[msbehave]

A few Bombay based resources for pet-lovers:

Private Ambulances that charge and ply on the western lines mostly. Available 24x7:

Ambulance Pradeep 9892481023
Ambulance Rajesh Savla 9869116611
Ambulance Hitendra Mota 9967935100
Ambulance Pandu 9757333233
Ambulance Shashikant 9869728797
Ambulance Trimurthi 9819626311/9702721218 (ambulance for big size animals)

Free Ambulances or very nominal payment:

Ambulance Asha: 9987347158
WSD (plys in town): 9819100808, 02264222838
Omkaar Ramanugrah: 9619933223 (night van as well)
IDA Helpline Deonar Chembur: 9320056581 (sterilization center as well and night van as well)
IDA Turbe: 9819887632
Ahimsa Malad: 02228804195/9702268407 (sterilization center)
Karuna: 9819100100
Karuna Virar: 9967665568
PAWS 02225968314/13 9833480388
PAWS Nilesh: Dombivli(E) 98201 61114
Animal Welfare Association Kharghar: Ms Renu Rai. 022 - 32989415, 9323587158
SPCA Parel: 241333598
AMTM: Ganesh 9819380310, 9892929777
SOS: Shirley 9820141310
Anil Pachpute: 9702721218

For Birds: Rupesh Bhai: 9324747555/ 9320899710/9029224625
(center in Borivali)

SAARP 4 snakes: 9769335531, 9820766877

[kingofmyworld]

Need help from fellow BHPians.

My mom was asking for a dog, preferably a lab considering its friendly nature. I have literally no knowledge about dogs and I'm going mad finding a good male dog. I need some pointers from you guys as to what has to be looked at while getting a puppy.

Thanks in advance

[MuzzledMoose]

Originally Posted by kingofmyworld

Need help from fellow BHPians.

My mom was asking for a dog, preferably a lab considering its friendly nature. I have literally no knowledge about dogs and I'm going mad finding a good male dog. I need some pointers from you guys as to what has to be looked at while getting a puppy.

Thanks in advance

Lab is a hyper active dog throughout it's lifetime.
Please let us know what's the purpose of the dog like watchdog guard dog or entertainer dog.
Also before you get the dog to the family please make sure that you will have enough time for the dog and also pets are LIFE TIME companions. They deserve respect and time from us.

[kingofmyworld]

Originally Posted by MuzzledMoose

Lab is a hyper active dog throughout it's lifetime.
Please let us know what's the purpose of the dog like watchdog guard dog or entertainer dog.
Also before you get the dog to the family please make sure that you will have enough time for the dog and also pets are LIFE TIME companions. They deserve respect and time from us.

I want it more like a family member. A mix of everything. And yes, I want a dog for a LIFETIME

I've got loads of time to spend with the dog, So does my mom. She is a house wife so she has more than enough time to spend with the dog.

Waiting for your inputs.

[shankar.balan]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Feeling extremely terrible for all the animals ( strays etc..) in flood affected uttarakhand. Equally sad regarding the human causalities but atleast there is some hope and rescue operations for them. What about the hundreds of stray dogs etc. Somehow the thought is haunting me from a couple of days. May there souls rest in peace and the ones alive have the strength to fight it out.

Luckily most animals have a sixth sense warning system so they would have run away. It is only the poor domestic animals who have been either tethered or tied up who would have suffered really badly.

While I feel sad, I feel sad mostly for the animals, not so much for the humans. Think of it in a slightly macabre but humorous way - many of those who have shuffled off, were seeking contact with the almighty and have now succeeded.

These huge natural disasters are another way that nature restores the balance of things. Epidemics, Famines, Natural disasters etc.

Humans have harmed the planet horribly and brought many of these situations on themselves and in particular these touristy , pilgrimage areas in India are so terrible with absolutely no planning and no regard for the environment. Something's got to give somewhere.

While it is very sad, think of it as an opportunity to rebuild and clean up.

The only hassle is, with our basic, inherent, uncontrollable greed and lack of official policy, supervision and implementation and enforcement, we will simply continue to repeat the same mistakes time and again...

