RuralPug

A very similar Scandinavian herding breed that is well established in Australia is the Finnish Lapphund.

I really think that you do need to attend a few all breeds dog shows and get a feel for all these breeds. The average Chihuahua today may not be much like the one you remember from your childhood at all. Temperaments can vary wildly, especially the backyard bred ones, you might have to hunt for quite a while to find a breeder who is producing healthy dogs with the temperament that you seek. Another option, not quite as good as meeting the breeds, is possibly take as many as possible of the find-a-breed quizzes that abound on the Internet (Selectapet and the like). Google "choose my breed quiz" and dozens will pop up. If you take as many quizzes as possible the biases of the various quizzes will cancel each other out and you should see the same few breeds being suggested again and again. Agree on the quiz answers with your husband so that you end up with a breed you both like. The answers may surprise you! And I have one more suggestion for you to look at different dogs. Here are many different dogs, all shapes, sizes and ages most of which are in foster homes who can give you heaps of details about the individual temperaments and lifestyle needs of each one. Almost none are baby puppies and few are purebred, but they all do need homes.

There was a study in the US years ago (sorry I no longer have details but I'm sure that someone can find them) that studied dogs which were on a vegetarian diet, the major protein source used at that time was from soy. The study found that the dogs, although they survived on the diet, had low immune systems, poor coats and less energy than dogs in the same study which had animal proteins in the diet. Unfortunately that study started a myth that soy proteins were poisonous to dogs, which is, of course, not the case. I think that myth is finally vanishing. All of the vegans and vegetarians I know feed their dogs on meat based proteins - many of them feed prey model or grain free, as is happens. Dogs can survive on a vegetarian diet but they will not thrive on it. Cats cannot survive on a vegetarian diet.

Why not increase the protein of a kibble that you are otherwise happy with by serving it together with roo or fish? Increases the palatability too and you will not need huge fridge or freezer space as the feed is mostly dry kibble.

Are you absolutely sure that you do not want to protect against tapeworm - there are several varieties? I can understand people in urban areas who do not feed offal not wanting to dose against Hydatid Tapeworm but protection from the more common varieties is usually sought. Is it heartworm protection that you do not need to include perhaps?

If she paid large amounts of $$ for a large guarding breed, but is still not comfortable enough to stay in the house that it is ostensibly guarding, then she may feel threatened by seriously dangerous elements of society. Bottom line, you want to be able to help the dog. You can't do that if you yourself are under threat, and she does know where you live. She must agree that you be allowed to adopt the dog. I would advise that you contact her, say that you can no longer look after someone else's dog (cite desexing costs etc. perhaps) and if she cannot collect it within 48 hours or sign it over to you ($200 is a reasonable offer, given the length of time you have been boarding him) then you will have notify the impound authorities. It will be your decision, and I agree that the dog was abandoned BEFORE you came to the agreement with her to help out, but you have made that agreement and it needs to be terminated before you can have a chance to adopt the dog.

Potential owners come in all shapes, sizes, lifestyles and levels of capability. Before recommending any breed (or any species, come to that) it is best to try to determine what their expectations are. Too many people consider themselves dog experts because their family had a dog when they were growing up. They think that every baby puppy will automatically end up like this half-remembered paragon, with zero effort on their part. And when it doesn't (surprise), they often think that it is the dog's fault and pass it on or otherwise dispose of it, and procure another, which will suffer the same fate. We see it a lot in rescue. I am always happy when I read a thread from someone trying to decide what breed would be a good fit for their lifestyle, someone who listens to all the suggestions, because I know that any dog they acquire will have a very good chance of spending the rest of its life as a part of that family. These are people who are not afraid to ask, and who will commit to the necessary effort. So I think breed/type/age selection suggestions depend about 90% on the owner and 10% on the breed/type/age characteristics.

You are wonderful! For the benefit of anyone else considering this idea - contact Animal Rescues Appeal (formerly Winter Appeal for Animal Rescues). Although based in Victoria, they send items to rescues Australia wide, on the basis of need. As far as I know, they remain a facebook based group.

Yes it is a great supplement. Plenty of anti-oxidants and a fantastic source of the minerals used by the body to make melanin so can be great for dark pigment as well.

