#and with working dogs having a job IS enrichment for them

[pangur-and-grim]

I'm looking into getting a purebred cat for the first time because I've developed allergies, and it's such a different world from my niche corner of dog breeding, I'm so lost How common is it for cat breeders to focus on temperament over conformation? I've shown a dog and been to many shows, and am working on a breed in development. I'm uncomfortable with a fixation on "correct" appearance versus a heavy focus on what an animal's quality of life is and what they're like to live with If I'm paying more for a kitten than I charge for a puppy I want to know the breeder has done a lot of handling and enrichment, grooming conditioning (for relevant breeds), and pair their cats for temperament strengths and weaknesses, not just conformation. What should I look for on a breeder site/what should I ask without sounding rude? I also have seen a couple breeders advertise a health guarantee including FIP for one year, and I'm wondering how that's possible. Can you really guarantee against it? I'm so sorry you and your gremlin are going through this, it sounds like a rollercoaster!

it's difficult to answer your first question! cat breeding seems more…..casual in terminology than dog breeding, if that makes sense? 

with temperament, there’s a stereotype for each breed (Bengals = active, Siamese = yowly, Ragdolls = angelic beings, etc). breeders often have a page on their site explaining their idea of what the breed is (the ideal appearance, personality, and so on), and then a section with their breeding cats, with blurbs for each one. and they usually also have social media, where you can see how these cats slot into their lives.

if you’re from the states, be VERY WARY of breeders who cage their cats! that’s more of a cultural norm there, and personally, I prefer breeders who treat their animals like family members and live alongside them.

here are two examples of breeders who go above and beyond: Praticalcats and Trillium Devon Rex. their sites give away how obsessive they are about their animals - all the articles on Praticalcats, and all the genetic testing on Trillium - and I would feel comfortable recommending them to anyone who asked.

as for over-emphasis on a “correct” appearance – for each breed, there will be a certain look that’s a red flag. Devon Rexes that are too brachy, Maine Coons that are too large, Siamese that are too spindly, etc. if you do enough research on your breed of choice, you’ll start recognizing it. the cat will look more ‘special’, and more ‘like it’s breed’, but it’s an exaggeration at the cost of other qualities.

for specific questions like what handling they do, whether they’re conditioned to tolerate grooming, and how the cats get paired with buyers, most of the time you have to contact a breeder to ask that. there should be a mini job interview before any money changes hand, where the breeder grills you, and you get to return the favour. if a breeder skips this, I’d consider that a major red flag. and don’t worry about sounding rude, a good breeder will be delighted that you care so much about all of this!

and now, the guarantee against FIP – what are they guaranteeing, exactly? it might be a guarantee that they’ll replace the kitten if they develop FIP (the contract with my breeder had a similar clause). but if they’re guaranteeing that any kitten from them won’t develop FIP, then that’s nonsense. basically all young cats get exposed to the feline coronavirus that causes FIP, and whether they develop it or not is just a lottery gamble. I'd be suspicious of any breeder who claims that their kittens are exempt from this.

anyway, I think I've answered everything. hopefully that was helpful, and not just me rambling!

[seat-safety-switch]

In my neighbourhood, people are busy. Every morning, they get up, and hop in their big cars to drive to their jobs. Sometimes they're too busy for coffee, so they all clog the main road outside my place waiting to turn into the Tim Hortons drive thru. After waiting there for way longer than it takes to make coffee, they're on their way to the office parking. In their haste, they have left something very valuable behind.

No, I'm not talking about the human soul. That kind of romantic shit is obsolete, save it for the next time the stock market implodes. What all these go-go careerists have abandoned in their homes is their dogs. Dogs that need to be walked. Dogs that need to be played with. Dogs that need to pee. To this problem have emerged the unique class of "dogwalkers."

When you pay a dog walker, they come to your house during the day, let themselves in, and extract your dog. Then, they enjoy the company of that dog, returning it once your pup is happy and tired out. For this, they charge you money. It is the perfect job, perhaps, except for the inconvenient fact that I don't like picking up poop. However, while I was cleaning my rusty subframe, a recent inhalation of some extremely warned-against solvents told me another idea: I could do this for cars.

You see, a lot of very rich people have very nice cars, ones that I could never afford. Porsches. Lamborghinis. Jaguars. Ford Focuses. And they let them sit. Sit and rot. This kind of boredom is not good for the car, whose rubber seals go dry, whose batteries go flat, and whose tires get vaguely square and unpleasant. They, too, need to be exercised. And that's exactly where I come in. For just fifty bucks an hour, I will let myself into your palatial mansion, beat the shit out of your sports automobile, and then put it back with the tank filled up (you're paying, of course.)

Trust me, too, that there will be plenty of "enrichment activities," such as taking the car to a race track or to heads-up no-prep drags in Mexico. This will help the car learn proper behaviour and socialization around other rich people's cars, which will reduce the chance that the valet at the country club will scoff at how you have ten-year-old tires on your exotic seven-figure race car and no evidence of having bombed an FIA curb at the better part of two hundred kilometres an hour.

Sign up with me today, and I might even drive you to work in your own car once or twice. That's the kind of experience that usually costs double – and it will for you, too.

[sinnabarmoth]

Idk if you’ve done this already, but what do you think the LIs’ “type” would be, focusing on personality? Ik they’re in love with MC, but I’d like to give hope to those who don’t relate to MC (including me T^T)

Zayne: For Zayne I get the vibe that he would love a soft extrovert. Someone who enjoys going out and trying new things and can pull him out of his shell but is very chill about it. They are a very optimistic person and are bubbly but in a laid back kind of way. Ideal dates are trying out new restaurants or signing up for a one night beginners tango class but also like taking walks through the park. I also think someone with a lot of patience and organizational skills would just be a big plus for him too. He not only wants but needs someone like that in his life because he will only work and go home otherwise.

