Conan the heroic dog visited the White House today. He could hardly refuse, seeing how he’s in the military…and a dog. Notice how the doggie doesn’t get anywhere near Trump and vice-versa.
Trump on the dog that took part in the al-Baghdadi raid: "We were going to put a muzzle on the dog, & I thought that was a good idea, but then it gets even more violent…but no, the dog is incredible. Actually incredible. We spent some good time with it. So brilliant. So smart." pic.twitter.com/4r5227ofUD
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) November 25, 2019
It’s incredibly awkward. Trump tries to get Pence to say something about the dog, but all Pence does is pet the critter while Trump babbles inanities about a muzzle and the dog getting violent. Melania stretches her lips over her teeth when he says that, a facial tic that conveys about as much mirth as an angry spider monkey baring its fangs.
Trump can’t do any part of his job competently. That’s no surprise since he has no relevant experience or qualifications. But you’d think pretty much any random sap could do the easy shit like handing out Halloween candy or saying nice and not weird things about a well-trained service animal. But nope.
As for the dog, I bet he’ll breath a sigh of relief when the White House is in the rear view mirror. Lots of terrible people have loyal animal companions, of course. Pence has his bunny, and Conan actually seems fine with Pence, so we can’t credit Conan’s political judgment. But he stays well clear of both Trumps. Animals know.
Baud
Poor dog.
schrodingers_cat
Even god damned Hitler had a dog and is supposed to have loved it.
MJS
Why does Trump always wear his overcoat? It’s near 60 degrees in DC today, and he has the same coat on that he wears when it’s 30 degrees. He’s so fucking annoying.
oatler.
Trump is meeting with the PM of Bulgaria today, Oh frabjous day, callou callay!
pinacacci
Pence actually seems to like the dog. Makes me feel better about him but I’d still never vote for him. Mr. and Mrs. Sociopath, not so much.
schrodingers_cat
The people who were upset with Obama’s victory over Rs not once but twice sure selected the worse melanin deficient person they could find who is even ashamed of his skin tone that he has to dye it an unnatural shade of orange.
schrodingers_cat
@MJS: He thinks he looks slim or less fat.
John Revolta
a facial tic that conveys about as much mirth as an angry spider monkey baring its fangs.
LOL. Intertubes won for the day.
Roger Moore
@MJS:
Best guess: he thinks it helps to disguise how overweight he is. Many overweight men make stupid wardrobe decisions because they mistakenly believe they hide the fat.
schrodingers_cat
@pinacacci: I remember reading somewhere that the Pences have rescue cats and dogs and even a bunny IIRC.
schrodingers_cat
What is Melania wearing? Looks like a cross between a bathrobe and a long sweater
Baud
Confirmed by every movie about demons I’ve ever seen.
brettvk
One clip doesn’t mean much, of course, but I’ve been intrigued by the notion that Trump’s lower media profile has been to hide physical deterioration. He doesn’t seem to move much in the clip above (no footage of him walking in/out of frame), he doesn’t gesture much and doesn’t use his left arm at all. Thoughts? I will readily grant that this whole line of questions borders on conspiracy territory; OTOH, the man’s in his 70s and manifestly unhealthy.
Another Scott
@schrodingers_cat: It seems to be some sort of gnome house coat. Part of her War on Christmas collection, no doubt.
Cheers,
Scott.
brettvk
@schrodingers_cat: Kimono sweater.
brantl
@MJS: because otherwise, you are overwhelmed with all that flab.
Roger Moore
@brettvk:
And recently had an unscheduled trip to the hospital even though he has a doctor on staff in his residence.
Butch
The dog is not the one that needs the muzzle.
Dread
When that pupper was brought out, the collective IQ on that stage tripled.
opiejeanne
@schrodingers_cat: I think that’s right about the cats and dogs, but I know they had a pet rabbit (can’t remember if it is a house rabbit) when they moved to DC and it struck me as something special. I don’t like Pence or Mother, but I do like that they love animals.
