[Thad E Ginathom]

Very sad, Yeldo. Nature arranges that our human children should outlive us, but has not done anything about our other children :(

[shashanka]

Originally Posted by Yeldo

With a heavy heart I share the news of the sad death of my beloved pet Doberman whom I called "Kuttu".

She turned 10 years old on September 14th, and two days later, today morning, she left me. My family is left devastated by utter grief. .

She was detected with tumors in her mammary glands when she got her rabies vaccine last December. The vet told that surgical treatment was not feasible at her age, and thankfully she did not suffer much, as the tumor did not hurt her much. She was active till 12 hours before her death.

My condolences are with you in your grief, Yeldo - at such times (in our case) I tell myself that he/she is happier in The Happy Hunting Grounds, which is a far more civilized and happy place than the purgatory where we find ourselves today.

[shashanka]

Originally Posted by sindabad.sailor

I am an accidental puppy owner (is that the right term?) since yesterday. That too when I am not in country........Story is that wifey was driving in hometown yesterday ......Apologies if my thoughts come unorganised but then event was as well.
Rgds.

Hello sindabad,
Dogs are much like us in this respect - some require a little more/less time than others. and some require a little more discipline as well.
Archat68's earlier post sums up most of what is required & I'll just add a bit from "Forever Husky":

Do praise your dog every time he does his pee and poop job in the right place.
Do take your dog out to the elimination spot 10 minutes and again 30 minutes after every meal.
Do take your dog out to the elimination spot after every drink he has.
Do take your dog to the potty spot after every nap.

In our case we would add one more step : roll a newspaper and firmly pat the pup on its butt while scolding it near the wrong spot, carrying it near the required spot & petting it (a reward tit-bit works as well) to drive home the point between right & wrong spot.

[Sawyer]

Originally Posted by sindabad.sailor

I am an accidental puppy owner (is that the right term?) since yesterday.

In a day's time it has also become an integral part of my daughter's life.

A well cared for dog - not a difficult thing to do - can live for 15 years - while remaining in many ways like a 4 year old person. Long after your daughter may perhaps not have time for it, you will have to look after it.

As long as you are comfortable with that responsibility, go ahead and reap the returns that a well kept dog will give you.

Reading a little about training dogs and doing it yourself is the best way to train dogs. Anyone can train dogs if they have the interest and commitment, and any dog can be trained. As with children, carrots work far better than sticks.

[pdma]

Finally I got the sticker I wanted and have been waiting for more than 6 months 🙂.

@ zeze it's easier now to spot my car being an endangered species (FIAT Linea) and this sticker will enhance the uniqueness 😁.





Cheers,
Pradeep.

[shashanka]

Originally Posted by Aroy

1. Yes a puppy can be trained. Read up on Newspaper method on the NET. Initially put the puppy on the news paper for its job, then each day move the newspaper towards the toilet.
Distributed in 16 containers - two per day

That's a great post, Aroy. But to be honest, we enjoy going that extra mile and prepare fresh food (similar stuff) every day.

[Zezé]

Originally Posted by pdma

........@ zeze it's easier now to spot my car being an endangered species (FIAT Linea) and this sticker will enhance the uniqueness 😁.
Cheers,
Pradeep.

Will certainly look out for the endangered specimen, with the unique sticker, on the roads of the twin cities.

[akshay380]

The best wheel repair guy in town



Winston Churchill ka baap

[k88k]

Hi

Does anybody have experience with buying & using/installing a pet door?

We will be moving to our own house in a few months and was planning to install/make a small pet door for the room which has the balcony. This is for our Cat. Want to leave the litter tray in the balcony.

Basic research points to expensive options, such as doors with flaps which are electronically driven and cost a bomb. Don't wish to fall for the bells and whistles these pet doors offer. I simply want to make a square hole in the door and install a basic flap with hook. This door will be sealed for dust and water entry.

Will this work?

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by k88k

Does anybody have experience with buying & using/installing a pet door? ...

In UK, I can hardly remember the past house that I lived in which did not have a "cat flap." Indeed, I was forced by intruders to go for some of the more expensive tag-unlocked devices.

Perhaps British cats have some genetic memory about cat flaps. Probably Indian cats don't. And even so, I have know cats prepared to let themselves out, but not in... or the other way around. It is one thing to install your flap, it is another to get the cat to use it. It is also, where a restricted-entry flap is used, another thing to get a cat to wear a collar if it has never done so.

Hopefully you are not going to have any trouble with intruders, so indeed you do not need sophisticated equipment (I wonder: have they implemented facial recognition yet?** ).

Quite likely, a home made flap may be enough for your needs. A plywood flap that fits a hole closely enough to exclude draught and mosquitoes. EDIT: perspex/acrylic sheet probably better than wood. Better for the cat to be able to see through.


You will need to make it so that it does not open and close in the wind. I recall that the commercial plastic units do this by putting a small magnet at the bottom.

