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sea4th

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  1. sea4th

    Flyboy

    And eventually, after the intial grief, that's what it comes down to. I have 2, 14 yr. old border collies at my feet as I type this --- and I dread having to go through the grieving process again. You were lucky to have had him in your life, Liz.
  2. I looked for it at TS yesterday and couldn't find it. :0(((
  3. My sentiments exactly. That's what I do. That's what I say. It's sort of like that "wrestling with pics" saying.
  4. While I'm skeptical of MV's sincerity (read that as "I'll do anything they ask me to. Just don't take away the big bucks NFL pays me), I feel he deserves a second chance and who knows. He might have had a sincere change of heart, but I don't know, so I'll just remain skeptical.
  5. Re: the top dog thing. The girls don't and never did have an issue with Tam being first ranked male. They knew then, they know now "never underestimate the power of a female", so they never cared and felt secure in their own places in the household. It's the males that Tam can no longer, if the situation called for, fight off or remind them of their place. His nephew, Joe is very much in the top dog slot now, but Tam still thinks he still holds the title, and maybe in a way he still does. Joe wouldn't think, probably doesn't feel the need to bring down an old dog. Joe has sense. In his prime, I nicknamed Tam, the Irish brawler. His daddy was from Ireland and if Tam would be a person, he'd have been the guy who would go to the corner bar for a pint, minding his own business, but if trouble came to him, he could clean some clocks and clear out the bar. One tough dog was my Tam, very serious. Although he's had the opportunity to play, I've only seen him break down twice in his life and act silly and maybe play with something. Thing is, he still thinks he's tough, but I worry when he lapses and I see his rear quarters sway, but I do still see shades of that old barroom brawler. He's always been to me a very blue collar, working class type of dog. If he were human, he wouldn't have clean and manicured hands. Tam would have hands like my dad, hands that have known a lifetime of hard work, been exposed to the elements and showing every bit of it, never quite getting all of the dirt out from under the fingernails --- good, honest working hands. And if Tam is anything, he is good and honest.
  6. I'd been wanting to post a topic about old dogs, specifically about Tam. Tam is 13 yrs. old and to see him age is distressing for me. Tam is a smooth tri color. In his prime, he was breathtaking -- masculine and well-muscled, glossy black coat, he exuded confidence and there was no doubt who the top dog was in the house. Watching him work, i.e., move sheep, I have to admit, I was drawn to watching his fluid movement as he slithered around the sheep, more so than how he was working. Scaling a 6 foot enclosure for Tam was like jumping a 2 ft. baby gates for others. While he still is in great shape for an old dog, a thickness has set in, although I still consider Tam a very dignified handsome, there have been some changes in behavior. He's never been a food thief. He's not now. He will ask to go out but if I am not standing by the door while he tends to business, he will bark, a very loud bark, continually, until I'm back at the door. He can't guage the sound anymore. Tam is almost entirely deaf. Recalls are reduced to me being in his line of vision and motioning to him. Sometimes he'll sort of blank out and gets weak in the rear. It sways. But that's only sometimes. And his eyes are cloudy. What's really distressing is that Tam, who garnered the respect of every dog in the house at one time, has recently been jumped on by Billy, an old rescue dog who has been with me for years. I call Billy the village idiot. Billy is nuts, absolutely the lowest dog in the pack order, but when Tam was younger, he would quickly put Billy in his place or out of control behavior and Billy would respond with a "yessir. anything you say sir". Billy has lost that respect for Tam now. That hurts to see. Maybe the worst of all is coming home, a chorus of dogs barking to greet me, but Tam is in such a deep, old dog sleep, he doesn't hear me come home and sometimes, when I walk in, I turn on the light and I pause to see if he is still breathing. A light touch wakens him and he jumps up, "OK. I'm up! Let's go". I still let him know that in my heart, he is still top dog around here and I think he's happy with that. I don't mean to steal this thread. I didn't want to start another one, but when there is any change in behavior in an old dog, it can be something. It might be nothing. In either case, when an old dog ages, it's not always easy to watch or accept, but it's good to bring up some of these issues and get feedback on them. Sorry for veering off the main question.
  7. This connection between you and Tess is nothing short of amazing. Still it shouldn't be surprising to people who have had even a fraction of the same. Amazing yes, but not surprising. I think what you and Tess have, your unspoken communication, that certain electricity that happens with only a few -- if you're lucky -- dogs in your lifetime, is a gift, but I think you know it and I know you treasure it, the way you write about Tess. BTW, my old Tam dog -- he's now 13, was the same as Tess in that he would sulk. He knew or thought he knew how things were done, and if you set him up for an outrun YOUR way, he would do an outwalk, ears back listening, but not looking at you or what you might be yelling at him. When he was a youngster, we were at a Bruce Fogt clinic and Tam did the same, only he was listening to Bruce coming up behind him, slapping his hat against his leg to get him going. I love that dog! LOL
