answer time...

erin...you guys do such an incredibly great job at everything..i have nothing more to ask for. re:poop. it is illegal to put animal waste in the landfills...so we have a waste disposal company that comes to empty our poop buckets into a special septic system once a week (we need to ensure there are no rocks or sticks or other foreign matter as it screws up the companies septic system.)

lynne...re:buddy...nothing happened, he never came back plus i am pretty sure his dogs are outside when they are not home..this would not have been great for buddy cuz he is so old.

sharon...daisy-two's story. she came in from chilliwack animal ccontrol as an unclaimed stray. she had mammary tumours, dental disease and bladder stones plus she has degenerative spinal disease. she looks like a sweetie but really she is a bit of a hag..likes to pick on the little dogs when she is in a bad mood.

nancy: re: blind, senior, female aggressive yorkie. could be for a lot of reasons..maybe because of the past female attack he now distrusts females more as his blindness has increased? blind dogs are funny about their blindness...once they decide something is a threat to them..they never forget. it probably has more to do with his past experience and blindness then it does with his getting old.
can you re-train him? probably not...i wwould just pick him up whenever a female comes along.
re: breed guesses for hilda and nicky...hilda for sure has schnauzer in her...and since you pointed it out..nicky looks like he might have some in him too! good eye!

laura..our emergency plan is simple...call 911 and get any animals and people to safety. there are fire extinguishers in every building..it would be a good idea for everyone to be well aware of where they are so in an emergency they know where to grab them.

curt:..ok..i am not so bright tonight..i don't understand the question!

cheryl and steph...Re: your old guy with degenerative spinal disease. usually the disease itself is not actually painful..mostly things just go numb..BUT usually they have arthritis also and that can be painful..plus if getting up and down is stiff and slow and/or if they slip and fall..they probably hurt themselves secondary to the spinal disease fairly often simply due to their progessive weakness. i always do the following with these dogs routinely...cartrophen injections, metacam(NSAIDS), tramadol for good pain control and amitriptyline for both neuropathic pain AND to decrease anxiety because dogs with poor mobility and pain do not sleep well and are therefore seratonin deficient (which leads to more pain and more anxiety) and they feel vulnerable due to poor mobility which also increases their anxiety levels. generally their mobility levels increase with this med combo...but only for awhile.

barbara d...re: senior cat intro's...complex question. depends on the personalities of the cats...they may or may not ever get along...just like any cat. i keep all new cats seperate in cages or pens until they are eating, drinking, purring and asking to come out..then i open their doors and wait for them to come out. the pen or the cage stays open so they can go in or out as they need. in a family home, you can do the same thing except using a spare bedroom. 95% of our cats figure it out and blend in with the crowd...3% are grumpy pain in the asses and 2% never make the adjustment and have to live in quieter and more suitable to their sensitive needs areas.

lory...re: possible pain with your 16 yr old westie..could be pain related. my feeling is... getting into the extreme senior years is generally physically uncomfortable. i would probably try him on a good and thorough pain management program (see my answer to steph and cheryl!) for a few weeks and see if he improves significantly. if he does, then you know it was pain affecting his quality of life..if he doesn't then it might be something more serious.

bunny: lol...no sumo wrestling suits are needed... with the big barn guys, rough housing, while fun...encourages them to not be gentle and careful with humans..we need our big guys to be careful with us...humans are not toys.

there! i think i got you all!!!