Oliversmum

Your reaction is typical of the lynch mob mentality that the mass media thrives on, the Pit Bull is much maligned and often innocent of wrong doings so much so it has a name-Brown Dog Syndrome, the general public is so adament that every dog attack by a medium sized dog is a Pit Bull rampage People are passionate about defending the Pit Bull and other Bullies against the horrible prejudices that are heaped on them by the (largely) ill informed public. Ignorance is a killer and too many people have had their beloved family pets killed due to looking like a Pit Bull. It annoys me that if a Pit Bull is slandered and abused people are not meant to defend them but anybody should be allowed to defend their breed from nasty verbal attacks and if it comes accross as over defensive, well no wonder. Lest we forget.....The 1000's of Pitbulls killed by people with the same thoughts as yours. So true, people always being asked why they would have that breed rather than another....well why would one get a maltese, a kelpie, a mastiff etc etc etc? Yet owners of any other breed don't get hassled. Why should Pitbull owners have to justify their breed of choice?! Why don't owners of other breed of dogs get hassled? perhaps you should try answering that question yourself, lol. Trust me, I get hassled...it upsets me and offends me. Not because my dog is being labled as PB or x, because I personally don't have a problem with them, but, because of the inuendo that goes with it. Because BSL could threaten so many other breeds as unfairly as it does the PB and because as a reasonable dog owner I am fully aware of the damage ANY dog can do, particularly when in pairs or pack and the immediate response is "oh it must be a pitty" Just a wild assumption which as I've stated, could be any breed, mix or cross you can come up with which I think is what Mr. Linke was attempting to point out.

Hey, I've got a very aged Australian Cattle Dog, very old style, big, stocky and with a massive head - back in in younger days when he was a spritely young lad, I had an argument with a bloke who bet his house that my blue dog had Amstaff in him...go figure. As I said, people just blurt out what they think a dogs breeding is, and, in particular, I imagine in a situation where there may be an attack etc, clarity of ID may be someone skewed. JMO

But isn't that the whole point? Your average member of the public probably couldn't differentiate between these breeds if their lives depended on it. Shark attack witnesses usually get the size of the shark wrong (massive overestimation) and routinely describe them as "white pointers". Given the trauma associated with this dog attack, I'd say the witness may have done something similar. Purebred pitbulls aren't common around here. Surely even the least dog knowledgeable people can tell the difference between a giant dog as opposed to a medium sized dog? Not sure where you are, but i'd be willing to put money on there being more pure pitbulls than mastiffs! I can understand the misidentifying of a staffy cross as a pitbull but in no way can i understand the constant lumping in of mastiffs to pitbull types I own South African Boerboels - also known as South African Mastiffs - females can grow as large as 65kg and Males anywhere from 65 - 80 kg. Yes they are considered a giant breed. I can't tell you how many people ask me if my smaller bitch Kip - 55kg - has Amstaff, Pitt Bull etc..Quite often they think they are Boxer x mastiff x Pitty among many other variations. This is the danger, people can just assume what a dog is. This is why BSL scares me and this is why I also understand how many dogs are victims of it. By the way, some of the most fabulous and well adjusted dogs I've met have been APBT. I once owned a rescued APBT x and he too was the most amazingly patient, social and stable dog I've ever had the pleasure of owning.

Your reaction is typical of the lynch mob mentality that the mass media thrives on, the Pit Bull is much maligned and often innocent of wrong doings so much so it has a name-Brown Dog Syndrome, the general public is so adament that every dog attack by a medium sized dog is a Pit Bull rampage People are passionate about defending the Pit Bull and other Bullies against the horrible prejudices that are heaped on them by the (largely) ill informed public. Ignorance is a killer and too many people have had their beloved family pets killed due to looking like a Pit Bull. It annoys me that if a Pit Bull is slandered and abused people are not meant to defend them but anybody should be allowed to defend their breed from nasty verbal attacks and if it comes accross as over defensive, well no wonder. Lest we forget.....The 1000's of Pitbulls killed by people with the same thoughts as yours. Well said Robbi BSL scare the living daylights out of me, I really feel for all the owners who have lost their beloved pets to this ignorance and assumptions.

Hi All, I thought I'd just put a quick post up about the dangers of Macadamia Nuts to dogs. I'm sure many already know of the toxicity of these to dogs, but for those who aren't aware, I thought I'd post my experience today. A client came in with her American Staffy today presenting with a staggering gate and the dog appeared to be losing his ability to use his back legs. Apparently he went outside this morning for his usual play in the yard and when he came back in, he was having problems using his back legs, standing and didn't have very good control of his back legs. He appeared to almost be drunk and staggered. Originally it was thought that he may have injured his back, he had no obvious signs of pain in either legs and we were about to do an xray when the owner said that her OH had given him a handful of Macadamia Nuts late last night. Bingo! Prognosis appears to be good and he should be back to normal in 24-48 hours but, it could have been worse. "The toxic compound is unknown but the affect of macadamia nuts is to cause locomotory difficulties. Dogs develop a tremor of the skeletal muscles, and weakness or paralysis of the hindquarters. Affected dogs are often unable to rise and are distressed, usually panting. Some affected dogs have swollen limbs and show pain when the limbs are manipulated. Dogs have been affected by eating as few as six macadamia kernels (nuts without the shell) while others had eaten approximately forty kernels. Some dogs had also been given macadamia butter. Luckily, the muscle weakness, while painful, seems to be of short duration and all dogs recovered from the toxicity. All dogs were taken to their veterinary surgeon." I thought I'd just post this just in case as I've never seen a case of this before.

