Do you have any pets? If so, tell me about them.

Parent Cafe
1

<p>I have an 11 year old toy poodle, Jenny. She is my best friend. She likes to play ball, go for rides in the car, and ice cream (???).</p>

<p>She has epileptic seizures, but we have found out that it was linked to dog food (she’s allergic to it). But since we took her off it and fed her a vet approved diet, she hasn’t had any. Its been a year and a half since her last one.</p>

<p>If I tell her she needs a bath and to head upstairs, she’ll go and wait by the tub. Yet, she doesn’t like to be brushed or clipped. She turns into a Tazzy devil when it comes time to do her.</p>

<p>She doesn’t bark much unless the occation calls for it (someone at the door). She likes to talk (you know the winey thing that dogs do) all the time. She can say ‘I don’t wanna’ really clear if she doesn’t want to do something. If you tell her, ‘do you wanna go for a ride?’ she’ll respond with a ‘wanna go’.</p>

<p>She can count to three by sitting and hitting the floor with her paw three times. </p>

<p>So can you tell me about your pets (if you have any?)?</p>

2

<p>We have two Labradors, Jake and Izzy.</p>

<p>Jake is “My sister’s” dog, Izzy is “mine”.</p>

<p>She is a yellow lab, probably about 6 or 7 years old.</p>

<p>“Izzy” is short for Gaela Isabella. She comes from a very reputable breeder, and there is a famous show dog in her line (not to brag…just explaining :)). The breeder is a close family friend, from whom we got my first Labrador as a kid, “Roxy”. He told us that every dog in her line’s name started with “G”, and then requested that we do the same. We already knew we wanted to call her “Izzy” for Isabelle or Isabella, so we added “Gaela” to her official name.</p>

<p>She’s not necessarily the brightest crayon in the box, but I love her to death. She’s the type of dog that will bash into the table with her head, shake it off and keep going.</p>

<p>She’s also the biggest anti-lab you’ve ever seen. She’s European standard, and small for a lab…only about 60 lbs. She hates the car, hates water. </p>

<p>Probably the strangest thing about her is that she HATES having air blown into her face. She does fine when she’s being washed, but she CANNOT be blown dry with a hair dryer…she turns almost vicious.</p>

<p>Last summer, I took her for walks almost every day. She is an amazing listener, easily trained. And like I said, I love her to death even though she’s not the brightest dog.</p>

<p>We also have an African Gray Parrot named Sandy (after Sandy Koufax). He is vicious and bites anyone except for my dad, whom he adores, if any part of us comes within “range”.</p>

3

<p>Jenny isn’t too fond of having air blown in her face either.</p>

<p>Sounds like you’ve got a gaurd parrot. :D</p>

<p>My grandpa had a horse that would attack anyone that came to close to him. Yet, at the same time was sweet to anyone if he wasn’t around.</p>

4

<p>We have 3 cats, 1 dog (but she counts as at least 2 as she is a St. Bernard!) and 3 horses. We used to have a lot more, but are downsizing through attrition.</p>

<p>The St. is a rescue and a very opinionated 140 lb. pile of neediness! Very sweet, almost clingy, but when she decides she is not going to do something, she is NOT going to do it. Good luck moving her then!</p>

<p>The cats are all strays, too. They loved our previous dog, but not so much the St. Makes for interesting times.</p>

<p>The horses are not particularly unique, all are retired. They range in age from about 21 to 30. They are an easy group to care for.</p>

<p>We used to have fish, a bearded dragon, chickens, frogs, etc. Now I tell everyone - nothing more that I have to feed or clean up after!</p>

5

<p>I have two dogs and a horse … at home ( well the horse is boarded and currently leased).</p>

<p>My dogs are Shelties, I competed with the older one in agility, but when I went back to work I ran out of time to train and compete. </p>

<p>At work … I have 14 bunnies (and one is pregnant), 9 guinea pigs, innumerable hamsters and gerbils, 2 ferrets, 2 chinchillas, a grey parrot, an amazon parrot, 20 parakeets, 6 lovebirds, 6 cockatiels, miscellaneous finches, some geckos, 2 bearded dragons, 37 male bettas, and 112 hermit crabs! That’s as of this morning.</p>

