Staffyluv

Here we are again, discussing the lack of understanding and education of a dog owner.. Sadly at the expense of a terrified young man and the poor neighbour, that thankfully thought quick enough to get his car. Maybe we should be pushing for some form of licensing to own a dog - whereby you sit a quick test, to see if you are competent to own an animal.. Then that would have to be policed.. Sad really isn't, most of these 'horror stories' are due to lack of understanding on the owners behalf..

Run an internal fence approx 70cm from the existing fence along the side where the kids are. Star droppers and mesh, you can also attach some 6ft bamboo screening to that if need be for height/privacy or to make it look nicer. The internal fence is too far from the existing fence for the kids to jump both at once and too high and flimsy for them to climb. Worked for us, cost about $10 per metre to set up. Also keeps your dogs away from the fence line and prevents fence fighting with neighboring dogs and/or digging under if your dogs are that way inclined. Not possible unfortunately, the chicken coop runs along that fence, so I can't actually get to the fence itself. They jump over from the corner, into my vege garden and then into the back yard to retrieve whatever has come over the fence. I often wonder if they do it deliberately - there are 10 feet tall olive trees that line the back of the their fence - you would thing they would catch anything flying through the air toward my yard.

Even a 10 year old? I think again we fall back to education - parents should be responsible for teaching their children NOT to approach unknown dogs and don't go into a yard with a dog in there. Don't pull animals tails, ears, stick things in the ears, eyes and bums.. At 10 years old, surely a child knows not to enter a yard with dogs in it - or am I expecting too much from a 10 year old these days. I know my boys at that age would not have entered someones yard uninvited, let alone one with loose dogs. It is a very sad situation for all involved. Would one have entered someone's yard uninvited looking for their brother who they were told was at that house? I can see why a child who is told their brother is at a specific house would feel that it was safe to enter when otherwise they may not. I wondered if the lad knew there were dogs in the yard to begin with - is it in his neighbourhood? Was his brother even there? If so, I wonder how his brother got into the house, via the yard without being attacked?? In my case with my boys, no - there is 7 years between my boys, so they never associated with the same friends etc. But I guess under those circumstances, I guess it is reasonable for a lad to go looking for his brother at the address.. Has anyone heard how the poor little guy is going? How his surgery went? I do hope he is OK. I am sure the physical scars will heal well - it would the be emotional scars from an attack like this that would be more serious for such a young mind.

That is true Jules, there would be a lot of people that would do the same thing - the whole 'can we ever trust them again' thing would scare some owners. I still think it is a terribly sad situation for all involved. I also still believe that at 10 years of age, a child can read and should know better than to enter a yard with dogs and a sign saying beware of the dogs. Parents should teach their kids these things. I hate the kids over the back coming over my fence but what else can I do - nothing. They are too young to be charged with anything (not that I would want to go down that track anyway). But they and their parents just won't listen when I tell them if they throw their toys in my yard, to come around the front and ask me to get it for them. Because Zig has never done anything to them, they think it is safe. It concerns me because I have foster dogs here from time to time and I worry that a foster might not be happy about them jumping in the yard - then it will be my fault that their kid gets bitten and I will more than likely be expected to euth the animal. It is a hard call but I really do believe that parents should teach kids and kids should know better.

How horrible, the poor guy. I hope he is OK. Quick thinking by the neighbour using his car to keep the dogs at bay. The owner says that the dogs had seen him for ages and only ever barked.. You have to wonder, why they decide to go further this one time..

Parents should teach their kids how to interact (or not) with all pets.. I remember my brother being bitten on the hand by a ACD when we were kids - he put his hand in the back of the ute, the dog was on, to pat it and it bit his hand. Not severely but enough to break skin. My father clipped my brother around the ear for being an idiot and he should have known better than to touch a dog on a car.. It is totally the other way around now - if a kid did that today, the dog would be more than likely be euth'd.. Not for one minute saying kids deserve being attacked, just that we don't seem to be imparting enough info to our kids today about what is and ins't appropriate around animals for them to stay safe.

Thanks SnT. I think the RC I bought yesterday was for large breed dogs as it had the supplements in it. It doesn't really matter, he has been having supplements for a long time now. The more I watch him the more I think it is his back - hopefully the chiro can work it out and help.

