Sandra777

I always have a little laugh when people say they use foam in the whelping box - I wish! No bitch I've ever had would allow a challenge like that to go untaken, a foam matress would be history in a very short time For the first few weeks I would cover the floor of the whole box with dry bed, once the pups are more mobile I make 1/2 the box bed and the other 1/2 newspaper and they quickly learn to move on to the newspaper to pee.

No problem with this scenario at all - and yes I would guess dual registered dogs have been registered with the ANKC, no reason why the couldn't be. I guess it begs the question - which breed are these specific dogs seen as by their owners (eg why did their owners buy these specific dogs?) but I would be surprised if they considered them APBT's as they come from Amstaff bloodlines (have to if they're AKC registered Amstaffs) not APBT lines. Probably not good for either breed but certainly easier on the brain now the cross registration has been stopped

I just find this so very very sad. Badly raised puppy sold to an unprepared person with no help or advice given. Kate - good on you for trying to find the information you need, sounds like you want to be the best dog owner you can be despite starting in the wrong place! Wish more people cared enough to go looking for help

You'll get on better on this forum if you drop the english - the breeds are Staffordshire Bull Terrier (Stafford, SBT, Staffie/Staffy if you really have to) and American Staffordshire Terrier (Amstaff) Using ''english staffie'' is a hallmark of a BYB, which is not your fault but now you know better Staffords are really bad at being outside dogs, shame you didn't do some research before you committed to a breed which desperately needs the close companionship of it's people. Unless you are really dedicated to several hours of exercise and training every single day of the year, an adult Stafford kept outside will generally speaking destroy your yard, eat the cladding off the house or jump the fence to go find somewhere better to live. A Stafford puppy raised outside will almost certainly grow in to an over excited jumping lunatic. WHY do you want her to be an outside dog? Is there a reason you can't crate train her for now and when she's older allow her access to the house where YOU are (afterall, realistically how much time do you spend in the laundry - maybe a fair bit as you have a baby ) with rules about no dog on the furniture, no dog in the kitchen, whatever rules you want (all these rules are perfectly achievable) What was on the diet sheet the breeder gave you? Feed her what she is used to for AT LEAST 10 days after you have her home. She doesn't need sloppy gravy and weetbix - give her either a high quality dry food OR a mixture of dry food and raw MEATY bones OR investigate the raw food diet (takes time, don't recommend you start it yet). She doesn't need anything soaked or mushed up for her - she has efficient teeth and will love to chew! My puppies at this age get the following: From 8 to 10 weeks: Morning mid day and evening – Choose from (and rotate during the week) A big chicken wing (or 2 small ones) 3-4 chicken necks & a small handful of meat 1 small chicken drumstick or thigh A meaty lamb rib (the sort sold as lamb spare ribs in the supermarket) Any other meaty bone - brisket bone cut to an appropriate size for example or pork bones with plenty of meat. NOT bacon/ham bones (too much salt/chemicals) Once or twice a week - ½ a sheep’s heart Once a week a piece of sheep or beef liver about ½ the size of a sheep’s heart A chicken carcase (as sold for soup in the supermarket) Once or twice a week give him a slice of plain cheese in addition to whatever else you have chosen. Give pup a large biscuit if you haven’t given him a bone. Late evening – either about ½ a cup of milk with a small amount of canned food, dinner left-overs, mince meat etc OR a small slice of cheese. Milk might make a midnight puddle a problem, the meal here depends on personal preference. I don't necessarily recommend this to you personally but just giving you an example of the lack of sloppy stuff an 8 week old SBT needs. Can't agree about it being a breed thing - she is a tiny little baby which has been separated from her siblings and locked up in solitary confinement. Not that surprised she's not happy. Does she have a snuggly toy in her bed - this would be the very least you could do to try and make up for the loss of her siblings. Sorry if I sound harsh, but this is a tiny little baby you have taken on - think back to when you brought YOUR baby home - how much gentle love and attention and constant supervision did the baby need to grow into a happy secure little person?

Go to a boat place and buy xxx metres of a soft natural fibre rope and make your own chews. Tyres without wire (so bike or go cart). Big branches. Palm fronds (especially good if you can pull your own down say my guys!). 2 litre plastic bottles. 50c buckets - take off the handle that makes a cool toy all on it's own - or plastic flower pots. Wouldn't waste my time with kongs, the extra heavy duty indestructable black one lasted 10 minutes with a 7 month old puppy. The Aussie Balls I think they are make a ''staffy ball'' which is much loved by zoo lions and tigers - but I'm not sure they're ideal as the dogs can get very wound up chasing them which can mean trouble and some take most of the skin off their noses pushing it around (others ignore them completely!)

Lucky you - these are expensive but my dogs love them and they actually last more than three seconds Last time we lived next to a bunch of ball wielding kids they only had those soft tennis ball look alikes, didn't last the dogs very long at all Lilysmum - doesn't matter which kids belong where, if the kids are at this house speak to the adult of that house - let him sort it out.

She should be fine. Just make sure she has fresh water and don't feed her for a few hours. They all seem to do it - who knows why!

I buy the kibble instead of the treats - works out much cheaper and lasts a while for show bait. Similar consistency to the treats so easy to pull in to small pieces. Don't like dried liver in hot conditions and can't be arsed making liver cake myself most of the time! As a food - can't really help you but I use the cans for travelling and to give pups a taste of something different.