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by kingofmyworld

Need help from fellow BHPians.

My mom was asking for a dog, preferably a lab considering its friendly nature. I have literally no knowledge about dogs and I'm going mad finding a good male dog. I need some pointers from you guys as to what has to be looked at while getting a puppy.

Thanks in advance

For a big dog like Labrador you need plenty of space and time. As mentioned Labs are hyper active and need to be taken out at least twice a day, prerably thrice for a long walk. A lawn or garden is a bonus.

In case you live in a small/medium sized flat desist from gettin a large dog.

[akshay4587]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

Feeling extremely terrible for all the animals ( strays etc..) in flood affected uttarakhand. Equally sad regarding the human causalities but atleast there is some hope and rescue operations for them. What about the hundreds of stray dogs etc. Somehow the thought is haunting me from a couple of days. May there souls rest in peace and the ones alive have the strength to fight it out.

I am with you on this.
But hey i spotted a stray dog roaming around in kedarnath in a media video,so many of them are safe,and yes apart from various organizations looking after people,PETA is there as well looking after animals.

[kingofmyworld]

Originally Posted by Aroy

For a big dog like Labrador you need plenty of space and time. As mentioned Labs are hyper active and need to be taken out at least twice a day, prerably thrice for a long walk. A lawn or garden is a bonus.

In case you live in a small/medium sized flat desist from gettin a large dog.

Space and time are not an issue at all. I have an open place which can fit 10-15 cars. That is if you park them far from each other. If you squeeze them, you can easily fit 20 cars. That should give you a rough idea or space. And i go for a 6.5 kms jog every morning so the dog will have a long walk almost everyday.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by kingofmyworld

Space and time are not an issue at all. I have an open place which can fit 10-15 cars. That is if you park them far from each other. If you squeeze them, you can easily fit 20 cars. That should give you a rough idea or space. And i go for a 6.5 kms jog every morning so the dog will have a long walk almost everyday.

Then go for a Labrador. Just ensure not to take it outside the house till innitial set of vaccines are given ~ age 3 months.

1. Get in touch with a good Vet, preferable near your house. My Lab's vet has given us a chart with vaccination dates. He also sends reminders by post and SMS. Do not skip any vaccination.

2. Search Net for appropriate diet. One of the posts has a detailed diet I give my Lad. Desist from packaged dog food, give him home cooked meals.

3. At a round 6 months appoint a certified trainer to teach him basic obidience and commands. Labs are extremely intelligent and have a mind of their own. If you are not firm they will take you for a ride, so be firm while at the same time loving.

[kingofmyworld]

Originally Posted by Aroy

Then go for a Labrador. Just ensure not to take it outside the house till innitial set of vaccines are given ~ age 3 months.

1. Get in touch with a good Vet, preferable near your house. My Lab's vet has given us a chart with vaccination dates. He also sends reminders by post and SMS. Do not skip any vaccination.

2. Search Net for appropriate diet. One of the posts has a detailed diet I give my Lad. Desist from packaged dog food, give him home cooked meals.

3. At a round 6 months appoint a certified trainer to teach him basic obidience and commands. Labs are extremely intelligent and have a mind of their own. If you are not firm they will take you for a ride, so be firm while at the same time loving.

Points noted. Thanks for the tip. Can you give me more details about home cooked food?

Also, what do i look at while buying the pup?

[Aroy]

You look for :
. Sunny disposition. The pup should no e sullen
. Good build. No scrawny pup. The paws should be large
. Should not shy away from you. Call the pup and see if he comes to you. Alternative see if he is hostile when you pick him up.
. The coat should be uniform, no patches of low fur, preferably shiny. In short the dog should look healthy.

Remember you have to potty train the dog from the day one.

You may go through the threads I have already posted

Diet
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifti...ml#post2461155
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifti...ml#post2392918
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifti...ml#post2475709
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifti...ml#post2476394
Training
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifti...ml#post2308682
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifti...ml#post2455795
General
http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/shifti...ml#post2492521

In a nutshell, do not over feed or under excercise

[W.A.G.7]

EDIT: Not related to any pets of me or anyone, but I had to share this here.