Xavier: Xavier for sure likes the cozy gamer girl introvert! Despite his job what he really seems to like is just staying at home and having a peaceful time in. She's in his hoodie 24/7, is on year 5 of a Stardew Valley farm, snacks on the desk, the whole shebang. They are the cuddle couple. They will be sat in the living room playing a co-op game and she is in his lap while they are playing and tries to distract him by suddenly kissing him and stuff. She's baking cookies partly for snacks and partly to make the house smell incredible. When they do go out it's usually to an old reliable favorite restaurant or playing at the arcade. I think someone who can just be this well of soft mundane pleasures to come home to after a long day is what he would love!

Rafayel: Rafayel is the kind of guy where his partner needs to be able to match his freak. Whatever energy he is coming at them with his partner has not only gotta be able to receive but also deal it back at 200%. Someone who isn't afraid to tease and be sarcastic and a little dramatic. Raf is the kind of guy who will play fight with you whenever just cause he's bored. You'll be at an art gallery and he'll be looking for an excuse to cut out early and gives you a look and you both just silently agree to start having a stupid verbal fight right then and there. He's trying not to laugh the entire time and it always ends with one of you chasing after the other like "No baby! Don't go! I'll change I swear!" Someone who will drag him out of his house and force him to be social but also loves being able to cancel plans to stay inside when they are straight up not feeling the crowd vibe. Someone not so serious and with a good sense of humor is a huge win in his book!

Sylus: Sylus is looking for someone adaptable and able to roll with the punches. Oh we have to go to a different restaurant for dinner super last minute? Sure, not a problem. Someone who is independent and has a sharp tongue that isn't afraid to call him out on stuff. I really just see him with someone who is like "this is my guard dog Sylus, I can tell him stand down but 9 times out of 10 I will let him kill you. He needs the enrichment." He likes someone who likes new experiences and doesn't mind being the center of attention because you know he is going to be dragging them along everywhere he goes. He loves to be able to flaunt his partner and while being shy can be cute there's something so damn attractive about a partner who knows they are hot stuff.

[shovellyyy]

Uncle Sukuna shows how he cares in less conventional ways.

He’s not usually the one to say “I love you”, and if he does, it’s after Yuuji said it first.

He never even thought of himself as the type to take in a child, let alone guardianship over his little nephew.

Never had he thought Jin would get such a short end of the stick, nor that such a blessing would come out of it.

Adjusting to life as (technically?) a single parent has been hard.

Managing work and toddler care is hard, thank goodness his dad’s stone heart has enough room for a precious grandson. (First grandchild privilege, he supposes.)

Part of caring for a child is making sure they have all the supplies they need.

Diapers, toys, new toys, enrichment time, outside time, food, water- all the stuff he needs for a dog he gets for Yuuji.

- He’s as energetic as a puppy anyhow.

He’s also learned that toddlers in specific need a lot more love than he can give.

He tries to be encouraging, but when he says something to one of Yuuji’s friends from daycare they run away and cry.

Of course, Yuuji gets upset that his friends don’t like his precious uncle, so what better than to lay on the floor and cry?

He’s given up. Not like they’re his brats anyway. He just has one big crybaby on his hands.

“Come on, let’s go get some ice cream. If you keep crying on the floor I’ll give the monster under your bed all your stuffed animals.” He says as threatening as possible, not thinking of the other children watching.

He disregards the gasps around him. His eyes are only on Yuuji, who jumps up and wipes his tears with the back of his hand.

“No!! The monster is too big, no more food for it!”

“Ok. If we don’t go he’s gonna eat you.” Like a member of the army, Yuuji jumps up and goes for his cubby to get his bag.

“Um, sir?” A timid voice says.

Sukuna turns around and sees one of his teachers behind him.

“Yea?” He raises an eyebrow. It’s always entertaining to see how anxious people get around him.

“We’re out of pull-ups for nap time i-if you can bring them in please, Sir!” She’s wringing her hands together like she’s preparing to get chopped in half.

“Ok. Anything else?”

“N-no.”

“Uncle Kuna!!! Let’s go get Superman ice cream!!” Yuuji saves his teachers day, Sukuna supposes. She looks like she’s about to break into pieces.

“Thanks.” Sukuna huffs out. He picks Yuuji up and Yuuji politely says bye to his teacher.

*

After they get ice cream, they head off to the store. He’s still sort of new to this thing, and fortunately has Jin’s stock still, so he grabs how many cases he feels fit.

Apparently, the daycare doesn’t need 10 cases.

“Can’t you just keep the rest in a stock or somethin?” He doesn’t want to whine, but he also doesn’t have room in their house for all these.

“um, do u mean, like using them for the other children too?”

“Yeah, whatever. So long as the b- kid uses em.” He grumbles.

Sure, Sukuna isn’t good at caring, but he’ll be damned if he does a bad job at it.

[a-literate-chicken]

Hey! I just turned 18, and I still live with my parents, but when I move out I would like to have a chicken; I love biology, but I only research it as a hobby, so could you give me some tips on how to take care of a chicken or information about them? That would help me a lot! And is it possible to take care of a chicken in an apartment, or do they need a yard? I love chickens, and would really like to take care of one;

Happy (late) birthday my fellow biologist and chicken lover! I personally haven’t had any indoor pet chickens nor am I friends with anybody who has, so take all of the following advice with a grain of salt. I grew up in an agricultural area where any animals that were brought into the house were sick or needed around the clock supervision (except for the time I hatched and raised chicks in my bedroom for a month but that’s another story).

I think it’s definitely possible to have a pet chicken that lives inside without access to a yard, but it is going to be a lot of work and I’m hesitant to support it. I’m going to be rather blunt here but my first concern is that birds poop frequently. With birds like parakeets or other small species, the quantity is small. With a chicken it will be much more, but, I have heard of people using chicken diapers. I also think with some research into husbandry, it won’t be that hard to find a proper diet or supplies for housing needs. Chickens aren’t like other birds in that they don’t chew on stuff and they can’t fly very well. They are still birds though, and are very social and curious and will need a lot of enrichment and social interaction. They aren’t domesticated like cats or dogs, and will do better outside with access to other chickens and things that encourage natural behaviors like dirt to roll around in.

