Jack in T-Shirt & Singlet

Hi,

We tried to put a T-shirt on Jack to cover up his wound and to keep the flies away.

































The T-shirt was not a good fit and he tried to bite at it so we switched back to a singlet but tied it in such a way that it does not hamper his movement. Also, the singlet is more cooling in our hot weather.


































His wound is healing well.

I have already take his plastic collar off but still has to chain him as I do not want him to go to his favourite spot at the base of the palm tree and open up his wound if it is scratched by some branches or the soil etc....


David

Jack's Recovery

Hi,

We have to clean his wound with some solution and it may stink him a bit if wound is still raw or bleeding a bit. Then I have to put some antiseptic or antibiotic white powder on it.

The wound attracted flies during the day and while I try to chase them away or swat a few, it was a daunting task.

I tried bandaging it with some cotton gauze but it moved as I am not supposed to tie it too tight and suffocate the wound, as advised by the vet.

A friend visited us and she suggested that we get an old T-shirt for Jack to wear, so we have a go at it. Initially, Jack was not used to it.

We used one of Jason's old singlet and it seems to work but not perfect but did a better job than the bandage.

Jack tried to scratch it with his hind leg or bite it off but the collar was in the way. Not very effective as it may still move.

Will replace it with an old T-shirt tomorrow.....

David

Jack's Wound

Hi,

This is update of Jack's wound after having it stitched up.

He has to wear a special collar to prevent him from licking his wound.

I have to wash the wound 2-3 times a day and spray the antiseptic powder over the wound too.

I also ensure that there are no flies attracted by the wound.

I must say Jack has been very co-operative and never make a fuss over his injury and wearing that plastic collar.

I feel so sorry and responsible for what has happened to him. I hope I can make it up to him.

David

Jack Bitten By Ruby

Hi,

Last Sunday evening, my housekeeper noticed a cut on Jack's body but it was not very bloody and Jack was not in pain but behaving very normal.

We thought that he must have got the cut from some of the potted plants branches or the base of the palm tree, his favourite afternoon napping place.

First thing on Monday morning, I took Jack to the vet. The vet told me that she needs about 15 minutes to patch him up. After shaving the problem area, the vet called me in to have a look as there are 2 punctured holes caused by a bite and not a cut as I initially thought.

The vet need to stitch Jack's wounds after sedating him so I have to leave him behind for the day.

My family and I concluded that Ruby, though chained up, she must have lunged at Jack when Jack was within her range of attack. Jack has a tendency to go and drink her bowl of water though Ruby have been sharing it with him without problem. They drink from each other bowl all this while. It is is more likely that Jack went to the main door and this is within her range as the chain is fairly long.

We are so upset and I created a bigger dog pen on the other side of the car porch to restrict Ruby's movement. This is better than being chained up but we still walked Ruby twice a day , as per normal, and take her our for peeing too. Ruby does not show any resentment but we were joking that she may think that she is special and have her own special den.

We have started to look for a new home for Ruby and she must be the only pet dog. If not successful, we will still keep Ruby but we just want to make sure that Jack remaining years are good ones for him and not being fear of bitten again.

David

Behaviour Training For Ruby

Hi,

I was talking about my problem with Ruby bullying Jack in one of the pet shops that I go to, and the shop owner suggested some behaviour training for Ruby.

The shop owner is a dog trainer himself and he offered me 6 personal lessons and 6 group lessons for about $1,000!

Wow! That is a lot of money and he did not guarantee me results at any time and I did not want to put him in a spot either.

So I told him that I will consult my wife first...heee....hee....

I also shared my problem with my son's tutor and this behaviour training offer since she has 2 dogs too. She told me that one of her dogs attended his training and results were not very obvious.

Well, I decided to go to the local community library and surf the Internet to research for some solutions instead.

David

What To Do With Ruby?

Hi,

Following up on my earlier posting on Ruby bullying Jack, I was so upset by what I saw.

My immediate reaction was to find Ruby a new home and until then she has to be restricted and not bully Jack anymore.

I discussed with my family that evening and here were the options:

1. Find Ruby a new home.

2. Restricted or confined for the rest of her life as long as Jack is around and she will only be let free to roam under our watchful eyes.

3. Can her aggression be curbed or re-trained?

Very reluctantly, we were against option 1 and chose option 2 until further notice.

So Ruby will stayed chained or in her open metallic crate unless we feel that she is allow to be free in our presence. Of course, she is allowed to go and pee in the garden.

Luckily, Ruby does not mind ..... maybe she thinks she is treated special compared to Jack...?

Lately, I also noticed that when I call for Jack, he does come to me..... so could it that Ruby is being crated and he feels safe to do so....?
















We have Ruby in her metallic crate and Jack just outside it.

Or, Ruby being chained up here. With this restriction, both Jack and Ruby can barked at passerbys instead of Ruby going after Jack.....!

David

Ruby Bullying Jack

Hi,

We started to notice that Ruby has been bullying Jack quite often lately and here are the instances that we caught her doing it.

1. When Jack barks at people or dogs passing by our gate, Ruby would bark and bite Jack around the neck ..... like trying to stop him from barking...?

2. When we asked for Jack to come to us, Ruby would always manipulate herself to be in front of Jack and Jack would back off. While we noticed this for some time but we thought that Jack was ignoring us.

3. Sometimes when we pat both dogs at the same time, Ruby would show some aggression towards Jack by lunging at him and we would scold her.

