muttleynfelix
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Post by muttleynfelix on Sept 19, 2014 12:38:27 GMT -5
My dogs were only kenneled when I was gone, otherwise they had the run of the place. Muttley lives in our garage. When we open the door he is free to run around. The last couple years he has started sticking a lot closer to home. Since we got rid of Anna, he's less likely to "run off" (to the ravines on either side of our house and play with the neighbor's dogs) and now he's starting to get a little older - he's 11 now. He's a mutt, so I'm guessing his life span is probably in the 15 year range. He's been pretty awesome. The Saturday that DH's brother died, he knew something was up and while I was outside he stood at the top of our driveway at attention the entire time. Either to guard the house or to wait for DH to come home, I don't know.
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imawino
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Post by imawino on Sept 19, 2014 13:31:24 GMT -5
Mine liked to roll in cow afterbirth. My terrier likes to roll in youngest son's sweaty hockey stuff... definitely not as gross as cow afterbirth! I wouldn't be so sure!
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imawino
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Post by imawino on Sept 19, 2014 13:36:09 GMT -5
My dad's gorgeous white Siberian Husky likes to roll in fresh shit of any variety - bird, bear, dog, whatever. And he's sneaky and quick about it. You're walking with him and suddenly he dives face first before you can stop him and is covered in fresh poop. ugh. He gets lots of baths and hates every one of them, but apparently has yet to figure out the correlation that rolling in the poop = bath time. I wonder if it is a territory hunting thing. If you smell like bear shit the bear won't know you are really a Siberian Husky(at least until he sees you).
Oh, I'm certain there is some sort of biological imperative for doing it. It does not make washing poop out of thick, fluffy Husky hair any more fun!
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Abby Normal
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Post by Abby Normal on Sept 19, 2014 13:45:54 GMT -5
My dad's gorgeous white Siberian Husky likes to roll in fresh shit of any variety - bird, bear, dog, whatever. And he's sneaky and quick about it. You're walking with him and suddenly he dives face first before you can stop him and is covered in fresh poop. ugh. He gets lots of baths and hates every one of them, but apparently has yet to figure out the correlation that rolling in the poop = bath time. I wonder if it is a territory hunting thing. If you smell like bear shit the bear won't know you are really a Siberian Husky(at least until he sees you).
I believe you are right. It's an instinctual tactic to obscure their scent from prey. Just like they circle a few times to "nest" before they lay down. My aussie does neither proving she's must be fully domesticated. Well maybe not- she still herds everything... maybe the sheep move better is she smells good.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2014 14:43:48 GMT -5
My favorite breed is Bullmastiff. I like big dogs and I was looking for a breed that had a reputation for being good with children but was still protective of their families and that's how I discovered Bullmastiffs. If I ever get another dog, it will be another bullmastiff. They're not common where I live, I had to drive a bit to meet her parents and decide if I wanted one of the puppies, and again to go get her. They're a lot of dog though. You absolutely must be willing to train it, just because of the size. And they're expensive. But I've had dogs for about 30 years and my Bullie was the best dog I've ever had. She was gentle and she loved kids but she wasn't rambunctious with them. My neighbor's son is special needs and starting when he was about 6, he'd come over and ask if my dog could come outside. I'd take her out so he could play with her. She was also lazy, but so am I, so that was a good fit. I also had a standard poodle at the time and he was very, very high energy. He was a good dog in many ways, but he was a lot more work. Those two could not have been more different in personalities and temperament. Bullmastiffs shed like crazy, and they do drool. Males more than female. Mine only drooled if she got hot. Ewww! This isn't mine, but this is what she looked like. My grandmother use to say "That dog is so ugly she's almost pretty". I always thought she was beautiful.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2014 14:56:00 GMT -5
Not my poodle, but this is what he looked like.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 19, 2014 16:19:47 GMT -5
The Bull Mastiff is adorable. And I love the vain poodle For those of you who think my kitty is scary, I offer this... she was only a few weeks old in this photo.