My other concern (this is me speaking from a veterinary perspective) is that poultry carry diseases and I would be hesitant to encourage keeping birds in the house just for the heck of it.

All in all, I don’t recommend a house chicken, esp as a first time pet. Most stories you see about people having pet chickens is that they end up either one that is disabled or requires special care so they bring it inside in order to better take care of it. This is probably not the answer you wanted to hear and I’m sorry that I don’t have better news.

However, if you can find a place where you can have chickens in a yard, I absolutely recommend it! They are independent and hardy and won’t need a ton of supervision if you end up with a job that doesn’t allow you to spend much time with them. I suggest getting a few as they will do way better with friends. I can think of a couple of breeds off the top of my head that are more outgoing and have a better chance of bonding with you as their human, or if you want egg layers I can recommend breeds for that as well. Again, there is a lot of information online on chicken husbandry so it won’t be hard to find if you have questions about how much space they need or what to feed them. I also recommend choosing breeds and flock size based off whatever area you live in (small breeds if you are concerned about space or hardier breeds if you have harsh weather, if you live a city you may not be allowed to have roosters, stuff like that). If you have other specific questions or want to know more about how to get started, feel free to ask here anytime! Chicken questions and/or biology questions are always welcome ❤️

[cantareincminor]

New fic - Air (and a tribute to a friend)

In 2023, after reading the mole arc, an idea for a fic struck me hard out of nowhere and wouldn't get out of my head. This hadn't happened in years. I hadn't written anything in years. Every time I sat down to try, I chickened out or wrote a little bit and promptly berated myself as a failure.

The idea was that Yuri would be critically injured or even die in Shellbury by WISE's hand, and Twilight would be torn apart by guilt as he hid the truth from Yor until it could no longer be contained.

For months I sat on the idea and did nothing. Didn't even outline it. Then, on a whim I messaged @whateversawesome on tumblr and asked for her advice on this idea. I was a big fan of her well-known fic The Last Days of Operation Strix and knew her to be very friendly and welcoming to fellow fans. She encouraged me to start writing, and I did. Along the way when I needed advice on crucial plot points and understanding the characters, she helped too. I'll never forget how she pointed out a key aspect of Twilight's personality I hadn't thought about before.

I asked her if it would be believable for Twilight to kill Yuri. And she reminded me that in the bomb dog arc, he didn't even kill the German shepherd that was directly attacking him. He had mercy on a dog even though it would have been easier to shoot it and get it out of the way. How much more would he have mercy on a human, let alone his "fake" brother-in-law? At heart, Twilight is a kind person.

Whateversawesome has brought a lot of SxF creators together and encouraged them in their art and writing and their personal lives. I truly appreciate the effort and heart she puts into enriching the fandom not only with her writing but with her welcoming attitude. Without her I would not have written Orpheus or the other works that followed.

So as a small token of appreciation, I wrote this one-shot, Air. My first AU in this fandom and my take on the "Twilight and Thorn Princess meet on the job" trope. Thank you again Whateversawesome for being...awesome :)

[caxycreations]

I hate to do this but

I need help. I need

so much fucking help.

There are a few major things I need.

TL;DR at the bottom, but I'd appreciate you read this to fully understand the situation I'm in.

I need to reacclimate to driving vehicles, so I can get from place to place on my own, but to do that I need help from someone willing to ride with me and help me feel calm in adjusting to being behind the wheel again.

I need to find work, consistent work, that pays at a regular rate, which isn't overwhelmingly fast-paced. Night shift, anywhere, or work from home, or even day shift at a place that isn't rapid-fire energetic work.

I need to save up, be able to put money back so I have enough for emergencies like car wrecks or hospital trips or some such, and so I have enough to save a nest egg to live off of eventually.

As it stands, my only two options for who can help me with driving outright refuse to do so. They won't give me the opportunity to get behind the wheel, and when asked why, it's because they just don't want to take the time for it. These are the same people who simply "didn't want to take the time" to help me reach a dentist before my health insurance ran out. The same people who demand I help them at every turn and lecture me on selfishness when I tell them I don't feel well enough to do it.

I can't find work. The only work from home jobs here call for certifications, licenses, neither of which i have, or they call for several hours of uninterrupted focus, which I can't get here because if anything as drastic as the dog sneezing happens, I'm the one ordered to deal with it. I don't have one uninterrupted hour, let alone enough for a full shift of work. As for out-of-home work, the only places within safe walking distance are the post office (which I failed the assessment for and can't retake for a year) or the cotton gin (which isn't hiring for any positions I qualify for). So with no options in town, I have to drive (see problem 1) to find work. Which I can't do. So I can't find work outside of my streaming and avatar comms, the former of which earns roughly $20-$25 a month, and doesn't pay until earnings hit $50...Basically, I'm earning $60-$70 every 2 months. I can't live off that.

And that leads to the saving issue. I make a max of $70 every 2 months, and a friend sends me $50 every 2 weeks to help me, which totals to $100 one month and $170 every other month if I earn the absolute maximum from my streams. The $100 of the first month goes to groceries, every time. It has to. The second $100 goes to groceries of that month, $50 goes to my phone bill because I have to have service for family emergencies, and the last $20 winds up going either to more groceries or to what miniscule enrichments I can get for myself to keep from going insane here. Which means I wind up with a profit of anywhere from $0-$20 every 2 months, depending on whether that 20 actually gets spent or not. And of course, if it isn't one month, it's spent the next for groceries. I have next to no profit, no savings.

Living here is poisoning me. I live in a sunroom. Not a bedroom, not "part of the house", not an apartment or studio. A sunroom. A singular room that contains every single thing I own, a mattress on the floor, and for the record, as a sunroom, it leads directly outside. Want to see my door?

That is the door between my room and the outside world. That, and a single glass door secured by a very small, very rusted door latch on one side, is my only protection from the elements and any potential intruders. The door, as you can see, isn't even fitted to the frame. It's held in place by gravity and a single nail.

