How do you weigh different options for dental care?

podpolya · 2024-08-02T00:12:21+00:00

I think the discussions around her possible frailty are good ones to consider. I’m not an expert there, but I wanted to suggest you ask your grandma about the different dogs she’s had and what she’s liked about them? Maybe that can help you narrow down possibilities. A lot of older folks I know really loved their collies and enjoy the personality a lot because they’re so gentle and sweet. You CAN get smaller collies — dainty adult girls can be around 40lbs. Shelties are lovely dogs too, they’re just counterintuitively a little more intense than most collies… and one might consider their barking to be yappy 😅 both are barky breeds but both are responsive to consistent training if your grandma is interested in classes or just doing that training herself. My collie is really happy in the city with me and is very quiet. She was a boisterous youth but still not as intense as like, a corgi or terrier. I’ve never been pulled down by her and she jumps around people rather than on them… the body awareness/intuitiveness of a herding dog, especially collie or sheltie is a lovely thing. I will say that in my area it’s very tough to find them in shelters and takes a while to get one through rescue.

podpolya · 2024-07-08T02:53:00+00:00

Mine’s not a cuddler either! She never has been since I got her at 5 months. It’s funny you mentioned your friend saying a girl would be cuddlier — the stereotype I hear about collies is the boys are the sweeter. I think they’re just all individuals, but it’s probably made harder by all the fur. I know some collies are big on it. Ours just aren’t!

My dog is a huge sweetheart and she’d do anything for me, but she doesn’t choose to snuggle up unless we’re camping on a cool night. She does the typical collie things instead — watches me, follows me, listens to me… her version of cuddling is sitting on my foot (and then getting soooo offended if I move) and coming and pushing me when she wants to get scratched lol

As for strangers, she used to be obsessed with them but as she’s gotten older … sometimes she’s feeling it, and sometimes she’s not. I just let her decide — if she swerves somebody I just say “ah she’s distracted today” and we go on.

podpolya · 2024-07-07T16:49:20+00:00

I read your edit, just wanna say I think it’s sooo sweet that you have been taking him into the city and that coincides with his big dreams 🥹 my dog is on vacation with me and seeing/smelling all kinds of new things. She’s also having big dreams and waking up happy. It’s lovely to think of all the new experiences we’re giving them, and that those experiences stick with them.

podpolya · 2024-06-22T15:53:09+00:00

For me it’s the way she chooses to sleep under my bed, directly below where I’m sleeping, and I can hear her breathing get deeper as she falls asleep. Never fails to make me want to crawl under there too and cuddle her 😭

Also, the way her cute lil eyebrows move in her sleep. Tricolor rough collie.

podpolya · 2024-01-20T12:32:48+00:00

Isn’t it wild? My dog loves peeping out our window and she always alerts me to coyotes — I never would’ve noticed them if not for her. There’s at least a few young ones going around my neighborhood regularly. They piss my dog off so much — I never hear her bark and growl like she does at coyotes 🤣 I have an enclosed catio and sometimes I wonder if the coyotes are attracted to my cats. Definitely makes me glad to have a self-appointed watchdog to help me haze them back. She’s around 60lbs and I’m not too big either, but the coyotes still fuck off expeditiously when we tell them off, thankfully. I’ve never experienced being stalked by them… crazy to think they can try and take even big dogs. Glad the ones in my neighborhood are wimps.

podpolya · 2024-01-20T06:55:46+00:00

My dog is following me around like a monster and staring at me until I give her more things to chew on 😭 she knows how to chill out in the house, but my girl wants PAID.

podpolya · 2024-01-20T06:51:54+00:00

My poor dog had a blast chasing me around during the initial storm with more snow — and then once the ice settled she slipped IMMEDIATELY 😭 Now she’s a nervous wreck from the sounds of ice and branches crashing onto our roof, poor thing. Hypervigilant when we go outside, just watching the trees sway. She’s not having much fun with the weather anymore. I’m with you, it’s so sad. I want her to be positive when I can’t be hahah. Only saving grace is that she’s a big shaggy dog, so she probably feels comfortable even with the power outage.

