RuralPug

Exactly right - although there are bogan parents who not only do NOT teach their children traffic safety, they blame the drivers for not slowing to 5kph when their toddlers are playing unsupervised on the footpath. Fortunately they are in the minority.

Thank you TSD, this couple is very very experienced with cats (and rescuing cats), not so much with dogs but they are very very open to advice and have a couple of lines of contact, I'm sure they would welcome a third so will pass that on. :) Mita, yes I think Buddha or one of his mates has stepped in for this little guy, he has a couple of great breaks - the first was NOT going to the pf who was very interested - PHEW! His trial will be delayed by a week as his potential Mum is ill, but he is safe here until she is recovered,

Thank you TSD, this couple is very very experienced with cats (and rescuing cats), not so much with dogs but they are very very open to advice and have a couple of lines of contact, I'm sure they would welcome a third so will pass that on. :) Mita, yes I think Buddha or one of his mates has stepped in for this little guy, he has a couple of great breaks - the first was NOT going to the pf who was very interested - PHEW! His trial will be delayed by a week as his potential Mum is ill, but he is safe here until she is recovered,

Delightful little Billy has had a meet and greet last weekend with a lovely couple from Bayswater in Melbourne that seems very promising. He is off for a two week trial with them this weekend. They have three cats, so I took Billy to a friend's home for further cat testing. She is a cat rescuer, and has quite a range of mostly not-dog-friendly cats and various other animals. Billy passed with flying colours, ignoring the kittens and cats who hissed etc. One brave cat came up and touched noses with him, and then leapt away when that glorious Tibbie tail began to wag. Billy thought this was a play invite, and bounded joyfully after it, only to sigh and turn away resignedly when the cat hissed a warning. He did fall in love with an orphan lamb there though which was the cutest thing! My friend was most impressed and has since asked after "that little lion dog""! She said most dogs that visit usually bark at, chase or stare intently at the cats and are quickly taken away. Billy was there for about an hour and all the cats were snoozing relaxedly by then. He has been neutered, and while his stitches are still in, he is only allowed occasional playdates with my pug Cheddar, so he has trained us to throw a rope toy for him to fetch. Fortunately he tires of that game and takes the toy and puts it away before our arm muscles turn to jelly! There is apparently an older but frisky Tibbie a few doors down from his potential new home, so playdates are being arranged. :)

A lot depends on your vehicle, since you are on your own. If you intro them at the airport, then you have to drive them both home. If you have separate crates for them, no drama, I would vote for the airport intro as it is neutral. But if they have to share a back seat or wagon back etc. it will be too hard to properly supervise them and drive safely simultaneously. I would give them a brief intro at home and keep them separated until the next day when you can do a proper intro.

Your guess is as good as anyone else's what any given checker will define as a common word. One may pass what another would bar, it is very subjective. I have known people to list 10 or 20 and have them all rejected, if I was applying in this day and age when choices are compared with databases all over the world I wouldn't be game to list just one. I did get my first choice, but that was 40 odd years ago and it is a phrase crammed into seven letters, therefore not a "common" word. If your first choice can be found in the dictionary and reflects your chosen breed in some manner the chances are high that someone else has used it or something close enough to preclude you from getting your choice. Don't despair, put it down as your first choice by all means, but don't set your heart on it just in case. List other choices, think of ways to combine that word with another to make something unique or alter the spelling or both. Consider also as possible choices your chosen word translated into another language - if it is an obscure language then it could be a way of getting the word you want even if someone else already has it!

Assuming that your boy is in your avatar picture, you might like to try the Puppia harnesses which are very comfortable for small dogs. Puppia are the ones like a vest and they have an enormous range of prints and colours, mesh or soft fabric. They have now come out with a new design jacket harness which looks interesting. Just google "Puppia" and you will have heaps to choose from.

Isn't Leema fostering a poodle cross at the moment? Send a PM her way!

Have PM'd you with some info. Hope they will accept her surrender.

Christina I have a copy of that download saved. Pm me your email addy and I will email you the file.

No, the random dogs are NOT the cause. Nor are the deliberately bred dogs. PEOPLE are the cause. And, of people, those people that are more responsible for shelter overpopulation than any other sort of people are the revolving door cute puppy owners who repeatedly buy (from breeders OR from rescue/pounds/shelters) puppies or young dogs and then sell/dump/giveaway those puppies or young dogs within a few years or even a few months and then go out and get another cute puppy or young dog. For every responsible dog owner who keeps their dog for 15 years or until death do they part, there appear to be 3 or 4 irresponsible owners who have owned 6 - 12 dogs one at a time over that 15 year span, the bulk of whom have been added to the shelter population. STOP the revolving door syndrome, or at least dramatically reduce it and the demand for puppies to be bred will drop equally dramatically and shelter overcrowding will also stop. So how do we get our society to value pets as non-disposable family members?

I am already a chronic pugaholic it would be just too much to be a Tibbie Tragic as well, although if they are all like this little character I can understand how it happens! Thanks for letting me know, Kirty. And thanks for spreading the word, Mita. And special thanks to tibbie-tabbie for the reimbursement covering this little man. Hmmm, I'm probably a "tibbie person tragic" LOL!!!