And yes, that is the breaker box behind it, entirely uncovered and with exposed wiring. Should I make it worse?

That door, held up only by gravity and a single nail, were it to fall, would fall directly onto my bed. Why is my pillow at the closest end? Well because I can't sleep with my head at the other end because my totes with all of my stuff are at the other end, and the mice like running on top of those totes and I would rather not sleep head-closest to the end they play at. That big TV? Busted, belongs to my mom's husband, and they have nowhere else to put it. That monitor beside it? Busted, because my brother broke it trying to stand on his computer chair and rather than throw it out, they had him put it in here with "the other screen".

The clutter on my bed? A hot glue gun kit a friend bought me which has literally nowhere else to be.

TL;DR and conclusions

I can't take the steps to better myself alone. I need as much help as I can get. And given my major problems right now revolve around a lack of jobs/opportunities, inability to drive alone + nobody willing to ride with me, and inability to save up because of expenses, I can really only look at the things I can reach out for help on.

I've reached out to some friends to help me look for options regarding new living arrangements, but those arrangements mean nothing if I can't afford to go, or worse, can't afford to stay.

I've got to save up. I've got to have enough to put back. So that leads me to the ending note here.

If you can spare even one dollar, ANY amount of money, at all, it would help immensely. If you can't, then please reblog, spread the word and help me reach more people so I might finally get out of this place. Every cent given this way is going straight into a savings account, not to be spent until absolutely needed, or until an opportunity to get out of here surfaces.

You can help me through paypal or cashapp, either one. Cashtag is $Aazoth, Paypal fundraiser linked below. Don't stress over the amount, I only set it to the maximum because I need as much as I can get and I wasn't sure what to expect so...better safe than sorry, given idk how the fundraisers on there work. I'd have set it to end later but I can't. I'll update y'all with a new one when this one ends.

@sparrowcraft @moremysteriesthantragedies @thetruearchmagos @a-scaly-troublemaker @that-one-enby-onyx @snakelovingnerd @eldritchx @leisoree @amerylise @profoundlyhauntedclaws @thefinalgoat @leisurelywingedlemon

[the-real-chuuya]

BELGIAN MALINOIS

The belgian malinois is a medium sized herding breed from Belgium! They are well known as super high drive working dogs. They descend from a common type of sheperd breed in the western Europe. Other dogs that descend from this shepherd include Bouvier des Ardennes, Dutch Shepherd and German Shepherd. They have alot of history of being herding dogs but they were also kept as companion dogs, guard dogs, military dogs, and assistant dogs. They were used in both WW by the US and Belgium mainly. By the 21st century they were used worldwide commonly as police k9s!

Belgian malinois are very intelligent breed of dog who need a job of some sort. They need daily intense exercise and thrive when given a job such as bitework, herding, bikejoring ect. As puppys they are very mouthy, biting, knawing, chewing ect. They need many enrichment choices and need to be taught to settle! Unlike herman Shepherds, who have a great natural off switch and are great at thinking through their actions, mals are impulsive, they WILL become very destructive and aggressive if not given an outlet for their energy and drive! These dogs excel at k9 poluce dogs, personal protection, canicross, bikejoring, herding, races, dock diving ect! They are not recommended for service work as they struggle to settle in new environments unless taught and socialized from a young age to do so!

Health issues in belgian malinois include hip and elbow dysplasia, epilepsy, and rage syndrom! A genetic polymorphism in the dopamine transporter gene has been linked to Rage syndrome, and dogs at risk of passing the genotype on to offspring can be identified through genetic testing. These dogs are very quickly rising in popularity meaning backyard breeders are starting to breed them. Finding abreeder with successful working and show dogs, good health testing, pedigrees, and are open about their practices are very necessary for this breed! These dogs can be very misbehaved if they are not bred right or are not worked right!!!

These dogs can be great working dogs if raised correctly and from an ethical breeder! They are fairly easy to train and have a need to please their owners! They are a very popular breed for bute work/military work and k9 work and have been for many many years. These dogs excel in many jobs and sports and need a good outlet for their drive and energy! The health testing is similar for most high drive working dogs and need to accommodate their high energy and strength! They can be good in a family home if worked and dont have much intrest in other dogs and people! They handler focus is great and they can be exceptional dogs as with all the belgian sheperds!

I ain’t reading all that, quit your yapping

[nvrcmplt]

Yasushi's role in gangs is the same across the board.

He isn't human, but it doesn't matter since he has a wolf dog instinct to be pack leader to the gang's dogs. He is happy in charge of breeding houses of fighting dogs, using the best kibble, vet clinics and the likes to keep it all above aboard. He breeds, trains and looks after top quality animals to sell to the elites, army and other facilities for a pretty good dime. That being said, he is also one of the worst in the settings of dog fighting, though a cover-up for darker uncover errands for his Boss, Yasushi's dogs are vicious and killers with just an utter of his demand.

Yasushi's pack, are dogs - wolf dogs from his pack house. Having stolen five of them upon being kicked out by his mother few tearing his step-father's ear off with his teeth, etc.

At the end of the day, Yasushi is a brute, he is action first, question things later. Fight and never flight, he'll walk with all kinds of dogs, and he'll tear people apart with them in his own monstrous form if he has too. He is often put on guard duty of VIPs and the likes, he isn't used to people, but he knows when to keep his nose out of things when he's in person. That is also why he's on VIP care, specially those who would be targeted when business deals are in the midst.

It is either his hand being paid in full for the odd job, or he'll be paid through his Boss - though it is usually easier to make him work with ordering his dog food and enrichment treats for his real joy of dog handling.

Overall, Yasushi is a beast looking after weaklings - he has yet to fail in his duty, even if his VIP has been kidnapped since it's a retrieval mission with a 110% success rate.

His pack of wolfdogs are never on leases nor muzzled, they are extremely well-trained which makes them scarier when a mere mutter of Yasushi's lips makes them turn vile and vicious with ease.

