Steve

PetStock over here got the idea for rescue adoptions from PetsMart Steve - I think the places that are doing it properly (not keeping 'rescue' puppies and kittens in the store all day every day) are doing it solely to raise awareness ABOUT rescue, which a lot of the general public still have no idea about. Like has already been mentioned a few times in this thread, not all rescue 'sales' work the same way. We do not 'sell' animals on the day, nor have them in the store every day. The rescues are properly promoted, the public are made aware, it's more so to get the dogs out and mingling with people so the public can understand that rescue dogs are not always 'broken' and pet store puppies are not a 'clean slate'. I do agree that there are some pet stores out there that sell very young 'rescue' pups and kittens (we have one nearby that has very small kittens and pups from 'rescue' in their store constantly) but not all stores are out there to make a buck, and some genuinely want to help. If the pet shop doesnt "sell " animals but has them featured in their store then they dont sell live animals - I have no problem withthat and even though the original post wasnt asking about the issue of nominations if its O.K. with everyone or not Im answering that this pet shop would be eligible for nomination in that award category because it doesnt sell live animals. The RSPCA pet shop in Sydney for example which does sell live animals would not be eligible for nomination if we leave that category as it stands.

Sorry Inspector Rex but we will are looking at venues closer to the CBD and the airport.

If they are board certified they have the logo on the bottle which clearly says board certified but I will only use one brand because it has more allantoin left in it and most of them take that out which takes aways some of the glyconutrients. Rule of thumb if tastes O.K. and not like you would imagine cats wee to taste its not as good as the stuff that tastes reasonable. If you use the fresh stuff it has to be real fresh because it starts to oxidise as soon as you cut it and that takes away some of the live nutrients. For a dog of that weight with symptoms Id go 10 mils 3 times a day for a week then down to 5 mils 3 times a day for a week and then 5 mils a day for at least a month. With worming - if you are giving Aloe and ACV and raw food that isnt a good environment for worms so its less likely they will be an issue. Learn about what worms you may have to be aware of in your area and understand their life cycle and symptoms. Take a good look at the drugs available to treat them - look for the chemical name and possible adverse side effects and what they treat not the brand names. For example some do 11 differnent worms with only 4 or 5 known to occur in this country so if you only need to consider roundworm for example there are meds available which are much less harsh. Dont take anything for granted - everything you are doing that in anyway impacts on your dog take the time to look at.It helps your dog, you and your family and you can teach what you learn to others.Use dogz too the knowledge base here is great!

Our experience with the awards this year has shown us that they have now taken on a life of their own and we are eager to up the ante on several things and we thought dogz was a good place to start to ask around and get some ideas on some things. We have had photographers for all of the awards functions so far and the first [ because it was combined with the Jean Dodds seminar ] we used a professional to film it all and have it on dvd. The last one and this one we have had professional photographers who have been known to us via their membership with the MDBA and dogz to photograph the event. One of the things we would like to have next year is to have it filmed as well as photographed so we can have some of the event up on utube and distribute to media and hand around the dvd to those who would like a copy. So the first question is - do any of you have any suggestions for us as a start point to go after quotes etc of a professional who is either in Melbourne area or who will travel to Melbourne to film the event for us next March?

Just a quick note to add that its unlikely the saint health survey will be utilised at this point unless over the next week or so more dogs are entered as we have a cut off point where if there are not enough numbers we are not proceeding to look at them the way we are other breeds. Thats because if you only have [say] 20 responses then 2 listed for anything makes it look like 10 percent and in our opinion its not enough to get a clear view of whats really going on in the breed. 2 of the dogs [saints] listed as living to 14 are reported as not papered and were reportedly not bred by a registered breeder.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/14/sports/1...briefs-dog.html The four-time winner Jeff King held the lead in the 1,100-mile Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. King pulled into the Nulato checkpoint at 3:13 a.m. Saturday, nearly an hour and a half ahead of his closest competitor, the defending champion Lance Mackey. King was back on the trail a little more than four hours later. Three other leaders reached the checkpoint by about 6 a.m. Saturday: the Iditarod veteran Hugh Neff; the 2004 winner, Mitch Seavey; and Hans Gatt, fresh off his fourth win in the 1,000-mile Yukon Quest International Sled Dog Race in February.

