poodlefan

They don't have a tail that curls over their backs either

I am just curious the colour implications for Staffords. Say I went crazy and started breeding from light goldens, no health testing etc. Down the track I would get dodgey dogs because I didnt health test but I guess the light colour is not causing the health problems and I assume an ethical golden breeder who happens to breed light goldens will have healthy ones as opposed to my dodgey ones. So am wondering if this is the case for Staffords or is there something wrong with the blue gene in the first place. Hope that makes sense! I am not a "science-y" person! Interestingly, some gundog folk reckon the darker a Golden Retriever is, the more likely it is to work. Working Goldens in the USA are often very dark. You might not get health issues in your pale GRs Bub but I wonder if they'd retain any working ability. I'd watch for thyroid issues with interest too.

Any decent brand (eg. Fidos, Plush Puppy) white enhancing shampoo would be good. Her smell might be teeth, ears, anal glands or diet. Maybe a trip to the vet might be an idea?

Rumour has it that mating of very white particoloured Whippets has seen deafness crop up in the breed. There is a definite link between black dogs and increased risk of some cancers and between black and tan dogs and susceptability to parvo. And of course the lethal white gene crops up in merle to merle matings.. in dogs and in paint horses.

Rumour has it that mating of very white particoloured Whippets to one another has seen deafness crop up in the breed. There is a definite link between black dogs and increased risk of some cancers and between black and tan dogs and susceptability to parvo.

Weak stab in dark.. modes of inheritance of coat length might be linked to thryroid efficency.

Colour aside, I hope Dee al has chosen a pup the opposite sex to her Labrador.

It's a bit of both. If all you want is blue pups then you can look past any health issues the parents have to breed them. Given that the colour is attracting premium prices from folk who don't know (or care) any better, the temptation can be pretty strong for some. At Deshonko, we know that most real health issues a pup has probably won't manifest until the owner has bonded with the pup. At that stage, a dodgy breeder can

Could possibly be SK, but if a look at the puppy listings here is anything to go by, the odds arent' that good. There's a ton of breeders out there with BLU or BLUE in their prefixes mating dogs with blue themed names churning out this season's preferred colour.

I guess you can look at the issue being related back to poor breeding practices... the higher the incidence of the colour being bred as a fashion and in more recent times (such as that of the blue stafford), the more likely it's going to have poor skin health, because the desire to breed out the problem is far less among far more "breeders" who do not look for or test for skin issues. Dilution allopecia can be quite rare in some breeds, such as the weimaraner, where every dog is a dilute. Perhaps the issue was discovered early when the breed was being developed but steps were taken to minimise the risk of dogs breeding who had skin issues. The care taken in developing this breed may not take place among many breeders who are breeding specifically for the dilute gene. ST, the Weimy people can clarify this but my understanding is that Weims in countries that accept the Longhairs in their standards have fewer issues with thyroid than in countries where they don't... different genes I suppose in the LHs.

I have a Magna wagon... love it. Much better on fuel consumption than the Commodores and Falcons. Cheap as chips to buy.

the dogs wouldn't be significantly less healthy or of the typical poor quality that the vast majority of blue breeders are pumping out, if the breeders actually thought about their goals, knew what they were doing and considered the breeding beyond colour. I'd like to hazard a guess that many of the worst affected dogs are from dilute to dilute (ie blue to blue) matings.

No don't think so, they are definitely in the "we want a puppy for our family' brigade. I don't think they mean rough play though, just for eg, a breed that is generally tolerant to a kid accidently falling on them etc. If they want a 'tolerant' dog, then they need to spend a lot of time and effort searching through breeders to find one with dogs of sound temperament and who has an ability to match dogs to families. The breed club in the State would be an excellent starting point in terms of education and sourcing pups. There are other retrievers they might consider - Flatcoat, Labrador, Curly Coated etc. Most would have less grooming than a GR. Personally I think obedience training is a must for these dogs. They need to occupy their minds and they need to learn manners young.

Many Golden Retriever pups are quite full on and I'd be worried about the encouragement of any rough and tumble behaviour in a breed prone to mouthing. Would they consider a more mature dog?

All the legislation I've read exempts a dog from "dangerous dog" actions if the bite occurs in the dogs own yard. Either colour bond gates or some form of covering of the holes (shadecloth) would be a good idea.

SBTs do seem to be prone to skin issues, not necessarily just the blue ones either, they seem quite prone to flea allergy dermatitis and the like. PF, how much more common is it with the blues, do you know? And can it be controlled with good flea protection etc? Ask the experts in the Breeds 101 forum about how common it is Aussie 3 but for dogs with very sensitive skin even the flea control can be an issue for a dog with allergies. From my time here I've read of food sensitivities, contact allergies, allopecia... ETA: I'd run a thyroid panel on any blue or white dog suffering from skin issues... seems to be linked to the colour

Dogs of dilute colours can suffer from a range of skin and hair issues. In a breed noted for the sensitivity of its skin, a pretty common result for blue SBTs is a dog that has bad skin allergies and/or hair loss.

Did they check for things like diabeties and thyroid issues??

Dog running on three legs = vet visit. If she'd been taking weight on it, I might have suggested just crate rest but not for a dog carrying a leg. That should be a no brainer. Tendon or ligament damage is a distinct possiblity. I'd certainly not be allowiing her to tear around with the others. Border Collies would run on stumps if you let them.

Dee al, whatever you do. Take out pet insurance!!! If you do experience the common health issues associated with this colour, you'll be grateful you did BEFORE they manifested. Feed only a premium or a raw diet to this pup. Feeding cheap kibble will be begging for issues. So will washing it in cheap shampoos.

According to that second website I posted, vomitting and/or defaction or urination are not uncommon side effects of a fit.

Waaay too young for dementia then. Just googled "canine night terrors" - points towards epilpesy. can you point me to the link, I tried and only got three hits and none were related to canine epilepsy. I got the impression he seemed to be partially blind last night, or certainly his vision was affected. I hadn't noticed that with the other time. First hit sent me here Then here

Waaay too young for dementia then. Just googled "canine night terrors" - points towards epilpesy.

How old is Tag Kirislin? Just wondering if you're seeing a touch of dementia.

Shibas don't look anything like coyotes. The owner must be distraught.