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muttleynfelix
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Post by muttleynfelix on Sept 19, 2014 16:20:50 GMT -5
Still creepy.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 19, 2014 16:23:07 GMT -5
But she was so snuggly and wrinkly... she was adorable. I get all nostalgic looking at that pic. We need to have a YM convention someday. I'll bring her with me and you guys can all see how cool and not-creepy she is in real life. It'll make me easy to identify too
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Abby Normal
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Post by Abby Normal on Sept 19, 2014 16:23:08 GMT -5
Still creepy. almost as bad as these guys.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 19, 2014 16:24:01 GMT -5
To be fair, I'm not a huge fan of hairless dogs (although that one is kind of pretty).
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2014 16:34:36 GMT -5
Firebird, the Bullmastiff was suppose to be *my* dog, but somehow she became DD's baby. She slept in DD's bed and was so big sprawled out that DD would be sleep, barely hanging on on the edge of the bed. Anyway, DD would get terribly offended because sometimes people would ask if the dog was pregnant because she was so big. And I use to want to tell people please, please do not say the dog is ugly in DD's presence. People would say it, but my grandmother was the only one that could get away with saying it without upsetting DD's nerves. So since I understand how it is when people say your kitty is *fill in the blank*, I'll mind my Southern manners and just say wow! I've never seen a cat like that, I bet she's a real sweetie-pie.
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Abby Normal
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Post by Abby Normal on Sept 19, 2014 16:40:46 GMT -5
But she was so snuggly and wrinkly... she was adorable. I get all nostalgic looking at that pic. We need to have a YM convention someday. I'll bring her with me and you guys can all see how cool and not-creepy she is in real life. It'll make me easy to identify too I'm sure she's wonderful. But it does change the words to soft kitty by quite a bit. Wrinkly Kitty Warm kitty little ball of skin
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2014 16:41:55 GMT -5
But she was so snuggly and wrinkly... she was adorable. I get all nostalgic looking at that pic. We need to have a YM convention someday. I'll bring her with me and you guys can all see how cool and not-creepy she is in real life. It'll make me easy to identify too Since I know it's a cat because you told us, I don't really think she looks creepy. Just very unusual. But if I'd just seen one in my backyard or something I'd probably have run in the house wondering "what the HELL was that". "Cat" wouldn't have been the first thing to pop in my head. But I like different stuff, so I think she's kinda cool looking. But only because I know it's a cat. lol
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 19, 2014 16:43:18 GMT -5
So since I understand how it is when people say your kitty is *fill in the blank*, I'll mind my Southern manners and just say wow! I've never seen a cat like that, I bet she's a real sweetie-pie. Thanks. As I said, I've learned to let this go and it doesn't bother me anymore. Especially if they make one comment and move on rather than subjecting me to a 20 minute monologue about exactly what is creepy and horrifying and ugly about her that makes me want to cuddle her and cover her ears I never understood the whole "pets as babies" thing before I actually had one.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 19, 2014 16:46:03 GMT -5
I'm sure she's wonderful. But it does change the words to soft kitty by quite a bit.
Wrinkly Kitty Warm kitty little ball of skinShe is all of those Very soft as well. Her skin feels like suede. But if I'd just seen one in my backyard or something I'd probably have run in the house wondering "what the HELL was that". Yeah, she's a conversation piece all right. People do ask me regularly "Is that a cat?" That question, I don't mind a bit because I know she looks unusual - almost no one has seen these cats in person. If you'd never seen one before, I'd only expect you to recognize her if you were in middle school and had recently dissected a cat.
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Abby Normal
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Post by Abby Normal on Sept 19, 2014 16:47:44 GMT -5
A friend of mine has Xolo's (like the picture above) they have so many skin problems. Cold in the winter, sun burn in summer. I think they are a lot harder than most with fur. So kudo's to you firebird because I imagine it's harder with a cat.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 19, 2014 16:52:05 GMT -5
A friend of mine has Xolo's (like the picture above) they have so many skin problems. Cold in the winter, sun burn in summer. I think they are a lot harder than most with fur. So kudo's to you firebird because I imagine it's harder with a cat.