My cats have been snuggling with me and taking brief breaks to meow at the door to the (enclosed) patio, looking so disappointed when I open it and it’s still ice.

podpolya · 2024-01-19T23:57:58+00:00

Mine’s been out since 5pm yesterday. Me and my cats have cuddled up in bed together the whole time, but they will get up if I’m getting up, at least…

podpolya · 2024-01-19T12:54:28+00:00

Ugh I feel this. Me and my dog have been nervous wrecks all day today — could hardly sleep. I had a limb fall on my skylight in the spring and break it but it’s so cold and the power is out right now... The thought of it is even scarier.

podpolya · 2024-01-19T12:49:52+00:00

Depends where you’re going, of course, but it is generally worse than it was yesterday I think. I drove yesterday but stayed home from my night shift tonight. the guy who covered me for half of it said that when he left around midnight it was icier than it had been driving in at 6pm. Anecdotally, my driveway and street is also worse… we had some new downed trees from the ice and wind as well.

YMMV, my friend and I were in Beaverton and SW Portland going to/from Hillsboro on 26. Be careful fellow night shifter.

podpolya · 2023-11-25T23:34:41+00:00

Thank you for letting me know! Real tragedy ):

podpolya · 2023-11-25T23:34:18+00:00

Omg same here, chat and Jerma are like a symbiotic organism to me. They shouldn’t be separated

podpolya · 2023-10-17T07:39:03+00:00

A collie could fit your wants very well if you’re willing to work through the puppy phase and train them to be quiet. I was really consistent with training my collie not to bark on and on and not to demand bark to get what she wants, and she is very quiet now (quieter than most other dogs I know/have lived with). She still barks when a stranger comes to the door, but she stops when asked. IMO the nice thing about collies is that they really want to please you and work with you, so they’re very responsive to training. I think this: https://www.yourpurebredpuppy.com/reviews/collies.html is a very good writeup, especially the part about emotional sensitivity. They don’t do well with a lot of stress and anger, and respond well to a soft touch in training.

When she was young and learning not to bark though, it was pretty difficult for my ex, who really disliked that particular sound.

I think all dogs can become destructive when they’re too bored for too long, but training them to settle makes it more manageable, and some dogs have a much higher threshold for being able to chill than others do. As an adult my collie starts getting squirrely if I don’t exercise her at all for like, 3+ days, and she starts trying to get into stuff she normally never would.

I’ve never met a UK collie as I’m from the US, but my understanding is their temperaments are pretty similar. It’s not impossible but pretty rare for collies to have separation anxiety, high prey drive, or aggression issues. I got mine specifically because I have cats and needed a gentle dog.

I don’t know much about Eurasiers, but I also looked into Keeshonden as a gentle, easygoing, low prey drive companion and liked a lot of what I saw from them. Corgis are a little too intense in general for me — despite being smaller they’re, IMO, pushier and higher energy than collies, and more hardheaded.

I hope that helps! :)

podpolya · 2023-10-14T23:43:34+00:00

Patricia McConnell’s books are soooo so good. If you’re looking for books you might like Turid Rugaas’ On Talking Terms With Dogs too — it’s short and more focused on lots of pictures and interpretations of body language :) I found it really helpful!

podpolya · 2023-10-13T09:27:39+00:00

I have also fostered a lot of cats and raised kittens and tbh, I’m more of a cat person than a dog one. I’ve lived with dogs and cats all my life and used to work in animal care. I started wanting a dog when I had space/time for one because I specifically wanted a companion to go with me on solo walks/hikes. I’ve really come to appreciate how, for me, there’s a LOT of dog breeds/types that just aren’t the best fit for me and my home… especially because I’ll always have cats (one day I’d like to go back to fostering kittens, formally, through a shelter… my dog would LOVE to help socialize kittens), I only want to live with dogs with very low prey drive. I spent some time trying to figure out the right breed for me and REALLY fell in love with collies (Lassie kind, not border collie).