Even a 10 year old? I think again we fall back to education - parents should be responsible for teaching their children NOT to approach unknown dogs and don't go into a yard with a dog in there. Don't pull animals tails, ears, stick things in the ears, eyes and bums.. At 10 years old, surely a child knows not to enter a yard with dogs in it - or am I expecting too much from a 10 year old these days. I know my boys at that age would not have entered someones yard uninvited, let alone one with loose dogs. It is a very sad situation for all involved.

Thanks Jack,it would be good to see the dose for human stuff. I did buy the RHV but he wouldn't eat anything that it was in or on. So I checked out the human tablet form and it worked out that he needed 10 tablets a day.. They make much higher doses for a lot of that stuff now, so maybe it will be a lot less for some other brands. He has been on supplements for ages now. He takes the Blackmores Paws one (can't remember the exact name).. He had 3 chews for 4 weeks and then back to 2 chews as a daily dose..

I went back to the shop and swapped the EH for RC and it has glucosamine in it. He seems content to lay around this morning.

To start with you will need an Australian Business Number (ABN), you will need some idea of turnover, so you know if you need to register for GST or not - I suggest not registering, until you have to. If you want to trade under a business name, you can register one at the same time as you do your ABN.. GET A GOOD ACCOUNTANT!!! This is the very first thing you should do. They will apply for your ABN and business name. They will advise you on keeping the relevant records and what you can and can't claim for your business. You might need to meet with a few accountants before you meet one that you 'click' with - just like your doctor, hairdresser and dentist, you need to like them and be confident they can help your business. Once you are set up, you need to advertise, how will you sell your products (an online store or will you go directly for manufacture into a chain store). Loads of luck, it sounds like a fun business :)

I am sure it is his back that is sore. We went for a walk and met up with a guy who has two staffords and they were all saying hello. Then Zig and the other boy were play bowing and then just sort of playing on lead when he stopped again and laid down. Now at home and I notice he is really cautious about how he gets up on the lounge. We have an appointment with the chiro in Canberra for next Thursday (that is as early as we could get in).. I will just keep him resting as much as possible until we go next week. Poor lad looks a bit miserable this afternoon.

My boy was a fly chaser jaxxie. We used to muck around with him and tell him to get the flies because they were on his biscuits.. He was still chasing flies the week he was given his wings (at 14.5 years old).. You can take some precautions - we removed almost all plants that attracted bees in the back yard that he had access to and moved them out the front. I ripped out all my lavender, petunias etc. I did keep my strawberry plants however as we love them and so did he.. Good luck, we can only protect them so much but they still have to be allowed to be dogs.

Maybe he learned his lesson then and didn't chase any more :)

My old stafford was allergic to bees. His first experience was similar, his head swelled up, he was covered in hives his tongue went a bluey/white colour and he collapsed. We think it was about 20 minutes from sting to vet injections. Ollie collapsed on the vets table and the vet gave him antihistamine, adrenaline (directly into a vein from memory) and something else as well - all we could do was wait then and it was a good 45 minutes before he was up again. I honestly thought I had lost him for a minute. Ollie was kept inside when we went out after that for a long time. We did eventually give him free access to the yard when we weren't but it is something that is in the back of your mind all the time. Keep antihistamines on hand, so that you can administer them yourself - we used polaramine for Ollie. We only had a couple of more times that required vet help. Most of the time the polaramine was enough. I think maybe he built up a tolerance to it over the years??

I ducked out today and picked up the EH - he was always nice and firm on that.. I won a bag of black hawk a while back and he liked it, so I stuck with it but he has gone to 'mush' on it.. RC was one the vet suggested for some reason - can't remember now but he thought it would be good for him.

I have told them they are trespassing and that I would contact the police if it was kept up ages ago. Police are not really interested in something so simple - I did ask about it once a couple of years ago and they did say, they are just kids. They are right but it wouldn't be nice if I did get a foster dog that was protective of the yard and I didn't realise until too late.

Puppies are not flat and sad.. They are bouncy happy little guys who love people - usually.. A puppy that just lays on the floor and has blood in the stool like that, would be going straight to another vet for a second opinion..

