Dog lovers?

[teacher316]

I have an 11 year old border collie named Clarabelle that I love. She is a part of our family and we've had her since she was a puppy.
Tonight after being gone about an hour and a half I started to panic. I had hooked her to her leash outside so she could go potty before I left my house. I was suddenly unsure if I had let her in and it was only 10 degrees outside! I was terrified thinking of her huddled somewhere and freezing!
Well to sum up, we raced home and found her in the house. I got all nervous and crazy for nothing. I was just scared to death and am having a hard time relaxing now. The image of her outside freezing is stuck in my head.
Anyone else have an experience like this?

[kaoskat]

No, but I'm super careful with my pack because I'm always worried something will happen to them. 3 of my pack are toy breeds so they don't go out unsupervised. We have predators in our area as well as neighbors who let their large sometimes aggressive dogs roam free. Not safe for teeny dogs. If I did let them out that way though, that would totally be something I would do!

[melodys_angel]

We used to let my late shih tzu go out the front door to do his buisness--he was soo well trained that he would quickly do what he had to do then run back into the house. There was a time where the paretns came in, let him out then forgot they had let him out.  He was outside for a few hours (until we went 'ohmygosh, comets gone!'), and all he would do is paw at the front door, patiently waiting, never straying.

[Vintergatan]

I'm terribly protective of my pets and I could never forgive myself if anything happened to them that was preventable! So I completely understand you. I don't remember having any particular scares with my dogs although my new pup tends to get excited and run off, so we're being extra careful with her for now.
But I just wanted to say that I don't think 10 degrees would be considered freezing for a border collie They are one of the most popular dogs here in Iceland and they are thriving, and it rarely gets above 10 here, even in the summer (to be honest, at this point even I consider 10 to be warm weather /headdesk ).

[cyberunicorn]

yes once and never again. I came home late and my parents had gone out I let megan out in to the back garden to do what ever she wanted to do and went up stairs to put my bag away and get changed. normally she would go outside and then when she was finished come up stairs to let me know to shut the door. I have been upstairs about 10 minutes and no dog. so I went in to the kitchen and on the table was a window cleaner called slip. so I go charging in to the back garden looking and calling for her. but as it was late I could not really shout as I might disturb the neighbours. then I go down the side of the house and one of the side gates is wide open. well she was in season at the time and that was the first thin that popped in to my mind that she was off to her "boy friend" a few doors away. I just shouted "Oh s**t" it was an automatic thing not meant to but the next thing I knew is megan is running like hell back to me with the look on her face "what, were is it, have you any chicken"

[flyawayraven]

I'm terribly protective of my pets and I could never forgive myself if anything happened to them that was preventable! So I completely understand you. I don't remember having any particular scares with my dogs although my new pup tends to get excited and run off, so we're being extra careful with her for now.
But I just wanted to say that I don't think 10 degrees would be considered freezing for a border collie They are one of the most popular dogs here in Iceland and they are thriving, and it rarely gets above 10 here, even in the summer (to be honest, at this point even I consider 10 to be warm weather /headdesk ).

I think she might have meant 10 degrees Fahrenheit which is about -12 degrees Celsius. Oh man that is cold! I feel ya though on the weather. We were hovering around 40-35 degrees Fahrenheit the past few weeks so now that it's cracked over 60 it feels nice and toasty.

Except now it's raining.

[teacher316]

thanks everyone! I'm feeling much better today though I have given Clarabelle a few more treats than usual;)
Vintergatan-thanks for the reminder about border collies although like flyawayraven said I was speaking in fahrenheit. She does go out to play in the cold temperatures but not for that long. I am glad I was mistaken about leaving her out. I would have felt terrible...

[Vintergatan]

Oh, oops Pardon my Celsius-ness ^^ Yes, that does sound rather cold and I'm VERY glad you were mistaken

[flyawayraven]

Oh, oops Pardon my Celsius-ness ^^ Yes, that does sound rather cold and I'm VERY glad you were mistaken

I really wish sometimes the US would switch to metric and Celsius so this would be much less confusing! :p

[Shenanigans]

Oh I worry ALL THE TIME!! I stress out if someone isn't home with my 2 chihuahuas and 2 poodles. I worry about robbers breaking in and shooting them for barking and I worry about fires. But then if I take them with me I worry about crashing the car and them getting killed. I never stop worrying about my babies! One time during Christmas, my mom was at the hospital and we went to visit her. We forgot to turn the Christmas lights off and I freaked out the entire time, worried they would catch on fire. That was the most hurried hospital visit ever I almost passed out from worry. My two poodles got out of the yard one time and I was in tears and frantic! I don't know if they would know to get out of the way of a car Also, my tiny chihuahua had her nails caught in her sweater and I started bawling, wondering how long she'd been caught up like that!

I'm a little overprotective of my pets I see no difference in human babies and dogs, they're my children

[Vintergatan]

Oh, oops Pardon my Celsius-ness ^^ Yes, that does sound rather cold and I'm VERY glad you were mistaken

I really wish sometimes the US would switch to metric and Celsius so this would be much less confusing! :p

it would certainly make my life easier

Shenanigans - you sound just like ME! I'm constantly with the worst scenario in mind when I leave my babies alone at home. Until recently I only had cats, that I don't let out because I'm afraid of cars, people, everything. So my mind was going along these lines when I'm away: OMG what if they find a way to get out and get hit by a car! But what if there's a fire and they can't get out! But if they get out - the car - fire - WAAAAA! I need help...

[zabe77]

No, but I know how it feels to love your dog so much! I've stayed up all night staring at my dog to make sure she was breathing after getting an infection on her neck from a tick bite! Crazy how much we can love another species! My dog is family though, crazy about her.

[DazzleKitty]

My dog is my love. I consider her my daughter. She's a chubby 11 year old Chihuahua (will be 12 in March....oh dear!).  I worry about her passing a lot, because I love her so much.
For the last year she's been having spells where she wakes up screaming at night and almost looks like she's having a seizure. I was ready to take her to the vet but it seemed to stop, so I haven't done so yet. She hasn't had a spell of it in a while, but I worry it will happen again. It's the most undog-like, blood curdling scream she makes.
She seriously needs a checkup from the vet.

I can understand what it's like to worry. I love my Chihuahua so much. I don't want kids when I move out, just dogs. They will be my children.

[mlp4me]

I love my greyhound, he's 9 and the best pet I've ever had.
Wanna talk about a heart attack I got home at 10:30 pm a few nights ago, let him out of his kennel, he had 5 mins alone while I got ready for bed. I get in the bedroom and go to give him a hug and he smells extrememly fruity. Like unnaturally fruity. Go to his kennel find that he's attempted to eat a packet of candle warmer wax (gumdrop scent) that I didn't know hubby left it within his reach... Needless to say he was on his way to a forced puke fest... He's just lucky I dug out the chunks I thought he ate from within his many blankets. (I understand they can pass crayons, but that stuff smells so good you almost assume it's toxic.)
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[HavACrumpet452]

All the time. My dog is my life. I have to leave her at my mom's when I go to work because she's 13 and has IBS and staying in the house for 9+ hours without having an accident is not something I can expect her to do everyday. That means for a few hours after school she's at my mom's house with only my little sisters who can be forgetful and irresponsible. With the temperatures being -20F (or -29C) this week I worry they will let her outside and forget her and she won't last long. I've actually cried on the way to work thinking something awful is going to happen to her. On top of that, my 18 year old sister had a boyfriend with anger issues last year who was constantly over at the house so I really feared leaving her. Honestly, the only good that will come of my dog dying is that I'll never have to worry about leaving her with other people again. I won't rely on my family for anything after that.