Tak'em or leav'em??

[tin can luv]

Originally Posted by GT6921

There is nothing more anoying than having our dogs under control and having someones elses dog, cat or even KIDS for that matter - running up and creating havoc!

I have REAL ISSUES with barking and baddly behaved children, I mean dogs. I am always first to complain about barking dogs in the neighborhood. If I were to stand in the yard shouting for sometimes hours on end, I would be arrested. I am very fond of well behaved dogs, but there are few out there, OK, maybe not few, but more bad dogs to good dogs.

I don't want to stop for a nice relaxing weekend, and have to listen to barking dogs. When I went to Bill Thomas' rally, (just stopped in for a quick visit) a month or so ago, I was waiting for the group to return from whatever journey they were on, I walked around looking at everyones A/S. I was horrified to find a poodle in the front window of an A/S barking, and barking, and barking, and barking......On the other side of the dealership, I could still hear that anoying high pitched bark. Dogs like that should NOT be on rallys.

I hope to have a Bull Mastif someday, which is the giant of all dogs. So, it's not like I don't like them. I agree that animals are an extension of the family, but bad family needs to be left home...>LOL.

I've lost track here....Sorry....

Sharon, I can't wait to meet your babies, but I think it would be scary for them to meet all of these people, and be confined, and confused, all at the same time. Take them out for a fun quiet weekend so they can get used to their new aluminum surroundings...Hey, bring them on down here....Oh wait, no... you have a boat, so yes, we need to come up there.

Thanks for letting me vent my opinion as always.... I think this is post number 499 for me....Next step RIVET MASTER!!!! Yeah!!!!

Ron

[Stefrobrts]

At one rally we had left the dogs in the trailer with the windows open and the screen door closed, so they would have fresh air. We were sitting in a circle with the other rally-goers under a shade tree not far away, when my husband looked up and said "what the heck is HE doing?" To my surprise I saw one of the organizers was at our trailer (because we had just arrived), and was going to leave some brochures for local attractions for us - inside. He was trying to open the screen!

Luckily it has a latch that holds it tight unless you know the trick to open it, so he couldn't get it open. I ran over and intercepted him, and thanked him for the brochures, then stuck them inside. The whole time the dogs were right inside the screen, not making a noise - just watching and wagging, wondering who this new guy was. I guess that's the plus side of them being used to petsitters, they are pretty easy going about new people coming around! Still, if he'd gotten the screen open, it would have been doggie-round up time! Who would have thought a complete stranger would try something like that?

I think there are more good dogs than bad dogs, the bad ones just make themselves more apparent!

[tin can luv]

Originally Posted by Stefrobrts

I think there are more good dogs than bad dogs, the bad ones just make themselves more apparent!

It's that way with everything isn't it??? What a great statement....I wasn't trying to be mean, just took the oportunity to voice my ever present opinion...

[05ModPod]

Thanks for letting me vent my opinion as always.... I think this is post number 499 for me....Next step RIVET MASTER!!!! Yeah!!!!

Hail Master of all Rivet Masters - but I'm sure you will not be master of the Mastif LOL - Giant of all dogs - boy do you need to do your research - they are "pusycats" with the right owners. But unfortunately too many Mastif owners out there mistreat them allowing the deep seeded breeding ("dog" instinct) to surface.

Besides having a good sniff up the ...well you know what....barking in various degrees is how the dog communicates - just in case some may not know this.
However a dog that barks excessively when left alone - such as the "lovely" poodle, has some serious anxiety problems that the owner needs to deal with - the poor thing is totally stressed out at being left alone!

Now acceptable barks are the two or three such as "don't come in" woof waaf woof. Then there is the "could it be them" Grrrrr ruff ruff grrrr. But the best is when you have several dogs in close proximity (Boating experience sorry no trailer stories yet) One dog has a great "swimming" dream and does the ahhwooof in their sleep - which of course wakes all the others up and they all have to say "don't come in" woof waaf woof.

