tdierikx

As far as I know the NDN is the only national network in Australia... T.

Yay for Earl!!! Now you can have your holiday knowing that he's going to be just fine... T.

Richard Naylor at Castle Hill Vet is an exceptional surgeon. I've seen some of his work in a dog that spiral fractured his femur into 5 pieces - the bone had literally exploded, and the xrays were as scary as all get out - the dog didn't even have a limp in older age... However, SASH is closer to you, and the other specialist there is getting a great rap from fellow DOLers... may be the first option to look at methinks... T.

National Desexing Network... http://www.ndn.org.au/ DABS Rescue can sometimes assist also... http://www.dabs.org.au/ - in NSW, but may be able to help elsewhere... T.

Way to go Earl - keep it up fella, and you might be able to go home tomorrow... T.

They could be on one of the other registers other than the ANKC official one - I'm sure the "oodles" have a registry of their own, sorta like the working dogs one but for the crossbreeds that have become popular to buy... T.

Having a Labrahoover, a Rotti cross, and a camp dog - mine will eat anything that's put in front of them... *grin* some of the rescue foster pups have been much fussier... *sigh* T.

Earl is a strong healthy boy apart from his desire to eat things he shouldn't... this may be a hurdle, but he should pull through, OK? I had an 11 year old Rottie girl who had a similar op for a gastric torsion, and she pulled through just fine against all odds... Sending healing vibes from me - and soothing licks from the furkids for you and Earl. T.

I would have thought that a Pom trying to give birth to a GSD/Kelpie cross pup would be a nightmare... caesarian for sure! Maybe the "breeder" really doesn't know which of her other dogs is the father and is trying to fluff it to get money for the strange mixture?? T.

Hahaha! Well... he's fat, so we actually think he looks like Jabba the Hut... but Malteser is definitely a better description... *grin* T.

Awww.... way to go Tammy... happy anniversary of finding yourself the bestest forever home on the planet! T.

Anyone up for a CHOCOLATE Maltese?? I swear we have one in rescue!! T.

My girl also doesn't like fireworks, so if I know they are going to be happening nearby, I'll put on something loud like the TV or radio to try to drown out the bangs, and it seems to help a lot. Storms - well - I think she can sense the barometric pressure dropping... she is trembling a good while before the storm actually arrives. She happily goes into the bathroom when I open the door for her, so whatever she wants as far as that is concerned is fine by me - I don't want a velcro 30kg Rotti/Pittie trying to sit on me because she's scared of the storm... T.

Nahhh... because I'm not the most girly girl on the planet, people tend to get the wrong idea about my sexuality, and thus don't think it's strange that I have large dogs as pets... go figure? (for the record, I'm very much into men for human "social interactions"... *grin*) T.

In general, keep the puppy away from areas where you know dogs go and you don't know their vaccination history. Vaccinated dogs can still pick up and carry Parvo without being symptomatic - I would only be socialising the pup with dogs I know haven't been running around at dog parks on a regular basis - at least until 2 weeks after the 3rd puppy vacc. T.

Run free and healthy Bracken... T.

I ignore my old girl when she does the "I'm scared of thunderstorms" thing... or if she's particularly freaked, I find she settles if I put her in the bathroom with a blanky and shut the door. She seems to feel much safer in there for some reason... I can't pick up and cuddle a storm phobic 30kg Rotti/Pittie cross... just gotta make sure she's somewhere she feels safe and wait for it to pass. T.

Sharalea/Aussie Dog Squad - they are at Picton but will pickup from anywhere in Sydney... (02) 4683 2467 My dogs don't want to come home after staying there... *grin* T.

This is actually play behaviour... *grin* Not scary at all, right? T.

The only dogs I'm wary of are generally anything small that is in the owner's arms or on their lap... and anything that looks frightened or hurt. Breed doesn't actually come into the equation... That said, if a dog is wandering the streets and is in danger of being injured further, I will try to coax it to me rather than see that happen. T.

Is this the one who reckons that the RSPCA is targeting breeders of a certain religious background? T.

It's a pity you aren't in Sydney... we have a lovely female Foxy pup in rescue who absolutely adored playing with my friend's young children - one of whom has quite profound Asperger's. Feel free to PM me if you are interested in talking to us about Matilda the Foxy pup - we can do interstate adoptions... T.

The legislation says that ALL dogs that fit a particular "look" MUST be registered with council as a Restricted Breed unless written proof can be furnished declaring the dog NOT of the RB type - this has no relation to what breed mix the dog may actually be, just that it LOOKS like the pictures that have been circulated to the rangers. If they see a dog that fits the pictorial description and it is not registered as an RB, then they can seize it and put a destruction order on it. There is nothing in the legislation that mentions temperament as a redeeming factor... if it LOOKS like a duck, it IS a duck... *sigh* Right now I see a lot of councils looking at the obvious revenue raising factor this legislation allows for - and some councils are going to be VERY zealous in enforcing said legislation for that purpose... T.

I think a lot of the temperament/behaviour thing is also environmental... ie. how well trained an animal is. I had an entire male Rotti who never displayed dominance over other dogs - regardless of whether there was a bitch in season nearby, or being challenged by another intact male. I have fostered desexed young males who initially tried the dominance thing on others, but after learning that this was not acceptable behaviour (from myself AND my permanent dogs), they tended to work it out just fine. That said, I once had a female crossbreed who became more dominant after desexing - not to mention that she reacted like an intact male when there was a bitch in season nearby... humping and marking... weird! T.

My brother had to purchase his assistance dog's harness from overseas because none of the current bodies would sell him one without him paying them to take his dog and train it themselves - and possibly not assign HIS OWN dog back to him. He went the path of using a very wonderful private trainer who helped him train the dog and get his accreditation through other sources - but getting the harness was a big issue, so he had to get it from overseas. That said - if this lady's dog HAS been assigned to her through an agency like Guide Dogs Aust - then a report to them with as much detail as you know about where she lives, etc, may save her and the dog from something preventable happening in the future... T.