My special pit bull garden helper
April
8 years ago
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organic_kitten
8 years agoRelated Discussions
A bit of a vent...pitt bull
Comments (23)This is an interesting post. I had heard about insurance companies that cancelled because of certain breeds, but don't know of any cases personally. I also heard that you can claim some breed (like Sheppards) as a "security system" and it actually gives you a break on rates. Not sure if this is true, but I do know that our Sheppard is a great security system! Our rural neighbourhood has had some problems last couple of years with break-ins, but not our place. She's loud and she's intimidating and I wouldn't advise anyone to cross her. That said, she's a wonderful family pet, has never bitten anyone, loves all kids under the age of 20, and is very protective of her own (er, mine rather). I've learned a lot about having a healthy respect for others' property and dogs in general through the whole thing. I would have another Sheppard in a minute! Funny, because I used to be really scared of them. Guess I still am, but I just see it in a different way now. I think it boils down to personal experience. Miss Kitty, I have to say I'm a little scared of Jack Russels! I've been bitten by one. In fact, the four times in my life I've been bitten, three of them were little dogs (JR, Chiuahua (sp?), and Dachshund) - go figure! How are the JR's with other animals? I confess, I don't know much about the breed. gardengal, we had a black lab once that thought "home" was a ten mile radius. It was a real problem and we didn't keep the dog. He actually came to us as a "dog-sitting charge" but they never came back to get him. It was sad to let him go, but at a year and a half old, there was no changing him and I couldn't bear to keep him tied. He went to a good home, but for months I got calls to say "your dog is here"! yikes. Roaming dogs ARE a big problem. It's really maddening for folks who try to keep their dogs under control and for those who have other animals to worry about. Genny,you are wise to be wary of your neighbour's dog. Mine has never hurt any of our animals (she's actually afraid of the cows!),but I still wouldn't let her sleep with the chickens! Dogs will learn what is and isn't fair game, but it takes time. I hope your neighbour's dog will learn that. Sometimes making a friend of the dog is a good approach, though that may encourage it to visit more often which you probably don't want. My sheppard was VERY interested in new animals we brought home. It took a couple of weeks for her to stop circling the fences (which is a bit worrying in itself), but we kept telling here "no" and made her limits clear. After a couple of weeks, the new additions became just another part of her "pack" and she basically ignored them. Overall, she's not a bad "farm dog", although she hasn't got a clue about herding! LOL...See MoreRIP to our garden helpers
Comments (11)Linda, Your losing Little Boy has touched my heart and I share in your grief. I am so sorry for your loss of such a beautiful friend and garden helper. I feel like I had come to know him in a way, what with our two 'boys' looking just like brothers. Fat Cat Nemo did have another brother besides Little Boy and his name was Cosmo. They were littermates and we took them in when they were just tiny kittens no one wanted. His death at age 7 came without warning and he died in my arms. I had just let him outside & closed the door when I heard a thud. I opened the door and saw he was flopping on the ground so I scooped him up, but within seconds he was gone. I didn't understand what was happening because he was always so healthy and we had just been cuddling before I let him out. I grieved for a long, long time and even now the tears will come easily like now when I remember his passing. That was 3 years ago and it still is a raw ache in my heart. So what I did to try to heal was I made a memorial garden for him near the back woods where he loved to hunt. I planted a bleeding heart over where his ashes were and catnip for the other cats to enjoy. There are little cat statues in there and my cats like to go there and sit. For all of you who have lost your dear furry friends, I am so sorry. You are all in my thoughts. Celeste...See MoreBull nettle and mosquitos
