lefty's random dog thread.

Smack them and they squirm. Smack them again and they're stunned. Begin to skin them and they come to long enough to scream and go into shock. Once about 25% of the skin has been ripped off your body you give up the ghost.

Moving on ...



lefty

I have a question for all you dog guys.

We have an 8 month old lab cross. He sleeps in a kennel and spends the day in there when we are at work. There is someone who always comes around the middle of the day to let him out an play. He is never in there more than 4-5 hours and he is never in there when we are home except when we go to sleep.

He has always been really great in the kennel until recently. For the last few weeks he has resisted going in the kennel. We thought it was because it was now too small so we got him a larger one. That has not helped. Last night was especially difficult as he panted for a good portion of the night when he was in there.

We probably did a bad thing when we let him out for the rest of the night.

Any opinions on how to deal with this?

Originally Posted by jesask

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I have a question for all you dog guys.

We have an 8 month old lab cross. He sleeps in a kennel and spends the day in there when we are at work. There is someone who always comes around the middle of the day to let him out an play. He is never in there more than 4-5 hours and he is never in there when we are home except when we go to sleep.

He has always been really great in the kennel until recently. For the last few weeks he has resisted going in the kennel. We thought it was because it was now too small so we got him a larger one. That has not helped. Last night was especially difficult as he panted for a good portion of the night when he was in there.

We probably did a bad thing when we let him out for the rest of the night.

Any opinions on how to deal with this?

I'm no expert, but pretty much the same thing happened to my pup.

After a while he would just whine whenever he was in the crate, however I think it was because the doggy daycare I brought him to would crate him a lot of the time without telling me. Now he's out of the crate all of the time.

It's easy enough to put stuff out of reach that I don't want him eating while I'm out of the house. I have no opposition to those who are keeping their dog in a crate, but I feel much better now that he's able to wander around the house for the day.

I think it's best to slowly have him get used to staying out of the crate. Leave the house for an hour or 2 and see how he does. Then 3-4 hours. Eventually you'll be comfortable leaving him out all day.

My dog's crate is still where it always was and sometimes he goes in it to lie down, but I haven't closed and locked to door to it in months.

Bad Newz Kennelz, Corgie vs Lab: Same Lab a year later: Too many dogs in one house:

Went for a 14km jog-with-the-dog today, she gave up after 4km however the ground was too hot for her to stay still so she ended up making it to the beach 2km later where she lay in the water for a half hour. I let her rest a little before we set off again. Around the 10km mark she lay down on the ground and would not go anywhere, she is very stubborn but she couldn't resist the sound of me heading towards home crinkling a package of empty chips I found on the ground, hoping she would get something to eat out of following me. She is sleeping like a baby right now with her teddy (crocodile) in her mouth (its in her mouth when she goes to the toilet too!). Holly is 17 months.

how do you get holly from not destroying the teddy?

She literally loves it too much - its just a $4 toy from IKEA. When shes not biting it by the neck she is licking it as if its her baby. She also has a rat from IKEA that she used to give the same treatment before croc came along. Cheap dog toys and bones are another story - they're ripped apart in a couple of minutes.

Originally Posted by jesask

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Any opinions on how to deal with this?
Not an expert by any stretch but I'd say he sick to ******* death of spending time in his crate. Run his ass ragged everyday, twice or more if need be. IMHO 90% of what's wrong w/ dogs can be cured with more regular exercise and enrichment.

Originally Posted by jesask

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Any opinions on how to deal with this?

Exercise and more company will do wonders for a Lab.

We are up at five running him every morning for about 40 minute to an hour and he always gets at least an hour and a half of good exercise every night.

About three times a week he spends the the afternoon with my wife's parents where he can run like crazy...I am hoping exercise is not the problem.

Looks like you're going to have to take up Ultra-Marathon's.

Originally Posted by jesask

Click to expand...

I have a question for all you dog guys.

We have an 8 month old lab cross. He sleeps in a kennel and spends the day in there when we are at work. There is someone who always comes around the middle of the day to let him out an play. He is never in there more than 4-5 hours and he is never in there when we are home except when we go to sleep.

He has always been really great in the kennel until recently. For the last few weeks he has resisted going in the kennel. We thought it was because it was now too small so we got him a larger one. That has not helped. Last night was especially difficult as he panted for a good portion of the night when he was in there.

We probably did a bad thing when we let him out for the rest of the night.

Any opinions on how to deal with this?

Panting is a sign of stress, but this could simply be an 8 month old becoming willful. Put him in the crate and casually observe him to ensure there's nothing serious going on. It should pass.

Originally Posted by jobro

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Went for a 14km jog-with-the-dog today, she gave up after 4km however the ground was too hot for her to stay still so she ended up making it to the beach 2km later where she lay in the water for a half hour. I let her rest a little before we set off again. Around the 10km mark she lay down on the ground and would not go anywhere, she is very stubborn but she couldn't resist the sound of me heading towards home crinkling a package of empty chips I found on the ground, hoping she would get something to eat out of following me.

She is sleeping like a baby right now with her teddy (crocodile) in her mouth (its in her mouth when she goes to the toilet too!). Holly is 17 months.


You took your dog for a run on a hot day - so hot she couldn't last for much longer than 4km because the burning pavement is pretty much like a ******* iron to a dog's pads, but you pushed her for another 2km until she forced you to cool her down. You then forced her to run for another 5 or 6km until she shut down.

Seriously? This is your cute dog story?

lefty

Originally Posted by lefty

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You took your dog for a run on a hot day - so hot she couldn't last for much longer than 4km because the burning pavement is pretty much like a ******* iron to a dog's pads, but you pushed her for another 2km until she forced you to cool her down. You then forced her to run for another 5 or 6km until she shut down. Seriously? This is your cute dog story? lefty
I haven't taken her on such a run before, but now I know not to do it again. You were not there so there is no need for the attack or judgment. There was not any intention to harm her as you imply. I do not need you to speculate on untold facts. The facts are that I knew my dog was hot so I got her to the beach nearby where I altered the route home to be kindest on the dog (along beach to shade strewn streets that lead home). It was longer however but I beloved it was kinder on her and included some water for her. I'm not usually the one to walk the dog but my SO insisted we bring her along.

Yes, when your dog is in distress you call a taxi or a friend and get her home. The dog is your responsibility and a dog that shuts down on a very hot day during a run is suffering.

You were lucky.

lefty

I don't think you understand that I did the best I could to get her home. Again, you were not there but I don't know where a taxi is going to come from when the nearest town is 50km away even if I had taken my phone. I commend your anti cruelty efforts but your worries are void.