Bailey's

Re: Bailey the bench dog

Pam Niedermayer - Austin, TX

>Aw, geesh, what a great looking pooch, he's going to be a great pal. Do you live in the cold climes?

Pam

Re: Bailey's

Jack Guzman from Maine

>He's a pretty dog.That puppy fur is going to attract wood shavings like velcro. You're going to have to keep it cool in your shop for him.Great name.---Jack

Re: Bailey the bench dog

Derek Cohen (in Perth, Australia)

>Gorgeous benchdog Corey!

We don't get to see many like that in Perth (for obvious reasons).

My son just one week ago got his wish for a puppy of his own, a Maltese-Shitzu (more Maltese, thank god). 6 weeks old and just the most adhorable and friendly little thing.

And here with our other benchdog, Rufus the Golden Retriever, for some perspective:

Regards from Perth

Derek

That is a seriously cute dog!

Bruce, a MN Galoot

>I had a friend with one, and it ate my sandals. Be careful of what you leave laying around.

Great dog!

Bruce

Re: Bailey's

Paul M. in San Diego

>Hi Corey,

I had an American Eskimo for many years. I have never seen a dog that was so fiercely independent as my eskimo. They set their minds to something, and there is nothing you can do to distract them. OK, food or beer would get her attention. But I could holler tell I'm blue in the face and it would have no effect on that dog.

They are very fun dogs, and they love rolling around in the woodchips and stealing offcuts to chew. So they make good shop dogs. Just make sure to keep the hide glue up on a high shelf!

I had to use a choke chain to walk this dog. There was too much sled dog in this one and she would pull on a harness until your arm fell off. So the chain collar with a jerking correction was the only way to walk this dog. Off leash walks always led to a major chases as she did what she wanted (which usually was not where I was going).

One great thing about Eskimos is that they require very little maintenance. You would think that that white coat would get dirty quickly and would require frequent bathing. But my dog would roll in the mud and get completely filthy. Then a couple of hours later when it dried she would shake it off and you have a clean white dog again. There's absolutely no oil in their coat, and it's the oil that retains the dirt.

Enjoy your pooch!

Ayup

Bill Houghton, warmin' up - 27 deg, Sebastopol, CA

>Years back, we had a Siberian husky mix, and I came to the conclusion that they're actually very large cats, not dogs at all - think their own thoughts, go their own way. For some reason, ours hated - HATED - Irish setters, and every time a neighbor walked his past, I had to hold onto our dog. He once jumped a three foot fence from a standing start to get to that dog, but I was able to intercept him. He also went through seven or eight windows (cut himself exactly once) to get to things he wanted.

You may be lucky, Corey, and have a more doggy version (meaning someone who will listen), but be aware.

That said, the husky breeds are terrific animals - lively, friendly, almost talk to you, lots of joy.

-27?!

Todd O. Cronkhite Maine Native, Presently Away

>In Cally?!

spoke to my brotyher the other night and he said it was suppose to get to to -30 that night. Don't know if it did or not tho.

T.O.

Dog training

Pam Niedermayer - Austin, TX

>Bounder, a very independent minded Saluki, has become the almost perfect pet by the application of techniques learned in "Feisty Fido" by Patricia McConnell. Just like in woodworking, it's the owner training that's important. I was able to train Bounder out of leash pulling in 10 minutes, with a refresher every couple of years, and got him to come immediately with three hand claps while walking in the direction I wanted him to go. Also, he was hostile to other dogs when on leash, which we were able to cure by walking him off leash whenever possible (turns out it's the leash that's the problem with some dogs). And on it goes.

I trained him to poop on the edges of walk ways and other areas where people don't walk by praising him whenever he did this. Apparently they pick up on good vibes when we say "good." To get him to slow down or stop what he's doing, I say "unh uh," which also works for other animals like horses. To get him to keep up with me, I simply praise him when he runs up, so he never lets me get too far ahead or behind (he looks back and waits). An amazingly fun process.

Pam

No, it was a mistake to put that dash in

Bill Houghton, warmin' up - 27 deg, Sebastopol, CA

>I meant [dash] 27 deg. [dash], then ran out of room and failed to realize I'd confuse people.

There are places in California where it hits minus 27 F, like the place we spent this weekend up in the Sierras. It was warmish for January this weekend: 0 degrees at night, a balmy 40 during the day. The lows we've had here on the North Coast this year, down in the high teens, are about as low as it ever gets here; though some years back, we got down to about 12-14 degrees.

But it's one of the joys of California that we could check out of our room in the morning, in what felt (from the sound of the snow underfoot, sounded, too), like somewhere between 0 and 10 degrees, drive for four hours, and find mid-60s (that's Fahrenheit, still) when we got home.

Concur on the dog training

Bill Houghton, warmin' up + 27 deg, Sebastopol, CA

>There are lots of different schools of thought, but good dog training makes for a better relationship between person and dog, and the dog knows (and welcomes) who's in charge.

Re: Concur on the dog training

Pam Niedermayer - Austin, TX

>I don't particularly care for the "leader of the pack" type bossing a dog around, but the affirmative training advocated by Patricia McConnell is most effective. Bounder's more my friend than inferior, and we both love it. Everyone in the dog parks remarks on how happy he is and how much younger than 10 years old he acts, how polite he is, etc. So he gets great feedback from others as well as Jack and me, he actually prances up and down the paths he's so happy.

Pam

Re: Bailey's

Ernie miller Topeka ks

>Sweet plane! Have you discussed this bench dog thing with the Wife? did you tell her about the long hair and wood chips all over the house? I bet one of you end up sleaping in the dog house and it won't be that little white pup. Nice looking dog.

He�s adorable!

Scott Burr in Ben Lomond CA

>He's going to be a lot of fun to have around.

Re: Bailey the bench dog

Corey Megal

>Derek, that is one cute puppy as well, I love that the golden gets along. We have an 8 year old Eskimo that has surprised us quite a bit by behaving like a sweetheart.

Re: Bailey's - some answers....

Corey Megal

>Hey everyone, thanks for the comments. He's our third Eskimo, we lost our second in September to old age. My wife and I are fully aware of what the Eskimo is and isn't, yes, they can be independent, and they require training, it's not an option with this dog. But in return, we get a dog that is extremely loving, loyal, a great "watch dog" (not guard dog) and very easy to live with. They do shed dirt, need very little care, don't slobber on me, and don't whack us or our guests with log-like tails.

We're looking forward to many happy years of picking up stray bits of hair, and wood shavings (not once has my wife complained about any of my woodworking habits, and she's purchased every one of my Lie-Nielson's for me, in short, she's a keeper.)

Again, thanks for all the comments, I do enjoy sharing the happy stuff.

Corey - oh yeah, in Milwaukee, WI. temp somewhere in the 20's. He's loving the snow....