The whole point of no-fault compensation is that it lets people get on with living their lives as best they can in spite of handicaps acquired in a vehicle accident, no matter what the cause or who was at fault. We all pay for that when we pay our registration fees. And a large dog like a goldie could easily push a paw against the button and move the hand brake lever accidentally. They are big strong dogs. I have accidentally released a handbrake by leaning over to attend to a child in the back seat, so I have no doubt that a large dog could do the same.

It may not be sinister at all. Almost all dogs microchipped in NSW have the details stored on the NSW local government authority's registry, which is pretty inaccessible outside NSW. It 's pretty ridiculous, but that the way it is. DogsNSW can help you sort it all out.

Is there a snake relocator in your region? Most will come out and catch and relocate without charge. Ask around your friends or a local facebook page...

All fingers, toes and paws crossed that he continues to like it!! One trick I used to use with fussy eaters on a medical diet (with my vet's approval) was to make a gravy by blending a teaspoon of a forbidden food that they loved in a cup of hot water. I would pour this over their bowl of medical diet and let it cool. They would wolf it down, in fact one old girl used to be attracted so much by the smell of her dinner cooling that she would yodel for it until it was ready to eat LOL! Anything else she would turn her nose up and walk away... ETA..Danny is a small dog, you could use quarter teaspoon of his favourite forbidden rubbish with a half-cup of hot water I should think. Anyway, something else to try.

Similar in size, grooming needs, general appearance and exercise needs but quite different in the way they tend to interact with people and other dogs - so temperamentally different in their breed temperament. Also due to some unfortunate popularity issues, BYB has left some shelties with easily upset temperaments. I cannot speak for Jap spitzes, but many of the spitz breeds need firm guidance when young to become good family pets, Your best bet is to attend a few all breeds shows where both of these breeds will be present to get an idea of the ideal temperament in each breed - spitz outlook on life is VERY diiferent to herding breed outlook! - and, once you've settled on the breed that matches you best in that way, then start the process of finding a good breeder.

You will need a heavy duty cordless - have a talk to the horse people for the best brands that don't overheat too fast, then try to find one of those brands with a head size and comb sizes to suit. Let us know how you go, please.

If she bought the dog from a reputable breeder, quite possibly the breeder will happily show her how to groom/pet clip or can recommend a breeder in her area who can show her. Otherwise she will have to find the course which will spend most of the time teaching her to groom breeds she is not interested in LOL.

I have taken surrenders of dogs with zero vaccination history, various ages and they have had to have nasal KC and a single yearly C3 vacc rather than a C5 due to the lack of puppy shots. Desexing has been done within a few days of the vacc and nasal. C5 three yearly can be given 12 months later. I am not sure of the exact reason why, obviously it has something to do with C5 needing prior vaccination, but the nasal KC doesn't.

Thanks so much for the update! Always nice to learn the outcome!

Do Masterpet actually manufacture under licence or are they just distributors? I see that Eukanuba and Iams are among their brands. Very heavily promoted by sponsorships etc. New Zealanders can manufacture decent pet food - Ziwipeak is a fantastic brand made there. It is not as readily available in Australia as it is in the US, oddly enough. :shrugs:

There are some ideas on snake-proofing your yard (with pics) here at this fencing company's site. Using their products of course, but the general idea is pretty much the same no matter what products you buy. Guinea fowl will sometimes mob a snake, and will always create a hullaballoo when they spot one, but that just tends to attract the dogs to see what they are on about - and sometimes they will mob your chooks or small pets as well, so they are not suited for everyone LOL. I'm waiting for trained kookaburras to come on the market for snake patrol!

Really all you can do is make your yard unattractive to snakes or totally barricade them out. Keep grass short, make sure that your bushes have stems and are not bushy at ground level, keep yard clear of piles of leaves, sticks, wood etc. that might give a snake a hiding place. Try to keep dogs' water up off the ground - and be aware that in hot weather snakes may seek out the clamshell pool or fish pond as well. Snakes will come after eggs, mice, frogs, skinks etc. so you need to take extra care if you have poultry or aviary birds that may attract rodents looking for their scattered feed etc. You can physically keep snakes out of your house yard by ensuring that all gates and fences there are snake proof AND kept closed - but snake proofing a gate is not always an easy task. Don't forget they can climb and slide through the smallest gaps - you may have the perfect fences and gates and they enter the yard by travelling under the house...