Those are acceptable noises - but then there are the Human noises...... following many hours around the camp fire having a few - most sensible people go to bed before they can't walk straight - but there are always one or two that have great difficulty getting back to and into their boat - they usually sound something like....hmmm is this my slip??? oopps eerrr shhhhit nope (as he/she topples and grabs a bow rail which sets of a grrrr aboard)Then they start to laugh or curse more. Then it is off to the next slip and crash onto the dock the result of a missed step or stubbing of toe on dock cleat and @#$%^&*( followed by ouaaahhhh woof woof woof) now everyone at the marina is awake because of one "silly he/she" - and that is what I call "noise" polution.

I am always first to complain about barking dogs in the neighborhood.

What about those people who collect A/S's and are constantly making a noise banging, sanding, buffing, singing and humming - when all I want is a nice sleep in So glad we don't live in a subdivision anymore - all we hear is a chorus of frogs and birds. Oh yes and the occaisional bark from the girls letting me know someone has arrived - or a squirrel is a bit too close to the house

Well Ron you will just have to hurry up and finish all your projects and enjoy one of them soon instead of busting your hump all day. PS nice upholstery job Tony - can you come and do mine - I have been procrastinating - now everything clashes for our first Rally!

Well said!

I think there are more good dogs than bad dogs, the bad ones just make themselves more apparent!

So are there no activities for Dogs and Dog owners other than the Poop and Scoup area????? (plastic salad tongs are great for that - light for the trailer too I can not do the hand over bag and turn inside out deal - heave heave heave!!!)

[Cedars]

Originally Posted by GT6921

Even though there was never any question of whether they would be as good as gold - it would be like taking your dog to a big flea market or the "County/Municipal Fair" - Something Peter and I would not do - just not their cup of tea

Your dogs don't like flea markets? Really??!!
My two adore them! They get to walk around and strut their stuff, smell neat smells, meet nice people, get treats, get petted, all kinds of things going on!
We stopped at a large flea market in Virginia last fall. Now, keep in mind, we show both our silver male, and our cream girl. Big standard poodles, Calla is 24 inches at the shoulder, and Trooper is nearly 27 inches. Big dogs. In show coat and show clip. Ready to show, most people think the clip looks pretty ridiculous, but between shows, with the long hair of the topknot and mane in bands, well most people are plain astounded or shocked, and laugh or get the giggles! To add insult, Calla was almost over her estrus cycle, but still being kept in britches for safety and hygenic reasons. She is wearing Lil' Swimmers, a disposal swimming diaper for non potty trained kids, in blue and turquoise, and has matching blue and turquise bands in her hair. She thinks she looks quite fetching, and is satisfied she is receiving her fair share of attention from the general public. Both dogs are used to the hustle and bustle of dog shows, so a flea market is a piece of cake. Many people interacted with the dogs, and they were excellent ambassadors for the breed. One guy wanted to know if they were rare, and I gave my spiel about finding a reputable breeder and not buying from a pet store. He finally stopped me and let me know he wanted to know where he could buy britches like that for his cocker spaniel! All went well, great in fact. Until we saw, and heard, the screaming woman at the far end of the shed.... she stood at the very far end, bellering and hollering "Them's SHOW DOGS! I knowed it! See them show dogs! Just looky that! Show dogs!" Later, it was funny as he**!!
You know your dogs best, and you must make the best decisions for all of you. For what it's worth, I think your decision to not take the dogs along for your first excursion to a large rally is a very sound one. But do take your dogs in the future. Us trying to be responsible types need to iffset those irresponsible types that need their butts kicked! Something I do any time we have the x-pens set up is hang poop bags on the fence, right out in plain sight. The brand we use happens to be a neon ping so they are very visible. We offer bags to anyone who might need one. And i've been known to holler at someone to come get a bag and clean up after YOUR dog! Because, damn, I hate stepping in the stuff, if you know what I mean.

