gypsy84

Thanks everyone. It was her carnassial molar. Apparently it had been cracked for a long time since the vet said it was infected and oozing pus, but on the plus side the infection helped it come out really easy and she was only under the anasthetic for 1/2 an hour. She came home yesterday and was super tired and almost stoned from being under, but didn't seem to be in any real pain and managed to scarf down her dinner (one kibble at a time as per the vet's directions ). She's on pain meds and antibiotics for the infection, but doesn't seem any worse for the wear... I think my wallet took a bigger beating than she did - it's now $384 lighter than it was But she's happy and healthy, and you certainly can't put a price tag on that! I love my little dog

My poor girl Today Gypsy was playing with her rope toy, and all of a sudden she stopped and started sniffing something on the ground. I took a closer look and there was a white shard of tooth on the carpet. I opened up her mouth and it was literally dripping with blood. So I stuck her in the car and drove to the vet clinic where my sister works, which took 40 minutes instead of 15 like usual since last night we had the first big snow of the year and traffic was crawling. The vet looked at her and said it would have to come out, so she's having surgery today It was so unexpected and I'm glad I saved up a bit of extra money for emergencies just like this... Here's the tooth shard beside a dime. Almost half its length is from the root, and the other half (bottom right) was the exposed tooth. The vet thinks she cracked it on a nylabone a little while ago and the rope just caught it and pulled it out today. And apparently after I left her in the kennel, she started baring her teeth whenever anyone walked past her other than my sister. WTF? My dog??? I guess she's in a lot of pain and really scared She was given something for pain and to sedate her a bit until they can operate, which should be any minute now. At least I'll be able to pick her up tonight. *sigh* if you wouldn't mind sending a bit of board mojo we'd both appreciate it.

I was bringing Gypsy to the barn with me occasionally, she absolutely loves it. She's not interested in the horses so much as she is in eating what comes out of them To be honest she's more intimidated by the resident crabby old nanny goat (and she calls herself a border collie!). But her ignorance of the horses does not turn out well either, as many of them are young and not quite used to dogs... She doesn't understand to stay away from the back end of horses, and she's gotten kicked in the head twice. I'm not taking her there anymore in case she's not so lucky the third time. My filly's hooves are small but she's got a lot of power behind them, and I'm not goning to risk a fractured skull (or worse) just so Gypsy can eat some horse poop.

Gypsy is the heaviest-sounding 35lb dog I've ever been around. She always stretches as she's walking, she'll push her back feet out as far as they can go and then THUMP just flop over onto her side. It makes me cringe but it really doesn't seem to bother her! She also does this weird baby voice screechie noise on occasion when she yawns. And she's a grunter.

I've been told Gypsy was many breeds... including some woman who insisted she was a Jack Russel. Now I just tell people straight up she's a BC. I'll never know her exact breed/mix for sure, but they don't need to know that!

If you're not sure about having 2 adolescent monsters border collie puppies then it's probably best to wait Raising one is hard enough, I couldn't imagine trying to take on 2 at once! It sounds like a great idea to help find a good home for Ugla's sister, that way you can feel good about not adopting her, as well as making sure each dog will recieve 110% of the attention that they need! Plus your boyfriend might stick around I converted my husband from a cat person, and now he's getting excited about getting HIS dog! Good luck with whatever you decide, your dogs are adorable!

Thanks for the replies. Most likely a UTI since last night she peed on her pillow with no warning, and before this has had zero accidents in over a year. She was spayed just over a year ago and the behaviour is developing now.. So I guess it's off to the vets we go!

Small world isn't it? I always take Gypsy to the gas station near my house, and I have since she was a puppy. The staff love her there. One time I brought her in, paid for my gas, then was heading out when the woman next in line asked to see her.. So of course I stop to chat. She says what a nice dog, where'd you get her. I tell her the shelter I got her, and she asked how old she was. I told her and she asks when I got her. I tell her. She says "My sister owns her littermate, she wanted your Gypsy but you had her on hold [phew!!!] when she got her dog". And you'll never guess what their dog's name is....... Gypsy. I know it's not the most original name in the world, but I thought that was quite the coincidence. She then went on to tell me how bad (as in hyper/untrained) the dog is, and how different my Gypsy was from her. I still wonder what it would be like if I had picked one of her sisters/brothers instead... I can't imagine not having my girl!!

