Sam&Saki

Oh hugs and a stiff drink to you, Bindi. How terrifying!!! :D This is why all off-leash parks should be fully fenced!!! :D

Neither - Saki would take herself out to the puppy pad in the laundry to pee in the middle of the night, then put herself back to bed, and I'd chuck out the used puppy pad in the morning. She was able to last through the night at a very young age. And she's never ever gone #2 in the house. Maybe I just got lucky

Surely there is no other species with as much intraspecies variation as the dog? (Or at least none where crossbreeding such different types would produce viable offspring?) Look at the difference between a Great Dane and a Chihuahua; between a Pug and a Husky - different breeds of dogs have different bodily structures, different needs and abilities, different vocalisations, different body language, etc. So it's really not possible to compare crossbreeding dogs with crossbreeding other animals, I would think. Although surely rescuing a stray or supporting an ethical breeder would be the ideal with any animal...

Probably about every third house around here has a dog that barks, runs up and down the fence etc, when we walk past. It is frustrating, especially if you own a non-vocal breed who gets freaked out quite easily by barking dogs. However the best thing to do is to train your own dog to be less reactive. If the other dogs are properly secured in their own property, and not barking excessively (check your council guidelines if unsure), they're not doing anything really wrong, as annoying as it is.

I think dogs recognise other breeds that look like them and have similar body language and playing style. I think it's more like recognising that somebody speaks the same language as you, than a nationality / breed thing. Saki gets excited seeing Mals, Sibes, Samoyeds - basically other large-ish Spitz breeds with upright ears and curly tails. These breeds come from different parts of the world to Akitas, but they all speak the same doggy language, so to speak. And as Lo Pan said, dogs with floppy ears, dropped tails and no ruff are often are fearful / aggressive around Saki, due to misunderstanding her body language. So IMO it's a doggy body language thing.

Keep an eye on him and if there is any sign whatsoever that his tongue / mouth / face / throat is swelling, straight to the vet. Apparently about half of dogs will have an allergic reaction to bee stings - which can be life threatening - and about half won't.

No no, it's appropriate for here too, plus the more DOLers who fill out the survey the better

Yes, this same survey has been posted in the BSL section. It is re: the proposed legislation for council officers to be able to immediately destroy any dog that resembles a dangerous dog, even without the dog committing a dangerous act. I encourage everyone to make it clear you want irresponsible owners punished, not dogs that just happen to be large or of a certain breed appearance etc.

So is mine. He is crate trained though. Once again, the idea that a crate trained dog is more confined than others can be inaccurate. Errr ok. I wasn't saying anything about how confined or not, crate trained dogs are. Just answering the OP - had no problem with toilet training, meal manners, sleeping or anything else; all done without crate training. Whatever works for the individual person and the individual dog.

Yep, I choose not to crate train. My dog sleeps in dog bed next to my bed. My door is open so she has access to the rest of the house. When she was being toilet trained she had a puppy pad down inside the house to go on, when she was older she was trained to ring the bell to go outside. If crate training's not for you, don't stress about it, just do what works for you and for your dog x

I'm sure he'll be fine. I worry more about overheating in 27+ degree heat, but I'm guessing that's not a concern for labs unless it's much hotter? It's awesome that you care enough about him to worry about him though

Is it going to be cold where you are? Being wet can make you sick if you get a chill - but if it's warm summer rain it shouldn't be a problem My dog loves running around in the rain too but then she has a much heavier coat than a lab.

I think my Saki is a beautiful, ladylike little girl - no idea why everyone else refers to her as a "him" and tells me she's "so handsome"!

Filled out the survey and made it very clear that irresponsible dog owners need to be punished; not dogs who've done nothing wrong but been born the breed that happens to be the media scapegoat of the moment. I encourage everyone who hasn't yet, to do likewise.

Well of course you can never cater to everyone, but your place sounds great to me! You mentioned something about changing "dog friendly" to "pet friendly" - will there be other types of pets allowed? Dog friendly sounds better to me! Dog friendly and no children sounds PERFECT Is there any limit on size or breed of the dogs? Do the rooms each have an ensuite? Do you have a restaurant / provide food / or are there dog friendly cafes around? Is there any way of leaving the dog in your care while the humans are off having dinner or doing something less dog-friendly? I'd love to get away with my man and my Akita to someplace not full of kids, next to an off leash beach! Heaven! :p

Hmmm. You all make valid points... & the idea of encouraging better breeding of dogs through science OVER better education of owners is somewhat horrendous Sometimes I am a bit overly optimistic Just - tiny sample size! Urge to mess with it! Overwhelming! Well thanks for an intelligent discussion without getting narky guys, still undecided whether ignoring this one or taking part it with a non-breed-typical dog will likely have a better outcome, hmmm... Anyhoo I'm off to bed