Wow.. That's a bit harsh!! I hope Max makes a speedy recovery both physically and emotionally.

Fantastic photos!! Red is just awesome. What a special boy and I love the one with Ralph....what a professional

I really think you should have put a warning in the title...something to the effect of "Warning, Graphic Images, do not open if you are squirmish" Pooooorrrrrrrr little stuffed things

I've got one bitch on Bonnie and one on Pro-Plan atm. The bitch on Bonnie thrives on it. The other bitch doesn't do as well and has alot of waste. I changed her to Nutro and WOW. She does so well on it. I changed then to Pro-Plan from Nutro....Stupid...I only bought the Pro-Plan because it was on special and thought I'd give it a go. Not happy with the results for this bitch and will be heading out to get another bag of Nutro asap. But, in saying that, I had a staffy that thrived on Pro-Plan... The point is, different dogs do well on different foods. And, I won't be changing Kip from Nutro again and will happily keep Asali on Bonnie. I also fed Bonnie to my Cattle Dogs for years and years and it suited them perfectly. Raised two Boerboels on Bonnie Puppy and never had a problem.

I will be sure to keep you all updated on the Boerboels. Will take some new piccies of the girls this weekend. Looking forward to adding another puppy late this year. I've finally bitten the bullet and put my name down for a French Bulldog Can't wait, my favorite small breed...love those squishy faces!! Thanks for your kind words about our big boy...I'm just getting to the stage now where I can talk about him without bursting into tears , find myself smiling a little when I think of him, hopefully it will get easier.

OMG... Ash, your going to make me cry. How is the big boy? I've got a lovely Waldor bitch here now, Kip, she is superb. I miss my big man though, crap, how do you get over it??? I swear, when we lost him I didn't think I'd be able to function. My other Waldor bitch, Asali is going well, she is enormous...massive even. Drives us nuts, sooooo pig headed and beligerant..or as my husband says, "dumb as a bucket of rocks" I think she is just tooo clever and plays dumb so we don't expect anything of her!!! Hopefully we'll be looking at getting some appraisals done this year, maybe down your way hopefully!! I'll keep you posted OK? Take care Ash

Hey Rocco, Thank you. My deepest condolances to you also. ;) I couldn't bring myself to post before, too raw, but I'm so sorry to here about the big fella Rocco! Your new boy looks divine...I make sure I check in to see his progress. I'll be sure to include more about Kip, you know they say that dogs come into your life for a reason, well, she is one special little girl (all 54 kg of her)

Here is a shot of our new girl "Kip"....she is my beautiful darling girl, don't know what I would do with out her

One more...The Girls and Ethan.

Here is another of Asali

Hi All, long time since I've updated on the Boerboels. To tell you the truth, i've been too heart broken to post until now. Firstly, our wonderful and beautiful "Mr Cruz" was given his wings on 29th March this year. He was too young and we'll never get over losing him. I'ts not something that I want to get into right now, suffice to say it's not fair, he was too young. We love and miss him and he'll never be forgotten. Secondly, "Miss Asali" is doing wonderfully, she is ever the character and a really big doofus. She has grown enormous (too big actually, she was desexed in February)but is our ever loving big slobbery girl. In the other photos is a picture of her litter sister "Missy" who was with us for 4 months. Her owners seperated and no-one wanted to be responsible for her upkeep. We fostered her until she sould be placed in her forever home. Lovely bitch with a fantastic home now. We have another bitch "Kip" who is my heart dog who came here at the beginning of the year. She has definately helped me get through these awful months without Cruz. She is a beautiful specimen with a superb nature. All tests came back great (hips & elbows) and just waiting on her appraisal... will post pictures of her later. She look exactly like Cruz, just smaller and prettier.....