Over the past 2 days, Gypsy has become the object of desire for male dogs. In the dog park, they won't leave her alone. It's never been like this before, occasionally she or another dog would hump each other in play, but tonight there were 5 different males at different times that tried to mount her (repeatedly) Can a spayed female dog still emit the pheromones of an intact female to signal to males that she's in heat? Or is there some other reason for this sudden increase in "affection" for her?

The other day in the dog park, we came across a suicidal chipmunk that leaped out of a tree, missed its foothold on the next one, and landed right in Gypsy's gaping mouth. Gypsy was amazed and soooo proud of herself that she *finally* caught one. It's hard pretending you're not angry for something that's just natural to them.

I am so sorry to hear this.. Zia was beautiful and it's such a shame she had this accident. Reading the titles of these posts always makes my heart drop, and I know one more Good Dog has gone. My heart goes out to you.

When I got Gypsy at 9 weeks old, it took about a week of sleepless nights to crate train her. It was necessary that she knew whining/crying did not mean she got to come out of her kennel. After she got used to it, she was fine, and then at about 8 months old I felt I was able to trust her enough to spend the night out of the crate. She now sleeps on my bed with me I think it's fine that you want your dog to sleep with your son, however IMO he should be able to spend the night in his kennel alone first. A puppy should be able to sleep through the night without accidents, which the crate reinforces since dogs instinctively don't want to mess in their beds. You don't NEED to let him out when he cries, and it's only reinforcing that whining=freedom from kennel. Your puppy might occasionally have an accident in his crate, but it shouldn't really be a problem if you let him out right before you put him to bed and as soon as you get up in the morning. I know it's hard "ignoring" puppy wailing, (Gypsy developed a pitifully heart-wrenching "Aaarrooooooooo..." that almost got to me) but stick it out and it'll be worth it.

Gypsy has a Furminator.. But to me it doesn't really seem like "pampering". It keeps her cool in the summer due to having about 1/2 her normal coat, but it really reduces her shedding and makes it a lot easier for me to clean her hair. Other than that, the only thing I can think of is that I bought her a pink bandana - apparently she looks like a Man Dog and I was tired of people telling me "HE'S so cute". Although I guess some people don't pick up on it right away, as I still get the occasional "He"

I am so sorry to hear this. Missy was a beautiful dog, and it sounds like she couldn't have had a better life. I'm sure she's thankful you and DW were strong enough to know when to let her go.

A commercialized version of that has allowed someone to retire early.. After all, it's sooooo much easier to just spend $150 and let your dog entertain itself than actually having to waste time interacting with it. I wonder how many dogs' owners are actually "replaced" by these things?

My smooth BC sheds a moderate amount all year round. The Furminator works great on her coat, and she hardly sheds now. I'd definitely reccomend it.

What coat color do you prefer, if any? All things being equal, I would probably go for a red tri or red & white, but colour is the last thing I consider when looking at dogs. If you have a preference, would it dictate your choice of dog? No, unless the choice was between an identicle dog of a different colour and a red tri or a r&w. Does your current complement of dogs reflect this color preference? Nope

Gypsy doesn't ask to go out either. It was more difficult house training her because of it, but she was on a schedule and for those couple months after I first got her I took her out every chance I got - better safe than sorry. She knew she was supposed to go outside, but she wouldn't ask. Usually she would walk to the back door, wait for a minute, and if no one noticed she would pee on the mat at the back door. Poop too, but not as often since she pooped less.. most of the time anyways, there was one day she pooped 9 times Ayways, I would definitely try the bells idea. That's what really worked for us. Instead of barking/whining to let me know she needed go out, she associated going outside with hitting the bells, and it just clicked for her. All of a sudden there were no more accidents and my dog was housetrained! It's a great feeling once you finally realize it happened, so stick it out and give the bells a try. Remember dogs don't do things out of spite, Shadow just needs to learn how to get you to let her outside.