Elizabeth in Iowa

[silver suz]

Has anyone tried the anti-bark collar on their dogs when it would be inappropriate for them to bark? I'm still waffling on taking my dog along. Despite being 50 lbs ,she's queen of the neighborhood dogs, and I wouldn't trust her with any strange nonintroduced dog. By the way she makes NO sound going after the squirrels. Just sneaks on her belly, til the great dash that ends in laughing squirrels up the tree. So is having a dog on a run between 2 trees bad?, in an RV camp? she is used to that (during UPS truck hours), but I wonder about other dogs coming up to her. thanks for advice silver suz

[67caravel]

My question is this, "Would you leave your 5 year old child at home or in a kennel?". Doubtful, unless Grandma was babysitting. Most of us treat our dogs as well as (or better than) most people treat their children.

Shock collars? Suz, it depends. We never used shock training collars out of fear that they might not correlate the shock to the bark or the shock to doing something wrong. We trained search dogs for years and felt that those invisible fences might cause problems for us for the exact same reason. Who knows, a dog might correlate the shock to "that big old pine tree over there" and not the line on the ground. Everytime he sees a "big ol' pine tree" he might refuse to go past it. With search and rescue dogs, you need them to think on their own and not just respond to a stimuli. I guess the short answer is, depends on your dog and your situation.

X

[MaShep]

<Shock collars?> I don't like the idea of electric fences either... but the citronella collars seem to work GREAT for many doggies. What do you think about those?

[Edie]

we show both our silver male, and our cream girl. Big standard poodles

Getting off topic, here is a cream male from Funtyme kennels that I just purchased for and delivered to my sister in TX.

[Edie]

<Shock collars?> I don't like the idea of electric fences either...

We fostered a hound for a while. The only way we could keep him in the yard was a combination of a fence AND a radio collar. He would dig under or climb over the fence without the collar, but the tingle of the collar would dissuade him from spending enough time near the fence to work his way past it.

After we put up the wire perimeter, I tested the collar on myself before putting it on him. It gave a disturbing tingle, but it was not painful. I couldn't put it on him without first knowing what he would experience.

[jcanavera]

Originally Posted by silver suz

So is having a dog on a run between 2 trees bad?, in an RV camp? she is used to that (during UPS truck hours), but I wonder about other dogs coming up to her. thanks for advice silver suz

Suz, my feeling is a run is fine if you are there with the dog and can observe her. I have objections to the folks who tie the dogs out and then disappear. Keep in mind you do have to be concerned about other roaming animals and also roaming kids. They don't know your pet and the last thing you want is your dog being held over due to a bite or a nip.

Jack

[silver suz]

But what if you want to go for a walk and your dog can't come?? (No dogs allowed) Actually we treat our kids much better than the dogs- they are more farm dogs-not that we dont feed, vet care and pet them They just always stay at home and guard the farm so to speak. I have been letting them in the house more to the detrement of my health. I have heard that people have cages for their animals that they stay in for a day or the night. I always thought that cruel, but more and more people say it's ok.
Do you know anyone who trains seizure dogs? I would like to get one, yet feel kids should get them (to go to college etc)and they are so expensive to train. I have talked to a TX group and they were kind of discouraging as I don't have the fall down frothing at the mouth kind of seizure. They didnt know what the dog would do to help. I was hoping it could signal for help. Also having a service dog kind of signals that something could go wrong with the person, also help pull me out of bad situatuions.. don't know..discouraged about it.. and too sick to persue it. suz

[Cedars]

Originally Posted by silver suz

But what if you want to go for a walk and your dog can't come?? (No dogs allowed) Actually we treat our kids much better than the dogs- they are more farm dogs-not that we dont feed, vet care and pet them They just always stay at home and guard the farm so to speak. I have been letting them in the house more to the detrement of my health. I have heard that people have cages for their animals that they stay in for a day or the night. I always thought that cruel, but more and more people say it's ok.

Actually, I use two different kinds of crates (or cages!) The one I use the most is a fold down wire crate, folds to about 4 inches thick. My dogs love these... they can be out of the way, protected, safe, and still observe the action. Outside at shows, the crate can be covered with a piece of shadecloth, or a bit of tarp in inclement weather. The size I use is 48 long, 30 wide, 36 high, and they will readily share one crate. As far as I am concerned, this is an unexpendable piece of equipment for ANY dog owner! And I have set one up in our Excella!
The plastic kind I also use, mostly at home. My dogs consider this their den, and often go there for a nap or time out. The size is about 36 long by 26 wide by 27 high. Even my cat likes it! And I about died the time I saw both big dogs and the cat exit it! Talk about laugh? I did get my butt re-attached.....
My dogs like them, and it is not a punishment or jail cell.