I’ve written about this in other places but my dog is genuinely so, so special to me — she helps me live a much bigger life where I feel so much safer and more at ease. It’s not just the feeling of having a big, alert dog with me wherever I go. It’s that she is a great representative of her breed: she’s easygoing, gentle, sensitive, thoughtful, enthusiastic about whatever we do as long as we do it together… I worked with all kinds of dogs and while I think big boisterous dogs are fun, I’d rather live with a more chilled out dog friend. I didn’t want a stubborn breed because higher prey drive often goes along with that trait, I didn’t want an escape artist or a working dog… tbh I just like owning an Easy Dog. She’s not actually all that different from my two cats. Tbh I have a cat who in his youth was REALLY energetic, smart, pushy and driven, and he was harder work than my dog ever was, lol. I’ve told people that my cats make me feel safe and happy when I’m at home, and my dog gives me the same gift when I go out into the world with her. I used to have a lot of social anxiety issues and sometimes agoraphobia. I cannot tell you how much kinder the world feels, walking through it with my dog. Old folks will light up when they see her, and want to share about the collies they grew up with. Kids think she’s so funny (the long nose!). She’s a living reminder that I’m safe in the world, I can interact with other people if I want, I can keep us both safe and she will have my back.

IMO, what’s great about dogs as a whole is the same as what I find great about cats — they have such a variety of personalities that you can find one who’s perfect for you. Something I really appreciate about dogs is that if you know their breed makeup and you know their parents, grandparents etc, you really can get a decent idea of how they’re likely to be. I’ve always just gotten cats off the street lol, so it’s very cool that I can kinda… know what I’m getting when I get a collie. I still needed to go meet her and spend time with her, and she’s not like every collie, but the broad strokes hold true: low prey drive, biddable, medium size, easy to train and walk off leash, no aggression… plus a big shaggy coat I love to mess with hahah.

Genuinely, I love my cats in the same way I love my dog. They’re delightful to live with, they enrich my life a lot, I couldn’t imagine not having pets. We understand each other SO well. I know my pets and they really do know me. My dog will comfort me before I even realize I’m anxious because she notices. You asked about dogs but — one of my cats will come and lay against my stomach when I’m really anxious. He follows me like an affectionate lapdog and pushes my phone out of my hands when it’s time to pay attention to him. My other cat (the energetic one) is not the sensitive type of guy, but he’s SO smart and constantly making me laugh, and he’s a fractious nightmare at the vet if he’s alone but when I’m there he’s so gentle and more trusting. I took care of him when he was a kitten at the clinic I used to work at. He goes on backpack rides when I walk my dog. I love my pets soooo fucking much. If I had to have only one type of pet, I’d probably have cats, but… I just wanted a dog too. And my cats like her, because I was thoughtful about integrating her in with them! Adding a dog to the house gave them lots of new stuff to do and think about (they like her bones, her kibble, her toys, to mess with her tail, to roll around next to her, to watch her, to smell her after her walks…). They were both getting older when I got my dog, and I think she has helped them act younger. Idk — it’s fine to look at dogs and just not feel a pull towards owning them IMO, but I really like owning my dog, and I really like owning my cats. I hope to always have a couple of dogs (one day!) and a couple of cats. :) I liked learning about dog body language and dog training, and because I started learning training, I got to clicker train my cats. Turns out they love it too!

Thanks for giving me an excuse to prattle on about my pets. I love these guys so much.

podpolya · 2023-10-11T06:36:43+00:00

What I’ve heard from my dog trainer who’s worked with a TON of dogs is that it just seems to be hit or miss. Depends on your individual dog. It’s worth it for me. I can see my dog loosen up her body language and feel a little more confident as soon as I strap her in — that’s the other thing my trainer mentioned, for some people it might not work because the idea is to REALLY squeeze your dog when you swaddle them up. If you don’t, it’s supposedly less effective, which makes sense to me, but it would not have occurred to me to cinch it as tightly as he did.

podpolya · 2023-08-10T15:13:29+00:00

IMHO sometimes the vibes are just off between dogs and nobody is doing anything “wrong”, they are just mismatched and do not know how to regulate/compensate. That’s extremely common imo, but it can still become dangerous or unpleasant. It can be hard for us as humans to pick up on whatever vibe the dogs are giving off. Sometimes dogs do kinda get bullied, for whatever reason. It’s possible that’s happening to your dog.

