dancinbcs

I would never have really believed that dogs suffered mental illnesses like humans until I saw a friend's bitch go through post natal depression after a caesar and further complications. Most bizarre thing I have ever seen. The dog was so severely depressed that I hardly recognised her. The owner was very doubtful about the vet prescribing Prozac, but it worked wonders and she was back to to old self after a few months treatment and never had any further problems. I have seen dogs depressed for a while after losing an owner or a doggy housemate, but never anything like the level of depression this bitch suffered from. So while I think too many dogs are prescribed drugs as a quick fix, where training/behaviour management would have worked, there are rare cases that do require medication.

Why would you harness a dog in a wagon ? In a wagon they just go behind the cargo barrier or in a crate. No need for a harness at all. I don't like harnesses for babies because the only puppy I have ever bred that got carsick was one that was put straight into a harness. I started borrowing her to take to shows and she was fine in my wagon, so I suggested that owners try her for a few months without the harness and she instantly stopped getting carsick. After a few months they re-inroduced the harness with no problem. If there is any way possible to put a crate into your back seat, do so for this long trip home, even if it means buying a smaller plastic airline crate and selling it once the puppy grows out of it. It will be a much more pleasant trip for everyone.

I have always fed all my dogs together and have a rule that no one is allowed near another dog or their bowl until they are finished and I give the ok. The bowls are always put down in the same place and in the same order from most dominant to most submissive dog at the time. I have even had dogs that I couldn't run together, always eat together. With bones the same rules apply. I stay and supervise and never allow one dog to take another's bone. I have done this with 4 or 5 dogs/bitches (all entire) at a time over the years. The only exception was my first BC who didn't get bones until later in life, when I learnt about better ways to feed. Because he wasn't used to having them he had a complete change of personality with a raw bone and turned into a resource guarder, so he was always put in a run away from the others so everyone, including him, could relax and eat. I even had to freeze his bones to try to slow him down and stop him gulping them down in chunks but I could always remove a bone from him by first telling him to "leave it". With the two I have left now that are mother and son, I can leave them to eat bones so long as I am sure the son will finish first. He wouldn't dream of trying to take anything from his mum, but if she finishes first I have to watch and keep her from harrasing him to let him finish. She knows I will not allow her to take his food but she will push the rules if given a chance.

What are they like in the car now ? My puppies never get carsick after the first ride and I make sure they have lots of car trips before leaving to get them used to it. If you can drive them around without them being sick then they should be fine to feed when they arrive. I hope you also mean that you won't feed them just the night before, not the whole day before they leave. That would be way too long for babies to go without food.

Another recmmendation for the Barnsleys. I have taken my dogs there for over 20 years and all my friends use them as well.

All the above plus from 6 weeks, lead (heel) training and basic obedience commands of watch, come, stand, sit, drop, wait and just for fun and because the new owners love it, "shake hands". Also start toilet traing by giving them access to grass as soon as they wake and after each meal.

Be aware that a strong dog can actually just barge through a colourbond fence and pop the panels. Sometimes a sturdy new paling fence is a better option. Also make sure the staffy cannot dig under the fence. As a Pet Educator I had to help an 8 year old overcome his dog fear last week after the neighbours staffy dug into their yard and bit the boy on the arm and the leg, a couple of weeks before. This family were on acreage so have an even tougher task keeping the staffy out.

