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Quote: Originally posted by bloomooning on 16/9/2010

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Quote: Originally posted by Tidburyboy on 16/9/2010

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Glad to see nobody suggested the dog sleeps in the bag with you!

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Most dogs are fine on a mat of somekind. They really don't feel the cold as we do. However Dogs like Greyhounds and Boxers only have a single layer of fur and do tend to need a bit more insulation.

Our Greyhound seems to get by with a mat and a old cut down quilt in a homemade cover. But she was used to sleeping on a concrete floor in a draughty kennel bless her little heart(she's an ex racer)

I'd be inclined to keeping the floor insulated and minmising any draughts around your dog rather than PJ's.

It's nice that you care to ask though, plenty of dog owners don't seem to be bothered to look after their animals properly

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My Dog sleeps where she wants FACT

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As I see it, as lower ranking members of the pack, they will naturally need to sleep near the pack.  As long as they know how near and when to give up, without complaint, the place that they might choose, that's good enough.  Ours know they can come on our bed for a cuddle when invited, but must, and do, get off peacefully when bidden.  This works for us and many, many others I know.  Not all dogs want to rule their households.

I suppose there'll always be debate though .  There are many differences, for example, between the late John Fisher's theories and Cesar Millan's, yet both were/are respected in the field of dog training.  As long as we all keep learning and are open to new ideas or differences of opinion and experience, the bond between we dog lovers and our pets will benefit.

Quote: Originally posted by Tidburyboy on 18/9/2010

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There are at least three good reasons why it's a bad idea to allow dogs to sleep in or on your bed.

1 - Dog's do not shower every day and did you ever meet a dog that flosses, I mean properly?

2 - As much as we love the little fella's we don't love than as much as the even smaller creatures do.

3 - Dogs are pack animals and they need to know their place in the pack in order for them to relax. If the dog thinks or is allowed to think it's the pack leader, it will behave in a different way. This is not always a "bad" thing but it can be a major problem for some owners.

By allowing them to sleep with you, it elevates them to a more senior position in the pack. For some dogs this does not matter, but for others it can cause confusion . This confusion can lead to all sorts of behaviour problems. For example, if the dog is "pack leader" it's job is to protect the pack (including you) But, when you go to out to the shops(for example) how can the poor dog protect you? This can be the cause of separation anxiety, a common problem with a lot of dogs. So, in simple terms, it's better if pooch "knows it's place" and is treated with love and looked after but not treated as a human.

As I say, not all dogs will react in the same way. But most sensible dog trainers agree that it's better to treat a dog like a dog and not like a human.

Sorry for the lecture.

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I'm glad you apologized for the lecture!

1) My dog gets a wash - rain/sea or pond every day (latter requires a shower coz of mud).

2) I live in sheep country where ticks abound. I've never had a tick from the dog - he's checked every day during tick season - both when I've not had dog with me. I have more problem with cat fleas - absolutely no offence to any cat owners and I have owned two myself intended.

3) Totally agree that dogs are pack animals and need to know their status.  My dog knows precisely where the boundaries are despite he sleeps on my bed. And he sleeps on my bed because when he turned up as a pup we were suffering sub -zero temps and we don't have central heating.

4) My dog's more than capable of trying it on at home but it only takes one command for him to pack it in and when he's out, he's a wuss.

The only problems I have with him is that he hates being patted on the head - thanks to someone who hit him and that same person deliberately tried to run me and dog over - the individual was prosecuted and has since died. The trouble with the latter is I have to take the dog over that road where the incident took place to go walkies - he hasn't forgotten.

We have one of these :-

http://www.equafleece.co.uk/store/index.html

We use it when our dog is wet, mainly in the Winter but take it camping just in case. We walk him in it in extreme weather (snow etc.), mainly because he takes so long to dry.

When I went camping with my dog in Dec last year, he wore a little coat lined with wool, and slept on the spare side of the double bed that had an electric under-blanket on it.

DK

Quote: Originally posted by SuziQ99 on 17/9/2010

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Pre heating the sleeping bags..

[URL=http://s63.photobucket.com/albums/h158/grebo2/Posting/?action=view&current=IMGP1685.jpg][IMG]http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h158/grebo2/Posting/th_IMGP1685.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

Don't worry they are their bags.

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they look lovely and snuggly!

mine sleep on the bed

and yes they are the boss

I am here merely to provide food and walks for them