More pet owners have answered than exhibitors or breeders and the pet owners are eager to tell the truth.The more responses we get in each breed the less likely it is that real issues dont show up. We knew the risks involved in collecting the data but that goes for any survey and there are a couple of things in there which give us a good look at what might be going on. Its disappointing that some people didnt care enough about the breeds to tell the truth but in all but a few breeds we are getting a good look at those things which are more prevalent in some breeds than others. Across the board breeders are very under represented and we can break down the figures to see whether the dogs are coming from registered breeders too so we can see where breeders decided not to participate and where breeders may have tried to load the data and we will factor that in when the results are in. We have had over 6000 responses so far and around 84% are from ordinary everyday pet owners ,many of which own registered purebred dogs who have no hidden agenda to protect the breed and just want to tell us about their dogs.

The figure came from our current breed health survey. I havent had a chance to look who bred them [ registered breeders or non registered breeders] but the survey shows that 26% reach 10 years 12% get to 13 years and 9% are 13 plus.That may change between now and when we shut the survey down but thats what is showing now.

If you already have symptoms of immune deficiency you need to give a fair wack which will possibly show a day or two of runny poos. 39 kg dog with symptoms I'd say 40 mils 3 times per day for 3 days then back it off to 25 mils 3 times per day for 3 days then 10mils 3 times a day for at least a month. You often see symptoms get worse for the first few days and as above with some runny poos but that settles down as the immune system gets back to health and you lower the dosage. ALOE VERA (Effects) The secret behind Aloe Vera is the interaction of its many elements. Aloe Vera is adaptogenic According to Breckhman, a Soviet researcher, an "adaptogenic" is a plant that has a regulating effect on the body and that helps it adapt to stress or to any other difficult situation. By regulating immune system functions, it also treats parts of the body that are sick. Adaptogenics act only when needed and only where their action is required. If not, they remain inactive in appearance as they slowly but surely strengthen the immune system. Aloe Vera has an overall, subtle, slow and sometimes almost imperceptible effect (which is why it is referred to as the "silent healer"). White blood cells are the most important constituent in the body's immune system. When foreign particles are detected in the body white cells concentrate in the area. Aloe Vera contains a number of chemicals that aid in the process of fighting antigens [or foreign particles] in the body. http://www.cancer-coverup.com/fighters/aloe-cancer.htm Cancer Cover-Up: The Book <H1 align=center>Aloe and Cancer</H1>Dr. Lawrence G. Plaskett, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry among many other academic distinctions, states "The action of substances in Aloe vera does activate and intensify the immune response, and this constitutes one of the fundamental scientifically established actions of Aloe upon the body." It is in the boosting of the immune system's response to antigens (foreign elements in the body) that Aloe vera has shown the most promise in treating cancer. Although no one is yet proposing that Aloe vera is a cure for cancer, it is clear from research conducted throughout the world over the past thirty years that Aloe vera and, in particular, certain specific substances in the plant - have very dramatic and impressive anti-cancer effects. Aloe vera has been demonstrated to enhance the immune system's response to cancer, promote the growth of new and healthy cells, and reduce the overall viral load within the body thereby revitalizing the body in its fight against the cancer.When radiation and chemotherapy are necessary, Aloe vera helps to minimize the damage done to the body by these treatments, which destroy healthy cells - particularly immune system cells - crucial to the body's recovery. The use of Aloe vera enables the body to heal itself from cancer and the damage done to it by conventional treatment: the immune system is boosted, tumors shrink, metastases are reduced so the cancer does not spread, and new healthy cells begin to grow. How can Aloe vera do all this? An important aspect in the theory as to the cause of cancer is that the onset of the disease is due to a failure of the immune system to respond properly to the development of cancer cells in the body. This has given rise to an area of cancer research called immunotherapy. It is generally accepted that the human body is forced to handle the incidence of cancer on a regular basis, and that the immune system responds to the growth of cancer cells routinely. Cancerous cells develop due to a variety of pathogens which the body encounters