The CCCQ accredited breeder programme is a total joke. Any puppy farmer can become an accredited breeder and I know of at least one who IS.

I wouldn't rock the boat myself - he's chipped as an Amstaff, leave well alone Wait until he's full grown - dogs can go through some really weird stages as teenagers! His height alone means nothing, as someone else said, a huge proportion of the Amstaffs I see at shows are grossly over the standard height, so BYB ones could well be more likely to be too big and he could be a quick grower so full height already. Buying an unregistered Amstaff when you live in Qld perhaps wasn't the best move, please take care!

Selling APBTs with ANKC papers which say they're Amstaffs is definitely false and definitely does make it false pretenses. Selling any dog with papers that don't actually relate to that dog is false - it's not a matter of are the breeds interchangable, that's a whole different argument :D

It was until recently within the rules to register an AKC Amstaff with the UKC as an APBT. Except for a brief period in the '60's (70's?) it has not been within the rules to register a UKC APBT with the AKC as an Amstaff. When the UKC APBTs were accepted by the AKC in the '60's ('70's?) it was done openly and with the AKC's blessing for a specific reason - not through switching and ducking with puppies to deceive buyers.

Poor toddler, poor dog dumb dumb dumb dumb parents.

With Staffs people register the pieds as "white, red"; "white, brindle" etc. Stooopid but true

Oh good - wholesale paper hanging (FRAUD) would have saved the breed. Nope, IMO this would have taken the Amstaff out as well. What IMO should have happened was the original importers should have been less money hungry and more interested in the actual welfare of the breed and stopped the breed falling into the hands of f-wit owners who weren't fit to own a pet rock let alone a powerful intelligent eager to please breed. And perhaps a little more care in the source of the original imports wouldn't have gone astray?

All 32 years of my show dog experience is ;) :D :D

Sorry I cannnot understand the logic of this argument. Surely judging progeny is a more logical way of judging the worth of breeding stock? If this is so, then whether the progeny can be bred or not is irrelevant, we are using the progeny to judge the worth of the parents. No, I don't think wholesale desexing of show dogs would be useful, but I cannot understand the argument which says that just because an animal is desexed it is no longer a worthy representative of what it's parents can produce - i.e. no longer useful in the evaluating of the BREEDING worth of the parents

Chicken wings, chicken carcases, lamb ribs, brisket bone. Chicken necks would be useless for a pup of his size IMO. BUT!!!!!!!!!!!! If he hasn't been getting bones at the breeders don't give him anything other than what is on their diet sheet for at least 7-10 days after he arrives so he has time to settle in to his new home first, then start with very small and infrequent bones to get his stomach used to it. Actually if he's never had bone before I would start with a small amount of mince carcase to see how he goes first.

I'd wait for the council to contact you, but certainly document everything in case they do. And give younger sister a slappin' for being so stooopid - but really, ask her what she thinks would have happened if these people had been walking on the other side of the road and a car had been coming - or enquire if she intends to leave the front door open when your baby is walking age ;)

Registering APBT in Australia is illegal, as breeding the dogs is illegal. Except - presumably? in states where it's not illegal

If she's still happy to follow you around, is eating and can get outside when she needs to then it really is a matter of when you feel ready to let her go. There is no reason she should have to go for walks or play - she's an old lady so why would she want to! If it comes the time that she no longer tries to be with you, no longer eats and is incontinent then you need to consider what is best for her. (Some people will cope with an incontinent dog, some won't, this is entirely a personal issue as long as it's not affecting the dog's health) You do know when the time has come - I believe this very strongly. All of my oldies which I have had to help to the bridge have quite clearly indicated when life is no longer enjoyable for them. And IMO that's what it's all about at that age. No they don't comprehend death as we do but they have clearly shown me they are no longer happy to be with me so it's time for me to make the decision to let them go. Hard decision and one you can only make for yourself or you will always wonder if you did the right thing.

Yes SBT are great with kids BUT as with all dogs you must instil rules and manners in both puppy and children. I don't think there are many breeds of dog which are not OK with kids and friends with young kids so long as a) the dog is used to kids and b) the kids behave properly. Staffords don't have the tendency to guard their property so kids coming in to play without an escort from the gate so to speak won't be in any danger. They can have the tendency to protect their people (and their children in particular) from a genuine threat, but it woul dbe pretty unlikely that welcome visitors, be they children or adults, would get into that sort of argument with the dog's people! There is no such thing as a breed which is invariably great with kids but yes a properly bred Stafford should have the tolerance to accept many things some other breeds can't, due to their physical and mental robustness. Whatever you do make sure you buy from a proper reputable breeder!

OK - that's not how I read your original statement but would work if both buyer and seller understood what was going on. (note: did not say it was right, just said it would work)

Be a bit hard selling someone an APBT with papers when, if they read the papers it says Amstaff There are a number of APBT registries (legit ones) in the USA - and they will register dogs bred outside the USA so yes it is perfectly possible to register APBT's with a legit registry - and just as easy to make your own papers which truthfully show the dogs ancestry. It doesn't require an organisation to keep track of breeding stock. Imports - wouldn't really fancy your chances of getting juvenile/adult APBT's from the USA through quarantine, but US bloodlines from NZ, really not a big deal - can you tell the difference between an 8 week old APBT puppy and an 8 week old SBT puppy??? (Personally I think I could, but not many in AQIS would be able to when they couldn't identify my full grown bitch - a specialist BIS winner!)