How high is your balcony? Expect your cat demanding to be let in through a door on the ground floor!

I simply want to make a square hole in the door and install a basic flap with hook. This door will be sealed for dust and water entry.

Will this work?

Above all it depends... on the cat!



**A great all-DIY system I heard of twenty years ago was a guy who developed a pattern-recognition system that would unlock the flap if it saw the profile of a cat's head, but would not unlock for the profile of a cat's head with a mouse or bird in its mouth! Wow. Geekery well beyond me!

.

[k88k]

Originally Posted by Thad E Ginathom

In UK, I can hardly remember the past house that I lived in which did not have a "cat flap." Indeed, I was forced by intruders to go for some of the more expensive tag-unlocked devices.

Perhaps British cats have some genetic memory about cat flaps. Probably Indian cats don't. And even so, I have know cats prepared to let themselves out, but not in... or the other way around. It is one thing to install your flap, it is another to get the cat to use it. It is also, where a restricted-entry flap is used, another thing to get a cat to wear a collar if it has never done so.

Hopefully you are not going to have any trouble with intruders, so indeed you do not need sophisticated equipment (I wonder: have they implemented facial recognition yet?** ).

Quite likely, a home made flap may be enough for your needs. A plywood flap that fits a hole closely enough to exclude draught and mosquitoes.

You will need to make it so that it does not open and close in the wind. I recall that the commercial plastic units do this by putting a small magnet at the bottom.

How high is your balcony? Expect your cat demanding to be let in through a door on the ground floor!

**A great all-DIY system I heard of twenty years ago was a guy who developed a pattern-recognition system that would unlock the flap if it saw the profile of a cat's head, but would not unlock for the profile of a cat's head with a mouse or bird in its mouth! Wow. Geekery well beyond me!

Well, this one is quite an obedient lady. She should be easy to train.

Valid point there, making the flap mosquito proof is a must. Magnets will be surely of help and I am already liking the idea. A perfectly fitting, plastic flap with a hook/lock - for preventing usage when not required, and a magnet - for usage as and when required.

It is an apartment and the balcony is high enough. But if it isn't, I can expect a condolence call from the ground floor occupants . Simply can't let that happen so a grill/mesh is in order.

Did the DIY guy give any name to the system? Perhaps say, iFlap.

[Thad E Ginathom]

Originally Posted by k88k

Did the DIY guy give any name to the system? Perhaps say, iFlap.

haha... This was before iAnything days! Apple was strictly only a maker of PCs for the wealthy and the niche graphics market.

[Prowler]

Originally Posted by k88k

Hi

Does anybody have experience with buying & using/installing a pet door?

We will be moving to our own house in a few months and was planning to install/make a small pet door for the room which has the balcony. This is for our Cat. Want to leave the litter tray in the balcony.

Why not keep a window open permanently ? I have been having cats for at least 30 years from the time I was an adolescent and all these years, I had to keep a window in the front as well as another in the back open.

Most cats prefer more than one point of entry depending upon their return from their promenade. Cats go out for various reasons - hard to fathom for humans. In this process they cover the nearby neighborhoods - almost around 300 meters. At least my cats did. It is another sad story that I lost one in one such excursions.

[k88k]

Originally Posted by Prowler

Why not keep a window open permanently ? I have been having cats for at least 30 years from the time I was an adolescent and all these years, I had to keep a window in the front as well as another in the back open.

Most cats prefer more than one point of entry depending upon their return from their promenade. Cats go out for various reasons - hard to fathom for humans. In this process they cover the nearby neighborhoods - almost around 300 meters. At least my cats did. It is another sad story that I lost one in one such excursions.

When we take her to my in-law's, which is a individual home, leaving the window open there is not a problem. But even there, sadly, our previous one who used to frequent going out through the window, one day never returned.

In a flat system in a city, with pollution/dust available in abundance, keeping the window open every time is tough. We are also skeptical in leaving her out after we lost him, except when we are around her on our daily terrace walks, where she has a ball!

Having said that will evaluate this option as well for a few days and keep the windows open only during certain hours.

Thanks

[Prowler]

Originally Posted by k88k

When we take her to my in-law's, which is a individual home, leaving the window open there is not a problem. But even there, sadly, our previous one who used to frequent going out through the window, one day never returned.

In a flat system in a city, with pollution/dust available in abundance, keeping the window open every time is tough. We are also skeptical in leaving her out after we lost him, except when we are around her on our daily terrace walks, where she has a ball!

Thanks

I agree infinitely. But cats love their nocturnal excursions while we humans are asleep. That is when they are likely to get lost. Most likely they would be stolen by gypsies ( in my case they were the suspects). Another precaution to limit their excursions is to neuter/spay them. This alone limits their escapades to a great extent - in their adult lives. My adult cats lived their full lives while the kitten I lost was too small for such an operation.