4. Jack likes to play 'fetch' using a cloth bone. We would normally hold on to Ruby or tie her up as she does not know how to play this game but would lunge at Jack instead of snatching it from Jack.

It is most unfortunate that this sort of bullying has been tolerated by us but it just have been happening too often lately.

While we were celebrating Jack's birthday recently, Ruby was at another corner chasing the bees and Jack started to play fetch with me.

It started with Jack fetching his cloth bone and then chewing it by himself. He then brought it over to me and we tugged at it a few times. Then I got it free from him and threw it away for him to fetch it.

That was when disaster struck.........!

As Jack went to fetch the cloth bone, Ruby suddenly raced the other side and attack Jack...!

You can still hear Jack's cries even after I have separated them. Jack was traumatised and I went to hug him and assured him that it is ok.

Ruby was immediately crated and scolded for being so naughty.

Jack looked like he was limping and shaken a bit but I did a body search and survey and could not find anything of the unusual. Though I saw a small drop of blood on his ear but was not able to trace the source.

Since that incident, Ruby has been either crate or chained so that she would not bully Jack anymore.

David

Dog Chain Hook Replaced

Hi,

Jack broke the dog chain hook and I finally got it replaced.

Just to give you an idea on what hook I used, here is a photo of it.

I am not sure what is the proper name for this type of hook or wall plug but it is meant to withstand a very strong force.

I have not gotten some cement to fill up the old hole but will do so soon as it looks a bit awful.

Here is Ruby being chained as she has been naughty lately and attacking Jack. Will write about it later.

BTW, the dog chain is actually made up of 2 old dog coke collars and an old leach so as to give me the length I want and to reuse the old items.

David

Jack's 11th Birthday

Hi,

We celebrated Jack's 11th birthday on Mon 27th April with some special treats for him.

Here is a slide show of the photos taken of the occasion :

Well, we are glad to say that Jack is still looking good though greying but still fit and strong so we look forward to many good years ahead with Jack.

Happy 11th Birthday, Jack our Beagle!

Mummy, Daddy and Jason Poh

Jack Broke His Dog Chain

Hi,

I have a dog chain hooked to a heavy duty hook screwed into a wall of my car porch for many years.

2 nights ago, Jack was tied to it as we have some visitors that evening.

As usual, there are many residents walking their dogs around that time and Jack like to bark at them and lunge forward since he was tied up else he would have rush to the gate and bark at them instead.

The heavy duty hook broke!

Now we know how strong Jack is despite his aging and coming to 12 this coming Monday.

Jack's Great Escape

Hi,

I was opening the gate outwards to talk to a neighbour yesterday morning and did not notice that Jack was nearby.

Jack ran out of the gate immediately and my dear wife was screaming at Jack to come back and started to go after him. I told her not to run after Jack as he would ran even faster.

I went to take some dog biscuits and his leach before I started to go after Jack too.

My wife managed to get Jack's attention by shouting his name and biscuit. Jack stopped and made a U-turn and ran back towards the house, passing her. Jack was running quite fast and passed me too but I threw a biscuit towards him on the road.

Jack again stopped running and came for the biscuit, I went to grab Jack's collar and guess what happened?

The collar came off as I tried to grapple to leach him.

My immediate thought was that there was no way I can catch Jack as I have no way of holding on to him.

However, I threw another biscuit and called out to Jack out of desperation!

My greedy Jack ran back again for the biscuit and this time he was so eager to have his treat again that he did not mind my climbing over him with legs holding on to his body and at the same time, putting the collar back on him and then leach him.

I must say that I was lucky and got him this time......sigh

Lesson learned :

- I should not have opened my gate outwards but inwards.

- Arm yourself with biscuit or dog treats to lure Jack back especially if your dog does not respond to the Come command unlike Ruby.

- Stay calm and not run after the dog as it will run even faster and away from you,

Wow...... if Jack has ran away and beyond our catching him back, I would be lost myself today, my family too!

We really need to be watchful and weary of our dogs.

Take care!

David

Attacked by Dog - What You Should Do

Hi,

So you know what to do when face with an attack by a dog?

There was this article published in My Paper on 31 March 2009:

There is a very low probability of a dog attacking a human, except in cases of outright provocation, like throwing stones at the animal, kicking it or taunting it; according to a veterinarian.

So be smart and just leave them alone when you see them on the streets, according to one dog owner.

Still, what should you do in the event of a dog attack?

One expert suggested that you should stand as still and upright as possible, and don't stare down on the dog. Running away is a definite no-no, too.

In the dog world, the size of their prey matters. By standing upright, you are towering over them, which is a sign of dominance and , thus, intimidation.

He further claimed that while standing still, though difficult, is the only way of telling the dog that you mean no harm.

If the dog persists, the most important area to protect is the face.

The vet said that you should cover your face and press your elbows to your sides. This way, if the dog bites you, your ears, eyes, rib cage and vital organs are protected.

Well, I still remember cycling to school when I was young and sometimes passed by a few houses that have not closed their gates and their dogs would rushed out barking at me. I would cycle very fast to get away as far as possible and the dogs would only run a short distance and then stopped. I do not think I have really out ran them but they have left their territory instead, I think!

I think it is important to remain calm and not panic; the above advice should be applicable but at times it also depends on the type of dog attacking you.

Anyway, take care and watch out for stray dogs as my brother was bitten by one many years ago and it took him a long time to get over it. But I am glad to say that he is now a dog owner, partly because of his kids though.

Take care!

David