[mod2amaryllis]

I'm waiting for this migraine to die so I'm gonna tell you guys about Marshall, the dog who made me quit. read on if you wanna learn about extended quarantine and why this job sucks sometimes and other times is the most rewarding thing on the planet, often for the same reasons lmao.

in 2021, the weight of covid was kinda crashing down. i heard this was the case for a lot of health workers. we switched into emergency mode throughout 2020 and powered through, then the rest of the world decided to try and "get back to normal" a year later, giving no regard to the people who'd been working like a speeding train with the brakes off all that time. i was losing it!!! add a few more hay bales to my back when we hired a new doc who was the most demanding dude I'd ever met (still is, but we've come to some understanding lol) and who decided to run me as ragged as possible the first day he was left to his own devices.

that was the day Marshall came in.

i didn't talk about this back then because the outcome of the case was uncertain and the details so specific, but here's the run down knowing that 2 years later, Marshall is living his best life. when he was a baby, too young to have received a rabies vaccine, his owners found a rabies positive bat in the house. the state vet will always recommend euthanasia in these situations, OR, if you can somehow find and afford the option, a 6 month quarantine. this was such a tragic situation the owners were willing to try to save him. my clinic happens to have a decent isolation ward that's rarely in use; we use it for infectious patients like parvo puppies, uri's that have to be hospitalized, etc. so my boss agreed to take him for those 6 months. but the owners' caveat was that if he wasn't mentally adjusting to isolation after a couple weeks, they would euthanize so as not to put him through it and leave him with lifelong behavior issues.

that day, when animal control brought Marshall in the middle of an insane rush, we were short staffed and already at the end of our ropes with this new doc. i was the only qualified person who could talk to the officer. i was the only person who could take him back to isolation. the act of putting a 12 week old puppy in a 4 x 4 run where i knew he would either spend 6 months untouched, or never see the outside again, broke me. last straw.

i was a mess, for the rest of that day and the rest of that weekend having to go in and take care of him, when it was too early for him to adjust so i was sure he wouldn't make it. I'd come home sobbing. eventually jose was just like, "this isn't worth it any more," and i sent in a two weeks notice. i'd come close to doing so many times in the previous 6 years but never pulled the trigger. it took a total meltdown. my managers responded with regret, but understanding.

i wish i could've just felt free and done with it but for those two weeks i was just uncertain. this job is so complicated. the benefits for my pets are enormous; it's my main social network; it's income; I'm good at it and it gives me purpose. it's just also hell on earth! with no pressure from anyone else one way or the other, by the end of two weeks I'd decided to instead try going part time. that's where I'm at 2 years later so guess it worked lol.

but! there was still Marshall. shortly after we took him, we also happened to get a call for the same situation on 2 cats, and decided to take them as well. 3 animals on a 6 month quarantine. very new and daunting for all of us.

that first weekend was hard, but slowly, Marshall figured things out. it was the least ideal situation imaginable and i was at rock bottom and so was he, but i had this moment of like.....ok. if he wants to make this work, I'm gonna do as right by him as possible. and of course all us techs were helping him (one of my road dog coworkers always opened so i referred to her as his "morning mom") but i in particular took a special interest in training and enrichment. it became a passion. i was working less, but i volunteered extra weekends so i could see him more.

he was so young he hadn't even done much basic command training, and the fact that i couldn't touch him at all was a challenge. i started with a clicker to signal I'd rolled a treat into his run, since i couldn't give it to him directly. over those months we went through the basics: sit, down, paw, touch, using a back scratcher for a hand. part of the worry was him getting enough exercise; we noticed that when he'd get agitated, he'd jump on the bars non stop. i was like hmm that might be our only option, so i made "up" a command. i'd basically run burpies for exercise, up-sit-down-sit-up. he was a fast learner, very attentive. seeing him keep his wits about him like that was straight up thrilling. he even "potty trained" himself, barking like crazy whenever he'd go to the bathroom so we'd know right away he needed the run cleaned.

in the ward, there are 2 runs and 3 kennels. i trained Marshall to go back and forth between runs so we could clean. we'd have his food waiting for him in the next run over so he could eat while we'd clean; at the midday switch, he'd have a doggie popsicle. he was such a smart dog i knew toys and treats alone weren't cutting it for enrichment, and i couldn't constantly train him when i still had to be doing the rest of my job.

i started having everyone save every single box and paper-packaging that came in. i'd unfold some boxes for "bedding," so he'd at least have something between him and the concrete (he'd chew and eat any blanket we tried giving him). the rest, i turned into puzzles. i put treats inside and closed them up. put big boxes on their side in his run so he could go in and out. crumpled up paper-packaging with treats mixed in for him to dig through. every day i'd turn one run into a box-toy paradise, let him in, clean the other, and by the time i was checking back in on him he was snoozing in a pile of destruction. success. when other techs wouldn't go to the same lengths, i'd stay late pre-making his boxes and telling people to just throw them in dammit. i also queued several ambient sound playlists, birdsong cityscapes etc, to play on the weekend days when he was alone for long periods.

the months went by like this. i learned more about training, enrichment, and most specifically quarantine than i ever had outside of my experiences with my own puppies. we fell into a routine. we straight up loved each other, he was part of my life. he'd been this horrible trigger and pretty much doubled my workload, but he got to live.

then there were the cats! they were a little easier than Marsh just because they were already adults so didn't have all this energy to wrangle. for them, daily cleaning of course, taking turns going into the 1 empty kennel where i'd have treats, catnip, and other "new" smells waiting for them. for enrichment i focused on reconfiguration. every 2-3 days i'd rearrange things in their kennels, with the big pieces being a litter box, a bed, and an upright sturdy box (so they could either be in it or on top of it, giving them one upper level). it was habitat tetris. we'd play with strings and use the back scratcher for pets. then about every week, i'd switch their kennels to slightly change their view AND traded beds to mingle scents. they were from the same household and we were worried there'd be difficulty re-bonding after not being in direct contact for so long. they also did very well by the end of 6 months aside from gaining a lot of weight (oops). i learned just as much from them, and would love to help anyone else who might struggle with needing to quarantine pets.

