RiverStar-Aura

By telling a new dog to research raw feeding gets confusing. There are SO MANY conflicting ideas that it does get very confusing. I found the more I read up, the more confused I got so I gave up. Looking around, the majority of dogs in Australia are most likely fed commercial foods and do just fine. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with raw but for those who just 'don't get it' like myself, kibble is a good option. At least I'm sure my dog is getting all the nutrients he needs without having to worry if I've added enough meat/bone/offal/vegetable etc.

What would you do to the puppy if she was returned to you - would you fix her up or PTS?? I understand where you are coming from but it's hard to seperate emotions- what if she is healed with no more probs?? Our older staffy has had an infection in the same area years ago and she is fine and still kicking. It's hard to know whether the pup would be fixed or PTS if sent back to the breeder. I'm sure, like you, the pup's breeder would take everything into account the do what's best for the puppy. Breeders do not make the decision to PTS a puppy lightly. There seems to be stigma around dog breeders that they just PTS puppies for the sake of it. I am not a breeder but I've been in these forums long enough to know that all the breeders here love their puppies so much and don't take any decisions regarding their lives lightly. Keep an open dialogue with your breeder about the pup's progress -- they seem to be very helpful and loving!

Grommit it's so hard going through something like this, especially when you go out of your way to find good, ethical breeders. I really hope things work out for your darling puppy The poor breeder too -- they must be devastated. To send a pup off to a new home only to hear it's become so sick my be heartbreaking. I feel for everyone involved with this pup

I'd just like to address the bolded part above. Just how do they expect a dog to know the difference between a child trespassing to retrieve a ball and a burglar or someone of 'malicious intent'? I'm sure all dogs couldn't make the distinction -- act differently yes, but not know the intent of the trespasser. Are they expecting dogs to sit a course on human profiling now?

Disagree. I've known quite a few giant breed puppies raised wonderfully on PMR. That might be true, but if the owner is a first time raw feeder I'd be concerned about the pup getting the correct amount if nutrients. Especially a giant breed, who need all the correct nutrition they can get. I only own a terrier and cross breed but still get confused regarding the correct balance of feeding raw so I stick with kibble, roo mince and natural yoghurt.

I don't know if it would be an option for Kenz, but my friend's staffy cross has a badly sprained cruciate that only time can heal. She'd start to get better, then run around like a crazy loon and sprain it all over again. She's been prescribed a very mild sedative just to take an edge off while she's healing. Would something like that work with your girl at all? I'm so sorry you both keep going through these ups and downs. Oh and can I just say that Kenzie is such a beautiful girl!!

I am really so sorry for both you and Kenz. I don't post in here much but Kenzie is often in my thoughts and I'm always reading hoping for good news. Kenzie is so lucky to have you for an owner Ness -- not once have you given up on her and I'm sure she more than appreciates your effort. I'm sending you both love and well wishes and I'm really hoping you both get a well deserved break soon.

I was reading up about the dogs used as guide dogs and from what I remember reading, they prefer a much calmer temperament due to the job they're required to perform eg ignoring a lot of their surroundings, which can get quite distracting. I understand assistance dogs and guide dogs perform different jobs, but I really do think a calmer dog would be more suitable.

It's certainly hard to know where the best place to advertise would be for breeders. Often Joe Public only knows about buying pets through newspapers or trading post sites -- I know I would've had no idea where to hunt for my next Aussie Terrier had I not stumbled upon DOL a few years back when needing help with my cross breed puppy. I'm grateful for this site, but it certainly doesn't make finding registered breeders easy for those not knowing how to search or where to even start. I don't see a problem with where a breeder advertises, it's the sheer amount of misinformation placed within the ads by dodgy 'breeders' that seems to be the problem. That and the fact that many play on the phrases 'rare colour' or 'rare breed' which purchasers buy into and the hugely escalated price tags! If more breeders were to advertise in local papers and mention they are ANKC registered, I'm sure more and more of the general public would be asking the question 'what is the ANKC?' and making the effort to look into buying pure bred dogs. Some how, the breeding of pure bred dogs became an almost 'secret society' so if you weren't in the know, you'd have no idea about it. Just as owning dogs has changed immensely in the last decade, the buying and selling of dogs needs to step up and move with the times too. Sadly, I don't see this happening if breeders feel the need to have to defend their positions on where they advertise. To be honest, I don't see how it matters to anyone where a breeder advertises -- that's up to each individual breeder and no one else.

Ktn, rather than the chicken necks, how about trying a chicken wing? You can get the boomerang wings (three joints) that she should be able to manage. My old Aussie, Poochie ended up needing a lot of her teeth removed due to having a crappy diet of tinned food and table scraps, and she could manage a wing. If you're not keen on the chicken wing, you could even just give her a cheap cut of steak raw to gnaw on -- like chuck or something. That way, being raw will help keep your girl's teeth cleaner.

