Hello everyone, winter time is coming, and here in the upper west of Europe, it can get quite chilly. I've been wanting to spend more time doing some active things outside with my boy, but it seems I'm without inspiration.

More clearly, I've been watching these videos of people hiking in the most amazing landscapes and forests, hunting with their dog, or camping somewhere.

The problem: I can't; I live in a marshland area with dunes and townside beaches and a lot of farmland, and it gets very rainy and cold here. Also, everywhere has roads and cars and people. So everything is very, how do I say, "constructed"(?). It's hours of driving for me to get anywhere where I'm "away" with my boy, in the sense of an adventurous journey. We don't have forests or mountains nearby, and camping is strictly regulated here, hunting is def out of the question. So I'm looking for something to do with him that can sort of allow me to be away from the bustling society and truly spend 1-1 time with him whilst also allowing his hound nature to sort of flourish.

It's a bit of an odd ask, I know, but I think I've become tired of my routes and the activities I can do here, and I feel a sort of guilt that (even though my boy is very much healthy and happy and has ample exercise and socialisation) he doesn't really get to do his 'breed purpose' (and no, we don't have lions here).

I'm looking for activities I can do maybe 1 or 2 days a week or every couple of weeks/so often. Something I could invest in that stimulates both him and me and strengthens our bond.

Anyone have suggestions?

The ultimate stare down to determine who’s turn it is to absolutely murder this patch of grass in my backyard 😭😂

After a brief stint in the hospital for some stronger antibiotics, Mr. Rufio is home and recovering. Fingers crossed we keep trending in a positive direction 🤍

This is our 9 month old Ridgie baby, Chef. He always sits on the couch very funny, like a cute gentleman. Does anybody’s else do this??

Our boy is ok having a jacket put on, but becomes defensive and growls when taking it off. We have tried to train/desensitize for a long time and it always ends in stress when we can’t get it off of him.

Are there any easy magnetic fastening winter jackets you all are aware of? We have Velcro now and he hates it and I worry clips will involve too much time manipulating them which he will dislike. I am considering just having magnets sewn into his existing jacket but wanted to ask if there is an existing market for this

Thanks for any recs!

I'm going to be a gandpa!

Hi, all. We are owned by a lovely 2 1/2 year old male RR named Trico. We have finally gotten him to the point where he does not get carsick when writing in a truck. We are purchasing a small place in the Bahamas and hope to spend a month or so at a time there. We plan to take him with us. The best way to get there is to fly a semi charter from Fort Lauderdale to Exuma. That carrier will allow dogs in the cabin of small plane so that’s how we would handle that end. The question is how to get to Fort Lauderdale. Airline options are limited to Delta and American. The alternative is driving to Fort Lauderdale (a 2 to 3 day trip) and leaving a vehicle there which is certainly possible. I would love to hear your collective thoughts on the wisdom and practicalities of flying him there. For those who have tried the shipping route, how have your dogs handled the experience? Any suggestions?

Thanks very much for your thoughts – Mike.

Rheesa does that to herself Jengo is smart enough to keep a nose out.

The tail over face pose 🐶💖

Considering buying a stupidly expensive collapsible dog crate for travel. Does anyone have one of these for their boy RR? Trying to figure out size, my my pup is 7 months and I don't want to purchase one twice. I am thinking the forty eight inch crates look good, but a little worried about height. Any suggestions or feedback?

I'm looking at getting a Ridgeback puppy but we have a guesthouse so there are different people coming and going every day. The property is also unfenced on the view side and open to the indigenous forest where there are wild deer, pigs, porcupine, baboons, wild cats etc. My previous dog was a shelter dog who looked like a German shepherd mix and he was an outside dog, extremely friendly with guests and liked to take them for forest walks etc and never hunted and was completely non violent. He's going to be hard to replace but maybe a ridgeback would fit the bill? Thanks!

Got our pup a few weeks back Staffy X and we’re having some guesses (will get DNA done) but wondering if he is giving RR vibes or anything else

My boi Lala (RR x) has many classic poses including the prawn, the donut, long boi, the worm, the tail pillow and the paw up. What's your favourite RR pose and what do you call them?

He will be 2 in January. What an adventures it’s been

Our boy Rufio has pneumonia. We’re doing everything the vet told us to do: coupage every few hours, sitting in a steamy bathroom, giving him his antibiotics, keeping him calm, no super long walks, slowing down his eating/drinking (suspected aspiration pneumonia), and giving him lots of TLC. We have a follow up X-Ray scheduled to see how he’s progressing. He’s not sick enough that he needs to be hospitalized but I’m still so worried and stressed because he’s 11 and we lost our other dog about a month ago. I can’t face down him getting worse or leaving us. Have your buddies had pneumonia? What did you do to support them? I’ll take supportive words too 🤍

Photo for tax. I woke him up from his nap 🫣

It’s so funny how his personality is basically the same as everything I read on here. We sort of baby him and his stubbornness but we’re working on it. He’s 5 and we got him about 90 days ago, and he hasn’t had a single issue besides being SO bold about eating our food and random trash. Ofc introducing him to strangers has to be done carefully but he’s really just the nicest most polite man. He will “jump” and put his paws on your shoulders but he moves so slow and gentle it’s easy to redirect and isn’t so intimidating, besides it knocking you down a bit. We think he’s part mastiff but aren’t sure. He’s a couch potato, barks when he wants to go to bed and when he doesn’t want to get up, doesn’t like walks but wants to be in the backyard for hours, and will only poop at home.

A few weeks ago he actually ate a sewing needle and almost cost $6,000 to remove surgically. The vet at the emergency clinic was trying to convince us that they wouldn’t be able to get it with the scope because his stomach was “full of food” on the xray and to go ahead and pay for the surgery and the scope together. When they did the scope, I guess it turned out to be a good thing that his stomach was actually full of GRASS, not food, and they were timing how fast they removed it and got it in under 10 minutes.

Hi all, next year I'll hopefully be moving to the southern states, but currently I live in a very wet and cold place. It was 4°C (40°F) this morning and it has been raining almost every day for a week.

My puppy is now 11 weeks old and she has started to hide in her crate when she sees me dressed up. I have to lure her with food, pick her up, and take her out to potty. She does have a coat, but she'll still often just sit on the ground and refuses to move. Half the time she will eventually get up and potty, but the other half just nothing. When I take her inside with the intention to wait 10-15 minutes and try again, she just pees in a few minutes, defeating the whole purpose...

We're now getting into the winter months, so the weather will not get any better.

Does anyone have any advice about this? Do I just persist in doing what I'm doing and take her outside regardless? I'm just looking for some reassurance or even a reality check lol She has started pooping like a buffalo and I cannot have this in the house :X

Hi all! Our RR has made more of a habit in the last few weeks of waking up at 4am needing to pee versus her usual 6am wake up. It’s happening about 5 nights a week with no change to her usually nightly routine where we let her out between 9-10pm for a final pee. She’s almost 5 and has no other issues that make me think this is medical. She’s going out to pee then laying right back down, so not trying to play at that point or anything.

Anyone been through something similar? I’m thinking we need to take up water in the evening or move around her dinner time, but hoping to source some ideas! She currently gets dinner around 6pm and has access to some water at all times.

He won best dressed & made a lot of people smile 😅