Perhaps if we find a picture of an inmate of death row somewhere in the world who looks like the CEO of Brimbank and demand the death penalty based on the similarity in looks, the council might come to understand the immorality of their stance. After ignoring two Supreme Court decisions, it is quite obvious they are not going to understand the illegality of their stance. It is painfully obvious that they are just attempting to bully this through, all we can do is continue to support those who are contesting the action, and continue to speak out against it.

Apparently, existing domestic animal businesses will have until 2020 to phase out entire bitches over the number 10 limit according to Labor MP who was answering (or dodging) questions on the issue on the FB page Wednesday night. I honestly don't see it happening - the bureaucrats who get nice little kick backs from the entrenched interests won't let it happen - we saw this already with the Coalition government attempt. Smoke and mirrors is about right.

Exactly! If you want to be even more frustrated, take a look at Victorian Labor Party's online facebook page. One of their sitting members hosted a 'discussion' tonight on there to answer any questions about Labor's puppy farm platform. Apparently limiting everyone in the entire state to owning 10 entire dogs as an absolute maximum is going to improve life for every dam and sire in the state. I can see that going down really well on large properties with working dogs, where they are kept entire so that the best workers can be chosen for reproduction duties...let alone ANKC members who may be campaigning a whole stable of dogs without constantly breeding them. But the politicians think that anyone owning more than 10 entire dogs must be a puppy farmer, regardless of whether they actually produce or sell any puppies at all. AL activists must be rejoicing. It won't stop illegal puppy farms - only severely increasing the penalties for being caught will deter the illegals. And policing online advertising is "tricky" according to one MP, probably why no party is promising that.

Golly can you tell there is a state election upcoming?? State Govt Opposition has been inundating social media etc with their promises to be the anti-puppy farming party. Meanwhile the present state coalition goverment has revamped the code for breeding and rearing practices, to take effect at the end of the week. I haven't seen the detail yet, it will be online at DEPI after 9.30am Thursday 30th October. According to the DEPI summary release, the code is now "more holistic". Changes include: Mandatory post partum veterinary check for bitches. Bitches are only permitted a maximum of five litters throughout their lifetime. Both of the above had been pleaded for by many who made submissions when the former code was being written. Oh, well, better late than never. The summary says that the new code "provides a strong stance on: • basic record keeping to ensure traceability, consumer protection and to aid in the management of animal health and welfare; • minimum staffing levels to ensure minimum standards of care and animal welfare in large businesses; · a maximum number of 5 litters for female dogs; and • mandatory veterinary care for every animal in the business." I am hoping that last paragraph means that they have made more realistic the minimum staffing levels and wish I didn't have to wait until next week to find out the detail. Also, those of us who submitted comments on the code, received a letter from the responsible Minister (Peter Walsh) stating that a total of $6 million dollars has been granted to the RSPCA commencing immediately with $1.5 million earmarked as enforcement for the Code of Practice. The RSPCA says "Whilst we welcome the $6 million over 4 years for this new 'Special Investigations Unit' and it is a good start, it will require additional investment and legislative change to bring this cruel practice to an end. " According to the Minister's letter other changes include: · introduced a ‘fit and proper person test’ for breeders. This means: ü anyone found guilty of animal cruelty offences will be banned from running, owning or managing a breeding or rearing establishment for 10 years. ü we’ll shut down existing businesses being run by people who have been found guilty of animal cruelty in the past. · introduced compulsory detailed records for pet shops to ensure animal traceability. This means: ü pet shops will be forced to keep detailed records on the source of every dog and cat they have for sale. ü these records can be used by Council and RSPCA officers to investigate and prosecute illegal puppy and kitten farms who are doing the wrong thing.The Minister also claims to have granted greater powers for the RSPCA to investigate puppy and kitten farms. RSPCA (VIC) are pleased that all major parties in this state election have an anti-puppy farming platform. Frankly, I will be placing my votes not based on promised, but on past performance of the candidates and their parties. I have no faith in electioneering promises. And I will be looking closely at the new changes when they come into effect next week. The Code ONLY applies to registered animal breeder and rearing businesses, not to BYBs or accredited organisation members with less than 10 fertile animals. Legislation and regulations never apply to those who are happy to disregard the law, I would have liked to see funds allocated for education but at least there has been some extra funding to police the new legislation although not everyone will be pleased with the enforcement being left to RSPCA (VIC).