poodlefan

I had the racing Havanese on a heaped dessertspoon a day so maybe a big teaspoon for the show line Havanese? Whey has a lot of beneficial nutrients - for dogs and people. I added it to the dogs goatsmilk smoothies. I'd also suggest adding some chicken wings to his diet. Most dogs love them and the skin is useful for adding some fat to the diet.

What is supposedly wrong with him? Have you considered a visit to a canine chiropractor?

Whey powder is good...very palatable and good for muscle gain. You can add it straight or make canine smoothies with it. I fed it to Howard the racing Havanese for a while. There isn't a dog in my house that will touch Nutrigel.

I've got a terrier table from Liberty. Smallish top, high legs. I'm 175cm and find grooming the poodles on it very comfortable.

If you've got a dog from the RSPCA with a few issues, I'd recommend you contact them as your starting point. Some have their own trainers. I also think its important to differentiate between a dog that lacks manners and one with a few behavioural issues. If behaviour is what's stopping you attending regular classes, then that's what I'd be tackling first. That's best done with you fully involved and by a professional with a track record in achieving success.

From the SMH: Which part of dogs + baby = supervison required don't people get? I wonder if that's the basis of the manslaughter charge.

With children and a cat, a pup might be the go. ELIRE (Newcastle) have two litters due in July. They have a puppy listing on the breed page for Mini P's.

Hope the surgery goes well.

She comes from a breeder who has bred and shown Whippets for 35 years. The mother is a 3x Best in Show winner and the sire is a Runner up in show winner. We are really happy with the breeder since speaking as she seems a reall knowledgeable lady and very helpful. We had a choice from 3 puppies of we ourselves chose the parti coloured girl. She will be a pet first and foremost and a show dog second. Good stuff! Glad you found a show quality girl so quickly.. took me months!

Atua, I hope Charlie comes from a proven show breeder. Its a competitive breed - no walk over to title a dog, that's for sure. Best of luck with her.. they are a pleasure to have around.

For some people, its simply because they own them.

Standard mark up on a pet shop pup is more than double what they pay for them. If you don't like expensive purebreds, don't buy one. Don't pay for known ancestry, an increased degree of predictability of what your adult dog will be, health testing for known inheritable conditions or careful raising of the pup until you get it at 8 weeks of age. Don't pay for lifetime support from someone knowledgeable about the breed and puppies. None of that is clearly worth anything now is it? There are plenty of breeds where pups sell for under $1,000. Worked out over the life of the dog, you pay more for Foxtel. If you wouldn't buy a car cobbled together in a backyard by someone with no mechanical knowledge and from whatever parts are lying around, why on earth would you want a dog made that way? And anyone who can't see the problem of buying from a puppy farmer (who often are as expensive as registered breeders) either doesn't understand what the term entails or clearly doesn't give a rats arse about animal welfare.

But you can use Jarrah honey instead in WA.

The first rule of agility training at our club is that no obstacles may be completed on lead. If you have control issues, then these need to be worked on before the dog goes near any obstacles. Perhaps some obedience training might be a good introduction to your local dog club. I'd not recommend a dog do weaving or any jumping before 14 months.

I think they are a great kids dog BUT for showing they are a table breed. I think some 10 year olds might struggle to get a full grown Whippet on and off the table safely. How big is your son? As a pet, choose an outgoing pup, get it out and about and train it and you'll have a great companion for your son. They do have prey drive that needs to be managed but I think your entire family would enjoy having one about. Not the breed to keep outside though. The usual way of spotting the most comfortable spot in a room is to look where the Whippet is.

Whatever...... Serves me right for mentioning your breed of choice at all I suppose. Won't make that mistake again.

She's 9 weeks old Goldee. She's far too young for any walk longer than a few minutes. If she's over exercised you can end up with big issues from a skeletal perspective. I'd be issuing an edict = you do NOT walk my pup without me!! Seriously, if you cannot get your parents to respect your wishes for this pup, I highly recommend you return her. She will not profit from the current situation and you only get one chance to raise her right. What sort of training/corrections do you think she'll get on walks from the family member who thinks slapping her face is OK?

Yeah its mainly just now, about her trying to get out of her collar while on a lead because she is so excited. When she is trained i think she'll be fine. She's pretty cluey now. She's just very playful. You're already training her Goldee.. every day she is learning.

I wonder if you just notice the white hair more???

I know that show grooming SCWs is hard work and that pets are often clipped. I looked at them at one stage as they have a reputation for trainability amongst the terriers and considered getting one. However, if I wanted a dog that was a difficult to maintain as a poodle in the show ring, I'd have stuck with the poods. Any coat that has length and fullness is not going to be a cinch to maintain, especially if it is pale.

Yeah, I got that. Well, considering that before I posted I checked my understanding of the breed's non-shed coat on the Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier Society of NSW Website that says this: perhaps you might now understand my error. Seems to me you'd better start educating the breed club too. All breeds shed Sheridan. Poodles included. They shed into their coats though, they don't drop hair. I falsely believed that SCW's were the same. Best you correct the Wikipedia entry for the breed as it contains the same error.

Care to elaborate Sheridan? If you know nothing about a dog, poodlefan, don't recommend it. That's it. I said the OP might want to "tyre kick" them Sheridan. That's hardly the same as saying "you should definitely get one of these". I don't profess to be a breed expert but I've met a few and know a breeder. They seem like pretty good dogs to me. What aspects of the SCW have led you to conclude that one is unsuitable for the OP's situation.? That would probably be more educative for all of us than a line of headbanging emoticons.

On the other hand, what's the point of advocating your own breed if you don't think its suitable? I appreciate what you're saying about only the negatives but there hasn't been a lot of that in this thread. There's no way I'd recommend a poodle without pointing out the high maintenance aspect of the non-shedding coat. There are always positives and negatives - some directly related to each other. Similarly what's the point of advocating a very people focussed breed to a household where the dog will have limited access to the family? It's not condescending IMO. Its realistic. Its also in the best interests of dog and family that both positives and negatives are understood before the dog arrives in the home.

Care to elaborate Sheridan?

You've got arguably one of the best obedience breeds around Goldee. With the right training, she'll never need to wear anything other than a flat collar to walk on. If you are worried about her slipping a collar, use a martingale one. Start right away by not 'rewarding' that pulling. Do not let her pull you anywhere. Head halters are a corrective tool - you won't need one if you get the basics instilled nice and early.