Conan seems to really like Pence, and maybe he smells Pence’s pets on his clothing, but he was not attracted to anyone else there except his handler. Melania looked terrified of the dog.
Betty Cracker
@brettvk: I attributed Trump’s odd posture and lack of movement in the clip to fear that the dog would latch onto his scrotum and make him cry and scream the way Trump alleges the terror mastermind who Conan chased during the raid did, but who knows? Lots of people on Twitter seem convinced that Trump had a stroke or something that prompted the visit to Walter Reed. I have no idea, but I sure don’t blame people for speculating since we get nothing but lies and weird behavior out of this White House.
opiejeanne
@Butch: I didn’t understand his “joke” about putting a muzzle on the dog. And someone off-camera named John laughed but no one else did. The handler was not amused.
schrodingers_cat
@opiejeanne: If the Pences were my neighbors I would trust them to water the plants and feed the cats if I was gone for the weekend. I don’t like that they have the political power to dictate my choices.
dmsilev
Has he pardoned a turkey yet? Besides Rudy, I mean.
schrodingers_cat
@dmsilev: He approved of their genocide.
zhena gogolia
@Betty Cracker:
Oh, please! I’d love to see that!
opiejeanne
@schrodingers_cat:
Oh, agreed. They are people who should never be allowed near the levers of power, and yet here we are.
Miss Bianca
@schrodingers_cat: Blondi!
How the hell do I end up knowing the name of Hitler’s favorite dog?
Butch
@opiejeanne: His remark about the muzzle was intended as a joke? I guess I’m thicker than usual today; I just took it as a routine idiotic Trump remark.
JaySinWA
@zhena gogolia:
I am afraid that would be a death sentence for the dog.
Lilavati
For the record, name aside, Conan is actually a “she”. So, Bad Man meets “Good Girl”
lgerard
The muzzle was to prevent Conan from leaking to the press
Roger Moore
@dmsilev:
He’s having a hard time finding one who’s in the pen for war crimes.
Ruckus
@Dread:
OK now I’m laughing out loud!
Thank you for that!
One question though, sure it’s only tripled?
Keith P.
@MJS: because he’s a fat piece of shit and thinks the long coat “stretches” his proportions.
dmsilev
For your amusement, List of Presidential pets.
Highlights: John Quincy Adams supposedly had a pet alligator. Andrew Johnson “Fed white mice he found in his bedroom”. Benjamin Harrison had a pair of opossums and _two_ alligators. Theodore Roosevelt had a huge menagerie including a bear and a “One-legged rooster”. Calvin Coolidge had “thirteen ducklings were received as an Easter gift; Mrs. Coolidge attempted to raise them in a White House bathroom”.
And, of course, at the end “Donald Trump: None”, which honestly I think is very unfair towards Lindsey Graham.
Betty Cracker
@Lilavati: What’s your source? According to all the news accounts I’ve seen and
the dog’s Wikipedia page, Conan is a boy.ETA: Scratch that — the Wikipedia page now says the dog is a girl! Except where it says she’s a boy! I will get to the bottom of this (so to speak) an issue a correction if necessary!
Ruckus
@opiejeanne:
He is an attack dog, who will go for the enemies throat.
You don’t think that the trumps know that the dog is smarter than them, no matter what they say about their own intelligence, and that he knows how to kill the enemy, which they are so they should be scared of him.
The Dangerman
Sharing the stage with a dog if dogs hate you ranks up there with staring at the sun during an eclipse after being warned. Asshole.
julydogs
@MJS: Fat fat fat
Ruckus
@Betty Cracker:
Great minds think alike.
OK one great mind, which I agree with……
Aleta
What? Conan would be trained to tolerate a muzzle when needed. T asked for a muzzle and they refused. He was scared, and he wanted Conan to look like a bad guy snarling behind bars.
