RuralPug

If your dogs are already 3 years old or more and get along happily, then don't stress. You are very unlikely to have two "alpha" bitches (nothing to do with pack dominance theory LOL just a name for bitches that need to be boss girls). It can happen that you have two "alpha" bitches in any breed or combination of breeds and then it is true, you will have trouble. And as for breeds not getting along with other breeds, although it is true that there can be miscommunication between say, spitz breeds with pricked ears and high tails and flat faced breeds with folded ears and curled or missing tails - if your girls have lived together happily for 12 months or more it is fair to say that they communicate quite well with each other.

If this is the puppy that has kennel cough, that can cause the droopy eyelids plus some conjunctivitis and the eyes should return to normal once the kennel cough has been cleared up.

@Powerlegs this looks like a job for you! yvonneh, Powerlegs is a member of this forum who runs a small dog rescue in Sydney. If she doesn't have a foster space in her rescue, I am sure she will know someone equally ethical who does!

@Cosmolo he hasn't even been advertised yet LOL but they can email an enquiry about him to goldfieldsfindafamily @ gmail.com (without the spaces ) and I will send the adoption application and procedure, after which we can schedule a meet and greet.

Agreed - in breeding FOR colour first and foremost, health problems in the breeding stock are overlooked in favour of colour. We see the same problem currently in blue SBTs and in other "fashionable" colours in other breeds. It is not impossible to find a healthy specimen of "colour" but they are more likely to be healthy if one or both parents is a different colour - nothing to do with the actual colour, a lot to do with the focus of breeding.

To be fair they actually said the retina was different, not that it just was a different colour. However I tend to agree with your point, I really don't see how a differently structured retina would affect behaviour either. Now if their scenting ability was structured differently I WOULD expect that to affect their behaviour as that sense uses a much bigger portion of the dog brain than does sight.

Hi guys I'm seeking recommendations for a balanced or positive (either is fine) trainer that services Toowoomba in Queensland. Does anyone know any?

Do check his front feet or have them checked. If nothing can be be found wrong it might simply be paw licking as a stress reaction - was he particularly unhappy about the bath? If it is stress, try to distract him from doing it to prevent it becoming habitual, or you might end up with horrible discoloured paws and a yeast infection.

Because the current CEO now has enough money to retire on, but he will probably keep taking a salary from PR and just let the new General Manager do the work... And people are still hoodwinked into donating,honestly thinking that they are helping animals

I have a small broken coated terrier mix, aged 5, ex-farm terrier ready for adoption whose besetting sin is livestock chasing so am wanting him to go to an urban home. His coat does not need shaping or clipping, but it does need regular brushing and combing. Good with other dogs, kids and cats (although he WILL persist in stealing munchies from the litter tray sigh). Loves his walks and to lie at your feet. He is not very active for a terrier, loves to dig in the dog pit but is quite good at not digging elsewhere in the garden. All vetwork done, of course. Bearji is currently fostered with me, just outside Ballarat. He hasn't been advertised yet as I don't have any decent photos of him and need to find time to organise a photographer. These photos are the best I've got, sorry. Don't show his personality at all.

Has the vet done a thyroid check?They most probably have, but am mentioning it just in case, as hypothyroidism is a really common cause of alopecia. It is very easily treated if that is the case. Some dietary additives that may help if it is a thyroid issue are kelp (for the iodine) together with Vitamin E to help access the iodine and zinc supplements.

We call it "butterfly nose" and it is really common in puppies, especially when there is a surrounding white blaze on the face. 99% of the time the pigment of the nose fills in quite nicely. Nothing to worry about.

Thirding tdierikx! It may be an allergy or it may simply be that whatever shampoo was used wasn't thoroughly rinsed out. Try bathing them again in warm water with no shampoo at all, and see if that helps. If they are still really itchy after that, treat the symptoms with a Calendula Tea rinse ( using search on the forums will help you find the threads about Calendula).

Be interesting to see what the reply to your second email is - possibly the Secretary made an error and sent you a reply intended for a different emailer?

I must admit, that is new to me in dogs. Plenty of cats do that - the typical furball vomit, but I haven't seen it in dogs. I have seen undigested food vomited up ( and gleefully eaten again if you're not quick enough ) - and I agree with tdierikx that is is a congealed mess - but it is not compacted like firm faeces. If it happens again, take a photo before you pick it up and then phone your vet to see if it is something that happens - or if more investigation is needed.

The new house probably is fun to dig in, where the other yards weren't, I'd say. When I've had a foster that digs where I don't want them to dig, I have found that filling the hole about 3/4 full, then, like Thistle, popping in some of their poo before completing the fill, deters them from digging again in the same spot. And there is a special part of the garden that they can dig in and enjoy that spot. I can't use sand there because we are surrounded by bush filled with feral cats who will travel miles to poo in a sandpit! So my lot have to dig in clay LOL - but a few treated pine boards or an inexpensive raised garden bed make a sandbox very easy to construct for a large dog and heaps of fun!

