The Chillout Zone (Off-Topic Thread)

borderlinemeath

Very excited. Booked flights for a big holiday in October and realised today that my favourite band are playing in the same city the night we fly in. Tickets are mad expensive but it's a once in a lifetime chance to see them in their current line up. October is going to be an expensive month!

Whispered

You've loads of time to save though, so that's good.

We're supposed to be going on hols ourselves in October (fingers crossed we don't have to cancel). It feels so far away doesn't it!

VonVix

OK, I spent most of today looking at dog collars online...

...now seriously inspired to make my own. And I mean seriously. Loaded up my Amazon basket with bits and bobs needed.

borderlinemeath

Whispered wrote: »

You've loads of time to save though, so that's good.

We're supposed to be going on hols ourselves in October (fingers crossed we don't have to cancel). It feels so far away doesn't it!

Oh I've been saving like a lunatic, but it'll fly in. So far we've only had 5 days away this year and we've not been away from the dogs for more than a week so it'll be wierd leaving them for 2 weeks. It's just another expense to put onto the holiday. The band is Fleetwood Mac and when we went to see them here last year the tickets were €110 and we had the best seats in the 02 thanks to a good friend who has connections in MCD. Similar tickets for this gig are $795 :eek::eek: We'll be going for the "cheap" seats at $226

Whispered

I'd say that was a brilliant concert! They are very VERY expensive tickets though. I hope the venue is very special for that price.

You'd often forget about the cost of accommodating the dogs when booking a holiday. A lot of the time, especially when we go abroad, the dogs accomm is as expensive as the hotel, or at least close!

borderlinemeath

Whispered wrote: »

I'd say that was a brilliant concert! They are very VERY expensive tickets though. I hope the venue is very special for that price.

You'd often forget about the cost of accommodating the dogs when booking a holiday. A lot of the time, especially when we go abroad, the dogs accomm is as expensive as the hotel, or at least close!

It's Madison Square Garden in NYC, so expensive hotels as well!
Haven't decided what to do with the dogs whether to kennel them for the 2 weeks or let our neighbour care for them which he usually does but again the longest we've left them is a week.

Whispered

Ah that's an experience of a lifetime. Well worth the money!

It's a tough one. I'm super lucky with my local kennels, they love it and get the best of care, I don't think I'd leave them with someone else, they wouldn't get the exercise they're used to and they wouldn't be as secure. Would it be inappropriate to insist he put a crib into one of the runs for when our baba comes along? :pac:

DBB

borderlinemeath wrote: »

Haven't decided what to do with the dogs whether to kennel them for the 2 weeks or let our neighbour care for them which he usually does but again the longest we've left them is a week.

I know an excellent home boarding service very near you :pac:

borderlinemeath

Whispered wrote: »

Ah that's an experience of a lifetime. Well worth the money!

It's a tough one. I'm super lucky with my local kennels, they love it and get the best of care, I don't think I'd leave them with someone else, they wouldn't get the exercise they're used to and they wouldn't be as secure. Would it be inappropriate to insist he put a crib into one of the runs for when our baba comes along? :pac:

See my pair would get more exercise with their "Uncle" Oliver , than in kennels. He's the only person I trust to take my pair out, and he runs them in the fields behind us. Lead exercise isn't worth buttons to my pair, they'd need walking for hours to tire them out. Oliver literally moves in bar sleeping in the house and they adore him. Years ago (when we only had Coco) we left the gate open by mistake one night after a visitor left. I let Coco out into the garden and about 15 minutes later I get a call from Oliver, he was sitting down watching TV and he heard this scraping at his back door, he goes and opens it and there's Coco standing there wagging her tail, who had decided she'd go and visit him!!

borderlinemeath

DBB wrote: »

I know an excellent home boarding service very near you :pac:

Meath Coast Dog Walking? At least they'd get to their beloved beach!!

Whispered

Ah that's so cute! It's great to be able to leave them and not worry.

We have the opposite scenario. I would not trust anyone to bring them out off lead, Harley would be gone like a shot, but in the kennel there is an enclosed paddock so they get their walk and then later on get to play ball and run wild for a while.

