jenz0r

thanks all, I'll contact C-crates too see what they can do. I think the Aluminium one would get a little too hot in summer unfortunately Josuki, I'm in Sydney - thanks though

Hi everyone, One of my amstaffs is able to squeeze through the front door of a locked dog crate, and left unattended at dog shows this can be a problem. I've started clipping the door shut with dog leads when she is in it, but I'd like to get a crate with thicker wire as she has bent the door!! :D Does anyone know of a supplier of THICK WIRE crates? My 36inch crates I've got from the show vans and the wire doesn't seem as thick as most. I think I'll go down a size also as the smaller sizes wont be so easy for her to bend. The best crate I've had her in was one of those single front-door crates, where the front door actually slides down and clips in. And then there's a spring-catch you push in to open it upwards again (rather than the sideways door with the two lock latches). I can't find any of these crates on the net, or ebay, hoping someone has some ideas for where to find one! Thanks Jen

thank you very much everyone

Hi All We are travelling to the VIC amstaff speciality, held at Skye KCC Park this year... a friend mentioned that there is a dog-friendly caravan park nearby but was waiting on details. Does anyone know the name/contact details for this caravan park near KCC? Thanks for any info! Jen

thanks Jigsaw, you're right I may have to ask around at local vets! cheers.

Hi all My doglets are nearly at the age where they can have their hip/elbow x-raying and scoring done, however my usual vet clinic does not undertake these kind of x-rays frequently so I would like to go with a vet that does it routinely (if there is any!) , knows how to position the dog correctly etc etc I am from Sydney originally so not familiar with many vets in the Newcastle/surrounding area... any recommendations of fantastic vets for hip & elbows would be greatly appreciated. Cheers Jen

that being said, plenty of dogs that frequent dog beaches do not have 100% but you will have to be careful and keep an eye on him at all times if u do decide to let him off lead being a papillon i dont think u would have a huge problem with him scaring other dogs/ppl at the beach but not everyone is appreciative of dogs getting into their blanket/towels/stuff, mine sometimes run over for pats and kisses to ppl sitting on the beach and i try to discourage it because not everyone is going to be so keen, even though i dont mind it happening to me when i am at the beach i dont have experience with tiny breeds like papillons but plenty of puppies of other breeds that are around the size of a grown pappilon are seen at the beach... i would just make sure you are near him in case he gets spooked by a big dog. and get him used to it slowly.. i like the idea of a lonnnnnng lead

just a little update on my boy, i took him to the vet as he still has the lumps on his hind legs and the vet put him on a course of cephalexin which im told is a strong antibiotic, and gave phenergan as well. he thinks its either the staph/folliculitis, which the antibiotics should fix up, or potentially papilloma virus, which his immune system will have to kick out eventually. so i guess i just wait and see until the antibiotics run out... he has little infected scratches under his chin from our baby puppy playing with him that the antibiotics should clear up too. he did a demodex scrape just to clear that option out... and its not demodex. would have been an easier problem to fix though i guess. i think the poor little guy just has bad temperamental blue staffy skin in the mean time is there anything i can feed him to help boost his immune system if it is papilloma? thanks again !!

thats a great innings rip little guy

at the time when he had the itchy rash, it looked like 2 completely separate skin conditions at the same tkime - the lumps, as in the pic i posted and then he had the non-raised blotchy itchy rash on his tummy and everywhere else... but that one cleared up with the spray... thanks heaps i will definitely look into it when i have the cash.. have car insurance bill to pay first unfortunately

he was on the antibiotics for a week - they didnt really seem to cure any of the spots he also had an allergic itchy rash on his tummy, armpits and inside of his ear that was brought under control by the Cortavance, and he doesnt seem to be itching as much now but the lumps on his legs still remain?? i will take him back to the vet for another look. thanks heaps!!!

thanks zayda_asher.. you really are a wealth of information! he is 5 months old... is puppy staph still a possibility? these are the lumps that he has on his back legs, there is more around the other side of his leg and on the other leg as well.... they start of with pus but then just stay pink, as in this pic. he doesnt seem to be as itchy anymore since a week's constant use of Cortavance spray that finished on Sunday but these lumps still persist... should i get him back on antibiotics? thanks again really appreciate your advice!

