Barking Up The Wrong Tree

Watch your children around dogs

I had a conversation with my friend once about dogs being around children. Her opinion was that it is fine to leave children alone with a dog because the baby will learn not to wind up the dog eventually. For example, if the baby pulls the dogs tail and the dog growls at the baby the baby will not do it again. I completely disagree with this, I couldn’t believe she had said it, babies should NEVER be left alone with dogs – they are animals! You can never predict what they are going to do. You would have the most placid dog in the world but one day it could just turn round and bite you.

My advice is to be on your guard constantly and never leave a child alone with a dog – no matter how well behaved you think the dog may be.

Do you agree with dressing dogs up?

When you are walking down the street and then you see a dog wearing a big stupid coat – how does that make you feel? I completely disagree with it! Dogs have fur coats – therefore they do not require a coat made of man-made materials. Further to this, it really makes me angry when you are walking down the street and you see a person carrying a dog rather than letting the dog walk itself!!! Dogs have FOUR legs which are made for walking – they do not need a human to carry them for god sake!

Let your dog walk – if you are worried about him running away – put a lead on him!

Can you teach an old dog new tricks?

My boyfriend’s mum and dad have a little Jack Russell dog called Brian. This dog is extremely well trained as my boyfriend’s mum took Brian to dog training lessons when he was only a puppy so he has been brought up knowing what was acceptable and what wasn’t. However, what happen when you get a dog from a dogs home and this dog is older and needs to be trained to be a well-disciplined dog?

Can you really teach an old dog new tricks? I believe if you have patience and belief in your new dog that you can get him to behave correctly then yes you can teach an old dog new tricks!

Nuisance dogs – barking all the time

I have just bought a new house, it is a quasi-semi which means that it is four in a row and I have the end house. My neighbour is not the most high class woman in the world ie. she is common and we can hear her shouting at her daughter or doing unsavoury acts with different men.

Having said this she must have a good heart because she has taken in a dog from the dogs home. However, this dog is STUPID! When no one is in the house to look after the dog, it just barks continuously and doesn’t even stop for breath. This dog is a noise nuisance as you cannot watch TV or have a sleep or read a book because of the continuous noise.

What do you do if your neighbour’s dog barks all the time and it is making living in your own home a nightmare?

What happens if you are allergic to dogs?

When I was growing up my mum and dad had a dog called Chispa, I am not entirely sure what type of dog she was but I was able to live with her with and had no health problems.

I have asthma and since my childhood dog died when I was 12, I have not been able to be in the same room as a dog without my chest getting tight.

I think some of the issue comes with people who do not regularly dust, vacuum or polish their houses. If I visit a house which has a dog or a cat and they are not cleaning and airing the house out, that is when I feel uncomfortable sitting in the living room, because i struggle to breathe!

Cheryl just wants her dogs

News of Cheryl Cole’s divorce from footballer Ashley Cole has been splashed across the papers and magazines.

As soon as it was announced, there was speculation as to how the couple would split their fortune. With millions of pounds between them and a luxury property, you would think that there would be months of arguments to come.

But Cheryl has revealed that the only thing she wants out of the divorce is her pet dogs.

She wants custody of Coco and Buster and is not worried about getting her hands on anything else. She is letting Ashley have the mansion and will not ask for any of his fortune so long as she gets her pooches.
I can’t say I blame her.

The dog and bone

We all know how clever dogs can be but one pet pooch has stunned his owner by developing skills of his own.

The poodle-terrier cross called Nemo has been trained to act as the ears of his owner Irene Henderson as she is deaf. But as well as alerting her when he hears the doorbell or alarm clock, Nemo also paws his owner when she gets a text.

Nemo wasn’t trained to do this; he trained himself, but Irene is really grateful as she says texts are really important to her for keeping in touch with her friends.

Travolta mourning the loss of his dogs

The death of a pet dog is always difficult to come to terms with. But when they die suddenly, the news can be even more difficult to bear.

John Travolta is currently mourning the loss of his dogs after an accident that happened at Bangor International Airport in Maine.

The dogs were being walked by one of the actor’s staff when they were hit by an airport service vehicle.

Reports say that when Travolta heard the news, he was angry with the staff to begin with, for letting the accident happen, and then he burst into tears.

The sad news comes just as Travolta and his wife have announced that they are expecting a baby.

Dog returned to rightful owner

A lady who was separated from her dog has just won a legal battle to get her 11 year old Jack Russell, Penny back.

Liz Hiorns had reported her dog as missing but the message was lost by the council and Penny was sent to a rescue centre and rehomed.

The new owners then refused to give Penny back. A legal fight began but the new owners decided to give Penny up before the court hearings started.

It’s good to see the dog back to its rightful owner, but it’s a lesson to learn; we must really take care of our pooches and always know where they are and what they’re up to.

Hard cheese for vicar’s pooch

I can’t think of anything worse than seeing your dog suffering or in pain. But that’s exactly what a vicar had to endure when he was conducting a couple’s wedding rehearsal.

The vicar quite rightly stopped the rehearsal in order to save his choking pet dog. And he stopped at nothing to get the Cairn terrier breathing again because he actually gave the dog the kiss of life.

The alarm was raised when the vicar’s wife ran down the aisle during the rehearsal with their dog in her arms. Izzy the terrier wasn’t breathing.

The reverend swiftly pulled out a piece of cheddar cheese which had got stuck in the dog’s throat and began to give her mouth to mouth.

The dog came round and ran out of the church to get a drink. Thank goodness it all ended well and the couple can now laugh about the experience; particularly as the mouth to mouth happened just as the reverend was about to say: ‘you can now kiss the bride’.