I am seriously considering adopting a Cairn Terrier from a shelter. I have emailed one of the Cairn Terrier Rescue volunteers for general breed questions (I am dog-familiar but have never been around Cairns except very recently to completely fall in love with the breed). My friend owns one, and she is pretty relaxed for a terrier - 8 miles of running would just exhaust her, but she's a pretty low energy dog anyway. I expect if you were upfront with the shelter about wanting a running partner, they could match you up with a very high energy Cairn, one that will not only accept that level of exercise but require it. As long as the dog is fully grown (about 18 months I think), and high energy enough to want that level of hard exercise, you should be fine. They are adorable dogs, but you will need to devote some time to brushing each day and hand-stripping about once a week or fortnight, otherwise your dog will get too-long hair, will overheat more easily, and will get a strong 'doggy' smell. You probably wouldn't even need a dog walker during the day - maybe just a friend or neighbour to let the dog out, at least until it is comfortably able to hold it for that long (unless of course you want someone to let it out in between working hours even when it can hold it).
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May 15, 2011 09:40
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Thank you both so much! Specific question re: crate- I plan to crate train any animal I end up with, just to have that skill, but I picked out this apartment specifically because there is an area that can be baby-gated off to keep a smaller dog contained in two rooms during the day. Do I still want to crate the dog for the whole time I'm gone, or is it likely that I can get to the point with most dogs where I can leave them roaming their space, with an open crate there for them?(Edit: rereading the dog training megathread and it looks like the answer is most likely YES.) And re: running/herding breeds: honestly I thought about herding breeds because that behavior is fascinating to me. I think it's the most interesting dog trait; it just blows my mind, even more than guide dogs that work with humans. Anyway, I've read a lot, especially here in PI, about herding breeds and I'm not sure I'm ready for the IN YOUR FACE INTENSITY of a herding breed. But since it's been brought up, I will think about possibly a mix or an older dog; something that would like running with me. I also really like HPR dogs but their size might be an issue for an apartment; their small-but-sturdy build is something that attracted me greatly to the Cairn Terrier. Uncle Salty fucked around with this message at 15:41 on May 15, 2011 |
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May 15, 2011 14:30
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Someone mentioned dog boarding a few pages ago. What do any PI'ers know about cat boarding. Eventually, while living in NV, I will have to board my cats if I go back to VA for the holidays (or NC for a vacay later in the summer). I've looked up a few places that look good, but I'd like to hear if anyone else has experience with boarding their cat(s). It almost breaks my heart to put them in boarding if I have to leave for a week, but I don't have anyone here that I would trust to come tend to them regularly. And they are a bit more attention oriented than most cats. Basically, what are the best things to look for and what can I do to minimize their stress. After the week-long truck trip from VA to NV, I'm surprised they even still talk to me...
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May 15, 2011 15:55
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