i've seen people posting for help about similar situations and just wanna scream from the rooftops: the beginning is very daunting and hopeless, but animals aren't like us!!!!!! they do the best with what they got!!!!! if you work hard and keep them clean and develop a routine it'll all work out!!!!! Marshall walked out of there at 6 months a normal happy puppy in desperate need of a haircut.

it's interesting because i've never interacted much with his owners. i don't think they know i'm the one who kept him from losing his mind in there, even though everyone else at the clinic does, and i'm weirdly ok with that. the other day he came in cuz the dummy ate a bunch of meds he wasn't supposed to; the doc brought him to the back and instantly, Marshall rushed right for me. he still remembers me in a good way. there's still love. it's like...one of the few patient relationships i've had that feels truly deeply personal. in retrospect i think he had a bigger hand in healing my relationship with this career and animals in general than i realized at the time.

so thanks for making me quit Marshall. i feel a lot better now.

(i don't have any pics of him from that time (tragic ssd card accident) but he was an overgrown doodle puppy so he looked like this.)

[solo-by-choice]

alright, so would my fave survive castle Dracula? For the sake of @canyourfavesurvivecastledracula I'm doing Josh Lyman from The West Wing myself. Although I've only seen the show once and am not super... sure of my ability to remember enough minutiae to do this but I'm trying anywayyy

uh, no. He'd die. lol.

He wouldn't take the crucifix. He's not a superstitious person for the most part so I think he'd just find everyone freaking out about him going to the castle to be ridiculous. He's also Jewish. If he did take the crucifix, it would be to get the lady to stop bothering him and then he certainly wouldn't wear it.

He is technically a lawyer. I guess. He doesn't practice law, though, and I don't think he ever has. I suppose he could, but you know what let's not get into this because then I'll start questioning what an American from the late 90s/early naughts is doing in this story... (If Josh were from 1897 I suppose he'd be from Europe in the first place, but not England, and I'm having trouble imagining Dracula going to all this trouble to move to idk Poland or whatever.)

anyway

So maybe Josh doesn't make it past the shaving scene.

If he does, I think he might be able to keep alive for a while. He's good at talking; he could keep Dracula entertained as a conversation partner. The biggest issue might be his documented inability to be civil with people he doesn't like. He might be better at faking it with someone who has a (metaphorical) gun to his head, but we have no data on that kind of situation.

I doubt he'd put up with Dracula's weird touchy-feely habits. I'm not sure what he'd do about it, but I just don't think he'd be as fun to toy with as poor Jonathan because he wouldn't have Victorian manners preventing him from calling Dracula's behavior out. Which of course means Dracula won't put up with him as long.

If anyone's expecting him home on time, it's Donna. And presumably his boss is either Leo or Bartlett. (Sorry I'm thinking too much about transposing the cast of west wing into Dracula rather than assuming everything is the same in Josh's life which I think is how you're supposed to do this. So whyy is the deputy white house chief of staff bringing real estate paperwork to a count in Romania? oh nvm) Unfortunately I'm betting none of these people know shorthand, so Josh can't try and send them secret messages.

I do think Donna would recognize any letter that wasn't written in Josh's voice, but what good would that do them?

Does Josh get eaten by the Girlies? I guess the real question is whether Dracula saves him. I don't think Dracula would find Josh as fun a plaything as he did Jonathan. By this point Josh has probably started loudly demanding to be allowed to leave, is climbing the walls in boredom in every way but literally and has read every English book Dracula owns and taught himself basic Romanian. Josh's no genius, but he's smart and has the energy level of a working dog. He needs enrichment! Anyway Dracula probably thinks he's really annoying and maybe he lets his roommates bite him.

Unfortunately for him, Vampire!Josh is also annoying. But if they could get past that, Josh could do a great job running Dracula's take-over of his new country. Wants to be the guy the guy relies on, after all. America won't know what's hit it.

[emeraldwhale]

literally just a long infodump about my kennel job

uh feel free to ask questions ig i literally love talking about it

baloney is our longest stay dog right now, hes a pittie and hes such a freakin sweetheart. he had ringworm but im pretty sure hes all better now which is great bc hes such a social dog. we also have clover who is missing a front leg but it really does not slow her down even a little bit. shes the type that really needs to be put to work; she really needs the stimulation so i hope we can find the right person for her bc shes not really a family dog. we recently got a case dog (dog involved in a court case or other social work-esque stuff) so i cant be too specific about them but they are the tiniest freakin thing in the worldddd. one gram of protein ass animal. absolute hamster of a dog. love that thang. we also have some puppies that are a begal/great pyranese mix??? which is an insane combo. one of the puppies is just. way bigger than the other two as well even though hes not any older which is pretty funny. we also have mcqueen who was a puppy when we got her (any dogs under 6 months have different protocol bc they dont have all their vaccines yet) but is now over 6 months which means she can be out and about! i felt bad at first bc she was a little bigger than her littermates and would take their food so we had to seperate them and when they got adopted first i was like "thats what you get mcqueen for bein rude thats karma" but now im like. okay karma over. someone come get ya baby. we also have cats obviously but i dont know the cats as well because i get assigned to them less often. we did have a kitten named anouk who was such a freakin joy. he was in pink (pink is our quarantine room, gotta wear full ppe while ur in there) for a very long time bc he had some kind of fungal infection i think. but the couple of times i cleaned his cage he was so playful i loved it. im super glad he got adopted!!! anyway back to dogs we also have bunna whos a grey pittie with just the cutest freakin face ever and i always underestimate how freakin strong she is. that dog is solid muscle. shes been less high energy lately but im pretty sure its just kennel stress because shes been here kind of a while. we also have tappy and tippy who came here together obviously but they were both so nervous we had to seperate them because they were making each other worse. theyre doing a ~little~ better now; tappy wouldnt eat before but now shell at least have a few bites and she did take enrichment today which is progress! staff put them both in A Kennel (which is like the main kennel, usually dogs there are ones theyre pushing to adopt) which honestly i think its stressing her out more because it gets so freakin loud in there but whatever im not the one in charge i guess. i literally had a woman today be like "whats her story" (aka whys she like that) and i had to be like. maam i have no idea we dont often like. get the dogs history unfortunately. it could be any number of things. a lot of dogs do much better out of kennel tho so i wouldnt fully judge any dog by their behaviors here. anyway i could go on literally forever <3