So nice for your guys to get to stay at home and not have a huge change in routine. It sounds like the perfect set up.

borderlinemeath

Whispered wrote: »

Ah that's so cute! It's great to be able to leave them and not worry.

We have the opposite scenario. I would not trust anyone to bring them out off lead, Harley would be gone like a shot, but in the kennel there is an enclosed paddock so they get their walk and then later on get to play ball and run wild for a while.

So nice for your guys to get to stay at home and not have a huge change in routine. It sounds like the perfect set up.

It is the perfect set up, I just worry that 2 weeks is too long for Oliver! He's unbelievably good, if we're away he cuts the grass, trims the hedges and last time he cleaned the kitchen cupboards! It was a chore I had barely started and never finished but came back to them gleaming!

aonb

honerbright wrote: »

Spent twenty minutes this morning having a conversation with my oh about all things that's rhyme with 'walk' to get Poppy excited. She gets the cutest face when you say the word/any rhyming word and head tilts to the other side with each word, eyes all wide.

How sad are you two?!?!? We on the other hand try to come up with words to replace WALK so that our dogs dont get so excited when we're getting ready - i.e. not sad at all!!! :rolleyes:

Layinghen

aonb wrote: »

How sad are you two?!?!? We on the other hand try to come up with words to replace WALK so that our dogs dont get so excited when we're getting ready - i.e. not sad at all!!! :rolleyes:

We start talking in Irish or French when it comes to discussing walk times :D

honerbright

aonb wrote: »

How sad are you two?!?!? We on the other hand try to come up with words to replace WALK so that our dogs dont get so excited when we're getting ready - i.e. not sad at all!!! :rolleyes:

That's usually the case with us too, she hasn't quite caught on yet that a stroll = walk.
Whenever she's off form though (hates waking up early!!) nothing in the world quite cheers her up like words like walk/talk/chalk/Cork/pork/fork/stork/stalk etc :P

SingItOut

Unfortunately the little bird passed away this afternoon he was fine this morning jumping around and chirping, oh well at least it wasn't a painful death

VonVix

Cringed so hard today.

Found a business card on the ground "dog training" stood out to me in big red letters (not really), there was a website so I thought I would investigate a little...

No mention of qualifications, experience, video tab had nothing in it and photos tab had nothing but the chap with his dogs in it. I don't know why I cringed, I just did. I think the more I work with dogs, study about dogs, meet people, yadda yadda... I'm getting more critical of people who call themselves "dog trainers." Maybe just more critical of people generally speaking.

Zapperzy

VonVix wrote: »

Cringed so hard today.

Found a business card on the ground "dog training" stood out to me in big red letters (not really), there was a website so I thought I would investigate a little...

No mention of qualifications, experience, video tab had nothing in it and photos tab had nothing but the chap with his dogs in it. I don't know why I cringed, I just did. I think the more I work with dogs, study about dogs, meet people, yadda yadda... I'm getting more critical of people who call themselves "dog trainers." Maybe just more critical of people generally speaking.

Dog walkers too. A girl I work with was telling me about a dog walker who regularly walks on the same beach she does with 7 or 8 dogs off lead. She has no control over any of them at any stage and they regularly run up to her and her dogs, jump out of the van and run around the car park and one day she was even asked by this lady if she'd seen a beagle as she was missing one :eek: It ran down from the dunes anyways but there's cattle up there, and to think people are paying this woman and trusting her with their dogs :mad:

VonVix

Zapperzy wrote: »

Dog walkers too. A girl I work with was telling me about a dog walker who regularly walks on the same beach she does with 7 or 8 dogs off lead. She has no control over any of them at any stage and they regularly run up to her and her dogs, jump out of the van and run around the car park and one day she was even asked by this lady if she'd seen a beagle as she was missing one :eek: It ran down from the dunes anyways but there's cattle up there, and to think people are paying this woman and trusting her with their dogs :mad:

She sounds like someone I know, the dog walker I mean... might be a 'friend' of mine!

tk123

Bailey is 5!!

DBB

tk123 wrote: »

Bailey is 5!!

Happy birthday Bailey!
Enjoy the birthday party and all the lovely presents that your mam has stashed away for you :-D

mymo

Happy birthday Bailey!