Last week, we (me & my neighbours) had a very bad experience in the morning. There's a lady employee of the PMC who comes every morning to collect garbage from each house in our society. Naturally there are some 7-8 dogs which accompany the lady; they are strays but quite clean. Hence even though they roam about in the colony no one has complained about them. While the lady was collecting garbage, a Tata 407 truck arrived (the ones that normally drive around to pick up waste debris from construction sites). Without any thought, the heartless brute of a driver simply drove on through the group of 7-8 dogs that were standing. Instantly we all heard loud howling, and fearing the worst (dead dogs or dogs with broken body parts) everyone came out of the houses rather timidly) (expecting a lot of bloodshed). An audible bang was heard, when the truck ploughed through the group of dogs, so we were all rather scared to see the scene.

Thankfully none of the dogs were seriously injured, only a lot of bruises caused due to a rusted truck metal body scraping against their bodies. All the 7-8 dogs were very shaken by the experience and only after pacifying them with some food, water and petting; they started behaving normally. However all sought refuge under parked cars asap, and refused to come out until after mid-day. From that day onwards they don't seem to roam about as freely as they used to do before. The driver, as expected; drove on without stopping , and we never even had a chance to catch hold of him. The forum rules prevent me from using bad language, but I feel such lowlifes are . Such guys ought to be punished and punished hard. So they learn a lesson, not to mess with anybody's life.

Sorry about the frustration, but then after witnessing the incident I felt very sad about the way some people treat animals and human beings. We unfortunately don't have the number of the truck (guy vanished without a trace) otherwise we would have caught hold of him and made him pay through his nose for his crime.

[motorpsycho]

Originally Posted by W.A.G.7

EDIT: Not related to any pets of me or anyone, but I had to share this here.

Last week, we (me & my neighbours) had a very bad experience in the morning.
Sorry about the frustration, but then after witnessing the incident I felt very sad about the way some people treat animals and human beings. We unfortunately don't have the number of the truck (guy vanished without a trace) otherwise we would have caught hold of him and made him pay through his nose for his crime.

I know how you feel, at night when I return from office I ask the cab drivers to be careful when dogs are on the road.My heart skips a beat every time the poor dogies get too close when they try to chase the cab.

[shankar.balan]

I get very upset and angry reading such things. What evil people there are in the world. That truck driver will come to a sticky end and burn in hell afterwards. That's my Curse on him - A POX on him I say!!
Gandhiji said that the nation's character is measured by the way their animals are treated. Im sorry but India, which used to have "Ahimsa" as a tenet, has gone too far down the road of crass commercialism, corruption, insensitivity and apathy. Too far down the path? Past the point of no return? I dont know, but it certainly seems so, to anyone who is an animal lover...

Originally Posted by W.A.G.7

EDIT: Not related to any pets of me or anyone, but I had to share this here.
would have caught hold of him and made him pay through his nose for his crime.

[msbehave]

Originally Posted by kingofmyworld

Need help from fellow BHPians.

My mom was asking for a dog, preferably a lab considering its friendly nature. I have literally no knowledge about dogs and I'm going mad finding a good male dog. I need some pointers from you guys as to what has to be looked at while getting a puppy.

Thanks in advance

A lab is a good dog for first time owners. Other than the tips shared, it's important for you to see the mother and if possible the father of the pup. See whether she is okay with you being around the pups and her owner handling the pups.

Also ask the owner whether the dam/sire was checked for hip/elbow dysplasia and ask for the X-rays if the answer is in the affirmative.

Preferably, get a lab who has been born in a home rather than at a breeders. Once you have your pup (not before its 6 weeks of age) - begin training it from day one. Get the help of a bonafide trainer who trains using positive methods. Depending on which area you live in, I could refer one to you.

If you wish I could send you a range of different guidelines/information that I use for first time owners I work with.