JackieMaya

Good luck to Boonie at the vet's! I'm sorry to hear that he's not been feeling well. Hopefully the vet will be able to get him back to the picture of health! Fingers and paws and crossed!

Tammy, I'm so sorry for the loss of your sweet Smudgie. You were a great dog mom, and he knew he was loved up to the end.

Here's Jackie's page: [url]http://www.dogster.com/pet_page.php?i=98124&j=t[/url] and here's Maya's page: [url]http://www.dogster.com/pet_page.php?i=98129&j=t[/url]

Isn't this dog adorable? Doesn't he look like a mini-Jackie? His name is Pooh Bear and he's at the same shelter I got Jackie and Maya from. He's a 9 month old Australian Shepherd mix and he sounds like a great little guy! And no, I'm NOT getting another dog, but he sure is cute! Pooh Bear [img]http://www.petfinder.org/fotos/MN09/MN09.3721570-1-x.jpg[/img] Jackie [img]http://groups.msn.com/_Secure/0VQACAwIbu6bcqskXN2eFF2vVVcJZfq0hGiwzYjNfzbOU1PARUR3NRpombWmHFCOxF!kZYZ1lgUadzSjv8TOnB*wnIXzmEJYcYtmvu9ADNYyHZErvEApE6HeoIldi6sl1/Jackieball.jpg?dc=4675455615703708190[/img]

I never give Jackie and Maya food from my plate, but sometimes I'll let them lick my plate when I'm done. And they both lick from the same plate at the same time!

Cool! I just joined Dogster too, and put Jackie and Maya on there! But Dogo is still number one!

Congratulations! He's absolutely gorgeous! I can't wait to see the two together! Take lots of pictures!

I'm sorry to hear about Pushy's failing health. Enjoy your remaining time with him. He'll let you know when it's time to go. My best thoughts go to you and Pushy.

I use Pepto when they have upset tummies. Good luck! And also a bland diet, like boiled hamburger and rice.

You're absolutely doing the right thing taking Peaches back. Your friend, however well-meaning she is, isn't able to properly take care of Peaches. Has she taken Peaches to a vet to see if there's a medical reason she's been losing weight? Good luck in getting Peaches back to health again.

This is a great idea: [quote]If you think a friend or family member wants a dog for Christmas, think of other options. You can wrap up a box containing puppy pictures and a "Gift Certificate" , and include a few supplies like food, lead, collar etc. Then the recipient can visit the breeder and personally pick out the new puppy a few days after Christmas when a household is more settled and able to deal with the demands of a new puppy. If you were wrong about recipient really wanting a puppy as a Christmas gift, then no harm is done, the pet supplies can be returned and a poor hapless puppy is not shuffled from home to home.[/quote]

My kids (from oldest to youngest) are: [i][b]Jerry[/b][/i], 5 year-old 16.3 hand chestnut Thoroughbred gelding who I will be showing in hunter/jumper shows starting next year. [i][b]Jerry[/b][/i] is so sweet that he's like a big (REALLY big) puppy dog. [i][b]Jerry[/b][/i] lives about 20 minutes from me at a beautiful stable that's owned by my horse vet. [i][b]Jackie[/b][/i], a 4 year-old Golden Retriever/German Shepherd/Collie mix who I adopted from a rescue shelter when she was 1-1/2. [i][b]Jackie[/b][/i] was rescued from the pound, so her breeds are a guess. [i][b]Maya[/b][/i], a 3-1/2 year old Golden Retriever/Husky mix who I adopted from the same shelter as [i][b]Jackie[/b][/i], but six months later, when she was 1-1/2. [i][b]Maya[/b][/i] was an owner-surrender I live in a big house with a big yard, so there's plenty of room for my big hairy girls!

The shelter I adopted Jackie and Maya from doesn't have an actual shelter building. ALL the dogs are in foster homes. And they stay in foster homes until they get adopted. Too bad this can't always happen, huh?

I definitely don't think that food aggression is grounds for putting a dog to sleep, but unfortunately not every food-aggressive dog gets the opportunity to go to a foster home, or a trainer, or to a new owner who knows how and is willing to work through any problems. I can see both sides of this problem that the shelters have. Like others said, they don't have the time or staff to rehabilitate the food-aggressive dogs to get them adoptable. So if they think there might be an aggression problem with the dogs, unfortunately, many of the dogs end up being put to sleep just because of the lack of facilities/training available to shelters. Of course the best scenario would be the put the "food aggressive" dogs in foster homes to attempt to work through any aggression issues. When I got Maya, they said that she was food aggressive. She growled at me a few times at first if I would try to move her food when she was eating, but it didn't take long at all for me to get through to Maya. I feed my two girls at opposite ends of the kitchen, and both of them have to sit before I put their bowl down, and they have to stay until I tell them they can eat. Now if I want something that Maya has in her mouth, I'll tell her to "give" and she'll give it to me. Maya has never shown any aggression towards people or other animals; it was just the food, and she's gotten over that.

On one of horse sites I belong to, a teenager posted a question asking whether she should breed her Cocker to get Cockers or Cockapoos. She wants to do it for a 4-H project, and wants to know what kind of puppies people would rather have. Of course almost everyone, including me, who responded told her how breeding should be to better the breed, not to do it to see what it's like. We also told her of the thousands of unwanted dogs who are put to sleep each year. I can't believe that 4-H would encourage such a project! I suggested that she adopt a puppy from a shelter so that she can raise and train the puppy. Of course, she didn't like any of our responses.