TSAV have advised me that they are still in the process of looking for a rehome for Billy. He is gorgeous and didn't chase the Siamese foster I have here so I guess that qualifies him as good with cats . He is certainly great with children and other small dogs. He is cautious of large breeds, but not extremely so. He hasn't made any house-training mistakes here (I have a doggy door) but the previous owner claimed that he did. Any adoption enquiries can be directed to TSAV President Pam Dunlop at [email protected] or via the contact details on the TSAV website rescue page. Thanks for all your help!

Here he is, as twice as cheeky in real life!

Thanks to all he is quite safe. TSAV have his pic upon their website now in the rescue section. It is the seller's pic because right now he is playing hell for leather with my pug Cheddar at the moment, they are not going to sit still for pics! Kirty you could pass on TSAV's rescue contact details to your friend, best to get in quick I think! Check Here to see his picture. Thank you all so much, so nice when it all happens to work smoothly! Edited to add: His picture has now disappeared from that website LOL which I hope means they have been overwhelmed with applications!! I will repost that picture in post #10 ( if I'm counting right.) Valblitz I've met plenty of gorgeous Tibbies around the show ring (even handled a couple there) but I've never before had the pleasure of fostering one. This one is a real little character and a pleasure to have!

Thank you both so very much! Arrangements have now been made so that this Tibbie will be safe from tomorrow!

Oh, is that confirmed he is part of an organised dog fighting ring or is he an animal abuser? Oh he must be an animal abuser because dog fighting rings are a hoax, right? Last time I was in the Hawksbury, it wasn't in Victoria... If you hadn't put the link in, I would have assumed that you accidentally posted in the wrong thread. Hawkesbury is a Sydney regional council but was not mentioned in the linked article in any way whatsoever. If you're trying to confuse people or derail the thread it's probably working. The original post was about police saying reports of dog fighting in the Hills and Hawksbury are hoaxes. You are saying it's not a hoax by linking to a Victorian article. The Hawksbury isn't in Victoria so your article has no relevance to the origin post. And since you know Sydney isn't mentioned in the article, I'm wondering why you even posted it. But I was not responding to the original post, but to Plan B's link to the blog post. Did you read that blog post and the geographical areas it referred to?

If anyone has a contact number for Mita could you please contact her ASAP and ask her to check her DOL messages? I urgently need her advice on a local Tibetan in need of rescue. Thanks, all Edited post title. Edited post title again 7/9/13 - Billy's trial has been a success and he is now a member of a lovely DOLer's family. I will let her make the announcement! I hope she includes pictures - she has some lovely ones!!

The definition I am suggesting includes a clause that says where contraceptive methods are demonstrated to be in use for all undesexed adult females then the females may not be considered entire. If accepted, this will enable responsible owners who do not wish to desex from being defined as breeders. Or so I hope. Irresponsible owners I don't care about.

Last time I was in the Hawksbury, it wasn't in Victoria... If you hadn't put the link in, I would have assumed that you accidentally posted in the wrong thread. Hawkesbury is a Sydney regional council but was not mentioned in the linked article in any way whatsoever. If you're trying to confuse people or derail the thread it's probably working.

It must all be a hoax. I guess that why people are being arrested. (Insert sarcasm emoticon here) http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/man-charged-over-dog-thefts-20130621-2oopm.html

I have often noticed dogs are more comfortable with other dogs who have traits that they know how to read easily. Pugs for example speak dog with an accent of forward facing eyes, folded ears, and tightly curled tail. They are often misunderstood by dogs who have the prick ear, eyes on side of head and bushy tail accent. I know a kelpie cross who was raised with Pugs, thinks he is a pug and will always plays happily with them whenever she gets the chance. Pugs new to her are often wary at first and delighted as they find she understands them perfectly. I'm not sure, though, if an older dog would actually remember a sibling that they were separated from a 8 weeks old. That's not to say that they won't get on splendidly though, especially if they have the same "accent".

No matter what the size, all dogs are carnivores and do have a prey drive, some stronger than others but it is always present even if too low to use for triggering behavioural responses. Some breeds tend to be easier to train than others as they are more inclined to work as part of a team. Other breeds can be more difficult to train because they prefer to "work" alone, but great results can still be had from individual dogs in those breeds if you can find the motivations/triggers for them. Remember that some toy breeds were developed for vermin control and those will have strong prey drive more often than not. Others are just miniature versions of larger breeds, and usually have the same general distribution of drives as their larger cousins. The breeds developed solely as companion breeds usually have either a strong desire to please (if 'soft') or a strong desire to entertain/be focus of attention (if 'clownish') and both those desires can be manipulated in the same way as prey drive (which is still present in these breeds but it is not always strong). So to answer the original question, yes. It is quite possible that a dog will work simply to receive praise if their strongest drive is to please their team leader. In my experience, though, they usually have much more fun, and learn faster if you use prey drive rewards (tugs toys, food etc.) And all of the toy breeds can be taught this way.

Thanks Linda, I'm sure they did give that definition at the meeting, but my point is they have not defined the word in the Code, nor is it defined in the Act. I'm including that lack in my response, with a suggested definition.

Early socialisation is not necessarily a benefit of purebred dogs per se - it is a benefit of responsible breeding. The breeding with care and the early socialisation of puppies is a very large part of my personal definition of ethical and responsible. The remaining parts revolve around efforts to make sure that the puppies you have bred go to suitable homes and you provide those homes with safety back up in some form if the homes become unsuitable later.