The Ovtcharkas (which quite a few fall under this breed) are known for their very aggressive nature. I've seen footage of these dogs and not only can they aggressive (towards humans as well as other dogs), but the sheer size of them can well be a recipe for disaster. They must have some stats in their country for this ban. The Boerbel another interesting one. Several of my South African friends (who are dog lovers and owners) cannot believe they are allowed in this country - they have said that time and time again this breed makes the front page and TV news because they have attacked people, and usually members of their own family (of course that doesn't mean all will by any means), but just shows that these large powerful breeds in the wrong hands can be a disaster. What we don't want here are the irresponsible dog owners picking these breeds. I'm all for responsible dog owners having these breeds. Hmmmm.......not much else to say really other than my experience with Boerboels is the complete opposite. Again, why we are extremely selective on who owns this breed. Why we continue with the appraisal system of which the largest scores pertain to temprement then health. Why, if the dog doesn't pass its appraisal, won't be elegible for registration. Still doesn't mean your BYB can't go out and breed, but we are doing the best we can. Of all the owners and breeders that i've had dealings with in this country, all has been positive. My experince with them is that they are very protective of their owners. They have great working abilities that are lost in most mastiff breeds, especially in Australia. They are large powerful and athletic for their size. They aren't pussy cats. I think the breeders are doing a great job, not peddaling them out. Yup...you've hit it on the head. They are protective of their owners, but, not excessively and not without reason. Unfortunately our beautifual Cruz passed away on the 29th March this year (we are still devestated and aren't ready to talk about it yet), but I can say that not only did he assume to be our protectors but also our extended family and friends. The children that he grew up with were his responsibility aslo. He never forgot anyone and was a gentle giant to all of 'his' people...all 68kg of him. I have a wonderful bitch here at the moment who i've yet to introduce to everyone here, but I can say that she is an absolute magnificent specimen. The most extraordinary temprement, superb confirmation and my vet Karen Hedberg says the best hips and elbows that she has ever seen the breed here. But....I still can't (or won't) breed with her because we are waiting for representatives from South Africa to come out and appraise our dogs. This is the commitment that we've made to owning this breed and in protecting the integrity of it. Using healthy, sound, stable, solid tempremented stock & screening (even scrutinizing) prospective owners is something that we take very seriously. All we can do is our bit and hope that the dogs good reputation is Australia continues.

The Ovtcharkas (which quite a few fall under this breed) are known for their very aggressive nature. I've seen footage of these dogs and not only can they aggressive (towards humans as well as other dogs), but the sheer size of them can well be a recipe for disaster. They must have some stats in their country for this ban. The Boerbel another interesting one. Several of my South African friends (who are dog lovers and owners) cannot believe they are allowed in this country - they have said that time and time again this breed makes the front page and TV news because they have attacked people, and usually members of their own family (of course that doesn't mean all will by any means), but just shows that these large powerful breeds in the wrong hands can be a disaster. What we don't want here are the irresponsible dog owners picking these breeds. I'm all for responsible dog owners having these breeds. Hmmmm.......not much else to say really other than my experience with Boerboels is the complete opposite. Again, why we are extremely selective on who owns this breed. Why we continue with the appraisal system of which the largest scores pertain to temprement then health. Why, if the dog doesn't pass its appraisal, won't be elegible for registration. Still doesn't mean your BYB can't go out and breed, but we are doing the best we can. Of all the owners and breeders that i've had dealings with in this country, all has been positive.

My old Australian Cattle Dog "Junior" is 15. He will be 16 next February. He was on Previcox for his Arthritis but we need to change that because he is starting to have some kidney & liveer problems, not severe, but, there are definate changes. Changing him over to Pred. Just trying to make him as comfortable as possible. We know we don't have a lot longer now that he is on the Prednisone, keeping a close eye on him. He is happy and still thinks of himself as alpha. Deaf, blind and a little incontinent, but, still happy and quite spritely on the warmer days. Love him to bits. One of our clients said to me the other day, "what a gift to have him for 15 years" I thought that was such a perfect way of putting it.

In the shower! I don my cossie, put the big boofas in the shower and use the detachable shower head. Makes it really easy & the dogs get a warm wash instead of cold out of the hose (Sometimes nice & refreshing in summer). I just spray & rise the shower recess after we are done.

Oh crap, I can't stop crying :D RIP little Tina. You did the job that was intended for you and left an indelible mark on Rom's heart. Well done little girl.

;) That reminds me of something that someone said to me on the street the other day. You know how you always get people coming up and wanting to TELL you what sort of dog you have?? You know the ones - "Well that's gotta be a St Bernard...look at the size of his feet!!" Well, I had this middle aged man approach me and Cruz in the street and exclaimed at the top of his lungs "Gee, that's gotta be a short haired St Bernard, you can tell by the size of his feet and his colouring, wow, I've never seen one with such SHORT hair before" After I composed myself, I managed to tell him he was in fact a South African Boerboel. He just gruffed "OH" and walked away with nothing else to say!! I also get, "He's a boxer cross masiff for sure"

Not sure how long opened stuff lasts for, maybe check the use-by date? I don't think it would make much difference if you mix the PP and EP until the PP is all gone though, if you want to use it up. (I've done something similar before.) If not, I'm sure any pound would be over the moon to receive such a donation On a side note m_knight, come and visit us in the Giant Fluffies thread sometime We don't care if your dogs are fluff-less Thanks so much Cassie, you've been great I will definately come and visit the Giant Fluffies...I can fulfil the Giant requirement, but alas not the Fluffy - does shedding an extaordinary amount of coat, even though short haired qualify???

Didn't all fit on the previous post....

Sorry.... Here is Cruz (Big Boerboel), Asali (baby Boerboel) & Junior (very elderly ACD Gent) Note the luxury bedding!!! Not happy Jan...My husband left this spare mattress in our rumpus room when we had people stay over months ago...needless to say, this really good mattress is no longer a "really good mattress" It's now the dogs bed..hohum!