Do you know anyone who trains seizure dogs? I would like to get one, yet feel kids should get them (to go to college etc)and they are so expensive to train. I have talked to a TX group and they were kind of discouraging as I don't have the fall down frothing at the mouth kind of seizure. They didnt know what the dog would do to help. I was hoping it could signal for help.

Don't know anyone who trains them, but do know of someone who has a seizure alert dog, a standard poodle because of allergies. Her dog lets her know when a seizure is coming so she can get to a safe place, sit down, etc.

Also having a service dog kind of signals that something could go wrong with the person, also help pull me out of bad situatuions.. don't know..discouraged about it.. and too sick to persue it. suz

Hmmm. Service dogs don't signal that to me. Mainly because I'm familiar with the law. Service dogs can be used for many things, from hearing to picking things up to emotional support. Busineses cannot ask you why you have one, or what your disbility is. They can ask what specific tasks the dog is trained to do.
Do a search for service dogs on webcrawler or other search engine. And consider a poodle of some variety to help your allergies.

Elizabeth in Iowa

[silver suz]

thanks for being so thoughtful. I was feeling down from being so sick- a bacterial infection I can't kick- on a different designer drug for a month now. A standard poodle is a very good idea as I have heard they have less allergens, and people like hair. There is a paw shaped device a dog can press to summon 911. that's what I'd like. Thanks again, suz

[Cedars]

Originally Posted by silver suz

There is a paw shaped device a dog can press to summon 911. that's what I'd like. Thanks again, suz

Check your state's laws for what makes a ervice dog. Here in Iowa, a dog to be a credited service dog does not have to be trained by certain school or such. You could clicker train your dog to press the device yourelf, and ergo! A service dog is born! Here in iowa, a service dog, OR Service Dog In Training may go anywhere and everywhere. I've taken them to Target, WalMart, Sam's Club, Dillard's, and so on. Only at Sam's Club was the dog's presence questioned, but readily allowed with the magic statement: This is a Service Dog In Training. I've done some socializing for dogs in training, and both of mine could be classed a Service for my husband, brain injury from a trucking accident. The dogs keep him focussed, and calm in situations when he might otherwise become extremely frustrated, or even disorientated....

Elizabeth in Iowa

[BobbyW]

Silver Suz;

You might try a Boxer. They have hair, not fur. Many people with allergies have turned to this fine dog. They were bred for Service. They are very clean and have no odor, except for farts . They are NOT an outside dog. They are family members. Females are not as hyper as the males. I have had 7 of them over 30 years.

We have trained everyone of them to stand in front of us and help us get off the couch, among other things. They are one of the most popular seeing eye dogs due to their keen night vision. They are so much fun and yet they will defend the family to the end.

[mtpalms]

We just got back from our shakedown cruise yesterday. I'll post about the rest elsewhere, but the pooch had a lousy time. He may be staying home from now on.
First we had to get him a haircut the day before we left, because his hair was full of stickers and weed seeds from running around the desert where we live. The groomer did her best, but had to take off a lot of hair, and nicked him a couple times. The hitch jack is diferent on this trailer, and the truck's tailgate no longer goes all the way down, so we had to help him into the back where his kennel is, and he had trouble getting down as well.

Apparently he strained a muscle somewhere along the line, because he just wasn't right until we gave him an aspirin the following day. He didn't want to eat, and didn't seem very happy about the situation unless we were walking him somewhere. He never misbehaved, and only barked once, but he didn't seem to enjoy himself this trip. It was also his frist trip to the mountains so maybe the altitude didn't agree with him, but I think he will stay home for awhile.

We couldn't put him up in his kennel for the return home because we thought it would be painful, and there is no room in the cab of the truck, so he rode in the trailer. He didn't seem to be bothered by it, and he could see us through the front window. Whenever we stopped to check on him, he would either be laying on one of the twins in the middle, or the couch in the front. The AS doesn't move around when being towed like other trailers we've had, and none of the load shifted on the way up, so I wasn't too worried about him riding in back, and I am sure he would have voiced his displeasure if it hadn't been okay.