  8. Ditto. I have just one question. How do you know Jack's hands were warm --- the entire time?
  9. Yes, yes and yes. This woman sounds like she's got a couple of screws loose. What I would do is to write down each incident, as honestly and as best as you can remember them -- dates, times, what happened, what was said. And begin to keep a journal of future incidences. If possible, take pictures. The other thing is to never let your dog out where he'd be by himself. You are his witness. If you see this dingbat coming in your direction, bring your dog in. The key here is prevention and while prevention might not be convenient, it is critical in your case. When I respond to the authorities, I would at first do it with a sense of indignation -- "what's this all about?". "how dare this woman who obviously has some sort of agenda, set you and your dog up like this". I'd want to see HER credibility questioned in the eyes of the authorities. If you want to save your dog, or keeping your dog, you need to become proactive now. Later might be too late.
  10. I don't think there is anything unhealthy about your "American sensibilities". Is the well being of the street/village dog reflective of the city or village where they live? What I'm trying to say is if the human residents are relatively well fed and healthy, I would think the condition of the street dogs would reflect that and it's in these sort of environments that people can afford to be if not kind, then somewhat tolerant of the village/street dogs, even affording the luxury of a spay and neuter efforts. I'm also wondering if, depending on the area (culture), if anyone ever intervenes on behalf of one of these dogs if it's is being abused or mistreated. I understand not every culture is necessary kind to dogs, but I don't understand intentional cruelty. Re: the Albanian story -- the people in that town apparently had every right to be afraid of dogs and took what action they had to. I'm wondering when and why these packs would sweep through the town. Was it during periods of extreme hunger? I feel that there's got to be a lot more to this scenario.
  11. I think in this country we've grown away from the "real world", for lack of a better term. We have everything sanitized, orderly and our excesses, while normal for us, might not be for the rest of the world and if something upsets this precarious balance of our lives, we want to sue or put a bounty on it, as DR said. If you're able to take a giant step back and look with an untainted eye, this symbiotic relationship between street dogs and humans, to me appears the more natural one. No it's not perfect and the efforts to spay and neuter is to be commended, IMO, but that there exists the mentality that these dogs are a natural part of life and don't need to be exterminated, restores some of my faith in mankind.
  12. I really enjoyed reading this article. And Anda, I loved your photos, as usual, and your perspective as well. Thank you. Although I grew up in a Russian family, my experience of Russians and their dogs was still limited -- to the family and friends of. And I got a wide range of Russian perspectives on dogs over the years, from those who liked dogs to those who did not, and in no way could I say I met anyone who was a dog person. I would be the first - and it was always a source of concern. LOL. It must be an aberrant set of genes. These Russians I knew were post-WWII people. They lived through a war where food was scarce, sometimes non-existant for days at a time. Scarce food means doing all you can do to feed your family and so to say dogs at the time were a luxury, is an understatement. Prior to that, the Soviet Union days where it one worked hard to feed a family and keep a roof over their heads. Still, my family lived a distance from a large city, and did have a pet, a dog or two. Prior to that, my grandfather would tell me of his boyhood prior to the Revolution in 1917, and his childhood was filled with dogs. (I don't know what it is with Russians and knives, but he told of one of his dogs being stabbed to death by a neighbor). Then, my next exposure was when I got Lena in 1991, my first Caucasian Ovcharka, one of the first in this country and it was because of her that I learned of a passion that some Russians have for their dogs, which I found interesting -- because these were people more like me than my family. Of course, these weren't street dogs, but still, because of the article it was good to know that there are others like me in Russia and that there is a sense of benevolence toward these animals on the part of the Russians. So to read that dogs are not only part of the street scene in a large city like Moscow, but even considered by some a necessary part of city life, according to people interviewed in this article, did me a lot of good to read. In a century of tumultuous change, it would be interesting to know how these dogs and the attitudes toward them evolved in Russia. ETA - Sorry for the rambling, but it's kind of nice to see that there is a soft spot in the Russian heart for these dogs, how remarkable these street dogs are - not only in Russia, but anywhere there are humans -- how inextricably linked they are with us.
  13. Going with everyone else here --- human error --- not canine error and I see no reason why Annie should be crated if they're over unless it's for her own security. If she's never gone after your son before, I don't see a need to confine her. What does your son think about the entire situation?
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