poodlefan

I'd suggest you change the title of your thread to include "moving with pets to the USA" so that those with knowledge will find it. I'd further suggest you PM Gomez (member here) who took her dog from Australia to the US recently.

One of my dogs has had a patella op. He was not restricted in this manner. On vets orders, he was allowed to walk from the word go - on lead. He healed fine. Talk to your vet Meeka about what the op will involve and how recovery will need to be managed. Clearly different vets take different approaches.

At 14 months, I'd do the surgery. The sooner the kneecap is put in place, the less the joint will be damaged.

Dogs bark for a lot of reasons. Dominance isn't the only one. It could be an invitation to play It could be frustration. It could be attention seeking. If you react by paying attention on the pup's terms (even to 'shush') then you are rewarding the barking. There are other responses that may be better. You could take the initiative by asking for a behaviour YOU want and rewarding it, by starting a game or by leaving the pup. What sort of training have you started with the pup. Being a working breed mix, he's probably as smart as a whip and looking for activity to keep him busy.

Thanks Poodlefan, that is an excellent link, very interesting. I was surprised the Labrador only had just over 12%, I always imagined it would be higher. More than 1 dog in 10 dysplastic ain't wonderful though. If ever there was a breed that needs to be kept lean and not over exercised as a pup, the Lab is one. Some of the pups I've seen lately look more like beef cattle than a dog bred to work all day retrieving.

There are plenty of statistics available on the web that add some data to this issue. Here are OFA breed ratings from highest to lowest scores Greyhounds, Pharoah Hounds, Borzoi, Saluki and Whippets are towards the bottom of the list.

Desexing your dog will not stop him cocking his leg. I have a desexed BITCH that does it. As for cocking legs in the house? That's a training issue. I'd be waiting until he's at least six months old. Personally, I'd not have a dog done under 12 months old.

Head down to your local saddlery or rural supplies and buy a tube of Septicide. It's a wound treatment that contains fly repellent. It's fine to use on dogs.

Yep, sighthounds would have been my suggestion too.

Is she drawing blood? Is the other dog being hurt? If the answer to those questions is no then it sounds like she is practising bite inhibition - that's a good thing. Some of my pups have been very active players with teeth and jaws.

Join a sledding club? Is there one in your area?

Could Grover have ingested the venom Trish? A friend of mine's cat became very ill after EATING a baby brown snake. If it is snake bite, I'm glad he's a big boy - it may have saved his life. Fingers crossed he continues to improve.

I've only just seen this. I'm so sorry to hear of Grover's emergency I hope the morning brings better news.

I don't think they do wrt injuries (outside of pain issues) and that relates to their status as predators. One of mine spent a couple of weeks with his foot in a boot due to badly cut pad. He limped around well enough and when speed was required he picked up the leg and ran on three. He didn't seem to dwell on it. For a predator, it's keep going or die. For prey species, serious injury seems to make them give up. I've had a horse with serious leg injuries that I knew was making a recovery when he became his usual feisty self. Prior to that he moped. I do believe dogs (and other animals ) experience loss though.

LED: You're too kind All good questions. I'd be leaving the answers to the medical professionals. True, but it does appear that something happened. Those would be dogs accustomed to sharing space with a toddler and another child they know and my guess is, that don't have resource guarding issues. Kids don't situate well, their "nice doggies' mean they treat all dogs the same way, at times to their peril. "Entire" = undesexed. Pound carers aren't toddlers. They probably also don't make a habit out of approaching unknown dogs with bones in the dogs own territory and at the dog's face level. Dogs aren't stupid, they make judgements about who they can protect their treasures from. These kinds of incidents are so predictable its tragic.. especially for the children and dogs involved.

Fingers crossed there are no more seizures Sasha.

He's the right age for symptoms of liver shunt to start appearing. Seizures are one of those. I'm not trying to alarm you Sasha but did the vet discuss doing some basic blood tests? If the seizures reoccur its something to consider.

Pointy nosed breeds ROOL! ;)

Maybe he's just a small dog... or from a late developing line. Have you talked to his breeder? I'd be taking their opinion over your vets on this issue.

OK, dumb question time. If you came in via the back door? would that bring him out into the yard when he first sees you? Is that feasible?

So more than excited peeing then? Maybe he IS holding it. Or you're waking him up and he's too excited to go out and miss greeting you. Does he take himself out when you're home?

How big a wee is he doing on the tiles inside.. little one or a flood?

If he has inside/outside access, how do you know he's not going outside when you're out? ;)

Just out of interest LED, was the Husky young, male and entire?

Don't use the word until she understands the behaviour.. lure and reward until she consistently offers the behaviour THEN add the verbal cue... and fade the lure.