poodlefan

Try this on the wrong dog and you'll be on the receiving end of a very serious bite. What works on a dog of one temperament doesn't automatically work on another. A serious resource guarder would be provoked by such actions. I'd never ever behave in a way that deliberatley provoked a dog to to bite me. Ever. I agree. Some dogs wouldn't tolerate being poked and having their food continually taken away from them, in some cases the resource guarding could very well escalate when the dog decides to take you up on the challenge and tell you it's had enough. And if you can reach to poke, a dog is close enough to lunge at your face.

KK: Try this on the wrong dog and you'll be on the receiving end of a very serious bite. What works on a dog of one temperament doesn't automatically work on another. A serious resource guarder would be provoked by such actions. I'd never ever behave in a way that deliberatley provoked a dog to to bite me. Ever.

As the temperature drops, dogs require more energy to maintain their body temperature. That either means more food or more calories in their food. Your dog is not lean.. he should have an obvious waist and from the pictures he doesn't appear to. He also appears to have a roll of fat around his neck. He definitely does not need anymore weight on. I would not be increasing his food intake - I'd probably be inclined to feed him a bit less!!

Off topic but behaviourists have noted aggression issues towards people and littermates as early as 3 weeks in puppies. That's the product of breeding for aggression - and some idiots do. Clearly not the case for this poor little bugger.

Scrurf can be a result of insufficient rinsing out of shampoo. Your parents could try adding a dash of white vinegar to a bucket of warm water as a final rinse. This will neutralise any soap left in the coat. Don't add too much though or she'll smell like a fish and chip shop. Stress can also cause dandruff. Have they had her long?

Yes.

I was lucky that none of my dogs were experiencing any dramas. I wanted them titre tested and no one in Canberra was doing it when I went to see Dr Fougere. She gets people bringing their dogs to see her from all over the state.

Yes. I live 3 hours away and loaded the dogs in the car and drove to see her. I think she's a great vet. She's helped quite a few DOL members dogs.

Hey! The rabbit in that photo looks somewhat familiar. Doesn't 'belong' to a certain GSP does it? Yup.

I think an entire album of your dogs and plaster casts of their paws is a good idea. Also a current criminal history check, evidence of home ownership and complete financial statements. And lemonade scones. Just remember that breeders are dog people too. I've never seen dog people have trouble getting a conversation going.. stopping on the other hand. :p

Nah, just hang around with working gundog owners. I had a RTCH find a missing toy for me once. Mind you, Howie found a certain retrieving titled utility gundog's bunny for him.

Nite Ize LED dog collars look good. You can get them from a range of places. I've been thinking about getting some myself.

It could be too much fibre. I'd be inclined to remove the white rice and table scraps and see if that makes a difference.

Hi Groomers! My old Liberty Stand Dryer is sounding a bit tired. It's probably not helped by the fact that I knocked it over a few months back. Anyhoo, I'm thinking of upgrading to a new one. Old Faithful was second hand and I'm wondering what's good in the market at the moment. My automatic reaction is to get another Liberty but are there issues with availability for Liberties these days? The Double K American one looks interesting and is meant to be quiet - anyone got one? What stand dryers do folk have that can also take a hose and what don't you recommend?

When dogs teethe, it's a calcium intensive exercise. That can mean that calcium can be taken from other parts of the body to assist... and sometimes puppy feet flatten out when its happening. If you compare your boys feet to a lot of other dogs, his toes are flat, rather than tight and raised.. that can happen during teething. Along with spastic ears.

Timidity can be helped with confidence building exercises. If you don't take him to obedience training, I'd strongly recommend it - in addition to training a well mannered dog, it helps build a bond of trust and confidence in the handler.

This is what the vet said. I just couldn't remember the right words.... But looks like its a proven thing that plucking is the option for hairy ear dogs. I don't want to have to sedate the dog to get it plucked when it comes to ear infection. If there is smell coming from the ear, is that a sign of ear infection. And if so, is that when i need to use the epi otic? My pup is fine for now but I can see it happening in the future. Epiotic won't cure infection. If the ear pongs, head straight for the vet and don't treat it beforehand... vets need to see a clean ear.

Cool.. lots of weird stuff happens when teething is on. All that stuff happening in the jaw seems to sap calcium from other areas so you sometimes see feet and pasterns flatten. That means they should perk up again. Vitamin C can help too.

Ah, gold plated dogs.. every family has one. Glad you've found things that work.

There's better food than Supercoat around NJ but what's your budget like? If you think your older boy is doing well on it, its probably fine. However bear in mind that dogs don't digest cereals so if cereal near the top of the ingredient list, most of what you're feeding is ending up on your back lawn. If you head over to the Health/Nutrition/Grooming, you'll see so many threads on kibble that your eyes will fall out.

That Resisoothe (oatmeal) lotion is good for itchies too.

Poor bugger Doesn't Clarytyne? solve the itchies for dogs??

He's a bit tubbier than I think is ideal NJ. See those rolls of fat around his neck.. he shouldn't have those. Unless you can feel his ribs with the flat of your hand without pressing, he's carrying too much weight. As he's going to be a big boy, he's best kept lean.. less stress on a large frame.

Personally, I'd strongly recommend that any "pet mince" you feed be chicken pet mince that includes bone. Is that what you feed? I'd not be feeding any meat that isn't on or including bone. Meat without bone means too much phosphorus, not enough calcium. He's a big boy so you could feed chicken wings or frames instead of mince.. good for growing jaws. He can have beef or lamb ribs.. also good. I also suggest that you not let him help himself to the kibble.. too easy to put on too much weight... never good for a growing boy.

Flat feet, down in pasterns I thought. If he's not teething, I'd be concerned about sufficient calcium intake. What do you feed him NJ?