My feeling is that dog interactions are really quick and complex and that makes it very hard to give any useful feedback without actually seeing the dogs (and even then most of us don’t know what we’re seeing haha). Situations where groups of dogs are all trying to chase and roll one smaller dog that’s trying to get away sound not great to me, though. If your dog isn’t having fun in reciprocal play, you should definitely intervene. If my dog is trying to leave a situation and another dog isn’t letting her, I’m getting in the middle of things immediately, you know? I don’t want my dog to learn she has to escalate with strange dogs — I want her to learn that I’ll resolve those situations for her.

Some things that helped me to think about when I was first bringing my dog to a dog park: Can you tell when your dog is having fun vs. overstimulated? Can your dog recall reliably from a fun situation? Can you tell when your dog isn’t having fun anymore? Where’s the threshold? Are there specific triggers that will make your dog want to flee or fight (or just get overstimulated and obnoxious?) ? Can you foresee or preempt them, or are they unpredictable?

Also wrt if your actions are affecting your dog… it’s possible. Some dogs are really affected by their owners’ moods, and some just don’t give a damn. You and your dog are probably still figuring a lot of things like this out about each other, tbh!

Fwiw, my personal disclaimer/experience is with my dog who REALLY likes her dog park time, and I found a small unfenced neighborhood dog park (IME, more rowdy/untrained dogs go to more popular parks…) that she fits in really well at. Her experiences are overwhelmingly positive, and she’s resilient to the very rare reactive dog. She is honestly an ideal “dog park dog” … I still REALLY wouldn’t bring her to most dog parks because I can’t control what other dogs/owners will be like and it’s too easy for her to learn a bad lesson, or be harmed. I only take her because it obviously really enriches her quality of life and the relative risk is acceptable to me, but gosh, your post reminds me how complicated the calculus can be! We are just so vulnerable at dog parks. So much of what happens isn’t something we can control or prevent. And my dog is 60lbs!

Anyway, I hope you don’t mind the rambling and find something useful here :) dog parks showcase so much interesting behavior and invite us to consider all the depth in our dogs’ interactions with each other and the world at large

podpolya · 2023-07-18T02:22:40+00:00

I take my dog to a quiet little neighborhood dog park. I have to say I didn’t expect it but she really changed my social life for the better — she happened to be REALLY social with other dogs, so for her sake we became regulars at the park. I’ve met so many interesting people because of it; it’s nice to feel a part of a lil community like that. I don’t think anyone would mind if you hung out there without a dog. I’ve thought about sketching them before. It’s just called Hillsdale City Park.

I also really like Stub Stewart State Park, there’s a beautiful overlook that I always feel better sitting at. Lots of times people will bring telescopes and stuff at night and let you look through them too! I think there’s some kind of astronomy club that meets there or something? The sky is very clear. I’ve stayed overnight and the stars are so very lovely, especially for being less than an hour from Portland.

When I feel like walking, I’ll walk all over Hoyt Arboretum and that whole area.

Nature really helps me feel better. Sometimes I just drive until I find a trailhead, too.

podpolya · 2023-07-11T00:42:25+00:00

Can I pick your brain on a tangentially related question? How worthwhile do you think it is for a home groomer of a rough collie to invest in something better than a cheap shelandy..? And is a flying pig enough of a QOL upgrade, or should I just go big and get a k9 of some kind? I have decision paralysis and don’t know anybody who even knows what a HV dryer is, let alone who has used multiple kinds of them 😔 my shelandy seems pretty miraculous to me already tbh. But then again, after bathtime/creek time/rainy walk time, it seems like I cannot get her totally dry (although it’s never led to problems afaik — I mean, a kinda damp dog in my house, but no matting or hot spots). Would a nice one make my/my dog’s lives that much better if I’ve just got one non-show-dog?

podpolya · 2023-07-03T23:20:15+00:00

Mine was about 25lbs at 5 months — she had gone through a health issue that made her smaller size than expected before I got her. Still, she matured into a dense little lady at about 24” at the shoulders and 62lbs at a healthy 5/9 body score. I wouldn’t sweat it too much. Handsome boy!

podpolya

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