and overcomes daily. Varying theories which attribute the onset of cancer to abnormal radiation exposure, environmental contaminants, pollution, preservatives and chemicals in the food supply, lack of proper nutrition, stress, viruses, genetics or whatever else, may very well all be correct. That is to say, there might be any number of variables that cause cancerous cells to begin to form. According to this understanding of cancer, it is when the immune system is compromised and cannot fight off the growth of abnormal cells that the cancer takes hold, and a tumor begins to form. Further compromise of the immune system to respond to cancer cell growth determines whether the body develops cancer or successfully eliminates the abnormal cells and remains healthy. A brief explanation of the important parts of the immune system will make the amazing benefits of Aloe vera in the treatment of cancer more clear. White blood cells are the most crucial part of the body's immune system. Certain chemical signals released by tissues in response to an antigen (foreign particles in the body) attract white blood cells, which respond by concentrating in the affected tissue. Neutrophils are the first cells to respond to an infection and they "eat" the foreign particles. The swelling associated with infections is due in part to enzymes released by neutrophils in this process. Monocytes follow up by "eating" larger particles that could not be handled by the neutrophils as well as the neutrophils that died as a result of having eaten the foreign particles. The moncytes release a number of chemicals which play crucial roles in the fighting of infection, including interferon and interleukin. These chemicals stimulate lymphocytes to continue the response to the antigen. The white blood cells break the antigen down into fragments, which the lymphocytes can chemically recognize and respond to. The most common lymphocytes are B-cells, which kill foreign antigens, and "helper" cells, which regulate the action of T-lymphocytes by intensifying or slowing down the "killer" cell response. Aloe vera contains a number of chemicals that enhance the activities of all of the immune system functions just described. 23 Polypeptides serve as immune system stimulators, helping to control a broad spectrum of immune system diseases and disorders. 20 Polysaccharides increase the action of white blood cells thus increasing the production of "killer" T-cells and interferon. They also chemically enhance the action of the "killer" T-cells. One of these polysaccharides, acelated mannose, has been patented as acemannen and is approved in Europe to stimulate the immune systems of AIDS patients. AIDS research has shown that Aloe vera use can double the number of both "killer" and "helper" T-cells within three weeks and at the same time reduce the P-24 core antigen - the overall indicator of viral load in the body. Interferon and interleukin production is stimulated, attacking the cancer and viruses in the body. Lectins and emodines are two anti-tumor chemicals in Aloe vera which, along with an increase in the tumor necrosis factor brought about by Aloe vera, begin to destroy malignant cancer tumors. There is clear evidence that Aloe vera is effective in the treatment of cancer in animals - and it is approved by the USDA for such use. There is clear clinical evidence that Aloe vera is effective in boosting the immune system response in the treatment of AIDS in humans - and it is approved in Europe for such use. There is a large amount of anecdotal evidence that Aloe vera use in humans is effective in boosting the immune system response in the treatment of cancer - both in healing the cancer directly and in enabling the immune system to withstand the onslaughts of radiation and chemotherapy

http://www.dolforums.com.au/index.php?act=...w_post&f=63 A dog which sailed aboard the Mary Rose ship 465 years ago is to take up residence in the Mary Rose Museum at the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. The animal's skeleton, which has been reconstructed by staff at the Mary Rose Trust, will go on display from Friday 26 March. The dog was discovered trapped in the sliding door of the carpenter's cabin of the Mary Rose, which sank in 1545. The dog, named Hatch by museum staff, was probably used as a ratter. 'Expert analysis' Tudor seafarers did not allow cats on board ship as they were thought to bring bad luck. John Lippiett, chief executive of the Mary Rose Trust, said: "Expert analysis of Hatch's bones suggests that she spent most of her short life within the close confines of the ship. "It is likely that the longest walks she took were along the quayside at Portsmouth, her home town." The Mary Rose sank in 1545 at the Battle of the Solent. Well-preserved artefacts including clothing, jewellery, furniture, musical instruments, medical equipment and weapons were discovered when the vessel was raised in 1982. A new museum to house the Mary Rose Collection is planned for 2012. It will also display the preserved hull of the ship.

