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This morning I was in tears, Guardian ran in front of a huge transport (18 wheeler) and luckily made it out alive with all limbs intact! I heard him scream when I was in bed (it was 5:30am). He was run over by the thing and basically rolled out from beneath the break and shook himself off!!! He had a few bumps and scrapes but generally acted as if nothing happened. My mom was out with him when he bolted across the street. He has done this numerous times with her (she refuses to do umbilical) and last week I said to her that one day he will get hit and die if she continues to not follow the program. She always says "well he never does it when cars are around, and if you keep on saying he will get hit". She thinks that by bringing this FACT to attention I will make it come true. I totally flipped out on my mother as we were driving him to the vet. I was not even rational. Guardian is not with me tonight, but I do know he is alright.

None the less I am angry at my mom. I think I need to take Guardian and Mr.President (the cat) to live with me somewhere else because it certainly is not working with my mom. The training of Guardian and Mr.President she does not take seriously and it will one day costs them their lives if we are not on board together. Mr.President tears up furnishings, clothing and tries to bolt out the door whenever he can. I try to tell my mom no cat on furniture because I want him to be trained not to go there.

She also does not pay the bills that I ask her for help with. At 22 I am basically paying my mom's way through life while she sits at home and does nothing but complain. She knows what I do for a living and has the audacity to pass judgement on me when she knows very well that what I do supports our family.

Grrr... I am very angry!!!

Glad to hear Guardian will be OK. Your heart must have stopped when you heard him scream!

As for the situation with your mom, it must be frustrating, but good for you for at least trying to work things out for this long. I love my mom, but there's no way I could live with her again. Just do what is right for you and your family (you, Guardian, and Mr. President). Things will turn out alright in the end!

If you can afford to go on your own or get a roomie and move out then do it. Today was your worst nightmare realized and your mom still doesn't get it.

I'm really sorry and I am sooooooooo glad that he will be okay. You've made animal care your profession and you know what needs to happen but its never easy making those decisions when there is family involved. Good luck to you and let us know what happens.

Get well soon Guardian!!!!

Tough times GuardianPeggy.
Chin up and hang in there! Things will get better!

Oh man! Wow, that's scary. That is my WORST nightmare, i always worry about that. I've seen a dog get hit by a car and run out and shake himself off, but it makes me want to throw up to think about it. I'm glad to hear he's okay.
It's really hard to train the dog when others in your house aren't in support of the training. My mom-in-law took my lab for a walk, and she's scared to do umbilical too.. so was i at first.. but really, its safer if they're big, you have much more control.
I hope things work out for you. You might have to restrict your mom from taking your dog out, if she can't hold onto him. I would feel horrible if something happend to Nixon under someone else's watch. I just can't put anyone else at risk, for fear of something happening.. i've NEVER except that one time, let someone else take Nixon out.. only because we had a family emergency, and he had to go out.
I can't even trust the dog day cares to take him out.. he's just not well behaved enough, and too big to hold back.
REally, i'm glad to hear he's okay.
Not sure if you've got pet insurance, but we decided to get some, since our guy is an accident waiting to happen, we pay about $30 per month, and it would cover vet bills for something like that... think about it.. if you can...just incase. we're thru pet plan. we've had our money's worth already. he's only 3.
Anyway, good luck. Give that pup a huge hug when he gets home. : )

I'm so glad Guardian is going to be OK. I saw our dog Pippen get hit by a big truck and it tore up her leg pretty bad. It was by far the most terrifying thing I've ever experienced. I would definitely do everything you can to make sure Guardian stays safe, although it's awful that it seems to have caused a rift between you and your mom. I hope that whatever solution you find gives you some peace of mind.