Yep, I get that all the time too TS, "I just think little girls are cleaner than boys" "I don't like how boys cock their leg on everything & hump everything in sight" or "boys escape more & roam the streets" Personally if I was just after a pet, I would much rather a boy as I think they are more cuddly & affectionate than bitches...and I usually try & explain this to people, but most people have their heart set on a girl & its usually impossible to change their mind. I always had many more enquiries for girls but never had any trouble convincing them that in my breed, a boy would be a better choice for a pet in most circumstances. My males have always been much faster to house train and to train in every other aspect. They are also more devoted and affectionate than the independant girls. Also once the puppy buyers meet my charming males they are easily sold on the idea of a boy. Having said all that though I would be reluctant to take on a small terrier or some toy breed males. I have just heard so many horror stories and seen so many dogs at shows that seem to think it is ok to lift their leg everywhere, that it would make me wary. So many of small terriers seem to pee on everything they pass (including other people's chairs, cabanas, crates, etc) and even lift their legs while crated at shows that it really turns me off them. Must say though I have never seen an owner reprimand them for it so maybe it is the owners fault. I would throttle my dogs if they peed through their crates onto another dog or on other people's gear at shows but it seems to be common with the small terriers.

Can you tell us why 9 weeks after a season???? The ligaments holding the hips in, slacken off as the prog levels drop and whelping time approaches. This happens whether the bitch is pregnant or not.

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I have been on the hereditary diseases sub-committee of the BCC of NSW for about 25 years, was one of the team that organised the research that led to the development of the CL test and I have never heard of any hereditary condition that could cause those symptoms at that age. It could be an infection or tumour in the brain. I do know of a dog that had a tumour started by a infection, after he inhaled mould spores. Exposure to toxins can also affect the brain as well. The other possibility I didn't think of was that mentioned by some others on here. Could your house be haunted ? Dogs and horses pick up on supernatural energy long before humans do and can be very spooked by it. CL can appear as early as 12 months according to some information and the vet is preferring to contact OptiGen just to try and verify some info re Jed's parentage on the Sire's side. As far as any "paranormal" activity...it would have to be related directly to me as all his energy and responses are directed straight at me for the entire time...It is like Jed is saying "who the hell are you?"...."I recognize the house, the cats, the kids but you I have never seen before..get out!!". Perhaps I am possessed Wow...perhaps I need: A vet A geneticist A behaviouralist An exorcist Ok, was just clutching at straws because I know of several incidences of dogs and horses going nuts in places that are supposed to haunted. That is really bizarre if the behaviour is directed at you. With CL they don't seem to even acknowledge that there is a person there and react to nothing at all. There is no point in contacting Optigen because they don't have the CL info for Australian dogs. The test was developed here at the Uni of NSW and all the data is stored there. Optigen are just licenced to do the test in Nth America. 15 months is about the earliest that I have ever heard of CL symptoms, but if Jed's dam is CL normal by testing, he cannot possibly be affected by it, no matter who his father is and what his DNA status is. If you want more info on CL you need to contact Prof Alan Wilton at the School of Biochemistry, Uni of NSW. Edited to add - CL in other breeds like English Setters, can occur earlier but it is a different form of CL to the one in Border Collies.

I have been on the hereditary diseases sub-committee of the BCC of NSW for about 25 years, was one of the team that organised the research that led to the development of the CL test and I have never heard of any hereditary condition that could cause those symptoms at that age. It could be an infection or tumour in the brain. I do know of a dog that had a tumour started by a infection, after he inhaled mould spores. Exposure to toxins can also affect the brain as well. The other possibility I didn't think of was that mentioned by some others on here. Could your house be haunted ? Dogs and horses pick up on supernatural energy long before humans do and can be very spooked by it.

Herding breeds all like to grab moving human feet if you let them. I discourage it from about 4 weeks the same as their mother would. I grab them lightly by the scruff and growl. Immediately they let go I praise with a soothing tone of voice. It usually only takes a few times before they catch on that it is simply not allowed and none of my puppies are grabbing feet by the time they leave me. It is a very dangerous thing for them to do as they can easily trip someone and then have the person fall on them, so it is one thing I never let them get away with.

