A thread for dog and cat lovers

[boatlady]

I'm noticing several of us seem to enjoy trading stories about our four-legged companions, and wondered if people would enjoy having a dedicated thread for this - possibly to include photos of them if people want to show off the beauty of their particular animal friend.
 
Having been for many years owned by a series of cats, I one day took charge of a couple of Yorkshire terriers whose owner had just died - I'm now a complete dog convert - but still love cats. The Yorkies are long gone, but have been replaced because I found I just couldn't do without dogs.
 
Currently, my four-legged family consists of Jennie, a Jack Russell bitch who is more intelligent and more lovable than most of the people I meet, and a terrier cross named Jimbob who embodies enthusiasm and never fails to bring a smile.

[Phil Hornby]

As a teenager, I had a couple of my own cats, but each - sadly -was run over on the busy road where we lived. Nevertheless, we still had plenty of felines around, since my parents were only too keen to feed any cat which happened to appear - and word clearly got round on the moggy grapevine.

One ginger visitor - which we called Nelson for some reason- was adept at leaping onto my lap at breakfast time, and at least once, looking me fondly in the eye while, by such a distraction, he was able to scoop a sausage off my plate with a stray paw and proceed to eat in once it hit the floor. Never seen a cat crafty enough to do anything similar before or since...        

[boatlady]

My ginger tom (Eric - the red) also enjoyed a sausage.
He was a cat that scorned the cat flap. If Eric wanted to get in when there were people home, he would use the door knocker in a properly dignified manner.

If we were out though, he was quite happy to let himself in through the cat flap ion order to lay a dead fully grown rat on the doormat (posed in a lifelike position) ready for our return home.

When I left my husband, Eric also left home - I always hope he found a good berth

[stuart torr]

Hi Boatlady,found your thread you see. Well Tula my retriever/labrador cross as I said on the other thread is so clever, she knows what time it is,as she comes to me nudging me with her nose exactly at 11am and 4pm feeding times,right paw means she wants to go out for a p left paw means the other both paws means it's urgent. Once a day when she decides,she grabs my attention and runs back and forth to where I keep her brush for a brush. Does exactly the same when she decides it's time to play ball but goes to the drawer where I keep the tennis balls.   

[Phil Hornby]

stuart - it's your own fault -you should never have bought your dog a wrist watch for Christmas...

[boatlady]

 
Jennie and Jimbob aren't quite that knowing, but they do know dinner time - to the minute - and make sure I  don't forget by  mugging me - whatever I am doing at dinner time, has to stop because of the important task of feeding the dogs (who have temporarily become wild animals)

They let me know when they want to go toilet, but haven't developed a signal to show me which type of elimination they want to do; however, they watch my movements carefully, and will 'perform' in a part of the garden where I go regularly - at the moment they mostly go just in front of the greenhouse, other times of the year, it will be on the edge of the fish pond - in the winter they go just outside the door - I think they want to be sure it will be picked up quickly.

Jennie is a very greedy little dog and has many favourite foods - most recently she has developed a taste for dates, so I have to spend time taking the stones out of the dates for her - a real favourite, though, is nuts - she cracks them herself and leaves the shells for me to pick up. We get them every Christmas just for her, although I am allowed a few.

As you say, Stu - could go on for hours - hopefully others will join us with interesting stories about their animal friends

  

[stuart torr]

 The problem is Boatlady finding the thread my love,when I first looked I could not find it,then just figured out which topic that you would put it under and hey presto. Must get a nice photograph of her and it might even replace the parrots.   

[stuart torr]

Phil it wasn't a wrist watch mate,fob watch hangs around her neck.

[Dan Fante]

I'll try and remember to post a pic of my dog in this thread. And Boatlady, following on from the other thread, one of my best mates has a Bedlington Terrier (called Ziggy). You see quite a few of them up here in the North-East. There's a Bedlington Terriers Football Club too, which I always think is a great name.