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2010/0...y_out_agai.html The Iditarod, the great Alaskan dogsled race from Anchorage to Nome, is well underway, with the leaders a little more than halfway through the 1,112 mile course that takes the mushers over some of the most rugged and beautiful landscape in North America. The lead mushers and their dog teams are into Ruby where they're resting up for the next leg to Galena, which is all along the Yukon River. First place musher Jeff King holds a slim lead over Lance Mackey, the defending champion, who is close behind. The high temperatures in Ruby will be ten below to zero. The lows tonight are expected to be 15 below to 30 below. Those frigid temperatures make me wonder how one musher in particular is doing. Of the 62 mushers still in the arduous race, in 53rd position is Newton Marshall who hails from St. Ann Parish, Jamaica, where my mother also came from. Compared to what he must be enduring, the Jamaican bobsled team had it easy. The story of Newton Marshall is only one of the many dramas playing out in a race that's always filled with them. One of the most interesting defending champ Mackey's story. Mackey has battled throat cancer. To help him deal with the pain and boost his appetite, he takes Marinol, a drug whose active ingredient is THC, the substance found in marijuana. This presents a complication for Mackey. This year's Iditarod is the first in which mushers will be randomly tested along the trail for drugs and alcohol. Mackey has an exemption but has said he would abstain from taking Marinol during the race to keep anyone from claiming it gave him an advantage.

Or a rottnbully :cool: :D :D

Masjana The One And Only. I won't mention who bred him as I've never been impressed ! My son actually bought him and well the rest is history but when Matt comes home he's just like a puppy again. I haven't posted pics for a long time and will have to work out how to do it again. Fantastic! According to our health survey its not that uncommon for saints to live and be healthy up to about 14! Makes you wonder how stats were distributed that they only live for 4 years. Hope you have added him to our saint survey http://www.mdba.net.au/breed_survey.php

So if we say rescue dogs are O.K. to be sold in pet shops because the shelters are a long way from shopping centres and people cant get to them how do we then say its not O.K. for puppies to be sold in pet shops because the puppy farms are even further away from people than shelters? If puppy farmers cant sell their stock those puppies are in more dire straights than rescue dogs because breeders will bump them off if they cant sell them past a certain age or they will be eating their profits. Both rescue and puppy farm puppies are at risk if they dont find them new homes - in fact for some it may be they are more at risk as many rescue will hold onto the dog indefinitely until they find it a home. We could argue that if there is no sales and puppies have to be killed that this will stop them breeding so many but we're talking about dogs which are already born , already on the ground and are at equal or greater risk than a rescue dog. The way Trish has described it the pet shop isnt selling live animals if the rescue group is taking the enquiries and screening the buyers and doing the transaction. In my opinion that pet shop could still be nominated as they don't sell live animals as long as they dont sell any other animals.

No matter what the skin problem is - no matter what the cause might be it is 100 percent every time a symptom of something else going on. Its about his immune system. Skin issues are easy to see but there are many other things that might go on inside a dog that it will take a while to show themselves. Often dogs get itchy skin up to 12 weeks after a vaccination and heartworm meds can cause immune system issues which take a while to show up. Flea and tick preps can also impact on the immune system. Because things like this dont just show up over night you dont associate them with what you are seeing. but regardless of what may have triggered them its is always about the immune system. So now think about it - if you or a child had issues with their immune system what would you do to try to boost immunity? You would eat raw unprocessed foods. You would look at your environment to see if anything in that could affect your recovery. You would stop taking drugs and vaccinations, you would ensure you were getting all you needed by way of vitamins, minerals and enzymes,lots of freash air and exercise and try to stay away from things which cause you stress. Board certified Aloe Vera juice is the quickest way to boost immunity and for dogs you need to stay away from grains and seeds especially when dealing with skin issues. A teaspoon of Apple cidar vinegar for every 2 litres of drinking water and about a cup ful of apple cidar vinegar to 10 litres in the final rinse water when you bath him will help too.