[ravensandraccoons]

Belgian malinois/belgian sheperds

The belgian malinois is a medium sized herding breed from Belgium! They are well known as super high drive working dogs. They descend from a common type of sheperd breed in the western Europe. Other dogs that descend from this shepherd include Bouvier des Ardennes, Dutch Shepherd and German Shepherd. They have alot of history of being herding dogs but they were also kept as companion dogs, guard dogs, military dogs, and assistant dogs. They were used in both WW by the US and Belgium mainly. By the 21st century they were used worldwide commonly as police k9s!

Belgian malinois are very intelligent breed of dog who need a job of some sort. They need daily intense exercise and thrive when given a job such as bitework, herding, bikejoring ect. As puppys they are very mouthy, biting, knawing, chewing ect. They need many enrichment choices and need to be taught to settle! Unlike herman Shepherds, who have a great natural off switch and are great at thinking through their actions, mals are impulsive, they WILL become very destructive and aggressive if not given an outlet for their energy and drive! These dogs excel at k9 poluce dogs, personal protection, canicross, bikejoring, herding, races, dock diving ect! They are not recommended for service work as they struggle to settle in new environments unless taught and socialized from a young age to do so!

Health issues in belgian malinois include hip and elbow dysplasia, epilepsy, and rage syndrom! A genetic polymorphism in the dopamine transporter gene has been linked to Rage syndrome, and dogs at risk of passing the genotype on to offspring can be identified through genetic testing. These dogs are very quickly rising in popularity meaning backyard breeders are starting to breed them. Finding abreeder with successful working and show dogs, good health testing, pedigrees, and are open about their practices are very necessary for this breed! These dogs can be very misbehaved if they are not bred right or are not worked right!!!

These dogs can be great working dogs if raised correctly and from an ethical breeder! They are fairly easy to train and have a need to please their owners! They are a very popular breed for bute work/military work and k9 work and have been for many many years. These dogs excel in many jobs and sports and need a good outlet for their drive and energy! The health testing is similar for most high drive working dogs and need to accommodate their high energy and strength! They can be good in a family home if worked and dont have much intrest in other dogs and people! They handler focus is great and they can be exceptional dogs as with all the belgian sheperds!

Spelling errors aside... That's actually rather interesting. You seem to know a lot about dogs.

//I did actually read it don't worry lol

[sunnifer]

agent curt mega, #4, #12

4. If you could put this character in any other media, be it a book, a movie, anything, what would you put them in?

i would put him in jazzpunk because i think he deserves to have some sillier spy adventures. he's been through quite enough of The Horrors already

12. What's a headcanon you have for this character?

oh boy where do i start. ok quickfire round he has adhd he's surprisingly good at cooking he will chew on anything he gets his hands on (he's like a dog in this way) he is insanely knowledgeable about cars he's scared of thunder (this might be canon i remember hearing something about it)

a more in depth hc i have is i think he grew up pretty poor (in my head he was born right as the depression hit) in a big east coast city. no enrichment in his enclosure. mama mega was always working to keep the two of them afloat so he was lonely and bored a lot of the time. so naturally he burned off all the extra energy he had with some good old fashioned delinquency which is where i think he got a taste for adrenaline. i feel like he started off stealing little knickknacks as a kid which turned into big stuff like hotwiring cars and getting into fights as he got older and more bored. this + coming upon a gun in his adolescence and practicing with it all the time thinking it was the coolest thing ever despite never really using it to cause any harm helped him get really good at spying BUT his childhood didn't help with his general recklessness in his job because he's used to being kind of feral.

[grison-in-space]

reflecting also on week 5 of dog training internship: I really missed teaching, huh.

Like, half the reason I wanted to get certified with my local obedience school was because I think they're doing really good work with the general public (as opposed to the Sport-oriented training schools, of which we also have many) and also I've really loved the styles of many of the trainers I've watched with there. I had other reasons, too—I'd like to pitch a couple of canine cognition stories and maybe partner with my school's daycare program to offer "playing games for kibbles for science" to their enrichment roster a few years down the road—but in the short term, I mostly just miss teaching, like dogs, wanted to broaden my experience base, and appreciate not having to do my own legwork to find clients as I would if I was tutoring again.

Saturdays are currently my biggest observation day, and I'm still just basking a little in getting to meaningfully just—help several of my classes' clients to resolve frustration and cheer folks on. I have one client with a young puppy in one of my classes that was frustrated and felt bad because her puppy wasn't able to focus and learn like her last (grown) dog, and I got to gently reframe her expectations, point out how beautifully her puppy is working for the age she is at, and tell her some true things to encourage her to feel like the success she actually is achieving with her very nice puppy, with the enthusiastic reinforcement of my mentors.

There are kids handling in my classes, too—mostly about ten to thirteen year olds. Like, one of my students brought her granddaughter to class last week, and I got to cheer them both on as they and my client's lovely little dog learn and practice together. We teach a whole class just to help kids learn how to handle and train dogs themselves, too. I would have loved that as a kid and I love that it exists here. And pretty much everyone I've seen who routinely brings a kid to dog class day is making an effort to really model good handling and learning to their kids, too. It's just very nice.

I just really love getting to see someone who is struggling, tell them how hard I see them working, show them a better way to do something they're struggling with, and then honestly praise them for the hard work they put in with their dogs at the end. That's really nice. I love watching someone who comes in stiff and not sure about taking a class at the beginning come out with pride in their dog, more confidence, and a genuine pleasure in working together with that dog.