Comments (1)Connie, There is no effective organic method of managing bull nettle that I know of except to improve your soil over time since it is most common in compacted (and thus, low-oxygen) soil or in soil that is deficient in organic material. Cutting it off at the ground level and then digging the tuberous root out of the ground works pretty well if you have loose enough soil that you can dig down and get all the root. As you improve your soil's friability and fertility, you'll have less and less bull nettle. With the mosquitoes, I've tried various organic repellents and haven't found any of them to be especially effective for me. (I am a mosquito magnet.) Your results might be different. Some people have luck with Avon Skin So Soft, but that only works for a fairly short time for me. I use chemical skeeter repellents in years like this one, but try to mostly spray my clothing, including my gardening hat. So, for that reason, I mostly wear long pants outside so I can spray them and not the skin on my legs. In a very wet year, mosquitoes can be very hard to control and it takes a multi-pronged approach. Removing all sources of standing water, however small, helps. For larger bodies of water like ponds or perhaps ditches that hold water for a long time after rainstorms, you can put a larvicide in the water to kill the larvae before they can become flying skeeters. The active ingredient in organic larvicides is Bacillus thuringiensis 'Israeliensis', or Bti. Bti products are available as 'mosquito dunks' or as loose pellets you scatter on the water surface. I've linked a page below that discusses mosquitoes and larvicides. The product they show at the bottom of the page is the one I use and I find it at Lowe's, Home Depot, Tractor Supply Store, and some years I've seen it at Wal-Mart. Some of the nurseries I frequent in Texas carry Bti products as well as do most farm stores. Dragonflies eat lots of mosquitoes and so do some birds, so do all you can to encourage them. Keep tall grasses mowed down because they are a mosquito haven. There are some garlic-based mosquito repellent sprays to use around the yard, but they have to be re-applied often, especially when it it raining a lot and their effectiveness varies. If there truly were a safe way to rid the world of mosquitoes, life would be a lot easier, but there isn't. One of the few good things about drought and long dry spells is that the mosquito population is almost nonexistent. Dawn Here is a link that might be useful: Bt Israeliensis...See MoreI Found a Pit Bull
Comments (19)Thanks, Rach. Here's the update to the story, some of which I believe I've posted here in the past. Hugo (as a friend named the pitbull) had a rough road. His neck got re-infected twice, and had to be re-treated. Treatment involved removing more dead skin and tissue each time. Good thing pit bulls have extra flesh around the neck! Then, Hugo got parvo virus. The vet had held off vaccinating him while his immune system was so weak, and he was still fighting off infection while his neck was healing. The parvo involved a several day stay at the emergency hospital. But he recovered. After Hugo's recovery, I had a professional behavioral assesment conducted. Hugo did pretty well, and I decided to keep him. I hired a private dog trainer to work with me and Hugo, since I had never had a dog other than miniature poodles as a kid. After several months - and about $3,000 dollars later on vet bills and training fees - I came to the conclusion that having a dog, especially a rambunctious dog like Hugo, was more than I could handle. Not only was he more than I could handle, but I realized that someone else could give him a better life than I could. I knew that I had to be very careful about who I gave Hugo to. Pit bulls are abused so often. Also, even though Hugo is a sweetheart, he is a handful. He now weighs 57 pounds of pure muscle, he's stubborn, and has a very short attention span. He chews absolutely everything. He ate through his metal crate. I knew that he'd have to go to a home where people had patience and time. Lots of love. I knew it might take me a while to find the perfect home. I sent out emails to all my animal contacts. After a week or so, I got an email back from the dog trainer who conducted Hugo's initial behavioral assessment. She knew a couple who were interested in meeting Hugo. That weekend, Hugo and I went to meet the couple and their dogs. The trainer was also on hand to facilitate introductions and to assess whether this would indeed be a good match. It went well. Hugo stayed. He now has a large fenced in yard (the fence was 4', but after Hugo jumped it a couple of times, they raised it to 6') three other dogs in his family, and dog friends nearby. Hugo has people who love him and enjoy working with him. I've visited several times, and am enjoying the open adoption "birth mother" role I'm playing. Thank you, everyone, for your support. CarrieB...See MoreApril
8 years agoJulia WV (6b)
8 years agoApril
8 years agomantis__oh
8 years agoApril
8 years agosherrygirl zone5 N il
8 years ago
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Maryl (Okla. Zone 7a)