I have the kids over behind me, jumping my fence almost daily to retrieve toys they toss in the yard.. I have asked them and their parents repeatedly not to let them do it - the way they come over, is near a section of corrugated iron and it is old and sharp.. But again, today I had to ask them to get off my chicken coop and out of the yard. These guys are around 10 years old but just won't listen and their parents don't seem to give a crap. I explained that I have foster dogs here and maybe one day, they won't be kid friendly - so please don't come in the yard.. Apart from erecting a large fence (which I don't think would stop them anyway - the current fence is 1.5m paling), there is nothing I can do to stop them..

I will thanks Jack. I went and bought the Earthborn Holistic kibble today and I am shunting the Black Hawk out the door.. He has only bulked up, since he has been on that.

I like to keep him busy - it makes for a happier dog, so doing something like Rally-O or tracking as well as obedience is a good idea. A lot of his ball chasing is once the ball has about stopped moving - I throw, he waits and gets released once the ball has almost stopped. We started doing this when we started using the dumbell in obedience because he would take off after it and not wait to be released - it has been a challenge getting him to wait but he does now. But I do let him chase sometimes (because he loves it, probably not the best thing for him).. If there is a group of dogs chasing a ball, he is just happy to run with the group - no so much interested in getting the ball. Zig loves tug but it was another thing that was suggested might be hard on his hips, so I tend not to do it as much as offering a catch of the tennis ball (that is the reward he loves most of all, sit, wait and get to catch the tennis ball from me, tossing it from about a metre or so away from him).. He gives it back, so I will toss it again, so he can catch it. Thanks all, this has been very interesting and given me some food for thought on what I should and shouldn't be doing with him. Today he is fine again and bouncing off the walls, so a decent walk this afternoon is in order.

When you get this settled, could you take him swimming? ( as in a hydrotheraphy pool). That's beneficial. There is no hydro down here in Canberra for dogs.. He does like swimming but we usually only do it in the summer months - the thought of taking a dip in 4 degree temps, is a bit chilling.. :)

That is pretty much how I feel Kirty but I also feel guilty if he hurts himself (the reason for this thread originally).. I don't think his HD is that bad right now and he is on supplements. I have let him gain a bit of weight over winter but need to get that off him, as he is better about a kilo or two lighter than he is at the moment. He is 26kg now but looks good at 25kg and quite lean at 24kg. Our Queanbeyan obedience club only has a Rally-O thing in summer (daylight savings).. They do it for fun and not competition (apart from each other).. I might look at the Canberra one because I am sure they do it all year over the border. Thanks :)

I think we have a scent work group locally - I might look into that as well. We didn't send the x-rays away to be scored. Our vet showed me on the right hip he has wear and tear on femoral head and some wear and tear on the left but it is no where near as bad. He said he could send them away and have them scored if I wanted to do it. Or we can x-ray again in 12 months to see if there are any major changes. I opted to not pay to have them scored. I probably should have but he is a just a pet.

No I am not getting bogged down in the playing ball is his fave thing - it is his favourite thing :) He isn't interested in food - when I gave up trying to get him to take treats and started training with a tennis ball, everything changed. It became fun, not a constant pain to try and keep his attention or get him to stop focusing on everything else apart from me at training. If he knows he is going to get that ball at some time during training, I can have his attention. We have tried everything from BBQ chicken to liver and cabanossi, cheese, boiled egg for food treats and he might take one or two and then he just spits it out. I used to not feed him dinner or breakfast the morning of training, so he would be hungry and he still wasn't interested in the food.. I used to get so frustrated at training because everyone else could get their dogs attention with a bit of cheese and Zig would still ignore me even if I dumped the whole packet of treats in front of him.. We do make working/training fun, we play games (not just ball games) all the time. Zig can't do agility, I would love to take him through it, although he won't do the tunnel for anything. We have fun at our obedience club with the occasional very low jump (he jumps with the tiny dogs, little poodle and JRTs in our group) or the weave poles set up but it isn't something he could do all the time. I wish it was, he would love it. He is a very active dog and he likes to be active. He loves going for walks and I am happy to walk him every single day. But he prefers to run (sadly for him, I am not a runner).. A half hour run each day and a few 5-10 minute training/game sessions is what he loves.. We have just signed up to do the Susan Garrett Recallers 5 program and we are having fun with it.. Hoepfully we can get some more ideas out of this as well.