At the day job, all my teaching right now is mentoring, which is so much more involved. I really like the way that teaching classes involves less emotional investment sometimes, too, but I still get that huge endorphin hit of finding someone frustrated, pointing out to them all the things they're doing right, adjusting the situation, and watching them succeed. It's so rewarding.

[abirddogmoment]

Comparing Aurora to Mav and here are some thoughts, in no particular order or relevance:

🦆 Drive:

Mav was higher drive than Rory, even as a puppy. I would classify Mav as medium drive overall (extreme prey drive) and Rory as mid-low drive overall (high prey drive).

Food drive: Britts are notoriously bad eaters as puppies. Rory eats more consistently than Mav did at this age, but Mav accepted a wider variety of training treats. I'd put both of them around a 3 or 4/10 for food drive, with Mav growing to a 8/10 as an adult.

Toy drive: Not a priority for me, but I use toys strategically for training distance behaviours. A consistent 5/10 for both dogs.

Prey drive: Predictably high due to breed. Mav was indiscriminately prey driven (10/10, nothing could get through to him in prey drive), Rory is much less so but still much higher than the average dog (around 8.5/10).

General "working" drive: Puppy Mav was extremely unmotivated to work with me (2/10), I was able to build that up somewhat as an adult (somewhere around 6/10) but he still preferred to do his own thing. Rory is much happier to work with me in general (5/10 in general, 9/10 in the bird field).

🐿 Arousal:

Rory is lower arousal than Mav. It takes a lot more effort to get her energy up, whereas Mav was pretty much always good to go. Rory is also much easier to communicate with even when aroused - I can still direct her to some extent when she's chasing something. Mav was around an 8/10 for environmental focus / environmental arousal (easy 9.5/10 as a puppy though), and Rory is around a 6/10.

Both dogs stress down (stop engaging in high stress situations, as opposed to a dog that gets bitey and frantic in high stress) in extremely comparable ways. Recovery is also essentially the same for both Rory and Mav - immediate end to activities, give free snacks, decompress by being left alone in a quiet space.

👀 Engagement:

Aurora is significantly more engaged than Mav was at this age (Rory around a 7/10, Mav around a 1/10 as a puppy and maybe a 5/10 as an adult). She actively looks to see where I am out in the wild and will take direction from a distance, something I never achieved with Mav even as an adult. Hard to say how much of this is genetics vs how much is strategic training.

🌎 General living:

In the house: Rory wants to be in the same area as me. She actively chooses to sleep close to me on the less-comfy side of the couch instead of her preferred couch spot if I'm there. She rarely puts herself to bed without me. In comparison, Mav lived for comfort and would put himself to bed in another room with no provocation.

On puppy blues: I got the puppy regret really bad for Mav and considered returning him to his breeder for over a year. There were lots of factors here, but the main one was going from one dog to two (which was not for me). I was prepared for puppy blues with Rory but I was also really ready to have a dog again, so I barely got puppy blues with her.

On needs: Extremely comparable in terms of exercise and enrichment. Both dogs need daily meaningful exercise and training. Rory needs meaningful attention (snuggles where she is the sole focus of my attention) in a way that Mav did not.

On anxieties: Mav was more confident (9/10 for confidence, Rory is around a 5/10) but Rory recovers easily so it's rarely a problem. Both have comparable stranger-danger about people who approach me in the street, Mav worked through it and was neutral as an adult and I suspect Rory will as well. Both dogs had separation anxiety and were able to work through it so I can work my day job from the office. Mav was much more dependent on Marlo whereas Rory loves Pike but doesn't depend on her the same way. No aggression of any kind from either of them, but both tend towards dog neutrality over dog friendly (beyond friendly greetings).

On training: I find Rory easier to train despite her lower drive, but I think that's just because I'm a better trainer now. Mav was snappier in behaviours and tried harder, but Rory is much more focused and thoughtful and things click more easily for her. Mav was much more likely to opt in to a training session, Rory really considers whether she wants to train or not. Both dogs housetrained extremely easily. Mav was a bigger barker than Rory.

On behaviour: Rory is better behaved, just generally has better impulses, but Mav was (obviously) better trained. Both can walk through a busy dog show without any issues so ultimately it's fine for me. I think Rory will grow up to be better trained just because she has an easier baseline and less bad habits (and I know what I'm doing now).

On potential: Rory is better conformationally, I really think she can get her confo champion somewhat smoothly. Mav was shrimpy and was not a great structural example of his breed. I don't know if Rory is snappy enough for high level sports, but that could change (and also I don't care if it doesn't).

On training goals: I had much more ambitious sports goals for Mav and I mostly trained sports behaviours. I don't really have any sports goals for Rory so I've mostly just been chilling with some training here and there. Ultimately I like this approach better, even though it's less impressive to show off.

🟣🔵🟠 Final Thoughts:

Ultimately I'm really glad Mav was my first puppy. He was challenging and set the bar achievably for other dogs, but he was also really fun and I'm really glad I got to learn with him.

I'm also glad I got Rory when I did, even though I wasn't looking for a puppy. She made my winter much more fun and she's at a really fun age to do more stuff this spring and summer.

I need to spend more time with brittanies. Of the three I lived with (Mav, Laundry, Rory), Mav was the outlier for drive and arousal. If Mav was truly an outlier, I'm more inclined to switch breeds in the future (boykins my beloved). I don't want to go too much higher drive or arousal than Mav, but I'd like a little higher arousal than Rory and a lot higher drive than Laundry.

I cannot be bothered to listen to the internet this time around. I used to analyse what everyone was doing compared to what I was doing and I straight up don't care that much. I still find sources to help me with problems and read books and watch YouTube videos to train specific things, but nothing like the social media vortex I was in before.

Same thing for unsolicited advice at shows. I got soooo much advice about Mav that was incorrect, harmful, or straight up nonsense. I have a couple of polite responses ready but I just ignore most of the unsolicited advice now.

I'm having a lot of fun with my puppy and even though she's a little evil (read: a puppy), she's really crushing it and doing great.

I'm excited to see where we go from here.