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Topics - willowtree

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General Board for Big Dogs with Big Paws / Runner smacked my dog!
« on: May 02, 2008, 04:35:54 pm »
So I took Maddox to the dog park today.  I don't take him that much because there are a couple of dogs I would consider too aggressive and before he was just too much of a puppy to handle it well.  Still some aggressive dogs there today, but that is another story...

First, I should explain that our dog park is a large set of fields near on university.  The dogs usually stay in one small corner.  It isn't an official dog park, but on any given afternoon there are at least 10-15 dogs there at once.  The dog park is a large field that happens to also kind of be the cross-country team's course. 

So on our way in I had Maddox on his leash and we were walking to the dog play area.  He was sniffing around and I told him to come to me, just as practice for later while no dogs were around.  He is coming towards me when this guy comes running up from behind and SMACKS Maddox.  Hard.  In a very angry pissed off way.  Maddox was clearly coming towards me at a gentle trot, tongue hanging out, barely even looked at the guy and I know we were not in his running way as the guy took a step to the side of his gait to smack my dog in the eye.  He was running quite fast and I was in such shock that I didn't get to say anything and wanted to make sure Maddox was ok.  Maddox was whimpering and clearly knocked a little silly from the smack.

I'm so enraged.  I don't even know what to do.  I asked the people there if this had ever happened to them, and one girl who had just arrived said when she was walking in with her tiny dog the same runner screamed at her to get the f*** out of the way.  The path there is really wide (10+ feet) and her dog was on a short leash.  He just didn't want to break his  path, but he came running from behind her.

I realize this is the cross country team's practice path and this individual was clearly not a team member but could have been a coach, if not another adult from the community.  However, I still firmly believe it is not right to smack my dog, especially not as hard as he did, who was clearly not being aggressive or even jumping or running towards him.  How would you all handle it if this situation ever came up again?   ???  Like I said, I don't take Maddox to the park that often, but when I do, I want to be prepared.

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Behavior, Housebreaking, Obedience / Getting majorly frustrated :'(
« on: April 20, 2008, 05:20:55 am »
  Hi all.  Let me first say that I love my puppy Maddox (now ~5 months old).  However, I do not love the behavior he has begun in the last week.  He has begun to nip at me HARD!!!! and will not stop, to the point where I can barely walk around the apartment.  Pushing into the nip, a stern uh-uh or no, and spending extra time doing training have not helped.  I don't want to put him in his crate because I don't want him to think that the crate is a place of punishment (we just recently got him to "hang out" in his crate and like it). He nips very fast and very hard, over and over again.  He just recently started getting in his adult teeth and these nips have broken my skin.  I'm just so frustrated because it hurts a lot and nothing I do seems to make it stop!!!!

He never does this to my boyfriend, and will only do it to me when my boyfriend is not around.  It has built up to the point that whenever my boyfriend is not home, he does it constantly.  He also tried to hump me the other day (while nipping), even though he is neutered.  We figure he is trying to challenge my spot in the pack and show his dominance.  I just want to know how I can keep it in check and walk around without getting painful puncture marks!!!

What happened to my sweet, adorable puppy?  I mean, he's still sweet and adorable, but it's like Jekyl and Hyde!   I know this is something I have to be patient with and work with him, but at this point, our normal "no stop that" actions are not working.  Any suggestions?


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General Board for Big Dogs with Big Paws / Strange sightings...
« on: April 08, 2008, 09:14:21 pm »
So Maddox just got neutered the other day.  Everything went well and he seems fine.  If anything he is hyper now (never really was before), but from the postings I've been reading lately, this is not abnormal

Now for my question...

The other morning I was rubbing Maddox's belly when I noticed two little round protrusions at the end of his youknowwhat.  It definitely looked like his testicles.  I was shocked and then he got up and the next time I looked they had disappeared.

I told my boyfriend this and we both dismissed it as me seeing things.

Then this morning I hear a big "huh?" from the kitchen.  My boyfriend had just spotted what he thought were testicles as well, but again they disappeared by the time I got there.

Just now Maddox was stretching out on the floor and they are back again!  I don't want to prod around as he just had surgery, but are these what they appear to be?

Are we crazy?  Is there anything else to explain these sightings?  We definitely did not get neuticles for Maddox, but according to the vet papers they definitely did the surgery.  Is a neuter not a full removal as I previously thought?

Thanks in advance for any replies to my semi-odd and embarrassing question.

4
I see so many postings for pets everyday on the craigslists around me.  However, this one, by far, just blows my mind.  6 dogs!  If we didn't just get Maddox, I would definitely be inquiring about the Great Dane puppy.  I'm just not sure it would be best for us to take on another dog this soon.  I just hope they don't all go to the pound.  YIKES!  >:(

----------------
Date: 2008-03-15, 9:10PM EDT

I am having to get rid of some of my dogs due to having a business ran out of my home. I have 4 pugs male and females, 1 great dane male who is a puppy and a one year old chihuahua. They will be greatly missed. I am asking a very small adoption fee for each. It's best to call for questions. They will need to be gone very soon or will have to be sent to a shelter. Call DAY OR NIGHT 540-XXX-XXXX

Location:  Waynesboro, VA

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So after the whole Cooper/Roy incident, my boyfriend and I started looking for a new pound puppy to love and spoil.  We saw this guy on Petfinder at a shelter about an hour away and went to go check him out.  There were TONS of puppies and very young dogs there (including a huge, one year old Great Pyrenees), but after playing with and interacting with  a bunch of them I was still stuck on this one... so we got him on Thursday (our Valentines puppy).  We named him Maddox.