Ok, it won't be CL because he is too young for symptoms and he only needs one parent to be clear to not be affected, so you can rule that out. Is there anything in the room where he starts that could look a strange shape to him when the lights go out, or a street light shines in ? He is at the age where they sometimes go through a stage of seeing scary monsters that are not really there. Most of mine at that age have become worried by a family crest we have on the wall. With the lights out and just the dim light from the streetlight it does look a bit like a face. Despite it being there all their lives my puppies have nearly all barked at it in terror at some stage until I take it off the wall and show it to them. After several nights of showing there is nothing to worry about they ignore it again. I have also had them become scared of walking past letter boxes and garbage tins for a few weeks before getting over it. No idea why it happens but I call the scary monster stage. Laughing at them and making a point of touching whatever they are scared of seems to get them over it in a few weeks. If you cannot find anything he might be reacting to, then a vet check would definitely be a good idea. I had one with brain damage from meningitis that used to want to go out at the same time every night and bark at the same spot on the back fence. In hindsight though, it was one of several odd things he was doing.

I can only think of two things that might be causing the bizarre behaviour. 1. He can hear something that you can't and he is worried about it. No idea though why he would stop when you put him outside. 2. He has a neurological problem of some sort. I would get a vet check and ask for a referal to a neuro specialist. How old is he and where his parents clear for CL ? I would also get a crate or puppy pen for him and stop tethering him. A tethered dog feels vulnerable, a crated dog feels safe. Also I never ever advise tethering Borders because quite a few manage to hang themselves. I never even leave collars on mine because it is a very real danger with them.

Also consider putting a t-shirt or thunder shirt on him when you go out to try to keep him calm. I would be looking for welded mesh at least 5mm in diameter, not the light weldmesh they make trolleys out of.

You can also put your prefix in dual names, lease the bitch under your prefix, then reverse it all later if you want to. That would put the litter under your prefix and still have the other owner as co-breeder. I have done this a couple of times with no hassle. The one thing you cannot do is put your prefix as part of the puppy's name if the litter is bred under another prefix.

The only thing that will hold a dog like that is weldmesh steel. As it is impossible for him to chew it and do any damage I doubt he would be injured trying to get out of it. Unfortunately all welded steel is expensive.

A proper Mazda cargo barrier, a custom made one with a door at the back as well or a crate will all work. He does not need to wear a harness then.

If the puppy won't suckle and the bitch doesn't want it then there is most likely something wrong with it. After a natural delivery, bitches usually only reject puppies they know are not going to make it. Under the circumstances I think I would just have the puppy pts. Hand feeding and raising a struggling puppy is a full time, round the clock job, and then they can still die at a few days or a few weeks. If it was a very valuable puppy then it might be worth trying to raise it but most of the time a puppy rejected by the mother, doesn't make it regardless of what you do.

All companion dog training should start as if they are going to be trialling in case the owner then decides they want to trial the dog. If you haven't trialled you won't know what is required. Once a trainer has put titles on a dog/dogs and proven themselves they don't have to keep trialling. If a dog is trained with trialling in mind and they don't trial, it doesn't matter. But if an owner decides after basic training that they want to trial and the dog hasn't been started the right way then there is a lot of work involved in re-training with someone else. You should always go to a trainer with proven experience in the type of training you want to do. So if you are training purely for a well mannered companion, someone experienced in obedience trials is a better bet than a trainer that specialises in protection or gundog work, for example. If you want a top agility dog then you need to go to someone that has succeeded in the agility ring.

Unfortunately Animal Network/GTG are the only lab licenced to do CEA testing in Australia. The contract they have with Optigen even prevents us sending samples from Australain dogs, straight to Optigen.

Make sure you are at the Domestic Terminal, not the International one. They are in two different places.

I hope it works out for you this time but I think I would have cut my losses and tried a vet that knows what they are doing. It takes years of practice to get hip x-rays consistenty in the right position and only a few vets do enough to get it right. At the practice we go to there is only one vet among the 10 or so that work there that will do hip x-rays and in most dogs he can get them right without a ga. It is not just something any vet can do and get it right. That x-ray isn't even close to correct. With the dog under ga the legs should be rotated until the patellas are centrally placed at the stifle joint, apart from the fact the pelvis is obviously tilted.