Proof that this student is anti BSL? And no one's going to beat you up if you want to use your dog in the study. I don't think there will be any problem getting the 200 dogs anyhow, Ahhhh yes I do know that our government has been rather pigheaded with ignoring evidence in favour of going with media hype in enacting the BSL laws in the first place. & in continuing to keep them there... I just don't believe that's a reason to give up trying to produce more evidence. I don't believe one study could possibly fix the entire situation, but I do believe all evidence than can be produced against BSL is another small weapon, another small step in the right direction, another step closer to getting awareness out of how off-base BSL really is. Look, I'm not disagreeing with the concerns everyone has here - I agree with them. Lilli, I think it would be a great thing if this study did produce a superior behavioural assessment method, but none of us can know beforehand whether it will or not. Nehkbet, I agree that pedigree papers would make more sense than DNA swabs and that if there was a secondary study that made use of said swabs it could potentially be twisted in negative ways, and potentially be mashed up by the media. I agree all of this is a concern. I just think that ignoring the study won't help; whereas providing dogs whose behaviour will NOT fit in with expected BSL definitions and will NOT bear out the expected prejudice stereotypical characteristics will actually change the results in a very minor way - at least more of a chance of influencing the study than doing nothing at all x

I agree Nekhbet. I think the focus on doggy behaviour should be on the dogs training and treatment, and not the breed. And I agree this a big factor in being anti BSL. Deed, not the breed. Other end of the leash. Agree 100%. Which is why I feel that: A - the intended study is a good thing, as the INTENDED study has NO genetic factor to is whatsoever. The DNA swab was a requirement of approval; and is not being used in this study. B - IF some idiot further down the track decides the use the DNA and create a genetic study matching breed DNA to breed characteristics, the least we can do is mess with their evidence. It's a tiny sample size. It could easily be swayed by anomalous examples of breeds

I did read the entire thread, Jed. Just because I don't agree with you, doesn't mean I can't read or comprehend.

Every dog can express aggression. Just as every human can express sadness or rage. Raise differently and your Akita could present as a fear biting neurotic mess. You are your genes but your development as a person and how you communicate with the world around you is ulitmately determined by your experience and your perception of success and failure. Exactly. I agree 100%. Akitas are subject to BSL in other countries because of their reputation for being one of the most aggressive and dangerous breeds of dogs. So if Australia is going to have any research with evidence of behaviour matched with akita DNA... I would like it to be of a non-aggressive non-dangerous akita... Make it as difficult as possible to give the breed that label! x

Lilli, they already have temperament tests and 20 point lists and all sorts of ridiculous tests for pounding / PTS dogs / assessing dangerous dogs, etc. These already exist, and are used, by council, by law, to decide whether a dog lives or dies. And exactly your concerns are what is already happening - the tests are completely unreliable, make no sense and fail to take in all sorts of factors, such as dogs behaving completely differently with their owner to with a stranger. It's a terrible situation. So if you're a PhD student... And you're anti-BSL... And you're aware of the faults of all the existing methods of behavioural assessments... What do you do? You put together a research study with the intention of developing a behavioural assessment that is more accurate, takes into account the difference in behaviour of a dog with its owner to its behaviour with somebody else, and is a superior and more accurate method of assessment. This could save dogs from 'dangerous dog' assessments, PTS orders, even help a little to fight BSL. This is clearly a well intended study. I understand how people can worry that findings and statistics can be twisted for other uses, but having more good information out there battling the presumptions and prejudice can only be a good thing.

I understand the concerns others hold with this research, but personally I would see involvement as a good thing. The research is going ahead regardless, people! The intended outcome of the research is positive - the development of reliable a behavioural assessment method for dogs. This would be a good weapon in the fight against BSL, and a positive tool for rescue groups, etc. If the research is used for negative purposes in the future - if somebody looks at the DNA and starts matching to breeds to prove that certain breeds carry certain characteristics - well, isn't this the perfect opportunities to bring in our friendly non-aggressive pit bulls or other dogs that face BSL or prejudice? 200 dogs for this study. What if 20 of them were pit bulls with great non aggressive temperaments. How could that research ever be used in a bad way? Even with the worst of intentions, it would still help fight BSL! This is an opportunity. You can put your head in the sand and hope the study doesn't go ahead because of your worries - but it will still go ahead. Personally I'd love to take in my friendly, non-aggressive Akita for the study. I'm perfectly happy for her pure bred akita DNA to be matched to a behavioural assessment about what a friendly sweet goofball she is. I just wish a big bunch of friendly pitty owners and other akita owners would do the same

Obviously there'll be some times when bringing dog / kid / partner / extra friends is fine, and some times when it's not. If it's not obvious whether they're invited / catered to / going to cause hassle, all you can do is ask x

Doesn't matter if it's a kid or a dog or a boyfriend or girlfriend; if they're not invited, they're not invited. A dog has no place coming along to a non-dog event; just as a kid has no place coming along to a fancy adult dinner or drinks party, just as a boyfriend has no place at a specific girl's night. It's not the species nor age that matters - if they're not going to be catered for, if they're going to put the host to extra hassle they're not expecting, if the event is not for them, then don't bring them.

Oh my you all have crazy hyper dogs Saki greets me by running up, sitting down, and then waving her front feet in the air - with her ears right back looking all submissive and snuggly - so cuuuuuuuute!!!! She wants you to put your arms out so she can put her paws on them and have a proper cuddle - which is fine if you understand that - it's a tad confusing for visitors though, she'll just repeatedly run in front of them, sit down on their feet and wave her paws at them until she gets her cuddles Those damn Akitas, crazy vicious killer dogs, I tells ya