Ruby is angry at the 2 kittens we have stashed in the bathroom (our safe room) and keeps growling if she sees them.
Last night she left a dead rabbit at the back door around 9pm, her prey is getting bigger, even small dog looked worried!

tk123

DBB wrote: »

Happy birthday Bailey!
Enjoy the birthday party and all the lovely presents that your mam has stashed away for you :-D

He can't have ANYTHING with Lucy!! She either takes it off him or he just gives it to her/wont play if she's there!

Pumpkinseeds

I'm getting more and more annoyed with Zooplus. When I complained to them about the 17 dented tins in our last order I received 2 emails sent within a few minutes of each other. The first was refunding us the cost of the damaged cans and the second was giving us a 15 euro discount on our next order. Very nice of them I thought, until I checked the invoice for our latest order, which hadn't been discounted.

I emailed them this morning about it and they told me that they had refunded the cost of the damaged cans instead of giving us the 15 euro discount, clear as mud really.

Pumpkinseeds

I'm exhausted from Felix's company last night. He decided he was coming to bed with me last night which is lovely. What wasn't so lovely was that he wanted my undivided attention from 3am onwards. He was being very enthusiastic with the little nippy kisses on my arms. He's a hefty lad so you really know the purry furry beastie is there. I finally gave in at 5am.

Poor Toby didn't get on the bed last night, I think he was a bit shocked. He usually races me up the stairs to bed every night, has a drink from the bathroom tap then meows at me mournfully until I get out of the bathroom and into bed.

VonVix

Pumpkinseeds wrote: »

I'm getting more and more annoyed with Zooplus. When I complained to them about the 17 dented tins in our last order I received 2 emails sent within a few minutes of each other. The first was refunding us the cost of the damaged cans and the second was giving us a 15 euro discount on our next order. Very nice of them I thought, until I checked the invoice for our latest order, which hadn't been discounted.

I emailed them this morning about it and they told me that they had refunded the cost of the damaged cans instead of giving us the 15 euro discount, clear as mud really.

Last order I had from them I had also gotten these treats in two plastic containers... they were both open and emptied all over the box. Good thing I don't have a pair of labs because they would have devoured the box before I could have put the treats back in their containers.

honerbright

Was getting ready for work this morn and Roisin raced into the room and jumped into the bed and I could tell she had something in her mouth so I told her to "drop it" (for a 5 month old puppy she is the best for dropping things when I ask!) and anyway she spat out a tooth onto the bed :O :O
She's teething like an absolute maniac, my poor little monkey. Her adult teeth are coming in fast and furious now, feels like I blink and the little gaps she had have been replaced by lovely big pearly whites!

We had a voucher for maxi zoo for their sale last weekend for €5 off and cat toilets were reduced to €9.99 so we ended up getting it for €4.99! Its lovely and deep, perfect for Max who likes to kick litter everywhere and prefect for keeping my two doggies who love to snack on cat poo out!

We decided to try a new food for Roisin and got her select gold junior, which she is loving. Doesn't even lift her head out the bowl during meals and the amount of poops she does is halved, if not more since we changed her over.. Delighted with it and it wasn't too expensive either

Pumpkinseeds

Felix has been eating out again so he's gaining weight again. I get really annoyed about it as he's a big lad, too big, and there's no way anyone could mistake him for a stray. The thing is all 4 of our cats were strays that were very underweight when they arrived. With the exception of Poppy they were around the neighbourhood and clearly in need of help and food but nobody helped them when they really needed it, but they'll happily feed a cat that clearly doesn't need it:mad:

SingItOut

I made the mistake of scratching alli's head with my feet a few days ago now she's obsessed with it! Her new thing is too push my feet around with her nose and pick them up! I wouldn't mind only her teeth are quite sharp! She's doing it now as I speak!:P

honerbright

Got a bag of bones from the butchers today for my monkeys cos my OH is out of town and they're a bit mopey without him. They're in their crates now how happily munching away.

Would I be right in thinking that the bones are their evening meal now? They're fairly meaty and I would usually give them dry food in the evening but don't want to make them ill. Any advice would be great