Not really. She's only had one major skin issue, which I'll admit was a doozy and accounted for her recent vet bills - we think she had an allergic reaction to something she was exposed to outside and she developed really bad lesions all over her back and legs. We had to put her on a course of steroids and thankfully, that seems to have done the trick. Her skin is like 95% better, almost back to normal.
Other than that, and an occasional outbreak of minor acne, her skin is very beautiful and healthy looking. We bathe her once a week (sometimes a few times a week if her skin is acting up) which she doesn't love but she's gotten used to it out of necessity. It only takes a few minutes.
I've always wondered if it's possible for her to sunburn - you'd think it would be - but she's never in direct sunlight long enough to find out, I guess. She spends hours lounging in the window, but that's true of any cat.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2014 16:52:24 GMT -5
I showed my 2yo grandson the first two pictures of the cat and asked him what it was. He said "Cat". I told you all he's smart!
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 19, 2014 16:52:52 GMT -5
It probably would be harder with a dog simply because of the increased surface area. Tessercat is pretty tiny, she only weighs about six pounds.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 19, 2014 16:54:37 GMT -5
I showed my 2yo grandson the first two pictures of the cat and asked him what it was. He said "Cat". I told you all he's smart! Yay! That makes me happy Kids love the cat. Our neighborhood kids request to play with her almost as often as they ask for Babybird. Babybird herself adores Tessercat, she has to kiss her goodnight and is always patting her and sharing food with her - especially the parts of her dinner she doesn't care to eat herself
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Abby Normal
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Post by Abby Normal on Sept 19, 2014 16:56:00 GMT -5
Their skin is more rubbery. Maybe that is part of the issue. I certainly wouldn't describe it as suede like you did your cat.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 19, 2014 16:59:44 GMT -5
Interesting... I've never seen those dogs in person. I definitely wouldn't describe her skin as rubbery. Maybe dog skin is tougher than cat skin?
Some Sphynx cats have soft down on their bodies almost like the peach fuzz on newborn babies. Tess just has a little tiny bit over her nose. So that can also account for the softness.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 19, 2014 17:16:49 GMT -5
My good friend has a French bulldog. She calls it BUBBASAUCE (always capitalized). It's a totally cute dog but the farting and drooling would bother me.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2014 17:19:10 GMT -5
But she was so snuggly and wrinkly... she was adorable. I get all nostalgic looking at that pic. We need to have a YM convention someday. I'll bring her with me and you guys can all see how cool and not-creepy she is in real life. It'll make me easy to identify too I'm sure she's wonderful. But it does change the words to soft kitty by quite a bit. Wrinkly Kitty Warm kitty little ball of skin My 4 year old makes me sing him soft kitty every night before bed (yeah we watch a lot of Big Bang Theory) I'll have to mix it up a little with the hairless remake.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 19, 2014 17:26:56 GMT -5
I didn't realize she was talking about a song.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Sept 19, 2014 17:32:44 GMT -5
I didn't realize she was talking about a song.
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t-dog
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Post by t-dog on Sept 22, 2014 15:29:49 GMT -5
Yes sorry Fire, Guide Dogs of Marin trains the dogs but there are some that fail the final test and they adopt out those fully trained dogs.
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imawino
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Post by imawino on Sept 22, 2014 15:34:25 GMT -5
Gah!!! I'm so sorry to say this - I'm sure it's a very sweet kitty and all - but that's the ugliest freaking cat I ever saw! I'm going to have nightmares.
Ooops. So sorry. I commented after I saw the picture and didn't read further that you don't like hearing that. I'm sure she's adorable when you get to know her! And if it makes you feel better, I don't think animals care if they are ugly? We call one of mine Scraggles because her hair always just looks yucky no matter what. But I say it in a pleasant tone and she purrs and doesn't seem the least bit offended. I also tell her she is fat, no reaction. Can you believe it? If someone told me I was fat, I'd pop 'em in the eye!
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Cookies Galore
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Post by Cookies Galore on Sept 22, 2014 16:32:37 GMT -5
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