Forumites and their Dogs

[Paul L]

Thanks guys- went well. Chewy (and my wife and I) got along great with Charlie Brown, a mix of possibly St. Bernard and Beagle (interesting...)

The shelter's letting us take him home next weekend to see how things work at our house, as a tryout.

Will post some pics if things work out.

[-Deborah-]

Excellent, Paul! I'm sure you know that there's always a bit of an adjustment period for both dogs involved so a weekend may not tell the whole story.

My Mom recently rescued a 2 year old Newfoundland mix named Maggie. She's huge, but a total love bug. She graduated from her Petco training class yesterday and really learned a lot. Anyways, Maggie did not like my Mom's other dog at all and there was a bit of an altercation early on. They were kept separated most of the time for a couple weeks and now they're best buds.

[Paul L]

Congrats to Maggie, Deb! Yes, it'll probably end up being a week-long stay. My wife and I work M-F, but we'll at least have Sat, Sun (and possibly Monday) to be here with both and gauge how everything goes.

Will definitely keep them separated for awhile if/when they're left alone.

And I hear Newfy's are like huge teddy bears; would love one.

[Islair]

One of the rules about the new rental house is that pets are Ok, but must be outdoor pets (well, I guess a snake, lizard or gerbil would be ok to be in the house but I hate snakes & lizards and gerbils make me think of Richard Gere) so an outdoor dog it will be.

I've thought about basset hounds but I have questions about energy level and how playful they would be with our son.

Any advice you can provide is greatly appreciative.

A basset puppy is just like any other puppy. They love to play and run. This might just be on the person training the hounds, but if you want you son to play fetch with the hound, the basset might not be for you. With the hounds, I can throw a ball deep into the yard, he runs down the hill, and stands over the top of it and barks, "HERE IT IS! Come throw it again and I will find it for you!" That game gets old quick.

The hounds I have now are middle age, 8 and 7 and when they are not fearsome by any means, they will protect the ones they love. Our hounds love to be part of the family, and Walter sleeps with our youngest son, buried under the covers. They are great friends.

If you get them as a puppy, they learn to deal with children at an early age. Ears get pulled, tails get stepped on, and if they trust you enough they know that it isnt meant out of spite. We have never had a problem.

They can be stubborn, and if you are a "where the wind takes us" kind of person when it comes to training, the hounds wont be right for you. It seems all of them are alpha types until someone convinces them otherwise. So you have to be strong in your training. Talk to your local vet about tips to promote yourself to that level in the hounds eyes, and once you get to that point all things were great for us. Sure they can get bully, but what dog cant. You just have to protect your alpha status every once in a while.

Our hounds love to be included. If the whole family is going for a drive, the hounds come with. We go to the lake for the week, the hounds come with (bring a life jacket for them, bassets can't hover in the water, if they lose their forward momentum they sink, just FYI).

It is a plus to have a fenced in yard, otherwise they might put their nose down and follow a smell, and when they look up next they might be blocks from home. Many bassets are lost because of this very reason, they get their mind set on something and they forget about other things, like safety.

Hope this helps, if you have any other questions just let me know.

A rescue dog is a great way to go too, you never know, you might find a hound their that needs a home.

[YT]

Deb, Congrats to your Mom & Maggie.

Paul, Congrats as well. Hope all goes well.

Islar, Thanks for the insight & advice on bassetts. We're still researching and I'll keep you all posted on what we get.

I did find a young bassett/beagle mix at a shelter near us. I emailed the shelter to inquire and they responded that the dog had been transferred to another shelter in So Cal but they have other dogs that we may be interested in.

[SeattleLionsFan]

My sister in law had a Newfoundland/lab mix. She was sweet as heck.

[kayrone]

bassets can't hover in the water, if they lose their forward momentum they sink, just FYI

interesting - I grew up with bassets but did not know this.

[Marko69]

Great name for a rock band though....., The Sinking Bassets.

[Tony G]

With Angela on lead?

[Marko69]

And Bertie on Lead vocals?

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2009/02/01/article-0-002ED15C00000258-34_233x400.jpg

Edit: That's Bertie Bassett by the way. Just in case you guys don't get this product over there.

[kayrone]

Has anyone else seen the documentary "Chimpanzee" (narrated by Tim Allen, Marko69!). We caught about half of it last night and OMG it was SO SWEET I could barely keep it together. A little baby chimp named Oscar was orphaned in a chimp turf war, and none of the other mama chimps would "adopt" him because they all had their own crumbsnatchers to deal with. So poor little Oscar started following the alpha male around, and Freddie became his papa (which is totally unheard of in the chimp world apparently).

baby chimp + tough guy with a good heart = weepy kayrone.

[Tony G]

That is unusual. Usually they eat the losers in a chimp war.

[Malto Marko]

Snapped yesterday on an Iphone.

Second one because she does not like having a camera pointed at her.

[Malto Marko]

First one before she became aware her picture was being taken.

[kayrone]

AWW!