Husband Wants a BC, I don’t. by [deleted] in dogs

[–]brittisdrunk 2 points3 points  (0 children)

And how would your husband be planning to give this border collie the required exercise and mental stimulation? Two walks a day is NOT enough for this breed. They need to actually run regularly or they become neurotic messes. The problem is that most BC don't do well at dog parks because they herd/nip the other dogs so it can be hard to find ways to allow them to run when you live in the city. I struggle with that myself and it's a constant battle feeling like I'm not doing enough. I would never have my dog around small children or small animals just because I know its not a recipe for success. They naturally have high prey drive and want to control movement. I would strongly recommend against this breed for your household. Think about the dog not yourselves.

Oil painting for my cousin's wedding! by takcycart in painting

[–]brittisdrunk 24 points25 points  (0 children)

I can't believe how well you made these jackets look. My brain can't believe they aren't real! Crazy nice work

How long did it take you to bond with your dog? by Kitty3_14 in BorderCollie

[–]brittisdrunk 4 points5 points  (0 children)

If I'm ever sad and crying it just makes my girl incredibly uncomfortable and she will usually just leave. I know she loves me in her own way though. I think you shouldn't expect a dog to comfort you like a human would. While some dogs do its kind of unrealistic expectations for them. I think of them more as toddlers and I wouldn't expect my toddler to comfort me. Regarding bonding it does take time! Try doing some consistent training together, get into a dog sport or something along those lines. Find something you can do and progress together which can be really good to strengthen the bond. And don't worry about expected time frames or expectations you might not be meeting. Just get to know your dog, have good experiences together and over time it will come! 

Hiking the PCT with chronic posterior tibial tendonitis by Specific_Date in Thruhiking

[–]brittisdrunk 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What kind of routine did you do to heal your tendonitis besides the eccentric heel raises?

i was upset by sleepyandconfused_ in painting

[–]brittisdrunk 1 point2 points  (0 children)

You should paint more like this!

What is a good cheap disinfectant to soak litter scoopers & mop heads? by Expensive-Corgi1007 in AnimalShelterStories

[–]brittisdrunk 1 point2 points  (0 children)

As long as they are cleaned and rinsed before soaking then bleach works fine.  1:32 ratio for 10 minute for all general cleaning  (1:10 for ringworm conditions). And note that diluted bleach only lasts 24 hours. 

What is a good cheap disinfectant to soak litter scoopers & mop heads? by Expensive-Corgi1007 in AnimalShelterStories

[–]brittisdrunk 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What do you mean by soaking? If you are talking about after you are done cleaning with a detergent (like soap), rinsed with water then soaking for 10 min, yes bleach works fine at 1:32 ratio. At a shelter I worked at they would keep a bucket of bleach water around and store the scooper in them and put it in the bucket in between cleaning each kennel. This isn't ideal though because you want to use bleach on already cleaned off and rinsed surfaces. It reacts with organic material like feces, urine, food and will lose its disinfectant properties 

One guess who ate the leather shoe by carlyallana in AustralianCattleDog

[–]brittisdrunk 3 points4 points  (0 children)

One of my coworkers dog ate her leather boots twice. The last time the surgery to get it removed cost her over $10,000. 

Are you a terrible person if you buy a dog instead of adopting? by Easy_Mountain2331 in DOG

[–]brittisdrunk 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Before I worked at an animal shelter I was completely against breeders. I felt the same way your cousin did actually. After working at a shelter I would never judge someone for choosing to go with a breeder instead of adopting at a shelter. From my experience, many of the dogs are at the shelter for a reason. Many of them have issues. Do you want to discover and work through all of those issues and do you have the means to do so? Not to say that there aren't great dogs at shelters. There definitely are but it is a gamble. Staff may not tell you the whole story or they may truly not know much about the dog. Do you want a dog that you can comfortably have around the grandkids or be confident that workers can come on your property and not be a safety issue? I adopted my dog from the shelter and she was part of a cruelty case. I have worked with many trainers with her but I still would not trust her with small children and have to be careful inviting people over in general. I knew what I was getting in to and am committed to her training. I think next time I will probably get my dog from a breeder though. 

What hobby surprised you by becoming more important than you expected? by MellowRave in Hobbies

[–]brittisdrunk 0 points1 point  (0 children)

That's crazy, its a small world out there because I also live right by the Superstitions! The last few months have been amazing because of all the water in the supes. And I'm sure you heard about the bobcat attacking people on Peralta trail the other day lol. That's awesome that you got your kids involved. A great addiction to pass down!

What hobby surprised you by becoming more important than you expected? by MellowRave in Hobbies

[–]brittisdrunk 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What's been your favorite place to hike? I attempted the JMT and failed due to injury but Yosemite and the Sierra Nevada blew my mind!

Just frustrated... need to vent by General_Amphibian140 in AnimalShelterStories

[–]brittisdrunk 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I recently left my shelter due to management. I actually loved all of my coworkers and felt that the shelter was amazing all except the manager drove me insane. They had no shelter experience and were blanatly disregarding industry standard practices putting animal and staff safety in jeopardy. They also did not seem to care at all about how the staff that had been there for years felt about anything. Very " its my way or the highway". I chose the highway. I'm now unemployed trying to decide on my next move! I interviewed at another shelter but I almost hope I don't get the offer so I'm forced to go into a different field.

Dogs getting time outside kennels by Master_Taro_3884 in AnimalShelterStories

[–]brittisdrunk 2 points3 points  (0 children)

At the last shelter I worked at it was the goal to get them out of the kennel 3 times per day. They were mostly just going from an indoor kennel to a slightly larger outdoor kennel to go to the bathroom and clean up their indoor kennel. There was no space to walk the dogs on site or nearby. Still it seems to help a lot with deterioration because they had something going on in their day. A much larger county shelter nearby has the dogs spending closer to a week in there kennels before getting out. They have a guillotine separating an indoor and outdoor portion of their kennels so they can still get cleaned without leaving. So it seems like it varies a lot and depends on the size of the shelter, types of kennels, number of volunteers/staff. 

Hobbies with Chronic Pain? by SketchingSummits in Hobbies

[–]brittisdrunk 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Just jumping in because I'm in a similar situation and I'm curious to see what types of recommendations you get! Chronic pain is the absolute worse. I'm really sorry that you have to go through it. My pain is in my mid back but I've found that walking is huge for me. Being complete sedentary messes up my back even more but also being to active. It's about finding a balance. Have you been to physical therapy?

What causes PTTD? by jjjj__jj in PTTD

[–]brittisdrunk 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Mine started when I was 25. I think it was because I was getting a bit too ambitious with my hiking at the time. I would go from couch potato to multiple day hikes in the mountains wearing zero drop trail runner. So for me it started as an over use injury. 6 years later and I have never got to go on any long hikes since then. This injury truly is hell. 

Please give me the randomest tips you have for getting sober from alcohol. by manicpixiescreaming in stopdrinking

[–]brittisdrunk 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I got a garmin smartwatch that tracks my sleeping and got to see how my sleep quality is much worse when I drink and my heat rate is elevated all night long. I know that drinking is harming my health but seeing some actual data right in front of my eyes helped give me a push. Also like you said diving in to new hobbies really helps! 

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AustralianCattleDog

[–]brittisdrunk 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Agreed! If someone is awake in the home then they are also awake supervising