Whats done is done and there's not much point in hammering her for an accident. If you dont know what a male and female dog can be like when they are horny it can come as a surprise and what comes next is more important than what just happened. I would still want to know if it were one of mine and I would try to talk to her about what to expect, her options and what she needs to do to ensure those puppies dont end up in accidents in a years time. If breeders are not going to desex their puppies before they go home even if they have contracts in place for desexing they need to work through what happens when a dog is in season.How to see the signs she is coming in and what to do to manage this before anyone gets to this.They also need to explain how male dogs will do almost anything to get a bit and what is needed to prevent that from happening. That bitch was in its own back yard and its not as if it was running the neighbourhood. There is not a pet over population problem. Puppies are rarely dumped and we purebred breeders dont breed anywhere near enough to fill orders.Rescue which take pregnant dogs dont have problems finding homes for their puppies and puppy farmers breed up to 6000 puppies each per year and find homes for them all. Approx 250,000 ADULT dogs per year are killed after ending up in pounds and shelters. That is an irresponsible owner issue and it starts from when they buy dogs which they have no knowledge of what its going to take to own it , love it and manage it and finishes when they cant live with it. Part if that management is knowing what happens when dogs get horny and having a plan to prevent it getting pregnant if they choose to keep them entire. justin19801 You're right legally and morally when someone has paid for their dog its their's to with as they please however, we cant have it both ways.We want breeders to be there for their puppy buyers if things go wrong for advice and a saftey net so the dog can come back to the breeder rather than ending up on death row. We want them to be interested in and be responsible for health issues and cover genetic issues long after the dog has gone home.We call for the bad purebred breeder to refund and be responible for things like HD and the incidence of HD in male dogs which have been desexed before 12 months of age is over 60% higher than if they are not desexed so its not all that simple.

BARF leaves VAN for dead.

Park urges koalas removal probe http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/03...tm?site=idx-nswPosted March 12, 2010 09:33:00 The Waterways Wildlife Park is backing calls for an investigation into the removal of eight koalas by the RSPCA. The koalas were removed from the park, at Gunnedah in north-west New South Wales, at the start of last month when RSPCA officers found them to be stressed and malnourished. But park owner Nancy Small is denying the claims and pleading for the RSPCA to return the koalas. She says the RSPCA needs to investigate the actions of its officers. "On the day when they went around ... doing the inspections and said a lot of detrimental things, it wasn't as bad as they made out," she said. "There were some things we needed to pick up on, but we didn't need to be treated like that on the day. "So I believe everybody should be accountable to somebody and they don't seem to be accountable for anything and that is wrong. They should be made to answer for what they did." Ms Small says the animals' feeding and cleaning routine has now been changed to comply with RSPCA guidelines.

http://www.themercury.com.au/article/2010/...sofjustice.html HELEN KEMPTON March 12, 2010 01:08pm A MELBOURNE lawyer launched a scathing attack on the professionalism of Tasmania's animal welfare sector in court today. Tom Moloney, who is representing former Redpa farmer Roderic Neil Mitchell in his defence of more than 200 animal cruelty charges, also had a serve for Tasmania Police prosecutors in the Burnie Magistrates Court today. Mr Moloney said the size of Tasmania's animal welfare community was an incubator for bias which could, and had, skewed legal cases. Mr Moloney called the evidence tabled by the RSPCA, the Department of Primary Industries and "expert" witnesses amateurish and of an unbelievably low standard. Mr Moloney, who has applied for Magistrate Rod Chandler to re-hear the 14 charges of which Mitchell was convicted in January, said both of the veterinary practitioners who gave evidence in court were paid employees of the department and the quality of reports tabled was very, very poor. "The court can have no confidence theses "experts" come from a position of independence. There is a natural inclination to not bite the hand that feeds you," Mr Moloney said. "If a vet is to make an assessment which goes to whether or not someone is convicted of a criminal offence it needs to of a high standard." Mr Moloney said most of the evidence given in an exparte court hearing which resulted in Mitchell being arrested, extradited to Tasmania and remanded in custody was inadmissable. "The prosecution has not even proved my client was responsible for the cows in question. This is reflective of a tardy attitude and shabby prosecution. "There has been injustice piled upon injustice. "The deliberations of this court may see my client go to prison but you cannot rely on a paper chain which has effectively been left out in the rain where viles of blood tabled of evidence have been left in hot cars or in a fridge next to blue vein cheese and chardonnay." The hearing continues in Burnie this afternoon.