Hmmm, could be blocked pores... or hives perhaps... Staph infection comes up like pimples too and sometimes their hard... I think I'd get that vet checked to make sure... i have noticed lumps that fit this description on my pup's hind legs... at first they were red like pimples with pus, and then went hard and the lump is still there but not red anymore. is it something i should be worried about? i had the vet take a look but said it could be a bacterial folliculitis and put him on anti biotics, which did nothing...? also gave him a shot of cortizone to stop the itching temporarily cos he was chewing on his legs like they were kfc drumsticks! what causes the staph and how can it be avoided??? to allergic staffy skin

this is so sad take care of yourself indigirl

try training with his favourite food, when he's really hungry... maybe skip a dinner or breakfast then try? we train with pieces of sausage or cabanossi, cheese, bbq chicken...anything that smells great to a dog...

after our first pup's interceptor, i also found a roundworm in his poop the next day. my mother is a vet and said its normal, a good thing even that the interceptor worked cos thats why we do it..to kill the worms just keep up the regular worming! also make sure you pick up all his poop around the yard so the eggs cant spread... i know i am really slack with this but it is a good idea to keep on top of it!

thanks everyone, i wont take him til he's over 12 months then bec your pup is adorable too!! oh i just love them!!

oh rightio, thanks shell i will ask them im told he is from lines that grow/mature slowly so it may be a while yet!

I know it is a long way off yet, but was just wondering at what age it is safe to take my amstaff running with me. He is nearly 5 months and only gets little walks around the neighbourhood at the moment but I cant wait to be able to take him on runs with me when he is old enough to not risk warping his hips/joints/etc. thanks for any info

LIKED: that in the first week the trainer went around the circle of owners asking them what breed they have, what they thought their breed was originally designed for, making sure they knew the origins and what to expect from the dogs temperament and anything else to expect that may be of relevance the general information regarding vaccinations, ticks/flea medicine and nutrition - great for first time owners even though we knew it already! that the class was structured with the learning, each commant taught in increments once the first had been mastered or nearly mastered that each week every puppy had a chance to show off what the had practised the week prior and could now do on command that one puppy at a time was allowed off lead for a sniff around the vet clinic and for a "Recall" back to the owner after a couple of minutes DISLIKED that the trainer is purely positive (didnt entirely work for our amstaff) - maybe should have mentioned that some corrections may be necessary with very stubborn / mischievous pups that arent put off by us ignoring bad behaviour that very new first time owners took up a lot of time with questions - trainer should have delegated time after class for in-depth question / answers all in all a pretty good socialisation experience and good for first timers but now that we already know the deal, we will only be taking our next pup thru it for the socialisation with puppies of different breeds

thanks O-G i will definitely give it a go!

has anyone tried any of the "no chew" products you can put on bits of furniture, doors etc..? i have heard of them but not sure what the names of the products are, and if they actually work? we too have a rental house and i'd like to stop the puppy chewing anything before he starts seriously teething! thank you!

thanks willow i will give that a look yeh i felt like the unachiever of the puppy-class, the labs and cavs were all being well behaved and everyone seemed amazed to hear the naughty puppy stories and questions i kept throwing at the trainer hehe. she is a great trainer but i dont think has had much experience training bully types... ohh the frustration! thanks again!

So if he was jumping up or nipping you're just supposed to ignore it?? As I said before, its nigh on impossible to use such methods to extinguish behaviour the dog finds self rewarding. If he finds it enjoyable, he'll keep doing it. I don't think its coincidence that most 'problem' dog behaviors fall into the self rewarding category. It's only IF he finds the behaviour brings consistent negative consequences that you'll see it diminish or extinguish. You don't have to be abusive to make behaviour unrewarding. Removing yourself or him could be enough. I always smile to myself when purely positive trainers suggest that putting a behaviour on cue can cure problems. Barking is the classic example. My dogs sit on cue. That hardly means they don't sit at other times though now does it. Ask a purely postive trainer how to cure animal chasing.. and don't hold your breath on a practical response. i wish someone had told me that just after we brought him home! you're so right. he found it ever so fun to chase after our pant legs, grab on and pull, jump up and bite our sleeves, steal the washing out of the basket and run around the back yard with it... and i was getting so frustrated and anxious because the "ignoring" his bad behaviour wasnt doing ANYTHING! it was fun for him to just do it! my partner eventually got the sh!ts with me constantly yelling out to come remove the puppy from my jeans so we tried giving him a firm tap on the nose whenever he grabbed on, and a big growly UHHH NO at the same time. (our positive trainer would have a cow if she knew this lol..her solution was to always carry a toy that i can substitute with him in return for having my pants back, but as if a toy is as fun as ripping my pants!!). he has now learned that biting is naughty and not on!! he's stopped it almost entirely. sometimes he still gets excited and tries to jump up but as soon as he sees me pointing at him and hears the growl he knows to stop... i dont know how i would have got to this stage by using purely positive techniques?

how awful really hope your pups are ok imagine if a child had crawled under there and got to the ratbait, im sure they would give a damn then! definitely pursue the issue, it is their own negligence that caused this to happen. good luck!