Black Dog have made a new treat pouch too that's very much like the Doggone Rapid Rewards Pouch. I've owned the Black Dog older style treat pouch but found the metal clasps kept breaking and going stiff if not oiled frequently (something I do not have time to keep tabs on all the time). I'm in the process of ordering their new pouch as it also has a magnetic close so I will let you know how I find it soon. The website is Black Dog and the pouch is listed in the 'new' section and is called a Treat Tote and Belt.

My two dogs and cat don't get along at all. All they do is bark in her face and chase her if she runs away. She's 10 1/2 and not a feisty cat so they all stay separated. If the cat wants to play outside, the dogs get locked on one side of the fence and the cat has the other half. She doesn't leave our backyard so putting up a dividing fence was our only option. The dogs have a too high prey drive for me to stop them chasing the cat so rather than force them to get along, this was the best solution for us. The only problem with the dogs is that they just want to play and Callie the grumpy cat doesn't do play. Perhaps if she was younger we would've worked on this but we're all happy with the current arrangement.

OMGosh so cute!! How much training has she done? That's amazing. None of my dogs had such a good attention span at that age!

I sympathise with you a lot. The same thing happened to my parents' first dog Brutus. He was bought after mum had suffered a few miscarriages and needed the live and company of a dog. Eventually the five of us kids arrived and Brutus kept getting shunted down the hierarchy and started getting cranky and aggressive. Mum couldn't let us outside until Brutus was locked in the garage and when my second oldest brother was about 3, Brutus attacked him and he required a lot of stitches to his face. Brutus should've been PTS there and then but dad was against it. We kept him until he was 12 and by this stage he was very, VERY aggressive towards us, in a lot of pain being very arthritic and mum couldn't even get us in and out of the car. Mum really regrets not giving Brutus his wings once my brother was bitten, but they didn't really know any better when it came to dogs. I am so sorry you're faced with this decision, but it does sound like your poor dog isn't coping with the arrival of your child. Only you can make this decision but I thought if share my story to let you know this has happened to others so you're not alone.

Perse's point B was my first thought this morning too. I didn't post earlier because I was stuck for wording. Now after reading her post, I agree that your younger boy might've been bullied by the older one. Household politics can become stressful. Poor boy! Maybe a vet check just in case to make sure here's no hidden injuries -- dogs can be pretty stoic.

Cheese ball tablets. Works every time!!!

Just wanted to add that at my quick glance I read 'anyone use a dog COMPOSER' :laugh: I'm such a nob!!

The only real issue I have with clicker training is that I don't have enough hands. This is why I've struggled with loose leash walking too -- trying to co-ordinate clicker or leash in hand with distributing treats. I'm quite unco! Zeus I'm lucky with. He loves learning so much that if he's in the middle of a trick and a dog comes over, he gives a warning bark in their direction as if to say 'go away please. I'm learning'. It's cute. Along with the standing on things/leg awareness, I'm working on turning my hand signals into just verbal cues. We've so far mastered sit, drop and roll over but there's still at least 10 more to go. It's a learning curve more so for me as I've only ever been able to train to hand signals.

It kinda does look like clear garden hose, hey Nek! Shapeshifter, I really wouldn't be surprised if it's only really worth about $1.50. Most of the parts are probably available from JayCar! And my brothers are pretty handy with all things electronic and would probably make one for me.

This thread makes me really grateful for my off leash park!

Yeah for some reason the Leuchtie website doesn't link to anywhere with a price -- I was looking at buying mine through Flash Dogs but they're $64.95 I have been looking at the Guardian Lights but I'm finding, same as the Rogz Lite, that Zeus's collar in particular spin around and the light ends up under his chin and can't be seen. I think that's why I'm in the market for a full light up collar.

Just wondering if anyone owns this brand of LED collar. Apparently they've been thoroughly tested in the Yukon and are used by snow rescue and I'm contemplating getting them for my two dogs. They have a pretty hefty price tag -- around the $60 mark -- however, as my dogs do swimming in the dark still, much to my dismay, I'm thinking they might prove worthwhile. Thought I'd ask here and see if people use them. Here's the Australian Leuchtie Website link if anyone wants to read up on them.

Ah okay. I'd not even thought of starting with something bigger -- I can be a bit stupid like that! :laugh: I don't use a clicker because he's a very smart and quick learner, but I have introduced to him so he understands what it means. I've just really never needed to use it with him.

As something new to work on with Zeus, I've purchased some cheap melamine bowls from K Mart to see if I can get him to balance/stand on them. The problem I'm having getting him to even place a foot on them because he keeps thinking I'm telling him to 'push it', a command my brother taught him whilst I was away one week. He ends up batting the bowl with his paws sending it flying across the lawn and poor Zeus is just not understanding what I want. Is there a command I can use (I'm thinking 'balance') that you would suggest and how do I go about getting him to balance on them? Should I start by placing his paw on them?

Oh I meant to ask, how do you all go about training your dogs to run alongside a bike? Isn't it illegal in Australia to cycle with a dog? I just want to make sure I get the ins and outs before I go getting myself into trouble. Also, what sort of bikes are best suited? A mountain bike or road bike? I understand there are differences between the the two types as my brother has just got into road cycling and is loving it.