6

<p>i have one of the best mutts ever! used petfinder.com about 2 years ago and he’s loved by everyone…about 3 years old, some sort of peke-poo-*<strong><em>-a-poo-</em></strong>*z-poo mix. loves to go for walks and loves to be petted. who doesn’t?</p>

7

<p>We have two dogs, a red/white Pembroke Welsh Corgi named Conroy, who celebrates his 6th birthday today, and an apricot mini Labdradoodle named Buffy, who turned one in January.</p>

<p>They are a bundle of fun. They love to go to the dog park and know the exact route so if I deviate to go somewhere else first after telling them, they will whine as if trying to tell me I’ve made a mistake.</p>

<p>Buffy LOVES to play. It is her life. Toys are scattered around the house. Like other poodles or poodle mixes, she had springs for legs and can “ping” quite high when she wants to.</p>

<p>Conroy is a little more eccentric. He must have seen the movie “Psycho” as a puppy because whenever he hears the shower door click, he comes rushing and barking to save us all from the shower monster. Since his breed is from the herding group, he does like to herd the dogs at the dog park when they get going.</p>

8

<p>We have two house cats who are brother and sister, who are now 15 years old. The male cat is a diabetic & gets insulin shots twice a day. He is adorable and likes to jump on people’s laps, but he weighs 20 pounds! His sister weighs half that, but she is not really a people kitty. She is more the type who comes around when you are reading the newspaper, then wants to snuggle! </p>

<p>We have a dog who is an English Shepherd, and he has Invisible Fence & herds everybody all day long. He chases chipmunks, birds in the sky, etc. For some reason he feels he can catch the birds in the sky! We used to have chickens and rabbits but they are all gone now, due to old age.</p>

9

<p>We have a dog - a black lab mix, 10 months, very cute. She’s the wild one at obedience class and has a tendency to run and bowl over the puppies there…but she’s kinda learning! She loves to snuggle, so right now she’s up on my bed with me. She doesn’t like it when everyone leaves for work and I’m asleep, so whoever leaves the house last sends her into my room and we snooze for a while before getting up.</p>

<p>And I have a horse…he’s black with a little white star and the tip of one of his ears is folded over…very handsome :slight_smile: I just got him a couple of weeks ago. He’s a sweetheart as long as you’re not brushing him or tightening the girth and is a great been there, done that horse for me to show this summer.</p>

10

<p>We have a tri-color Pembroke Welsh Corgi that will be seven years old next month. Her name is Sadie and she is neurotic. She is terribly afraid of storms, hates the sound of hot air balloons as they pass over our house, and growls at every animal she sees, whether outdoors or on the TV. When we take her to the dog park, she’s suddenly a big chicken and cowers behind us, even when other dogs make a friendly attempt to play with her. When we got her almost seven years ago, my husband was hoping for a dog that would hang out with him whether he was outdoors, running errands, or watching a football game. He got that dog with Sadie. They are fairly inseparable. </p>

<p>Tip for people who are thinking of getting a dog: DO NOT laugh or say “hey, watch this” when company is at your home and your puppy growls or runs up to the TV and barks when he/she sees another animal. It begets neuroses. Trust me, I know this.</p>

11

<p>I have a West Highland White Terrier. I love that the name is bigger than the dog! My 1st (and only) terrier. I’d had minature (not toy)poodles since I was 10. My demon dog poodle had petit mal seizures culminating in a massive grand mal, which ended with him on pheno-barbital for about 2 weeks.</p>

<p>Anyway, I should have done my homework before getting a terrier. My poodles thought they were human and acted accordingly. The terrier is pure dog. She’s almost 8 and is still ball of energy. AND even though she is small, she is solid. We affectionately call her “our little cinder block”. Oh yeah. She caught a bird and tried to bring it inside to play with.</p>

<p>She is not a guard dog, but she is an alert dog. We are alerted when the neighbor across the street comes out of the house. We are alerted when the mailman comes. We are alerted when the kids next door are playing.</p>