Or did he ask them to provoke the dog, muzzled like on scary TV, to get photos of Conan snapping violently. Like the violence-pron collection that Trump keeps to stimulate his sadigasms.
I like how T apparently walked in and stood directly in front of Pence. Inviting him to say something “about the type of dog.”
Roger Moore
@dmsilev:
That’s remarkably on-brand.
LuciaMia
@MJS: Better than if he adopts Jordan’s jacketless look.
Ruckus
@opiejeanne:
Dogs are a good judge of character.
Not a joke about the muzzle. trump is scared shitless about the dog attacking him, he hates dogs because nothing he does changes their minds about what a shit he is.
trollhattan
I think TR’s WH menagerie would have been a wonder to behold (as would the man himself). Is there anything more precious than a boy with his badger? There is not.
Aleta
FREE CONAN
(And better treatment for retired (used-up and abandoned) military dogs)
rikyrah
BLACK THANKSGIVING
The 2019 Rules and Revisions For Black Thanksgiving
Michael Harriot
Today 9:00AM
•
……….
Food certifications
In 1962, BLACC’s executive macaroni committee decided to limit all macaroni and cheese making to grandmothers, aunts and anyone over 50 with a sufficient supply of the upper-arm fat known as “church lady muscles.” In 1984, we extended those qualifications to dressing and sweet potato pies.
However, this year, we have decided to loosen those restrictions. Henceforth, any family member whose macaroni has been approved at two or more family functions is eligible for mac & cheese certification. It should go without saying that all licensed macaronians must still pass a kitchen inspection because we still can’t fuck with you if your kitchen is nasty.
………………..
Menu requirements
While Thanksgiving meals vary depending on geography and tradition, all BLACC-approved Thanksgiving menus must have the following:
Turkey: This goes without saying. It can be fried, baked or even smoked but if there is no turkey, you’re just having a family meal. A big hunk of turkey breast does not count, but turkey wings or legs do.
Dressing: Not that stovetop bullshit either. That’s “stuffing.”
Macaroni & Cheese: Aside from the above rules, there must also be someone present to regulate the size of macaroni scoops so you won’t run out of the “good” macaroni. Mac & cheese should be served in descending order from best to worst because anyone who is late doesn’t deserve top-level, auntie macaroni.
Giblet gravy: Anyone who serves packaged gravy at Black Thanksgiving is eligible for excommunication and must immediately surrender their black card.
Greens: Turnips, collards, cabbage, mustard—it doesn’t matter as long as they are sufficiently cleaned.
Pies: Cakes are cool for church picnics and birthday parties, but there must be at least one pie present at Blacksgiving. After an emergency hearing, our sweets committee has determined that peach cobbler qualifies as a pie.
https://www.theroot.com/the-2019-rules-and-revisions-for-black-thanksgiving-1840024400
Betty
OT: Al Jazeerah will be airing its investigation into Dominica’s corrupt Prime Minister at 3 pm EST for those intersted. Most of us here know the details. This coverage will make it harder for the PM to call the stories fabrications of the opposition. Election is set for December 6.
Mike in NC
Poor dog found out that just being within ten feet of Fat Bastard will noticeably lower one’s IQ (yes, this even affects dogs).
zhena gogolia
@Aleta:
Haha, this whole time I thought he was saying that the dog wore a muzzle during the raid!
Mary G
When President Obama met a combat dog, it wore a muzzle, probably at the request of the Secret Service. Therefore Twitler must show he is braver by telling them to keep it off. Poor Conan is probably drugged to the eyebrows.
Melania is praying for Conan to rip his throat out.
Not even liking animals makes Pence a decent human being. He’s just better at faking it and probably has Conan’s Kong in his pocket.
Why is the handler wearing a suit? Isn’t he in the military? Or is that not the regular handler?
Ruckus
@Aleta:
Not sure a military trained dog would be good as a pet.
