Looking For A Dog Sitter

[sloutch]

Hi guys,

I'm leaving Melbourne for about 2 months from Jan - end Feb 2010. If you or you know anyone who can take care of my 8 year old male Maltese x Poodle for 2 months, please let me know.

I will be providing all the food and i will also pay the kind person some money for taking the responsibility of looking after my dog.

I know there are dog hotels around, but in places like those, dogs are not really taken care properly and i don't want him to be mis-treated. So dog hotels are out of my consideration.

The dog is toilet trained and very quiet. Doesn't make much noises at all since he is getting old. I will groom the dog to make sure he is nice and clean before handing him over. Any location within Victoria is fine.

Thanks!

[rs73]

What is your daily budget? kennels can be quite expensive, but we found this kennel is quite good, they're in sunbury and we've used them a few times for our very timid Maltese Shitzu. FYI Sunbury is just 16mins from Airport so you can pickup your dog straight after you landed (if you get picked up or park long term at the airport or if your taxi driver don't mind).

http://www.treetopsboarding.com.au

You need all the usual C5 vaccination stuff though. They provide food unless u have special diet for your dog you may need to provide your own.

[Ruffels]

hey mate, i grew up around "dog hotels" (boarding kennels) my parents owned one for 25 years, and i lived on site for 12 years, this idea that the dogs are not looked after and miss treated is crap!

the dogs are kept in pens where they can choose to interact with the other dogs in their own run, or choose to keep to them selves in thier own kennel

many of the boarding kennels also walk the dogs and give individual attention on a daily basis

so dont assume that your dog is not in good hands, these people are professionals, and know how to look after your precious k9

[xALmoN]

Well, i dont mind looking after your dog for that 2 months but..

Does the dog need to sleep in a bed? because previously when we looked after a friend's dog, she wouldn't sleep anywhere but in the bed with us.

That, i cannot really stand.

[33gtst]

Well, i dont mind looking after your dog for that 2 months but..

Does the dog need to sleep in a bed? because previously when we looked after a friend's dog, she wouldn't sleep anywhere but in the bed with us.

That, i cannot really stand.

LOL now that is hilarious...

[xALmoN]

LOL now that is hilarious...

it was so annoying, that bitch.. literally.

[sloutch]

hey mate, i grew up around "dog hotels" (boarding kennels) my parents owned one for 25 years, and i lived on site for 12 years, this idea that the dogs are not looked after and miss treated is crap!

the dogs are kept in pens where they can choose to interact with the other dogs in their own run, or choose to keep to them selves in thier own kennel

many of the boarding kennels also walk the dogs and give individual attention on a daily basis

so dont assume that your dog is not in good hands, these people are professionals, and know how to look after your precious k9

Thanks for the re-assurance. I did put him into a boarding kennel 2 years ago. It's the one down in Mornington. He came back with a small wound on his hind leg. Not sure if he hurt himself or something but it sure wasn't treated or maybe the people didn't notice.

Well, i dont mind looking after your dog for that 2 months but..

Does the dog need to sleep in a bed? because previously when we looked after a friend's dog, she wouldn't sleep anywhere but in the bed with us.

That, i cannot really stand.

Yeah, unfortunately he sleeps right under my bed every night. He did jump on the bed a couple of times but we always kick him down and he won't do it again.

[rs73]

Re: dog in bed...

that is not hillarious, some dogs are way too pampered or spoiled that they won't sleep anywhere else but on their master's bed. Not so bad if they choose the foot of the bed (like ours used to do) - but it does gets worse when it chooses to sleep along side or in between couples as it can be a real pain and hindrance....

Common phenomenon found in couples with no children (or older couples where children has moved out)

as dogs often become a child-substitute for those type of owners. Otherwise the owner just spoiled the dog too much.

ours did that as she was spoiled by my wife before we got married, although the dog slept on the foot of the bed and she's only a small maltese shitzu. it takes us a lot of 'heart of stone' to force her to sleep at her own pooch bed, first by changing our bed mattress into something too high for the dog to jump up, and to bear/ignore the spoiled cry of the dog when she couldn't get up to her usual fav spot. after a few heartbreaking nights she was finally trained to sleep on her own bed. Now she sleeps on the floor or at her own pooch bed...

Re: kennels.

I can vouch for tree tops in Sunbury, as we've sent ours there twice and no problems.

You get photos update via email so you can always have a piece of mind that your pampered pooch is doing ok.

2 dogs from the same family can be in a single pen so it saves u a bit money and less stressfull for the dogs so they're not separated from their usual play partner. you can opt for the standard kennel at the back, or opt for 'luxury suites' where dogs are kept separate to main kennel, much quieter - ideal for timid dogs and dogs recovering from injury or surgery, and they have separate play area which is shared with less dogs in the suite compound so that means they get more playtime.

[33gtst]

Jesus, rs73 I found the reply hilarious, if thats ok?

Is it only me that actually loled at the post.

As for the content of it, I am not one to judge. I really love dogs BUT no random persons mutt is sleeping on my 1000 thread count white sheets..... I also believe its not bad dogs it bad dog owners that create poor manners in their pets.