If someone could REALLY hear what dogs are saying/thinking, I would love to have them "talk" to [i][b]Jackie[/b][/i] so I could find out what her history is. She was rescued from the pound, so there was no history on her. When I got her, she was very skinny, shy (yet very affectionate), and had a bad hair coat. I can't imagine that someone would have given her up.

When I first put the Gentle Leaders on Jackie and Maya, Maya did the alligator death roll/bucking bronco act for a minute or so, and then she was fine. Jackie just gave me the sad face as if she was saying "I'm a good girl, I don't need to have this thing on my face!" They work just wonderful with my two girls, and when I take them off, I rub their faces and make a big fuss over them. When I take their leashes and gentle leaders out of the drawer before our walks, they just go nuts with excitement about their walk! They don't care for the gentle leaders, but they're real good about them.

I live in a nice residential neighborhood, but since I live alone, I'm glad I have my two puppygirls with me! [i][b]Jackie[/b][/i] is a lousy watchdog; she would probably lick someone to death. But [i][b]Maya[/b][/i] is the watchdog of the family. But if someone looks in and sees two big dogs and hears barking, it's a pretty good deterrent!

It sounds like you found a great place for Abby! I'm sure she'll be just fine. The first time I boarded my dogs, [i][b]Jackie[/b][/i] and [i][b]Maya[/b][/i], I was an absolute wreck, like a mom leaving her babies with the babysitter for the first time! I cried when I left them at the kennel. Since [i][b]Jackie[/b][/i] had been rescued from the pound, I didn't want her to think she was back in "jail," so I was more worried about her than I was about [i][b]Maya[/b][/i]. But they got along great there, and I could tell that they had a good time. So I know exactly how you feel, but I'm sure she'll do great. It's just so hard the first time! Have a great trip!

Kendalyn wrote: [quote]I agree. Here's who the rescues want to adopt dogs to: An adult homeowner with a fully fenced in large yard, an endless supply of money but never has to leave the house, someone with no kids or other pets of any kind who plans to live in that house until the day they die and never go on vacation.[/quote] Isn't that the truth?!? Anyway, I saw on the Golden rescue site that [i][b]Hogan[/b][/i] has been adopted! I'm glad to see that he got a forever home now (even though it wasn't with me). Once one of my girls goes to doggie heaven (which I hope won't be for a LOOONG time), I'll adopt a dog from the same shelter I got them from. The shelter is very easy to deal with and they have real nice dogs. And in the meantime, I'm going to donate some money to that shelter (the amount that I would have spent adopting a new dog).

Thanks for the support everyone! For now, instead of getting another dog, I'm going to donate some money to the rescue shelter that I got [i][b]Jackie[/b][/i] and [i][b]Maya[/b][/i] from. That way I'm still helping homeless dogs. I guess it was a sign that I should stick with just two dogs. And I happen to have the two best dogs in the whole wide world! Of course, I may be a bit biased.

The Golden Retriever rescue association turned me down as a potential adopter! They said: [quote]"We are sorry to inform you that after reviewing your application and home visit report, we do not feel a rescued Golden Retriever is a good match for your family at this time. Because of the unfortunate backgrounds of many of our rescues, they require a great deal of time and attention." [/quote] I'm really not totally surprised that I was turned down, due to (1) [i][b]Maya[/b][/i] being a protective alpha, (2) [i][b]Jackie[/b][/i] and [i][b]Maya[/b][/i] are SO close that it would be hard to introduce another dog; and (3) the fact that my dogs are home alone for 9 hours a day while I'm at work. So it'll just be me and [i][b]Jackie[/b][/i] and [i][b]Maya[/b][/i] until one of them goes to doggie heaven (which I hope won't be for about 10 years), and then I would adopt a dog (from the same rescue shelter I got them from). So hopefully [i][b]Hogan[/b][/i] and [i][b]Brutus[/b][/i] will find wonderful forever homes with someone else.

I think dog parks are a great idea. I took Jackie and Maya to a doggie picnic last month where there were 250 other Golden Retrievers, and they had such a wonderful time and got along with all the dogs so well that I did some research into dog parks in my area. I also inquired on the intranet at work (there are over 1,000 employees) as to whether anyone had tried any of the dog parks in the area. I got several responses, and they were all extremely positive. They said that all the dogs were well-behaved, the grounds were well-maintained, etc. So I am planning on taking my girls to local dog parks. But there is always the risk that there will be an irresponsible dog owner there and/or an aggressive dog who shouldn't be off-leash.

Personally, I'm against any docking or cropping of ears and tails. I think all dogs' ears and tails should be left natural. I love to see a "natural" dog whose breed would normally be docked or cropped.

My "doggie vehicle" is my Chevy 3/4 ton extended cab pick-up. The original owners never put a seat in the back of the cab, so it's open behind the front seat. I put a cot-size mattress and a big comforter in there for the girls, and they just love it. There's room for them both to lie down if they want, or they can (just barely) stick their noses out the windows. If I end up getting a third dog, I'll probably end up getting a doggie seat belt and have one of them in the front seat with me because there really wouldn't be room for 3 big dogs in the back. Like you said, if they're not belted in when they're in the front seat, it could be very dangerous. I haven't checked into the seat belts yet, but I know a woman who used one all the time on her lab-mix, and it worked out just great.