[boatlady]

They are lovely dogs.
Mine, named Toby, came to me late in life after 8 years of neglect.
His previous owners kennelled him with a young Staffie, with minimal supervision, and one of his ears was badly chewed and had a chronic infection. Toby, being a gentle soul, just kept running away from home, and, after several years, the rescue centre managed to convince his owners to rehome him. I only had him 3 years or so before he succumbed to the combined effects of liver failure and a brain tumour, but those three years were a delight - he was a sweet natured dog with a fabulous sense of humour, and was very patient with my Jennie, who is inclined to be a bit bossy and domineering, as Russells often are.

On his last day, he sat on my lap in the vet's waiting room and patiently waited to be seen - I hope he found those few minutes as comforting as I did.

[stuart torr]

I'm sure he did Boatlady,as dogs have their sixth sense too,and he will have known and was enjoying his last few moments with you.

[Phil Hornby]

It's always horrible to have to have a much-loved pet taken from its pain and suffering. It is equally tough to have to go home afterwards and tell two young daughters that a family friend has had to go in its own interests.

[stuart torr]

very tough Phil,fortunately not in that position yet,dread the day.

[boatlady]

I always swore I would let all my animals die of natural causes - but at the end the decision seems so natural.
Any treatment would have just made the poor boy uncomfortable and his extended life would have been no pleasure to himself or the rest of us.
I think Jennie's reaction was very telling - she was just horrified at how he was and wouldn't even look at him - she knew his life was over, and didn't even mind when I took him out leaving her behind (normally something that would cause a very loud tantrum)

  

[stuart torr]

That is the sad part about dog owning is it not Boatlady,like when I went to the rspca to have my last dog lady put to sleep as she was dying of cancer,you go in with that loving dog still loving you in every way and vice versa,and come out with just her lead and collar and tears running down your face like there  's no tomorrow.

[boatlady]

The thought that comforts me is that I was able to keep him safe and comfortable and to help him to leave the world when it was right for him with the minimum possible discomfort.

When my time comes, I hope someone who loves me will be there to hold me and help me not to be afraid -- but you're right, it's very hard when you're the one left behind.

When Toby went to sleep, the kind young vet let me leave by the back door, so no-one would see how sad I felt - I'll always be grateful to him.

[Dan Fante]

All you can do is give them a really nice life, which I'm sure everyone on here does.

[stuart torr]

Very true Dan,hope you are well by the way.

[bobby]