They are all smart and highly trained but they are highly trained to respond to one person and that person only. They are trained attack dogs so while they are very obedient with their trainers, how would they be with kids rough housing with them? Do you want to find out?
A shame for sure they are well mannered, highly trained, smart, but they spend most of their lives with continuous training/reenforcement about how they need to act on duty and all of their time off duty with their trainers.
Tough call but probably should error on the side of safety.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@MJS:
That’s cold.
Omnes Omnibus
@Baud: Dogs like me. Theory disproven. In your face, libtard!
Derelict
I have to believe the dog can sense a whole lot about Trump and Malignia from their body language and pheromones. Trump is always terrified of being called out as the impostor he knows he is, and he’s afraid of dogs, to boot. What Malignia’s problem (other than being married to Trump) might be, I don’t know. But she clearly doesn’t like dogs, either.
Pence, however, is a genial (if misguided) dimwit. The dog no doubt picks up on that and feels much more relaxed around him.
dmsilev
Via the WaPo, I think Mick Mulvaney’s day’s are numbered:
Ruckus
@Mary G:
I wonder if the uniform is a tip to the dog that he/she is on duty and civilian clothes signify off duty.
Betty
@Derelict: Perfect description of Pence.
Jeffro
The dog is welcome to join me in raising a leg on trumpov’s gravestone, some fine day.
The Dangerman
@Mary G: @Mary G:&nbs
I wonder if Melania knows how much she gets after Donnie checks out and all the loans are paid off.
Roger Moore
@Mary G:
Liking animals is no guarantee that you’re a decent human being, cf. Adolf Hitler, but disliking all animals is a strong sign that you’re a terrible person. Note, though, that one can want to avoid pets for practical reasons, like allergies, while still liking animals.
Jeffro
@dmsilev: win
I read somewhere that the turkeys’ names are Quid and Quo?
Aleta
@Ruckus: Agree, not suited as pets. But there are reports of military dogs being warehoused as though items in government storage, mistreated by those now in charge of them, and that some former handlers are trying to retrieve them to ensure they are kept in better conditions. Some handlers have been trying to adopt their former dogs, but most have been refused. Only a few handlers have been allowed. Perhaps bc of red tape concerning government property. But even so, mismanagement of their care seems to be a sad story.
realbtl
I keep seeing the Bill Murray HST movie scene; Nixon!
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Ruckus: The police dogs here in Glendale are taught to respond to commands in German.
lgerard
@Jeffro:
Public health warning
Sebastian
@brettvk:
He was rushed to Walter Reed a few days ago.
cmorenc
My dog’s instinctive reaction to service people visiting our house (e.g. plumbers, pest control, contractors, etc) who try to approach her in a seemingly friendly manner – she can instantly sense which ones are bona fide dog people vs which ones are pretenders trying to pet her just because she’s cute or as a social gesture to break the ice with me by sucking up to my dog. She’s very shy, but she’ll overcome that and approach the former, but she shys away from and keeps her distance from the latter.
Ruckus
@Derelict:
To a dog, anyone that doesn’t like them, trust them is an enemy. They may be stronger and willing to bite someone as much of a shit as trump but they know that people that don’t like them are more dangerous to them. And we are bigger than them, even if they can be more dangerous to us. As much as we train them and have them live with us, they are still animals that can live on their own, without human help. And they can do that by being aware of those that can hurt them and/or fulfill their nourishment needs.
pinacacci
@dmsilev: hahaha nice
Ruckus
@lgerard:
That is
goodgreat.Old Dan and Little Ann
Why oh why could he not have bitten drumph? What a missed opportunity.
weasel
@schrodingers_cat: Best thing I can think of about Pence is Marlon Bundo (bet one of their children named him!) See also John Oliver’s great childrens’ book…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Day_in_the_Life_of_Marlon_Bundo
ETA, credit where due author is really Jill Twiss. Just promoted by Oliver on his show
Ruckus
@Aleta:
mismanagement of their care. Yeah that’s the not good part for sure, what I’m saying is I’m not sure how to fix that.