I have to say CandiB, no disrespect intended, but that particular blanket statement is incredibly misleading, because it certainly does NOT apply to all dogs, nor to all breeds. Someone who thought that the the average Malinois would be fine with just a regular brush and a bit of a play in the yard would be very wrong and would create a problem dog. Any high drive dog, no matter what breed, needs a lot more time and enrichment than that. A placid low drive dog would also be unlikely to be just fine with that, as low drive dogs generally are from breeds bred for companionship and they need to spend most of their time with their people, or at least with other pets. There are of course, always dogs on the far end of the bell curve in any breed, so there may be the odd one that is perfectly happy with a regular brush and some outdoor interaction and not much else- but to blanket statement that to cover most dogs is just wrong.

Overseas dogs in apartments with no garden space or balcony is very very common and it is just a matter of getting the dog into a routine where they are walked several times a day for peeing/pooping purposes as well as exercise walks for health and enrichment. That is why dog walkers are in such demand overseas, they do lunch time walks for owners who work all day. A dog can be just as bored and lonely in a huge backyard as inside an apartment - and, as most of us are aware, there are sadly a lot of bored and lonely dogs barking all day in big yards! But it is a matter for the body corporate to decide.

If it is absolutely essential to you that your pup be from this sire and dam, then you obviously don't want any other pup at all and will have to do without a pup and yes, if there was a written contract that your pup would be from that pair only, then your deposit and any other purchase money paid should be refunded to you. You can start looking for another breed or another species. However, if you still want a pup, then that dam is still available and I would be finding out what alternate stud the breeder will be using - no doubt the breeder will be looking for as close a match to the deceased dog's type and health testing as they can find. You might find that the new planned mating is just as suitable for you and then you would be happy with a pup from that litter instead. Another possibility is that sperm was taken before the dog died and has been frozen, so a litter by artificial insemination from the deceased dog is still quite possible. This is not an uncommon procedure. Bottom line, is talk to the breeder and see what their plans are.

Hi Melert, yes you sound like an ideal owner for a full on working breed like a Border Collie - also consider Kelpies, Koolies, Belgian Shepherds and working line GSDs. Owning a working breed is a very fulfilling thing, you need to put a fair amount of effort in , but the rewards are huge and satisfying. Owning a working breed without putting in very much effort is, however, very frustrating for both dog and owner. Do remember that high impact repetitive activity like jogging and jumping is not good for a puppy's growing bones and ligaments, so no jogging until adult growth has been reached then start slowly and work up. You ask if BCs like bushwalking etc - quite simply, they LOVE any activity that keeps them with their human, so yes! All breeds of dog are playful and affectionate with their own humans, BCs and other working breeds are no exception to this. Many of the working breeds enjoy playing with any human at all, especially if fetch is involved!

They have alienated almost the entire rescue community. As Rescue Network gets bigger and bigger, with firm promises NEVER to behave as unethically as PetRescue has become in its corporate greed, they are digging their own grave. No wonder they are grabbing everything they can while it lasts!

Yep Mel is still transporting as Angryface - she has a FB page - she is often heavily booked though, you might need to book well in advance!

This is going to seem really harsh, but I think you should rehome your girlfriend and continue to work with the dog. You seem to be the only one who cares about the little dog and I am sure with effort and guidance from a positive trainer you will have a fantastic little buddy for the rest of his life. If your gf has given up on the dog already and is not backing you up, well, I hope she NEVER has kids, is all I can say.

I would recommend you purchasing a crate that will big enough for her to fit comfortably in as a fully grown Golden. It can be her safe comfy place for life! Choose a crate that has a divider (or make a divider yourself) so that the crate is not TOO big for a baby Golden to den in. I would also recommend that you purchase the type of play pen that attaches to the crate when you want it too - both so that her den is accessible from the playpen when you want it to be and when you want her confined to her crate for toilet training reasons you can do that as well. The crate helps to anchor the pen (especially if the crate is fastened to a piece of heavy furniture LOL) Get the best crate and pen that you can afford - the crate will last for your dog's lifetime and a good quality pen is very resalable once your puppy has grown out of it. Personally, I would recommend vebo pens and crates for large dogs as best value for money but you can shop around if you choose. Crate training as a part of toilet training is explained very well in this step by step webpage - well worth a read. Good luck with your new baby! You are off to a great start by asking these questions!

It is a big job to socialise a puppy - if you can get the puppy through the puppy stage then then Chloe will happily accept him once he has learned his manners. Meantime it's your job to keep puppy separate except for those times you can ACTIVELY supervise (yes, that never ending job!). It is perfectly normal for young puppies to hang off/swing off adult ears, tails and anything else they can reach - and equally normal for adult dogs to have very little patience with that! In Chloe's case, if she never has met many puppies, she won't know how to gently discipline the pup, which leaves you with the job of actively supervising so that pup is immediately removed when he does swing off tails/ears etc. This is why so many breeders recommend puppy pens as an aid to puppy growing up safely - in the case of a larger breed like a lab you might choose to crate train the puppy. This ties in nicely with him learning social manners and getting plenty of sleeptime to grow in, as well. Google crate training if you are not sure, or ask your breeder for tips. Puppy should be getting a lot of separate attention at this time anyway from his designated training human (with back up from the rest of the household) to learn basic sit/stay/come/wait walk without pulling - that training plus a lot of other brainwork enrichment will tire puppy out nicely so that less time is spent harassing the older dogs. 10 minutes training three times a day plus 10 minutes puzzles or trick training (learning fetch etc) a couple of other times in the day will exhaust puppy nicely! Yes, it is a lot of work - but you will see results inside a month or two at the longest and then all your dogs can enjoy each other!