[rs73]

ha ha ha, all our sheets are from Target...

probably not even 500 thread count...

we finally get the dog trained properly after we watch's It's You or Your Dog or It's Me or My Dog ? show by that girl Olivia? Victoria from a UK tv show... yes you do need to show who's boss when it comes to dogs, and some owners including my wife spoiled their dogs way too much. lucky we got ours sorted out, better late than never... and most important is cos now we have a newborn so the dog MUST stay off bed for good

[Birds]

It's more about a lack of dominance (umbrella issue) than spoiling the pet. Too many owners let the pet have the run of the house and lead the owner around...the pets soon learn they are the leader of the pack and will behave as such in every instance. Very bad when you have small children and big dogs because when a dog thinks it is above the humans it will attack if it feels its position in the pack is ever threatened. Pets need to be shown they are at the bottom of the pack, below everything and everyone...I'm not talking about abuse but control and discipline.

[sloutch]

Re: dog in bed...

that is not hillarious, some dogs are way too pampered or spoiled that they won't sleep anywhere else but on their master's bed. Not so bad if they choose the foot of the bed (like ours used to do) - but it does gets worse when it chooses to sleep along side or in between couples as it can be a real pain and hindrance....

Common phenomenon found in couples with no children (or older couples where children has moved out)

as dogs often become a child-substitute for those type of owners. Otherwise the owner just spoiled the dog too much.

ours did that as she was spoiled by my wife before we got married, although the dog slept on the foot of the bed and she's only a small maltese shitzu. it takes us a lot of 'heart of stone' to force her to sleep at her own pooch bed, first by changing our bed mattress into something too high for the dog to jump up, and to bear/ignore the spoiled cry of the dog when she couldn't get up to her usual fav spot. after a few heartbreaking nights she was finally trained to sleep on her own bed. Now she sleeps on the floor or at her own pooch bed...

Re: kennels.

I can vouch for tree tops in Sunbury, as we've sent ours there twice and no problems.

You get photos update via email so you can always have a piece of mind that your pampered pooch is doing ok.

2 dogs from the same family can be in a single pen so it saves u a bit money and less stressfull for the dogs so they're not separated from their usual play partner. you can opt for the standard kennel at the back, or opt for 'luxury suites' where dogs are kept separate to main kennel, much quieter - ideal for timid dogs and dogs recovering from injury or surgery, and they have separate play area which is shared with less dogs in the suite compound so that means they get more playtime.

Glad to hear you have positives about that kennel. I checked out the site and they didn't list out their prices. Maybe if you could PM me how much you paid and how long your dog stayed for it'll be great.

Thanks!

[RBPOWA-(TJ)]

Thanks for the re-assurance. I did put him into a boarding kennel 2 years ago. It's the one down in Mornington. He came back with a small wound on his hind leg. Not sure if he hurt himself or something but it sure wasn't treated or maybe the people didn't notice.

my dog i put into a kennel for its first time, after that, it would attack everyone, only i could handle it, it must of got hit at the kennel's and turned mad, bit of a shame really

[sloutch]

my dog i put into a kennel for its first time, after that, it would attack everyone, only i could handle it, it must of got hit at the kennel's and turned mad, bit of a shame really

Yah, i do hear of unfortunate stories like that. That is why i'm hoping someone can actually look after the dog in their own home rather than leaving him to the kennel. However, it's like a car workshop, there's always good and bad stories from people.

[RBPOWA-(TJ)]

i would take it, but it would send my bird mental!

and i work 10hours a day, so your dog would go nuts also

[rs73]

Glad to hear you have positives about that kennel. I checked out the site and they didn't list out their prices. Maybe if you could PM me how much you paid and how long your dog stayed for it'll be great.

Thanks!

price is listed

click on dog boarding on lhs

then click on price

they're not rock bottom cheap but if u want ur dog housed in a kennel that treat dogs like meat for half price then it's ur choice. they're recommended kennel for those who value their dogs. operated by a couple who are dog lovers not unlike some kennels i've seen is operated by some bikies whose fav pet dog is a pitbull and shouted banging on cages when they're barking in front of us. we stay as far as possible from that other 'dodgy' kennel after initial inspection, and go with tree tops and we never look back since.

[rs73]

the longest we had is about 6 weeks when we went away for wedding and honeymoon

she is still well toilet trained afterwards but she develops a habit of staying in the backyard for 1 hr or 2 after her wee... i guess that is her playtime in the kennel. as she was in the courtyard suite, she gets about 1 or 2 hrs longer time in the play area as there's less dogs to share with, and she was doing well when we picked her up, no issues whatsoever.

that cost us a lot, over $1k from memory as we were away during high season with the extra daily surcharge applied.

i'd suggest u ring them, and see for inspection, look at both general kennel and courtyard suite they have, and you can decide how much u wanna spend for your lovely dogs

[sloutch]

i would take it, but it would send my bird mental!

and i work 10hours a day, so your dog would go nuts also

My dog will be just lying in a corner sleeping if you are out working. I'm not at home majority of the time and he is fine .

What sort of bird is it?

[RBPOWA-(TJ)]

[Shell]

Awww I'd love to have him if I lived closer. My little Maltese loves company - I only just recently left her with friends who have 2 x Maltese/Shitsu's while I went to NZ.

I hope you find somewhere for him