A dog will only have a very few years of active duty and then quite possibly can not be retrained to work with another handler or competent enough at the job to stay on duty.
Josie
@Betty Cracker:
I just saw where the pool reporter states that Conan is indeed a good girl.
https://politicalwire.com/2019/11/25/trump-thinks-dog-in-raid-was-male/
Hoodie
@Ruckus: I have an acquaintance that trained dogs for the Marine Corps. In his free time, he rehabilitated dogs that were traumatized in Iraq. Some of them were in such bad shape, he could only walk them at night when there was less likelihood of an encounter that could set them off. After seeing them, Conan looks pretty mellow for a guy who was around a lot of action. BTW, Trump is obviously terrified of dogs.
Mohagan
@Ruckus: IIRC there was a law passed recently to allow retired military dogs to be adopted by their former handlers. Forget what level the law (state/Federal?), but a step towards rights for animals (recognizing them as beings). Formerly they were sold as surplus or destroyed, believe it or not.
Ruckus
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
I understand this is not uncommon, that different languages are used to keep one person, one voice as the operator of the killing machine.
I said it that way in particular, because that is what they are trained for. That’s what people in the army and especially the marines are trained for, killing. In the navy and air force most of the people are there to operate/maintain/repair the equipment.
Aleta
@Ruckus: The stories I read were worse than the way caged zoo animals or, say, rescued tigers are kept. Not only confined, but in the charge of indifferent people who don’t exercise (or sometimes even feed) them. Kept in the dark, etc
I don’t know how widespread that is. Only that former military handlers are upset.
Robert Sneddon
@Ruckus: Guard dogs in the British military are assigned handlers as needed rather than being one-man dogs — if their regular handler is not available the dog may well be deployed with another handler.
There’s a gloriously irreverent biography of a British dog handler nicknamed Auld Sapper who worked mostly with search dogs, the Wagtails but he also spent some time with the Snappers, the guard dogs. You can find the tale on ARRSE, the British Army’s Rumour Service. His time spent working at Long Kesh prison in Ireland was mostly with one dog but he had to work with a pool dog before he left.
The pool dogs had their own ‘ward’ in the canine looney bin that was the Maze kennels and you could tell their history by how many little red ‘handler with a cross through’ tallys they had painted on the kennel. The one with the most tallys was Khan which is arabic for ‘Flesh rendering, bone crunching, blood supping, bringer of death’. The big, mad, hairy, people eating f*cker had only ever had one handler, an even bigger, even madder, much hairier, people eating Royal Hampshire f*cker who’d been RTU’d for biting some handbags from HQNI in Kesh disco. Khan would lurk in the bed box at the back of the kennel and if he even suspected that someone was near he’d come charging out and literally throw himself against the fence and go into such a frenzy of barking and aggression he’s make himself puke. Stone mad. They even had his feed bowl on a chain so’s they could feed and water him and if the Vet needed to see him they had to put knock out drugs in his grub ! Why they didn’t just shoot the poor f*cker I’ll never know.
‘That’ll be your dog ’til you leave Jock’ says the Sec Cmdr, indicating Khan who was hanging from the ceiling and bending the wires of the cage apart with his teeth.
‘You ARE f*cking joking right !?!’ I says as Khan slams against the fence and covers me in flecks of frothy spittle. ‘Yeah, just kidding, yours is down here, he he !’ Sphincter relaxes.
Joe Falco
Remember the clip of the bald eagle in Trump’s office and how he cowered away from it? The eagle knew. Either that or it confused the thing on Trump’s head with something the eagle hunted before.
NotMax
“Make sure you get the bitch in the shot. And the dog too.”
