For animal lovers

[myrosiedog]

OK, I need another dog like I need a hole in the head, but I went to the TM rescue site. OH my, there are some cuties there in need of homes.

This is not something I could do now, but maybe in a year or two. I would definetly do rescue and not a puppy. I think that any other animal we get would be through rescue. Because so many of them need homes and the good luck we've had with rescuing Waldo has been very rewarding. Next week will be a year that he's been with us and he's come such a LONG way in that year. Most of his original issues are a thing of the past.

We are hoping to purchase a house with a little land by this summer, so once we are able to do that, I might think about it. Rosie will be 11 in March, so I'm not sure if its a good idea now. But I think that down the road, I might be interested.

As all my friends tell me, they wish they could be MY dogs because of all the love and spoilage they get, so any future dog would get the same treatment. And Waldo would have someone big to run around with. Bogie does it now, but poor little Bogie and his short little legs can barely keep up with Waldo.

[Google]

 

[Gutmutter]

Has it been a year already? Happy anniversary Waldo!! After discovering the flooded basement and the dead sump pump, I tried to crawl under the covers for a good mope, but that darned Frosti curled up next to my head and started purring and touching my face with his paws, so I couldn't work up a good mope. I got out of bed and called Aubuchon's to make sure they had a sump pump and then braved the weather to get one.

[gabriel]

Happy Anniversay WALDO!! Lucky Dog Lucky Dog Lucky Dog!

[myrosiedog]

Originally Posted by gabriel

Happy Anniversay WALDO!! Lucky Dog Lucky Dog Lucky Dog!

Actually its next week. Feb. 20 we will have had him a full year. And yes, we do intend to celebrate.

He knows he's a lucky dog. And he is SO much better behaved now. I think the love and the spaying have worked wonders on him. He's still very happy and playful, but most of the problem behaviors are a thing of the past. Love and spoilage can overcome a lot.

My daughter was talking about how unobservant my husband is and how when I rearrange stuff or get something knew he never notices it and so we should get that TM dog. I said I really think he'd notice a 200 pound DOG running around.
That's just a fantasy right now, but maybe in a few years.....

[brunette trixie]

I love the pics of your mastiff with the baby, canuckinchile. Such a gentle giant.


I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the Tibetan Mastiff. I had never seen one before last night. Such a handsome dog. Makes me want to buy a big house so I can get one. And Waldo does look like a 1/2 scale mini of the Tibetan Mastiff.

[shyra]

Can someone tell me what the differences are between an English Bullmastiff and a regular Bullmastiff and a dogue de bordeaux? I have had small dogs before but never a big dog and since we are moving to the country I am thinking about getting a large dog so I am not alone at night as my hubby works steady nights. Not sure what kind of dog I will end up getting but I am interested in the mastiff's.

[myrosiedog]

When they showed the Bull Mastiff the other night, they actually said that it was the "father" of many of the other dog breeds today. And listed several dog breeds (that I cannot remember now) that were descended from the mastiff.

Shyra, in doing some research yesterday, almost all the dog breeds have their own websites and most have a "Is this the kind of dog for you" spot on it. It tells what to expect from that kind of dog and if your lifestyle is conducive to owning that type of dog.
I would definetly look up the official sites of the dogs you listed and do some research on them. You'll be able to see photos and read a bit of history and the difference between some of the breeds. Westminster also has its own site and links to many of the breed sites.

My daughter said we should tell people Waldo is a MTM (minature Tibetan Mastiff). Waldo is his own breed. There will never be another one like him.

[canuckinchile]

Ahem It is the English Mastiff that is the "father" of many breeds. The Bull Mastiff is a spinoff (cross English Mastiff and English Bulldog). Good advice to research the breed. I wasn't a big dog person before, but my husband travels a lot and while very lovable my big dog always puts her body between me and a stranger trying to enter our property. What I really like is the fact that when I tell her it is okay, she stands down immediately. English Mastiffs are not biters but when you have a dog that size barking, with hackles raised....it's scary. We took a lot of care to socialize her with other dogs and people and she gets a lot of attention on walks, which she likes. When we move into our new house I will definitely introduce her to the neighbours, so she knows they belong too! I obviously have fallen in love with the breed, but they can be stubborn, don't do well if you have to leave them alone for long periods of time, and cover the entire kitchen floor when they plant themselves with the family! Some are droolers but mine is not bad at all...only after drinking water. If possible, meet the parents of the puppy you are going to get. The mother of our dog was very sweet.

There are a lot of great dogs out there and some great mixed breeds as well. We just kind of stumbled on our current Mastiff and fell in love.

[queenb]

Originally Posted by shyra

Can someone tell me what the differences are between an English Bullmastiff and a regular Bullmastiff and a dogue de bordeaux? I have had small dogs before but never a big dog and since we are moving to the country I am thinking about getting a large dog so I am not alone at night as my hubby works steady nights. Not sure what kind of dog I will end up getting but I am interested in the mastiff's.

For one thing the Mastiff (English Mastiff) is a lot bigger than either of the other two, usually at minimum 150 pounds or so. It's not that unusual for them to weigh 200 or more though. The Bullmastiff and Bordeaux will start at around 110 pounds. I had a friend whose brother raised bordeaux, and he said they were more temperamental and stubborn than other Mastiffs, who are usually easygoing. At that time they were also about 3x as expensive as English Mastiffs also, as they were very rare in this country. I'm not sure if that's still the case.
I'd second doing a LOT of research on any dog breed before buying, but especially any that get so big.

Gutmutter--it's too bad the 'kill' shelters won't let me take a few dozen kittens for a rescue ride. I saw where the dogs they were taking were somehow requiring $700 apiece to get them up there. I'm sure I could get a whole Corolla-full of kittens and puppies up there for a third of that. Anyway, I am glad people in your area take the overpopulation problem seriously. Not so much if the strays just die in your harsh winters.

[dagwood]

This cracked me up.

Comcast.net News - Odd - Cat Pulls a Fast One on Firefighters

Cat Pulls a Fast One on Firefighters

MIAMI — It was the stereotypical firefighters-try-to-rescue-cat story, but with a twist. Firefighters from the South Florida city of Weston spent a sopping hour in pouring rain Tuesday trying to extract a kitten squeezed in the undercarriage of a stranger's Volvo.

The crew tried jacking up the car and taking off a wheel, all for naught. The feline ducked out of reach at each attempt to grab it.

At some point, the cat escaped undetected, prompting the crew to spend another hour peering in bushes and scouring a Walgreens parking lot.

They finally gave up and headed back to the station, answering at least two more calls on their way.

Five hours after the saga began, the elusive cat reappeared: At the station, in their fire truck's rear wheel well.

This time, firefighters used chunks of meatloaf to try luring it out. It was unenticed, so the crew resorted to an ultimately successful three-pronged strategy: One firefighter poked the feline in the backside with a Slim Jim, another used a hose to force it into an open compartment so a third person could pull it out.

The feline was dirty but unharmed.