Beware Small Dogs - You Could Get Hooked...

Hawks as well as horned owls can take a small dog, or at least give it a good try. That said, I learned that for larger prey, like a dog, they have to land, then grab the prey and push off up to fly. They cannot swoop down and grab something that is 15 lbs, they can do that to a small critter though. My dogs are never unsupervised, and sometimes when we are out in the field the local hawks do a fly by to see if they have a chance..
 
When we lived in the burbs with a 1/4 acre lot and no trees I always went outside with my small dogs. Now we live in town in a smaller yard with big trees and no room to swoop. I let them go out alone now because we have an 80lb dog. However, once he dies I will not let them out unsupervised.
 
irishgal said:
Hawks as well as horned owls can take a small dog, or at least give it a good try. That said, I learned that for larger prey, like a dog, they have to land, then grab the prey and push off up to fly. They cannot swoop down and grab something that is 15 lbs, they can do that to a small critter though. My dogs are never unsupervised, and sometimes when we are out in the field the local hawks do a fly by to see if they have a chance..
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Yes we lived in an area hawk's and owls were plentiful in.

Our first Maltese was 6-7 pounds and a redtail hawk was roosting where it could watch him. A little more visable human activity kept him away from dogo.

He did snag a few chickens. DW swore one learned to fly. It flew straight up until the hawk dropped it!

I watched a great horned owl kill and devour a rabbit one day. He grabbed the thing and flew over to a round hay bale. That was it's dinner table!
 
Here is a hawk that got a squirrel in my pasture yesterday. Hawk has the squirrel in his talons and stayed there for a bit, then took off with it to go chow down no doubt. IMG_1622.jpeg
 
We’re not ready to expand the family again yet, but Shelties (we’ve had 4), Corgis and Mini (Golden) Doodles are on our short list at the moment. Though we should probably rescue dogs this time. DW wants Golden Retrievers or Labs but she’s not the one who’ll have to carry them (we always get dogs in pairs) around!!!
 
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Some great pictures of so many cute dogs of all sizes! We lost 2 of our 3 dogs this year but currently have two shelties that we are fostering that are quite possibly going to stay! This is Cali, sitting on the couch yesterday while I was reading the news
 
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4legsgood said:
Hmm, I understand the practicality of small dogs, but enjoy the companionship of big dogs. Huggable, hike and swim companions, and such good security.
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That's been my thinking. My labx has been a great companion. He does a good job in getting me out for a daily hike. But the shedding is a problem. And he can he can certainly get on my bad side when he finds something stinky to roll in.
 
My Dad was a hunter as well. He once heard of a farmer two states over who raised the most amazing hunting dogs. We traveled there one weekend for a demonstration and it was amazing. The farmer took us out to a field and let the dog loose. He ran around for 5 min and came back and tapped his paw on the ground 3 times. My dad went into the field and pulled out three rabbits. Went to a field across the street and came back and tapped his paw 5 times. Wouldn't you know it, he shot 5 rabbits. Dad paid the farmer $15000.00 and we went home with our new dog.

A few weeks later, Dad went out hunting with his friends (to show off his dog). He let the Dog go into a heavily wooded area and waited. 30 min went by and the dog did not come back, an hour passed and nothing. Finally two hours passed and the dog came back fiercely shaking a stick in his mouth, My Dad was so embarrassed in front of his friends that he promptly shot the dog.

The following week he called the farmer asking for a refund. The farmer asked what happened and my Dad recounted the story.

The farmer told him that the dog was trying to tell him that "there are more fu*king rabbits in those woods than you can shake a stick at"!
 
We inherited a young Rottweiler from a daughter. Never had a sweeter dog in the bouse, and she is a real cuddler. But outside, she reverts to bring very attentive to walkers and joggers+-too attentive.

And at 125 lbs., she is quite a sight running.
 
We have two dog procurement rules: Hers is that it can't shed. Mine is that if I accidentally sit on it it can't be dead.
 
NYEXPAT said:
My Dad was a hunter as well. He once heard of a farmer two states over who raised the most amazing hunting dogs. We traveled there one weekend for a demonstration and it was amazing. The farmer took us out to a field and let the dog loose. He ran around for 5 min and came back and tapped his paw on the ground 3 times. My dad went into the field and pulled out three rabbits. Went to a field across the street and came back and tapped his paw 5 times. Wouldn't you know it, he shot 5 rabbits. Dad paid the farmer $15000.00 and we went home with our new dog.

A few weeks later, Dad went out hunting with his friends (to show off his dog). He let the Dog go into a heavily wooded area and waited. 30 min went by and the dog did not come back, an hour passed and nothing. Finally two hours passed and the dog came back fiercely shaking a stick in his mouth, My Dad was so embarrassed in front of his friends that he promptly shot the dog.