//
Mary G
Jeffro
@lgerard: score! Needs a Purell dispenser as part of the setup
Ruckus
@Mohagan:
I actually knew that. The training is so extreme and individualized that retraining is very difficult. Notice that not anyone can end up with them as pets, only the original trainers, because they require continuous retraining and familiarity with the same trainer. And not all dogs can be retrained. I imagine they can get PTSD, just like we can. Many service people who have seen combat really never are able to do much else afterwards the mental and physical damage is too severe.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Joe Falco:
Or possibly it’s nest.
Aleta
Hunter Walker
Worth noting that, in his appearance with Conan, Trump jokes about siccing the dog on @jeffmason1, a great reporter who asked tough questions at a recent press conference
Sara Cook
POTUS makes a few jokes threatening reporters with Conan: “If you open your mouths you will be attacked. You ought to be very, very careful.”
“You’re very lucky he’s not in a bad mood today…You’re safe.”
For his part, Conan was all smiles throughout.
Correction: For **her** part. Confirmed that Conan the hero dog is a female!
Steve Herman
Update from pooler@hunterwwho says @WhiteHouseconfirms #Conanis female.
@POTUS used male pronouns to identify the dog during today’s event.
“Your pooler retracts the earlier comment that Conan was a very good boy. Conan is apparently a very good girl. Good girl Conan. “
RSA
@Mohagan: Are you remembering Texas police dogs?
Also, unrelated weird thing, but Trump twice refers to Conan as “it”, which I think is unusual for native English speakers who know the sex of a dog.
Jeffro
Saw a good note today: what the Republicans benefitted from in 2016 and are trying to cover up even today is “Outsourced Watergate”
Ruckus
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
Eagles have much more couth than to live in anything like that. Their nests are majestic, not a shitty collection of scraps from what is left over after the other birds are done building their nests. There may even be an eagle’s Home Depot for their nests……..//
Sister Golden Bear
@dmsilev:
They didn’t stay at a Trump hotel, so they’re doomed.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Ruckus:
Not sure about that.
Jay
A bit too much mythology and disinformation in this thread, so:
https://www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com/working-dogs/military-dogs-when-they-retire/
https://www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com/working-dogs/what-to-know-before-adopting-a-former-police-military-dog/
Friends with kids have 3 retired RCAF rottie security dogs. Their job now, which they are excellent at, is to guard the couch, hoard the scooches and kisses, and teach the kids how to do zoomies.
Kay
The photo makes me laugh. Why can’t the compose a normal photo? Why are they all so far apart from one another? Melania looks like she wandered into the frame and found a dog on her porch. Being photographed is basically the Trump Family business yet they’re still so bad at it.
Kay
Also, would someone tell Donald Trump that you don’t stand right in front of someone else? Does he even know Pence is behind him? How they got so old without ordinary social cues operating is baffling.
Roger Moore
@Ruckus:
FWIW, birds don’t really live in their nests the same way humans live in our houses. They lay their eggs in nests and raise their chicks there until they can get about on their own, but once the young can leave the nest the family doesn’t stay there anymore.
Roger Moore
@Kay:
You can tell him as many times as you like, but getting Donald Trump to consider people around him is doomed to failure.
The Moar You Know
Dog likes Pence, and Pence seems to know how to approach a dog.
Dog won’t get near Trump and that tells me more about the guy than I ever wanted to know.
RandomMonster
I agree with the theory that Trump isn’t interacting with the dog because he’s terrified of it. I also think there might be something to the theory that he’s not moving a lot overall because of medical reasons.
Another Scott
@Kay: I had a similar reaction on first seeing it.
But of course we know the reason why – he hates her, and she hates him. (Remember all their public/not-public battles early in 2017.) She’s only there because there would be louder questions about their relationship if she wasn’t.
Cheers,
Scott.
The Moar You Know
@Ruckus: They’re not good. They’re remarkable. Acquired our dog “Calley” (yes, after the lieutenant) from my mom’s boyfriend, who had to leave her behind when he got deployed out to Okinawa. He was a military psychiatrist on the locked mental ward (think about what kind of scary-ass job that must have been) who had to carry a gun and the dog as part of the job. And had to use them both more than once.
