RiverStar-Aura

Adonis truly is a gorgeous boy PM -- I may have to steal him! ;) Borzoi are such beautiful animals that I may have another favourite breed on my list of "to own breeds".

I agree. At 18 months your GR should not be having 3 meals a day. 3 meals is recommended for growing pups and at 18 months, I should imagine your girl is fully grown. My guys get breakfast and dinner because this is how we've always fed our animals and my recommendation for 2 daily meals is to work out their daily allowance then split that in two (1/2 for morning and 1/2 at night). Zeus (14.8kg beagle x JRT) gets 1/4 cup of Royal Canin Sensible for breakfast and dinner and is a gorgeous size. He's muscly and toned and not an inch of fat anywhere. My other dog Kirah is still a pup so at 5 months she's still on 3 meals a day -- which I'll cut back to 2 once she hits 6 months. At present she's only 4.7 kilos (Aussie Terrier) and fully grown should be around 7 to 7.5 kilos. She's on Royal Canin Small puppy food with the occasional chicken neck because I find feeding dry easier. I've always fed my dogs on kibble with the occasional bone/carcass weekly because I find it far less confusing than feeding raw. I know what quantities to feed (and if it seems too much, it's easy to cut back) and I know they're getting the right nutrients. I'm still in the process of learning about raw diets but while I'm still learning, I'm sticking with kibble. So I agree with the others. Find a premium quality dry kibble that you're happy with and go with that. Add in bones/carcasses weekly and only feed twice a day! Hope that helps!

I have to agree with this. Dogs can't understand time as we do but they do have a concept of it. For instance I've taught Zeus that he gets breakfast when the sun's up and dinner as it sets so come dawn and dusk he gets food crazy. It's a PITA though come daylight savings and winter. I live near mountains and the sun disappears by 4pm and because it's dark Zeus wants fooding. So I think their concept of time is based on learned routines and the passage of the sun, moon, seasons etc.

My last Aussie Terrier Poochie was a climber but in a completely different way to yours Newfsie. Before we moved, us kids had a cubby house in the backyard with a near vertical 3 metre wooden ladder. Whenever my brothers or I were playing in it, Poochie would climb the ladder and join us! I can still see her straining her front legs as she pulled herself up each rung to reach the top. She loved being with us so much!! Getting down was another matter -- she'd roll down the rungs and shake herself off at the bottom. She was also a hopeless jumper because she'd taught herself to climb. Poochie figured she could climb everywhere -- even into the car! She was a gorgeous girl and I really miss her spirit! But she did like climbing rocks and things provided us kids were around.

I'll have to look into getting mackerel for my two. And I really didn't know that it was the added oil which was beneficial to the dogs -- just figured they were fed fish for the naturally occurring oils. I'm lucky to live in supermarket friendly suburb. I have a local Woolies, Coles, Aldi and IGA! Eeeewwww! But then I don't eat fish at all!

I've been giving my guys a tin of tuna (or sardines) once a week and I was wondering which is the best sort to give them. I've been buying the sardines and tuna in spring water because I'm not sure if the ones in oil are good for the dogs or not. I'm of the understanding that the oils are what helps dogs' coats but is it the oil in the fish or in the oil that's added to the fish? Also, are there any brands that are better than others? I don't eat fish myself so completely have no idea. I currently buy the Woolworths brand as it's cheaper but it's all fish to me.

I was surprised too Sammie. They don't seem to be a very common breed -- especially around my area -- and I was shocked to see him in there. It never surprises me to see maltese crosses or other SWFs -- I've even seen "pure bred" Australian Terriers, who were silver (obviously not Aussies) -- but never the "rarer" breeds. Frenchies are gorgeous little guys!! And I really little Asti!! Edited for grammar.

I'm not sure what the going rate for Frenchies is but I was just saying that if they're happy to pay that much for a dog (regardless of breed), they might as well get one from a breeder because clearly price wasn't an issue.

When I brought Kirah home, I set up a play pen inside the garage. She weighed under 5 kilos and Zeus (2 and a half years old) is 14.8 kilos and quite tall. Being a pup, she slept most of the time but I'd have her out playing with Zeus fully supervised. Then, when play time was over, she'd be put back in the play pen (garage door to outside is barricaded by a baby gate to keep Zeus out) and Kirah would sleep until it was time for more play or a meal. They've both been outside unsupervised since Kirah turned 4 months old, however, there's always someone home who keeps an ear out for anything. She's now 5 months and both her and Zeus get along famously; they even squeeze into the same kennel to sleep and Zeus loves having the company. They're the best of friends and Zeus adores his little sister and she her big brother.

Thanks for mentioning the Aloveen BM because I forgot to put it in my post. I use it on Zeus and not only does it smell great, it is a fantastically gentle shampoo.

You could try bathing him in an oatmeal based shampoo too as this works wonders to soothe dry, itchy skin. How old is your puppy because the scratching could be caused by something like shedding. He'll be starting to lose his winter coat, not to mention lose his puppy fur will be starting to grow his adult coat. I'm not sure, but these might also act as itchy triggers.

I ventured into the local pet store today just because I like having a look and I found a woman contemplating spending $2500 on a "pure bred" Frenchie. I pointed out to this lady that if she was quite happy spending that amount of money, that she'd be better off buying one from a registered breeder because that way she'd know exactly what she was getting. The poor little guy was 12 weeks old and in the glass cage completely alone. Did I feel sorry for him? Sure. But I know I would've gone to a breeder rather than spending that amount of money on a dog of questionable breeding. Now I should say that this is the same pet shop I bought Zeus from two and a half years ago but this was before I knew anything about pet shop puppies and BYBs. I don't regret buying Zeus because he's an absolutely gorgeous boy, but it saddens me when I think about where he probably came from. Now I just hope to talk to people contemplating the puppies and kittens they're looking at whenever I go in there.