You're right its not your business but if thats a dog I bred Id appreciate it if you made it your business.

Ill think about it . ;)

Landlords are usually pretty good with outdoor pens. Back in the old days when I was moving around a lot - from memory 20 moves in 24 years I had a dog pen and pavers. I couldn't always rely on good fences and the dogs went into the pen during days they were in season or we wanted to play a game of cricket without them tripping us over or when we had kids parties etc . Each time I moved it collapsed for cartage and went up again in the next rental and took the pavers up and bought them with me too.

I would also like to say for me personally that since I attended the seminar at Monash Uni and heard what we did from Kate Scoffeld that I am even more sure than ever that Im not prepared in any way shape or form to give any sort of perception out to the public that selling puppies in pet shops is a good thing.For me even though I get why selling rescue dogs in pets shops is a good thing it still feels like Im telling the public that pet shops sales are O.K. I think - Its only a small jump for public perception from buying a dog in a pet shop is O.K. as long as it comes from a rescue org to buying puppies in pet shops is O.K. as long as they come from a puppy farmer who is registered with Kate's new commercial breeders group or even that its O.K. to buy puppies in pet shops if they come from registered breeders. According to the survey so far most people 84% dont want to see us allowing the exemption.

Here is my concern - for the awards This year we had a couple of nominations we didnt accept because the criteria was that they couldnt sell live animals.So regardless of whether they only sell live rescue animals or not as it stands we couldnt accept that nomination. But we found a couple of issues as well as that which have us still unsure of what we should do. Understand that this year we had well over 250 nominations and its not possible or even desireable that we look into every one as far as their practices are concerned. So I rang one and they said they sell rescue dogs but as the conversation progressed it turned out they didnt just sell rescue dogs - they also sold puppies they sourced from their "specially screened pet breeders" Another was very proud of how the dogs came in with compehensive notes so the buyer knew what they were getting but as long as the buyer was O.K. with taking it on the dog went home with them. There was no screening and saying the buyer is screened as they are with the shelter isnt that posh because we already know some pounds and shelters dont screen at all and in fact some even sell to the highest bidder.Of the three I spoke with 2 kept the animals in the shop until it was sold or 4 weeks when it was returned to the shelter which ever came soonest. We cant rely on the person nominating to follow the criteria as this time 2 retail outlets I rang to inform them they hd been nominated were selling live animals.Now before I say "you have been nominated" I say "do you sell live animals?" O.K. thats easy - if they do then we cant accept the nomination but when they do and its rescue dogs it gives us a whole new set of what if's. So Im thinking maybe if someone or some group is doing the right thing by rescue dogs that we should take nominations for their work in rescue and not for their work as a retail outlet but its clear which ever way we go on this some people are not going to agree.

Here is your chance to give us some feedback and suggestions on what you think about The Dog Owners Choice Awards. We have set up a survey to enable you to have some input into this before we start on the 4th Annual awards around the beginning of April.In particular there is a question regarding the judging and pet shops selling live animals.https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/awardsask The survey will only be open for about a week so if you intend giving us your ideas we need them pretty quickly .The survey will take about 4 mins of your time. https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/awardsask The MDBA Team