<p>We let the kid pick the breed and she went with the cute factor. “Cinder Block” missed her girl while she was away at school and stuck to me like glue, but now that girl is back, they are inseperable!</p>

12

<p>Charly- the largest Golden Retriever ever seen (119 pounds). Acquired as a puppy by WildChild without our permission 6 years ago. He stole our checkbook, found a breeder and came home with the puppy. Kept the puppy and sent the kid away.</p>

<p>Down to just 2 cats. The Maine Coon dynasty has died out. Ragdolls Willie Nelson (4) and Waylon Jennings (1 year old yesterday). Awesome kitties and they love their big dog.</p>

<p>Daughter and son in law have 2 Ragdolls. Thelonious Monk and Duke Ellington.
WildChild has a Ragdoll (illegally kept in his college apt)- Dart Vader. Doesn’t every college kid need an expensive, pedigreed cat?</p>

13

<p>@Silvermoonlock - Not all poodles are like that. My grandma had one that never barked and she was the sweetest thing. She got along really well with Jenny, and when she had to be put down (she had a massive tumor), Jenny was lost without her.</p>

14

<p>lol Make no mistake, my 1st choice for a dog is always a poodle. We let the kid pick the Westie.</p>

<p>When my folks retired out of state, they left me with the demon dog and I had a young standard poodle. They were both a hoot, witht the smaller demon dog terrorizing the young (much larger) poodle. Demon dog would not let anyone near the kid (under a year old). The standard chased butterflies and attacked the mail when it came through the chute. I really did like sending my bills back in envelopes with teeth marks in them!!!</p>

<p>When I stated my poodles acted accordingly like humans, I mean that they were fairly mellow without the high level of energy I am finding in the terrier. I love 'em all though!!</p>

15

<p>cnp55 - where do you work???</p>

<p>I have two kitties. They are about nine months old. We found the first one through petfinder and the foster mom begged us to take the second one because they were best buddies. They’re not litter mates but are only about two weeks apart in age. As kitty no. 1 grew it became aparent that he has a disability. He has a back leg that buckles under him whenever he puts weight on it. He prefers to run through the house so he can hop with just one back leg and not use the other one. He is kind of pathetic when he does try to walk on it and my daughter deemed him a crab because he walks sideways. He is a sweetheart though. Loves to be petted, follows us around in the house, and comes running whenever my husband gets a phone call.</p>

<p>Kitty no. 2 is real go-getter. He is hyper, literally climbs the walls. But he is so much fun. He is a follower and does whatever no. 1 is doing. He even limped for awhile when they were little - too funny. They definitely are inseperable. </p>

<p>Their favorite activity? Chasing bubbles. They love them, especially no. 2. He starts purring when we pull out the bubble bottle.</p>

16

<p>I have an ebony Oriental Shorthair. Think black siamese with green eyes. He is a retired show cat and I swear he is one evolutionary step away from being able to speak.
He grunts and snarls at things that are in his way or not to his liking, he “answers” questions and will sigh (very loudly) when he doesn’t get his way or can’t figure something out.</p>

17

<p>Hey Kitty56, I have 2 Saint Bernards! One short hair, one long hair. One won’t step in water or mud, the other won’t stay out of water or mud.</p>

<p>Also 1 horse (age 28, still sound, still jumps crossrails even!)</p>

<p>One goat who thinks he’s a dog (but is more obedient)</p>

<p>2 cats,lost a third this past winter at age 18 :(</p>

<p>One macaw, had since a baby, is now 23.</p>

18

<p>Awww, you guys are making my longing for acquiring a new furry pet far too strong!</p>

<p>Right now I have a collection of reptiles. One is a Trans-Pecos Rat Snake, a very calm and surprisingly loving cousin to the corn snake. The rest are geckos. Four are Crested Geckos: the trio, a tail-less harem including red Atropos (the male), spotted Clothos and mellow Lachesis; and the tag-on, my beautiful green-and-yellow Cevynne. The other two are Gargoyle Geckos: Greel, the first acquired male, mottled; and Nonny (short for Anonymous), the striped female who is the only one of our collection obtained from outside the local vivarium.</p>