[05ModPod]

Originally Posted by Pick

One of the reasons we went the Airstream route was to be able to take our dogs with us. We love them. We always keep them on their leashes, and always pickup after them.

Well that just about says it all! - I know the second page to this thread went way off topic and sometimes that happens - no big deal - but just listening to all you pet owners sort of hit me up the side of the head.

The big reason we went the trailer - A/S route was exactly that - because we were tired of having to leave our dogs behind - we missed them terribly and they missed us. They are big girls and can be quite a burden on those looking after them. So we ended up not going anywhere. As we will not put them in kennels - we almost did not go on a trip this past Winter (ha ha to get MoonBeam) if it were not for really good friends of my parents and ours- and they love dogs and have had dogs all their lives till recently.

So after considerable thought - and a bit of "through caution to the wind" Taz & Haily will be going streaming in less than two weeks. They are our "furbabies" and we will not leave them. They are nice natured dogs, full of fun and love people when they come to visit. They follow our every move when we are in the gardens and same when we are in the house - what ever room we are in they move or follow us there.

Yes it is a big Rally - but not much happening at the rally - no seminars - a bit of golf - which we will pass and an evening catered dinner - which we will definately pass - cause I prefer Hubbies cooking!!! We are going with great new friends from this forum who also have a little dog Toby - who - if we were not taking our girls he would be staying at home to (and that little fellow just loves the trailer) Between the four of us they will be taken care of 24/7 leaving always a few hands too look after any A/S crisis.

At the rate we are going with our Moon Beam there will not be any crisis left!! by the time we get to the rally.

So to all those who said - leav'em - I totally understand how you feel and appreciate your support in leaving them - but if you had kids at any point (which we have not) you should know sometimes you just gota let go. And things may be big and scary - they will have to face a big Rally at some point so why not now (and if [when] they come through with flying colours any other camping trip will be a walk in the park.)

And to all those who said tak'em - thanks for reminding us that we have a couple of great dogs - who we know will steel the show. Besides we are going with no water heater and the jury is out on the furnace - so with trickle power there is not much chance of our electrical heater working - so we will need the body heat

Plan on camping out very shortly in the driveway - just to see how everyone fits and to get the girls used to sleeping in their new surroundings. They already take refuge in their from the sun and bugs so we don't think they will have a problem. We will start them wearing their collars this week - so when we get to the rally the scratching will have subsided and that way no one will think we all have fleas Might even break out the wire line for a "tieout"???? - rope is no good as Haily and Taz would chew through it if we left them - and I just do not do the chain think. We will have their Car harness, boat harness and collars so I think we will be more than prepared. Along with the great checklists on the other thread and hopefully some real nice understanding people out at our first Rally WE WILL HAVE A BALL!!!!!!

As you can see Haily has claimed her spot already - and Taz well she will settle as soon as that other Black Dog (in the mirror) lies down

[Edie]

Good choice. I am sure you will make it work. We also have an AS so we can take our dogs anywhere we go. Our dogs have always been our surrogate children, and we're happy to do the little extra things to make the trips as enjoyable for them as for us.

One problem is that we took Windsor to the South Carolina Coastal Unit rally over New Year's Eve. He loved all the dogs and kids. Every rally we've gone to since then he goes looking for everyone he met there and always comes back to the MH a little disappointed.

[kposey]

I am glad you decided to take them. It sounds like they would not be happy if they were left behind. Just like you, I don't have children and mine follow me whereever I go.

A funny flea market story--years ago I owned a Doberman that was obedience and protection trained, and she could also track. She absolutely loved children and got the opportunity to play with children often as lots of our friends had kids. One day I had her at the flea market (on lead, of course) and heard a woman screaming hysterically behind me. I turned around to see what was going on and her daughter (about 4 yrs old) was petting my dog on the head. The child was fine, but the mother was definitely not. I assured her that her child was ok and she calmed down. She even petted my dog too!