Our little dog "Vinnie" is a 6 year old Norfolk Terrier with a smidgen of Westie.
My son bought it for my wife, she noticed an advert in the local paper showing two tiny little balls of fur and she went all silly. My son who was visiting offered to buy it for a Birthday present and wouldn't take no for an answer. We made the phone call then went to a farm in East Sussex to look at the dogs, one was pure white but was expected to colour up as time went by, the second was a shade of Golden Brown. The white one was very affectionate especially towards my wife so that was it deal done.
A couple of weeks later we took tiny Vinnie to have his injection and was told by the vet that Vinnie had a very serious heart problem and his heart was at least 4 times the size it should be. The Vet strongly recommended having Vinnie put to sleep. We asked if there was anything that could be done as at that time Vinnie wasn't suffering other than he would run out of energy quicker than he should have.
The Vet told us that their was an operation but Vinnie was too young and needed to be at least 1 year old before it could be considered for said op.
We decided to wait and see especially given that he wasn't in any pain and his shortness of energy for him was the norm so wouldn't worry
him. After ten months he woke us up sitting on my wife's pillow struggling to breath.
We took him to the vet (a different one) and gave Vinnie a scan, the results where horrific, His heart had grown so big it was now putting pressure on his wind pipe reducing his ability to breath, The Vet strongly recommended we have Vinnie put down. We asked if there was anything they could do, she told us their is an operation, but it should have been done as soon as we knew of the problem (not quite what the first vet told us). By now we and all the family had grown very fond of the very special little dog and my wife refused to have him put to sleep with out giving him every chance.
He was duly put on a course of medicine which included Viagra in preparation for the open heart surgery.
The day before the op we took him to the village pets hospital who had a specialist in this type of operation. We where told that there was a strong chance of losing Vinnie on the operating table but would definitely lose him if nothing was done.
The operation consisted of tying off an artery that should have blocked off at birth but for some reason didn't, had he had the op as a small puppy, it could have been done by blocking the offending artery, an operation which would have been much easier and less risky for Vinnie.
After the operation they did another scan which clearly showed that two of his Bicuspid valves didn't fit properly but they couldn't risk doing anything at this stage, the main danger for Vinnie was the anaesthetic, and because of the time he had had the problem the wall of his very oversized heart where very weak.
A week later when we collected him, the surgeon came to have a word with us, like us she had totally fallen in love with this very special little dog. She told us it would be better for Vinnie if he went chasing squirrels up a tree than to have a life wrapped up in cotton wool.
Vinnie is a very calm natured dog which is a massive plus for him and us, as it means he can live a normal life without too much pressure on his thin heart walls. He is totally spoilt but it is not a problem because he is by naturally non greedy, he doesn't by choice eat chocolate or many of the other damaging foods, we can leave anything on the table and he will never go near, he is extremely intelligent and was easy to train in things like walking on a lead etc.
Our Vinnie is such a special dog that both myself and my Wife have agreed not to have another after the fateful time comes and we lose a massive part of our lives. The reason for this decision is, we feel that if we had another dog I would forever be comparing it to Vinnie which wouldn't be fair on either the dog or us.
We took him for his regular hair cut yesterday, which always shows a line in his shortened fur where the surgeon cut the full length of his left flank. It was seeing this that prompted me to post about this very special and dear member of our family.

[boatlady]

Vinnie sounds like a treasure - I hope you have many more happy years with him

[stuart torr]

Seconded boatlady,glad there are dog lovers like us around,  

[Phil Hornby]

 Shapps Yaps...

(mirror)

" I'm barking mad, so do I qualify to be on this thread...?"

[boatlady]

 

[boatlady]

Tales of Jennie's and Jimbob's adventures on the riverside:-
Jennie and Jimbob went on holiday on the boat last week and mostly had a wonderful time, even in the rain.

They sailed across Breydon Water (in a motor boat driven by a human) in a very brave and self possessed manner, sleeping most of the way.

On arrival at the other side, Jimbob treated the party to a demonstration of freeform prancing, before climbing back on board to make lots of lovely muddy footprints all over the humans' bed.

They both enjoyed chasing the ducks and geese at Salhouse Broad and enjoyed a paddle (more muddy footprints) before joining the humans on a more sedate walk up the hill to the toilets, where they were able to make the acquaintance of some robins, and a small shrew mouse.

Over the week, I have to report that Jennie and Jimbob valiantly defended their boat against all comers, with loud calls and demonstrations of freeform prancing - any person passing near was compelled to stop and stroke them commenting on their exceptional beauty and the gracefulness of the prancing (at least I think that's what they meant when they said 'can't you control your dogs' and 'damn! these trousers were just clean on')

Finally, after a busy and rewarding week, they brought the humans home and have been mostly asleep ever since.

[bobby]

This is much better than politics innit, and not 1 mention of UKIP (till now, sorry)

[moonbeam]

I have had cats most of my life. I currently have 5. My most recent pair previous to the current lot were Donovan and Shandria, who were gorgeous solid black siblings. Shandria developed emphysema and had to be put down, and Donovan died of old age and ill health.

Now we have:

Goober and Squeaker, an orange tabby sibling pair. We were originally only going to take Squeaker, but we found out just before picking her up that brother Goo's intended owner had backed out. So, we took him too. Squeaker is quite vocal, and absolutely demands attention. She also tends to be a bit aggressive towards the non-sibling cats. Goober is 100% alpha male, and can climb narrow walls by hooking his claws into the outside trim. He can also leap from the floor onto the top of the front door, and, yes.... balance on top. He's a beast, lol.