Calley was simply lovely. Adopted right away to the situation. Smart as hell, disciplined as hell, and all-around wonderful. And very loving. I used to put layers of towels on my arms and wrestle her. Even back then, I was twice her weight. She put me on the ground every time. She would not have hurt any of us for anything. But God help anyone who would have broken into our house.
You do need to be physically active and run the dog ragged (as is the case with any German Shepherd) otherwise they’ll go bonkers and destroy your furniture, but I’d take another military K9 in a heartbeat
ETA: they are also trained to switch handlers. Not a big deal.
Yutsano
@Another Scott: Look at how long it took for her to move to the White House in the first place. Their relationship was transactional from the start. She’s only staying until he’s out and the divorce papers will go flying.
Ksmiami
@brettvk: I think he’s been having TIAs (mini-strokes) which certainly fit his lifestyle- to me the deterioration even from his Apprentice days is very prominent and obvious but most of his supporters are slack-jawed morons so they don’t care
Miss Bianca
@The Moar You Know: One of the winners in our 10-Minute play competition this year was “Thank You for Your Service”, about a veteran who comes to the house of the person who adopted his bomb-sniffing dog. The dog’s name was Kelly, not that far off from Callie, and definitely had all the best lines!
Jay
@The Moar You Know:
yup, double yup.
a cornerstone of any working dogs training is the difference between work and life. When they are not working, they are just dogs.
people could learn from this.
opiejeanne
@Yutsano: Or she hides his medicines so he has a massive stroke and then steps on his oxygen hose.
Sab
I saw some pictures of her (that being Conan the dog) with better resolution. Undercarriage definitely a girl. What a gorgeous high energy girl. Is she a german shepherd or a malinois? After my moose of a shepherd girl she seems smallish.
Did Pence rub his hand in tuna oil? She does seem to like him. I love the way she keeps checking over her shoulder to check with her handler to be sure it’s okay to like Pence.
Yutsano
@Sab: The black ears highly suggest she’s a Belgian Malinois. Wiki confirms that. She’s definitely a gorgeous girl.
Sab
@The Moar You Know: Police dogs are pretty much good as pets. Normally they live at home and retire to permanent home life, and the replacement dog in the same family gets to work. I expect war dogs have very much higher PTSD rate.
A lot of seeing eye dogs stress out pretty early. German shepherds seem to be tougher (or different) psychologically than golden retrievers and labs.
I used to work my shepherd out in a dog park in Las Vegas next to where the police did their canine training. Alsmost every week one of the cops wanted to adopt or buy my nutso ( high play drive) girl. Best dog ever. She desperately wanted to schutzhund bite work. I never let her.
Ruckus
@Jay:
I understand that the US and Canadian forces train differently and use their dogs differently.
And that will make a difference to them being homed after their retirement.
Ruckus
@Roger Moore:
You and Bill miss the snark tags at the end?
Ruckus
@The Moar You Know:
I was a daily walk in/out patient in a locked mental ward in a navy hospital for 2 months almost 50 yrs ago. I understand how they work and how they didn’t work then. Time have changed. PTSD is recognized and treatment is available now, they didn’t even have a name for it then. Having to be let into the outer lock area and then inside the ward and back out later. 2 of us did that every day. Good times.
I’d bet that not all the dogs are as capable as yours of being homed.
Jay
@Ruckus:
the only difference between Canadian Military Dogs and US Military Dogs is we started returning, retiring and rehoming our dogs during WWI, even the ones that had been gassed.
WaterGirl
rikyrah, i found your Black Thanksgiving comment in Spam. I am about to release it.
edit: i see it landed at comment #48.
Sab
@Sab: She would have loved being a police dog in Nevada, but she loved playing in snow in Ohio so much more.
gogiggs
@MJS: He thinks it hides how fat he is. That is also the reason for that weird forward leaning posture when he stands.