The following week he called the farmer asking for a refund. The farmer asked what happened and my Dad recounted the story.

The farmer told him that the dog was trying to tell him that "there are more fu*king rabbits in those woods than you can shake a stick at"!
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https://youtu.be/g-4-gLlF0uw

Ha!
 
I've always had relatively big dogs (or at least medium-sized). When our previous dog died about 11 years ago (a collie), my wife and I wanted to get another dog, so we went to the local animal shelters to see what they had. My inclination was to look for something medium-sized or smaller. One of the first dogs we saw was a male yellow lab.......big dog, maybe 70 lbs.. They guessed he was about a year and a half old, but that was just a guess. Anyway, the first thing I said to my wife was.........."I don't know, he's kinda big". Then he proceeded to win us over with his personality. We ended up adopting him, and he's been the best dog we've ever had. Yeah, he sheds, but that is a minor issue, which is easily outweighed by all his good qualities. He's about 90 lbs. now, and still doing okay.......he's my walking buddy, 2X each day.
 
The little guy in my avatar is 11 yrs old and weighs about 7 lbs. He is our third pom and is spoiled rotten. He even gets his nightly dose of fish oil for his health along with me.

He never backs down with the next door neighbor's boxer though.....alpha dog for sure but my DW melts for anything he needs. Don't mess with her boy...
 
RAE said:
...One of the first dogs we saw was a male yellow lab.......big dog, maybe 70 lbs.. They guessed he was about a year and a half old, but that was just a guess. ...
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Same here, adopted a 1.5 yo lab, and what a treat it's been. He let's me know when I'm upset long before I notice, my biofeedback pup! He swims and hikes with me. And it was so nice to not have to go through the chewing shoes/potty training stage. I wish there were miniature labs.
 
You know they are just a smaller package. So it's less expensive to feed and managing a bath is a lot easier than the 40 or 150# versions. But, if on leash they see something they want, they can do a good impression of a Husky and mush along to their target.
 
OldShooter said:
We have two dog procurement rules: Hers is that it can't shed. Mine is that if I accidentally sit on it it can't be dead.
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Our first Maltese was 7 pounds. He was often sat on, layed and rolled on. Never died from that.

There was a 13 weeks when I was on disability and couldn't choose between more oxy(+alcohol, benzos, muscle relaxers ) and a .44 mag. He snuggled my back never left my side.

Sometimes little dogs are pretty damn big.
 
MRG said:
Our first Maltese was 7 pounds. He was often sat on, layed and rolled on. Never died from that.

There was a 13 weeks when I was on disability and couldn't choose between more oxy(+alcohol, benzos, muscle relaxers ) and a .44 mag. He snuggled my back never left my side.

Sometimes little dogs are pretty damn big.
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Awww! A dog can really help with tough times.
 
4legsgood said:
Same here, adopted a 1.5 yo lab, and what a treat it's been. He let's me know when I'm upset long before I notice, my biofeedback pup! He swims and hikes with me. And it was so nice to not have to go through the chewing shoes/potty training stage. I wish there were miniature labs.
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Yep, my lab Toby is so perceptive, it's unreal. I will just start to think about maybe taking a walk, and he's up staring at me, wagging his tail, ready to go. I just start to think about taking the truck to town, and he's up, waiting by the door to go.
Also, we can leave him in the house by himself for 8+ hours, and he will just lay here quietly until we return - he has never damaged a thing in the house.
And - he has learned to tell time, because I feed him at 2 pm, and at 1:55 pm, he starts bugging me for food (no joke). We have two grandsons, ages 4 and 7, and they hang all over him, and he will NOT growl or exhibit any aggression at all.......toward anyone or anything (even other dogs). When he has had enough, he'll just get up and walk away. I read the other day that you can now clone dogs for about $50,000, and my wife and I were saying that if there was ever a dog that we would want to clone, he is the one. He's still healthy at 12 (or so) years old, but we realize we won't have him forever.
 
Love them and appreciate them while you can, big or small, for they are gone all too soon.
 
We still travel a bit and made the switch to a cat a few years back. We have a Tonkinese and we are pleasantly surprised at all fronts. He comes when called, fetches and is incredibly easy to care for, super affectionate and entertaining. On the downside, it can open doors, cabinets, drawers throughout the house so we must lock our doors when we step out. He is mostly tolerant of visiting dogs, but will get into it if they mess with his food. Not really a big factor but the $$$ for care is minuscule compared to a small dog. No regrets at the 8 year mark.
 
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