I really hope Mindy comes through this okay. I have my fingers crossed and am sending a lot of healing vibes. Hugs to all!

Your pups are gorgeous and I'm so glad that after everything, the whelping was trouble-free and you now have a beautiful litter -- and great even numbers!! The names I like from that list are: Great Gatsby, Gaol Break, GPS Required and Glimmer of Hope. Also how about: Gone Astray, Gone a Heartbeat/Gone in a Heartbeat and Gone but not Forgotten.

What absolutely stunning dogs!! I can't believe how well-trained they are either. It must've been so hard for them not to go splashing in the water!! Looks like you all had a great time :D

Zeus is on the RC Sensitive Medium but I have no idea what the ingredients are. I'll be heading into Pet Barn tomorrow though so I can have a look and get a photo. I buy the 15 kilo bags and pour it straight into a storage container so never have a list of ingredients on hand.

I'm surprised no one's suggested Bluey! I like the name Harli but it's too common for me. What about Cedar? Otherwise I'd go with Indi/Indie (rock) :D

I keep my dogs' vaccination certificates in folders (one for each dog), along with all their papers (council rego, ANKC papers, puppy pre-school notes etc) so they don't get lost. I've also asked my vet to post out reminders when their vaccinations are due, which I get like clockwork every year. Worming should be done every month until your puppy is 6 months old. Once he is 6 months old, you only need to worm every 3 months for life. Yes. Every month for life, which would be written on the packaging and instructions. I don't regularly flea or tick proof my dogs though -- unless I notice fleas on them. My dogs have had an annual ProHeart injection this year so I don't need to worry about heartworm. They won't be getting the injection next year though so I'll need look around to see what else is available. Hope this helps you out!

I was completely unaware that dogs could have softer ear leather thus stopping them from becoming erect -- I'd always just assumed that ears would stick up naturally if the breed is supposed to have sticky-uppy ears. I've only ever had Aussie Terriers who have huge sticky-uppy "bat ears" as I like to call them. It makes for some serious cuteness having ears way too big for the head and it's interesting watching them in their growth stages. One day the left ear can stick up then the next day the other one is sticking up! Zeus's ears on the other hand ... when his flap in the wind and get stuck pointing in the air it looks hilarious! I also love when he's got "inside out" ears! Kirah and her "bat ears" at 8 weeks! :D

Just home from work now and I've been wondering all day about what today would bring for the girls. It's such a lovely surprise to come home and read they've been found safe and sound! I hope they get some extra yummy treats and huggles tonight! I'm so glad they're back and the pups are safe too!!

Can I just ask the point of taping ears? If the breed is supposed to have sticky-uppy ears, doesn't this just happen naturally with age? Is it done just on show dogs? It just seems like an odd practice for someone like me who has little to no understanding of breeding/showing

It's really disheartening to read a thread like this. I just can't believe that people would stoop to kidnapping a person's pet. To me that's like stealing someone's child and is nothing at all like stealing an inanimate object. What on earth possesses someone to even begin contemplating this? I really hope the two girls are found safely and quickly and much love and hugs to all involved. I can't imagine how you all feel. This is such a horrible thing to have happen. :hug: I also hope that all female Rotties taken to vet clinics around the state are scanned just to make sure they are who they're supposed to be.

It's funny how nicknames take over for animals. I tend to choose one or two syllable names because I find them easier to use, however, in the end, my woofers end up with long nicknames. Zeus: Zeusling, Zeus Bubba, Zeustopher (like Christopher), Bubba Boy, and Big. Kirah: Kirah Kiwi, Kirah Liddle ("Liddle" is my cutesy way of saying "little"), Little Bubba, and Liddle Calypso: Callie, Callie Kitty, Calypso Kitty, Kiiiiidy, and Kitty Kitty.

Oh yes and the ban on child smacking/punishing has turned out so well for today's society hasn't it? The amount of little ferals running around because they don't cop a good wallop is ridiculous -- the wooden spoon to the arse hasn't scarred me for life so what makes these little precious' so damn special? :rolleyes: But back to the original post, Andisa runs her grooming business from home so I know I wouldn't just "rock up" because there's absolutely no guarantee she'd be home. You don't just go over to a friend's house and assume they'll be there and to me this is the same thing. Sure, if the salon was set up as a business in a building with office hours you could expect clients to just turn up without appointments (and demand to be squeezed in), but to appear at someone's house with not even a phone call to see if you're home is just rude IMO.

What is the TOT method? I've never heard of it before. When I first got Kirah I found it easier to just let her eat her food without a wait command, however, Zeus did have to sit and wait until released. As she got older I tired if her charging at the bowl before it was on the ground so I decided it was time to start training her to wait too. They both get fed at the same time so at first juggling two bowls and a greedy puppy was hard but I soon realised I could carry both bowls in the one hand and still block Kirah from them. All I did was place Zeus's bowl on the ground on "his" side (the right) while holding my hand in front of Kirah's face, blocking her from moving forward. Then her bowl was placed on the ground (on "her" side which is about 50cm to the left of Zeus's bowl) while I was still blocking her. She wasn't allowed forward until she was calm and no longer trying to get around my hand and when this happened I said "OK", which is Zeus's release command. I continued with this method and now both Zeus and Kirah sit and wait for their breakfast and dinner; Kirah sits on Zeus's left side and they both know where each of their bowls are -- although I'm now tempted to put Kirah's bowl on the right and Zeus's on the left to be annoying! :D They both sit the same distance away from their bowls and both look at me waiting for the "OK". It's so cute to see them together like that! And I also love that I don't have to say anything to them before they get their food -- they both know that if they want their food they sit so the only word I have to say is "OK" to let them know they've done good! I love how smart dogs are!