Ditto Gypsy play-humps my sister's male dog. She isn't dominant over him, he's the boss and will correct her if play gets too rough, but she absolutely ADORES her "big brother" and follows him everywhere

Great advice already given here. I wholeheartedly support the long line idea, since it can help you correct your dog when you are nowhere near it - just watch out for tangles in legs... canine or human Also, you might want to try going to the dog park during off times, when it's empty of other people & dogs. My Gypsy is ADDICTED to dogs, she seriously loves them. Teaching her a solid recall took a looooooot of hard work and practice, but it sure paid off. Just having the smells left behind in an empty park will provide some distraction, but not to the level of a pack of 10 dogs whipping past when you're trying to focus your dog. Good luck

Most of ours have been said already (hide under the blanket, hide and seek etc) but there's still a couple others! When we're walking in the park, if she gets too far ahead I'll sidestep into the bush on either side of the trail and just be as quiet as I can. Never more than 10 seconds later, a black-and-white blur comes bolting back down the trail, looking left to try and spot me. If she goes past without finding me, I jump out and chase her and she gets zoomies! (Interesting to explain if any people are around and happen to witness this ) If she finds me, she runs over and I crouch down for a face washing. She's so proud when she actually finds me! Also we play Choose It. I'll put Gypsy in a sit-stay and then place a number of different things out on the floor in front of her (can be toys, treats or a combination). Then she looks at me and I ask "Which one do you want?" and she'll look down at her choices, think for a couple seconds, touch the one she wants with her paw and look up at me. I tell her "OK" and she takes that one and then sits back down. The process is repeated till she's chosen/eaten everything.

I can definitely relate to that! From 3 months when she first became interested in frisbees until nearly 8 months old, Gypsy would only grab rollers with her mouth. Anything off the ground she'd stomp down out of the air and then pick it up. One day it just clicked and she completely surprised me by consistently catching ever single throw I think they grow out of it once they realize they can get another throw much quicker by simply catching it in their mouth

Everyone's videos are great, I especially love how crazy Abby is! The song fits her perfectly I know I'm coming into this one a bit late, but I have been meaning to make a new video for Gypsy since almost a year ago! This post just motivated me to do it! Here it is, let me know what you think http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=6oPherbjz3I

What lake is your cottage on? My parents own one on Granite Lake, right beside Clearwater Bay Just in case your vet doesn't know, there's a fungal disease specific to the LOTW area called blastomycosis that grows in the soil in damp areas (ie under cabins). I first heard about it 3 summers ago when my friend's dog became extremely lethargic, wasn't eating, and when they took him to the e-vet in Kenora he was diagnosed with having contracted it. They were very close to losing him, but fortunately over 4 months of treatment he did make a full recovery. Since it is only found in that area, outside vets probably won't know about it - even the Kenora vet said it was a good thing they brought him in while they were there since the Winnipeg vets might not make the connection. It's also contractible by humans, and can be fatal. Not trying to scare you or anything, but just thought I might mention it. I'd probably try to discourage Daisy from digging or really sniffing the soil while you're staying there, and definitely keep her out from underneath any cabins, decks, etc. I found this link that gives a bit more information on the disease. Hope it helps Blastomycosis

Hi Julie, From my experience, here in Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario tick season is well over by August. May-June are generally the worst, although if you really go into the deep bush later on in the summer I'm sure you'd be able to find a couple of the beasties Not sure if it's different where you're going, but you will most likey not have anything to worry about. Also from what I can remember, it's only the deerticks that carry Lyme, the more common woodticks do not. To answer your question though, the best way to find them is just petting the dog. You can look through his/her fur carefully, but they are very small and easy to miss. After a couple of days up to a week, they'll become engorged with blood and turn white (so gross!), and you will feel lumps through the dog's fur. Just a word of caution, the old family dog had a small mole on his neck and my mom didn't realize this, and tried for 15 minutes to pull off his mole with tweezers!! Have fun on your trip, and we'll be expecting lots of pictures ETA: Found you a link if you're interested Lyme Info