tdierikx

In the days before the word "labradoodle" ever came about, all crossbreeds were labelled just that... crossbreeds or mutts... and in the main, most were apparently great family dogs and had few health issues of the kind we see nowadays... ... then all that changed when certain types of people saw the chance to make a buck by giving crosses fancy names and touting them as some sort of "breed" - rather than a mix. Remember the good old days when there would be a few FTGH ads in the papers for pups - good luck finding many now... everything has a stupid "breed" name on it and people are charging small fortunes for them... *sigh* T.

This learning lark is a bugger, isn't it Roo? But you are learning, and it's not all bad is it? Mummy always comes back eventually... Good girl Roo! ... and extra well done Jelly!!! T.

Well done Torque!! Lovely photos - that first one is another one to be printed and hung on a wall methinks... T.

Thank dog there aren't any photos... I'm already really upset that we can't fit in the 4 from Broken Hill... Seriously, we are completely chokkers with pups right now, and if we took more before moving some of this lot on, we really couldn't give them all the amount of socialisation they need to become great little canine citizens before adoption... we have to set limits, as hard as that is for us. As for names for the BT pups - only the boy has a name so far... Mojo... my friend has a gorgeous male dog with that name and I asked her permission to name our boy after him (even though they aren't of the same breed) T.

Sealed concrete is easier to keep disease free - and fleas don't like living on it either. Dogs in shelters certainly should not be kept in dirt floored pens that can't be kept disease and flea free. The optimal solution is for the animals to be housed in concrete floored pens, but also let out into runs where they can get exercise, fresh air, socialisation, and sunshine for a minimum amount of time PER DAY. Both the kennels AND the runs need to be kept effluent free... ie. cleaned up at least daily... at the bare minimum. T.

OMG - Copper and Topaz are adorable!! They are all looking great... awesome job everyone! T.

There is also the fact that purebreed lines are easy to check back on to see what may be present or lacking... thanks to all the dedicated breeders out there who try to produce the best next generation that they can. As for crossbreeds, there is very little data about the genetic background of any individual "line", and thusly the argument that they are generally healthier, or more prone to disorders, is pure anecdote. I think also that more of the general public are more likely to take their purebreed dogs to the vet for any perceived ailment than those who own the generic crossbreed - so the theory is that those crossbreeds not seeing the vet with any regularity are "healthier"... which may not really be the case... or it may be... how can we extrapolate true data if the target group is under represented? The sheer variety that crossbreeds come in is staggering - pick any two breeds and someone has possibly tried (or succeeded) crossing it - with extremely varied results - even in the same litter. My personal take on it is that if a prospective puppy owner looks for a breeder (of any pure or crossbreed) does a bit of homework into the genetic testing of their breeding animals, and breeds to enhance the possible long term health of the offspring, then they are more likely to take in a pup that will have the best chance of being healthy for longer than a pup whose breeder just threw 2 random dogs together to make pups for sale. The other fact - that environment can play a huge part in the development of any dog - seems to be missed when the extremists (from both sides of the argument) put forward their hypotheses... it's not ALL about genetics... genetics is really only the starting point... T.

The 3 BT pups are tiny! And deadly cute to boot! Safely ensconced in my lounge room now... *grin* T.

Run free with the angels Jet... good boy! T.

WOW!!! totally awesome work there! T.

I have 2 foster failures - my smallest permanent dog (my first foster failure) is 14kgs - the latest failure turned out to be a Dane cross! That makes 4 large dogs permanently living here... but I still take on foster pups... *grin* Call me crazy... I'll take it as a compliment... lol! T.

My brother has a self trained assistance dog. They have a completely symbiotic relationship. If anything were to happen to my brother, it would probably be extremely damaging for his dog... and it may just be that he would need to go with my brother... T.

You mean these two? Bonnie Clyde *grin* At least they will be rehomed separately... lol! T.

What an awesome tribute to a wonderful and faithful girl... Run free Missy, you will be missed My heart goes out to you Lhok... T.

I usually start with what the guide says, then make the changes that each individual dog needs to be of a healthy weight, etc... For example, my extremely busy 14kg dog actually eats as much as my 28kg less active dog - and both of them are nicely weighted and proportioned. T.

I'm a crazy dog lady and very proud of the fact. My friends understand that, to me, my dogs are my family - and that it hurts really bad when they go to the Bridge. People who don't understand are simply missing out on exactly how wonderful dogs are... and we should feel pity for them. That is a beautiful poem... thank you so much for sharing it. T.

Anyone seen the movie "Child's Play"? Those dolls remind me of Chucky... creepy! My dogs would probably want to play with the bloody thing like any other toy... if it doesn't smell human, then what are they really to make of it? T.

I'm more of the opinion that each rehoming needs to be looked at on an individual basis - how the actual rescue dog will fit with the prospective owner, their other dogs, other pets, or children, if any, and the lifestyle led by the prospective adopter - using blanket "bans" on any one of those things seems to me that we may be cutting off our noses to spite our faces, and the dog may be missing out on a very good home indeed. Personally, I work fulltime and have 4 permanent dogs of my own (all bitches) - some rescues would deny me adopting from them due to the fact that they may think I'm not up for the time and energy required to give "their" dog the love and attention it needs... yet the rescue I'm with happily allows me to foster groups of pups, and I don't seem to have any issues giving both them AND my own dogs exactly what they need... go figure? T.

Run free and halthy at the Bridge sweet little man... your mummy loves you forever... Hugs for you Anne... T.

I have 2 external hard drives... and from the old days, I have a couple of proper internal hard drives that I can put into a caddy and access via usb. T.

Sounds promising... tantrum rather than panic... baby steps Roo - well done! T.

Bonnie and Clyde are naughty puppies this evening... Harper was trying to tell Clyde not to be a turd, and he told her off! All the way down the hallway! And Bonnie was backing him up! Poor Harper - 30kgs of Horse Dog being trashed by two 5kg naughty puppies. I had to save her and put Bonnie and Clyde in a timeout in their night crate... *sigh* Oh - and they think Trouble must be their mum... they keep looking for her boobies! They only do it to Trouble... weird... maybe she's a similar size and shape to their mum? ... and we still have solid poops even though I didn't give them Scourban this morning... yay! T.

Tell your OH that Rotties and GSDs shed lots... and he will be in charge of the vacuum if he wants one... T.

Be good Roo!! We are all Roo-ting for you girl! T.

Or it's just bombproof... remember that one from a couple of years back we thought was deaf, but he was just not as reactive to strange noises as the rest of the litter - he could hear his name or the food bin opening just fine... *grin* T.