He's as sweet as can be and a bit shy when he is in new situations, but he warms up quickly.  He is a bit low energy, but he still plays around and likes to romp around outside. 

He got a clean bill of health from the vet yesterday, save some roundworms in his stool.  He is 24 pounds and somewhere between two and three months old.  He has the softest puppy fur... I just can't stop petting him!

We aren't quite sure what his mix is.  I think he's a lab/newfie mix.  The shelter had him listed as a lab/south russian ovtcharka.  My boyfriend thinks he has some caucasian ovtcharka in him, but only time will tell!  His webbed paws indicate some kind of water dog, but we don't know if that comes from having some lab or newfie or something else in him.  The vet said she was really curious too and told us about this test that they have to tell what breeds  he is.  It is $150 though and of course she wasn't curious enough to pay for it herself  ;)

Here are some pics and I'll be posting some better ones as I charge up my camera again!  The pictures do not do justice to how cute and fluffy he is!


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Cooper, who I posted pictures of in the mixed breed forum, is Roy.

It started on the way to the Banfield vet. We got off of the interstate and were stopped at the stoplight. I noticed that the girl and guy behind me were freaking out. I'm used to drunk college kids trying to get Cooper's attention while we are in the car, but this was different.  They were pointing at Cooper saying oh my god oh my god and gettting on the phone and then tailing us. They followed us in to the Petsmart parking lot and before the car she was in was even stopped she jumped out and said, "Roy! Roy! Oh my god it's actually him!" Needless to say, we expected something from their odd behavior, but not what was about to happen.

So here's the story. The girl had helped raise Cooper from the time he was born because her dog was the mother and her roommates dog was the father.  She was gone and his owner (her roommate) was hiking with the dog and their other dogs (Cooper aka Roy). He got lost and they couldn't find him. She came back from her trip early and everything and they searched everywhere all the pounds, and then her grandfather died. This all happened right before New Years. They never heard anything from the pounds they had called and had looked all around for him and kind of given hope on ever seeing him again... until today.

They called in his owner/her roommate who had raised Cooper/Roy from the time he was born.  Cooper/Roy is half Akita half Tennesse Walker Coonhound. Out of the ten puppies in the litter, Cooper/Roy is the one the guy chose to keep for his own because he had such unusual coloring and temperament (definitely the pick of the litter). The looks on their faces when they saw him, the joy, the almost crying because they thought he was dead or in a terrible home by some random hick guy who picked him up on the side of the road... oh gosh.

I'm almost 100% certain he is their dog. The only odd part of the puzzle is at the pound he was listed as an owner surrender, not a found/drop off (we got Cooper/Roy at the pound 2 weeks ago). He was also listed as 9 months when in fact he is 7 months.  Just to be sure, we kept custody of Cooper until they sent pictures and we could check up on the surrender thing with the pound.  Calling of names in the vet office didn't do anything because he reacts the same to strangers saying gooble gook as he does Roy or Cooper.   However, the second we saw all the pictures we sent, there was no denying it.  Everything from the white marks on his face to the tiny black marks on his paw pads were identical (and he is an unusual looking dog).

I'm super sad because I thought he was my dog forever and I guess legally is our dog. However, I can't take away someones dog who they raised from a puppy. I can't take away the happiness and joy and relief they felt knowing he was alive and well. I also can't get over their indignitation/how upset they were to here that someone took him to the pound as a surrender claiming that it had been their pet. I have all of their personal contact info and I really don't believe they are trying to steal the dog or play a joke or anything. They waited at the vet for two hours (we were headed to the Banfield vet) to see that he was ok and work things out. I don't want to drag out him being with his parents/sister to wait for a DNA test. It just seems like such a crazy coincidence. Too crazy to be false and I believe the pictures  show us all the evidence that it is their dog.

So he's going back to his real home today.  I'm sad, but of all the reasons to give up your puppy, I think this is the best one in the entire world.  I just thought I'd share because this is the craziest thing ever and I figured fellow dog people would understand how crazy this actually is.

Just crazy.

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Mixed Breed Discussion / Hi, new with size question
« on: January 28, 2008, 12:56:33 am »
Hi, I just discovered this forum.  It seems great!  I think I will be frequenting it often  :)

My boyfriend and I just got a puppy last week from the shelter, which we named Cooper.  He is a totally sweet and all he wants to do is lick everyones faces!  According to the shelter he is a 9 month old mix and that is about all they could tell me.  At his first weigh in this week, he weighed 78 lbs.  Everyone we talked to says they see a different breed in him, which is great.  We have been searching all sorts of different breeds, but can't seem to figure out his mix either.  Not that we would ever reject him because of his breed, but we are just curious about how much his mature weight might be and wondering if there are any particular health concerns we should be worried about/especially on the look out for that are associated with certain breeds.

I'm going to post a picture, which I'm sorry if it is sideways (on my computer it is correct, but whenever I upload it online, it isn't  >:( ).  Any ideas on his mix or his possible mature weight?

Any help/comments would be fantastic!

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