<p>They’re all very interesting animals, especially at night! They’re surprisingly handleable, but nothing beats the fuzzy cuddlers.</p>

<p>My mom has a dog – and he is very clearly her dog! – that we acquired from a breeder about 7 or 8 years ago. His name is Mel for no particular reason, and he is a herding-line border collie. He acts every bit of his breed and none of his age! He is extremely active and will play ball with you all day if you oblige him. His favorite game is to take the new speaker-box toy (you know, the ones that make recorded sounds, like “moo,” when you squeeze them?) and see how quickly he can reduce that box to pieces. He’s done it in less than 30 seconds, so it’s less fun now. :wink: </p>

<p>He’s a very clever dog, too. He’s remarkably agile with a ball and as long as he’s carrying another toy in his mouth, he’ll play soccer with you. He’s got really good aim! He also invented his own game, designed to get everyone who’s trying to watch TV to play with him! He runs to the top of the stairs leading into the living room and drops a ball. Inevitably, this ball rolls right to the feet of the person sitting on the couch. If the person doesn’t grab the ball and throw it, the dog will barrel down the stairs, grab the ball, run up the stairs and do it all over again. Ad nauseum. ;)</p>

<p>The other pet at home is the most cat-like cat we’ve ever owned. We acquired her as a kitten last summer, abandoned and terribly afraid of cars. She’s indoor-only because of this fear and because we live in the mountains (coyotes, bears, etc.). She gets out occasionally. She wanders off about four feet and then plops herself down. She looks back at the door and meows in the most pitiful way until you go “rescue” her.Her favorite activity now is hunting birds through the screen and laying all over my mom’s herb garden. </p>

<p>… ahhh, I miss my pets!</p>

19

<p>We’re on our third Newfoundland, and d brought home a rescued racing greyhound which was her training dog at school. The “boys” get along just fine.</p>

<p>Half a dozen or so tropical fish, a switch from goldfish which we had for many years.</p>

<p>D has had as many as 30 hermit crabs, now down to about half a dozen through attrition. They are really quite amusing.</p>

<p>And a collection of dust bunnies I’d be very happy to get rid of.</p>

20

<p>We have one cat, a domestic short-hair tortoiseshell named Samantha (Sammy for short). She has just turned 13, but acts like she is still a kitten. She is affectionally known as “The Dog” because she acts more like a dog than a cat. She comes when she is called, and goes outdoors on a harness and leash. </p>

<p>As she has gotten older, she has developed what we call her “scary-eye”. When it first appeared, it looked like a small, blurry spot on her pupil. I thought it was the beginning of a cataract, but the vet said it was actually scar tissue. She said that she probably scratched her eye with a stick or something, and the scar tissue began forming. Well, over the last two years, it has completely covered the entire eye, which is now all cloudy. But, the vet thinks she can actually still see out of that eye. She doesn’t act “visually-impaired” at all, and it doesn’t seem to bother her in the least.</p>

<p>She is our “pound-cat” that we adopted after our last two purebreds died. We had a silver-chincilla Persian that was a dead-ringer for the Fancy Feast cat, and an all-white longhaired female. They were best friends, and when the Persian died, and our DD was born (all around the same time), the white cat just kind of changed. She spent most of her remaining 4 years hiding in a closet. Very sad - she was our baby before we really had one. After that, I vowed “no more cats” as I get too emotional when they pass on, but after a year, I caved in and we got Sammy. By far, she has been the most lovable, people-oriented cat we have ever had.</p>

<p>Her latest thing is sleeping on me - not next to me, not at the foot of the bed, but on me! If I am on the couch watching TV, she is right there. I often wake up in the morning to find her on my back. Drives the H crazy!!! It started once D left for college last year - wonder if it was related???</p>

<p>Funny thing - it has kept the MIL away over the years - she is petrified of cats so she will only visit - not stay over when they visit from FL. That’s an entire other story! They stay with H’s sister - LOL!</p>