Max and Snow are also brother and sister, half Siamese and half who-knows-what. Goober and Squeaker were about a year old when we got them. They used to belong to my adult stepdaughter, who knows she's allergic but got them anyway. When she started having too many problems, she gave them to my son as a 9th birthday present. Max plays fetch, and will bring his toys to you so you will know he wants to play. Snow is my son's cat through and through and she loves to bathe his head. He calls it "licky time" and complains about how it hurts, while encouraging her at the same time.

I think we'd had Max and Snow for a couple of months at the most when I heard a kitten meowing "somewhere outside". Eventually I found a tiny abandoned feral baby under our house. The vet guessed that he was about 4 weeks old, and still required bottle feeding. We named him Mr. Whiskers, aka Whisk/Whiskey. He's the runt of the house, and remains skittish- as ferals often are - even though he's been an indoor cat his entire life. He doesn't even WANT to go outside! He adores his big brother Goober and Goober was always very gentle with Whisk as a tiny baby. Actually, Goob has always been very accepting of all the new faces in the house, lol. Way more so than Squeaker!

I also feed and water a bunch of outdoor cats, as my neighborhood seems to have a large number of ferals. There's one, who I call Tuxy (he's black and white and I'm unimaginative) who likes to be scritched if I open the back door a bit. He'll even purr, but he will run down to the bottom of the back steps when I come out to fill the food and water. Once I'm out there, he'll come within two stairs of me, but if I make a move, away he goes again. Creamsicle (a long haired, not quite orange cat) is another that is slightly less timid than the others but unlike Tuxy, he won't let me pet him. A sniff is the best I get from him.

Yes, I love cats, lol!

[boatlady]

The thing about cats, I always found, was it's really difficult having only the one!!
You usually find yourself, as you did, adopting them in sibling groups, then 'finding' one or more others, and before you know it you are an alien in cat country.

At my peak, I had four - Salome (Sally) - named after the littlest creep in the Moomin stories; Eric and Blossom - a ginger tom and his tortoiseshell sister; then, just as we thought out family was complete, we came upon Charlie (Chaplin) in the local park. He appeared to have been savaged by a large dog or similar, and was in a poor way. Once restored to health he became Eric's faithful follower, but never grasped the idea that spraying on the kitchen counter top was not allowed.

Blossom eventually moved in with a friend of mine when I moved away from the area, and afterwards would never speak to me. Eric left home and hopefully moved in with one of the many families who lived locally. Sally and Charlie went to live with a niece and lived out a respectable old age together.

Once I settled again, I was owned by a very pretty calico cat named Katie - named for her shrewish nature - who tolerated me for several years, even when I brought dogs into the house. At the ripe age of 13, she retired and moved in with my mum for a quieter life. She died, aged 17 just before Christmas.

Sharing your life with cats is a high privilege and pleasure

[boatlady]

Jennie and Jimbob (continuation)

Since their return from holiday, Jennie and Jimbob have been mostly sleeping; however, today, they have found themselves feeling a little more animated.

With considerable verve, they have helped one of the humans with a bit of (belated) spring cleaning. The guiding principle for dogs assisting with spring cleaning is, that you need to accurately predict exactly where the spring cleaning human plans to put her or his feet and try to arrive there just a split second before. When admonished (or stood on) the alternative strategy is to predict the trajectory of the hoover, so as to arrive in the vicinity of a piece of crud just a millisecond in advance of cleaning operations. Once in position the tactic is to spend the maximum possible time in fixedly admiring said piece of crud, if possible rolling in it.

I have to report that, after a stimulating day tripping humans, rolling in crud and enjoying various foodstuffs offered in the form of bribes, that Jennie and Jimbob are once again sleeping the sleep of the just.