Take care,

Shelley

Well i am leaving tomorrow. I found myself a little sublet on craigslist. I am done with my mother not treating all I do seriously. I am literally going to pull everything from beneath her, I will be contacting the landlord and getting out of the apartment I rent with her. Two weeks ago she promised me $600 for the bills and I have seen none of that. Today when she let Guardian get hit by a truck really made me mad. I do have pet plan insurance on him, however I am still stressed. On a budget of roughly $5,000 a month I should be able to afford things and not worry, but because I am supporting adults (including their smoking habits) every month I feel strapped. One person can only do so much. I work 2 jobs just to keep on top of things. I love my animals so I do make the extra effort to go the mile for them. Heck I bring Guardian to work everyday. I attend seminars around Toronto to expanded my knowledge on pets (including Brad's seminars) to help my business. Guardian has changed my life so drastically.

I live a healthy life- I work out, don't smoke and eat good. Yet my home is full of junk food, lazy people and packs of cigarettes. Thankfully they smoke outside, even in the winter. I studied at university and have a BA, but do not work in my field. I dog walk and do some modeling for alternative lifestyle websites (think BDSM and dominatrix). My life is pretty full and I am out most of the day. Peggy-Sue I miss a whole lot, she was the definition of a well trained dog. I want so much for Guardian to be like his older sister. Peggy Sue was great. She would have kicked his *** for running in front of a truck! My mother on the other hand was coddling Guardian.

Worst of all is my mother is considering getting another dog. I told her what Brad said at the seminar about puppies raising puppies, yet my mom thinks our family is the exception to this rule of Brad's. Grrr.... just what I need: another dog to look after!

I am glad you have found a place on such short notice. You should not have to support your mom and anyone else. $5000 a month is plenty for a single person to live on, so I can only imagine how much of it they are spending. I don't think I could handle having to support people who don't respect my choices when it comes to my animals. Although my mom thinks I am crazy for some of the thing I do for my pets, she supports me and doesn't complain too much. I am not supporting her financially and live under her roof, so I do have to live by a few rules that I would rather not (like not getting every dog and rabbit I see ) If it was your house, you should kick her out, or at least make her pay her share. But seeing as that is not going to happen, leaving is the best thing you can do for you and Guardian.

As for your mother wanting a puppy, she is the reason Brad has the rules. If she thinks she is above the rule, she will be her own downfall and will want you to fix her problems.

Good to know that Guardian will be OK.

I as well once saw a dog get run over by a car and till this day can still picture it in my head. Although he ran off after, I'll never know if he was really ok.
Glad you didn't see it!
SUPER glad Guardian is ok. Maybe he learned a lesson from this experience. Too bad your mom didn't.
Dogs DO remember, so maybe next time when he walks near the street he MAY be afraid. Be prepared for any new strange behaviour on his part.

Glad you're getting out on your own. Sounds like it'll be the best thing for everyone. Sometimes it takes a strong change/slap in the face, so to speak, to get someone to notice how their behaviour affects others.
Your parents will miss you and your support I'm sure.
If by chance they do get a dog DON'T take it personally or don't take on the responsability of that dog's training, etc as well !
It's like when most of us see a dog in the park, etc., that you KNOW would be better off with someone else, you can't save every dog.
Even if you did try to train your parent's dog, they wouldn't do the upkeep, so all your time and effort would be wasted.

Time to take care of yourself and your pets.
Oh- and trying to keep a cat off furniture, etc ? GOOD LUCK !

If there's one thing I've learned having a cat - even if he IS very well behaved like mine : Cats go WHERE they want.

I am so glad to hear that Guardian is ok. You on the other hand sound so stressed, I want to come over to your house and kick butt (not yours! LOL) Just wait thought, in a couple of weeks, things will settle down, you'll move in to your own place, be able to have a better level of control and voila ... life will get so much better ...

Congrats on taking the BIG MOVE because it is a big one ... but you'll be so much happier and your pets will love the structure of discipline, exercise and affection and no confusion of the rules!

As for your kitty ... LOL my cat's not supposed to go on the counter top in the kitchen ... he KNOWS it ... but where is he every night when I come home from work? On the counter top looking out the window waiting for me to come home ... as soon as I make eye contact ... he jumps down and greets me at the front door!

Take deep breaths, and you'll breathe much easier soon!

Marion