Later on, I'll wake them and take them to bed

[oftenwrong]

Dogs will always be transparent for as long as they pretend to be people.

[Phil Hornby]

" So - how do you feel now you've voted for Farage...?"

" It was a paw decision..."

[boatlady]

Jennie and Jimbob believe in equality and fairness, so of course they voted Labour (also the young man canvassing in our area always had dog treats) (I don't think that counts as bribery?)

[stuart torr]

Well browsing through the threads and I CAME ACCROSS THIS GEM FROM A WHILE BACK.
Thought to myself wonder how all our family friends are doing?
Mine is still mad as hatter, and currently malting her coat over my carpet, so hovering no end of times now.   
My main thought excuse me everybody, was how Vinnie is bobby?

[stuart torr]

Well being a bloody person that does not give up easily, as most of you know.  
I do not want to upset any of you at all, I only wanted to know how our dogs and cats are, and hoping that they are all well and keeping us on our toes and laughing.

[boatlady]

Hi Stuart
Seems we're having a bit of a slow time on the forum.
I have to report, though, that Jennie and Jimbob remain in excellent spirits and have enjoyed several more river adventures since they last contributed to this excellent thread.
This last weekend, however, they stayed home and had a day at the seaside instead. They went to the small seaside town of Sea Palling in North Norfolk, where they enjoyed a paddle in the sea, and watched the St Bernard rescue dogs practicing their rescue skills, swimming out to a small dinghy and then towing it back toward the shore. It was a very hot day, so the St Bernards were more interested in just enjoying the nice cool sea water rather than doing any actual rescuing.
Later, Jennie and Jimbob shared a crab leg that they really enjoyed, although it has to be reported that Jennie forgot her manners and gobbled, with the result that her share of the treat had to be cleaned up off the carpet.
At the moment, they are snoozing quite peacefully, each on a separate chair, waiting for bedtime.

I hope you and your canine companion are keeping well and coping with the rather strange summer weather

[stuart torr]

Well when tula is already out she will accept the rain, but if it is raining beforehand no way will she go boatlady.
Sounds like Jennies a bit like tula when coming to treats too.
Oh I wish we lived like yourself on a boat boatlady.

[boatlady]

We don't live aboard - the boat is not really big enough - although we can manage a week or so without getting too itchy if the weather's fine.

The boat is 26 feet long, which sounds a lot, but for two people and two dogs it is a tight fit. We don't have many mod cons (shower etc) but we did invest in a new sink, so we can now get a proper wash.

I think we're very lucky to have it, especially when the summer gets really hot. I have some breathing problems, and if I can't keep cool life is very uncomfortable - on the river you can always find a breeze.

The boat is really the thing that caused my marriage - the lovely man bought one when he came to live with me, because I always said I would like to have my own boat- the first one was 16 feet long and the loo was in the open air - you had to take a LARGE newspaper - and the rest is history.

Jennie and Jimbob love the boat - they get a lot more freedom than at home. Where we live is very built up and they have to stay close to home most of the time, but on the riverbank they can feel the wind in their hair and run like crazy.

I'm afraid Jennie is a very greedy little dog, and it really serves her right if her treats sometimes make her sick - but she doesn't learn

[stuart torr]

I'm sorry if I have bought up bad memories boatlady, did the boat cause your marriage break up? if I'm being nosey tell me?
I bet they love the boat love I'm sure Tula would too, as she loves the open air and I could see her standing on the bow end proud as punch.

[boatlady]

No - the boat caused my marriage - at an advanced age I decided to live with a man - he bought a boat - I fell for him AND the boat - and the rest is history.

Jennie and Jimbob mostly sleep while we're cruising - for them, the fun starts when we tie the boat up and they can get off and prance

[stuart torr]

Understand your wording now boatlady, didn't mean to pry my love.  

[boatlady]

Not prying - I will gladly rave about my lovely husband to anyone who will listen

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