megan_

I asked aboutvit c a while ago. Dogs produce it naturally but if you give it to them their body stops producing it and you need to give it for life. One dose might be okay though - I suggest PMing Steve to find out

You could message Greta Kaplan on facebook and see if anyone is an accredited BAT trainer there. Leslie McDevitt also have a FB page and might be able to recommend a LAT trainer.

No. It takes a very, very special dog with nerves of steel to be able to work with aggressive/fearful dogs and even then it should only be done under professional supervision in a controlled environment. I am the guardian of my dogs and it is my responsibility to look after their welfare, even if that means I hurt people's feelings. You can land up with a DA dog yourself if you expose your dog to aggressive dogs and damage your relationship with them in the process. The best thing she could do for her dog is get good professional help. In the meantime she needs to work on focus and control with her dog - and that doesn't come with saying hello to lots of dogs. If her dog is fearful punishing him for being scared is also a bad idea. Sigh.

oh noes HW - a sighthound with even MORE independence!

I do believe that hankdog has consulted with Steve and is seeing a trainer in their area too with Steve's knowledge. I don't believe that hankdog takes their dog to offleash parks. Rather, they are focusing on control when in the vicinity of other dogs.

sounds like he's had a lot of chemicals put on him. You can get calendula tea from most health food shops. I know people who have tried everything else to no avail and then the tea has worked miracles.

yes with so many people moving the housing market should be booming!

I think RubyStar did last year. I added it to a cart once and the shipping wasn't a lot if you're buying extra stuff.

um, how much does extra baggage cost :laugh:

While I don't agree with abuse, I can understand this situation happening if someone dies and they haven't made provisions for their dog (which we should ALL do, and have it in writing in our wills). Family members of mine have dogs and, if something happened to them, I would be in no position to help out. I have a FA dog who is very picky on who she likes and working full time with 2 active young dogs I just wouldn't have time for another, no matter how much I really wanted to help. I guess the lesson is that we all need to plan for what happens to our dogs if we die or are incapacitated.

Bitch Face, Smoochie, Smoochielicious for Lucy Dickhead, Fart Face, Slussy, Fergus McGurgus for Fergus

I believe that the OP was saying is that most of the trainers she knows are behaviorists dealing with serious problems. She wants suggestions for trainers that deal with basics and deal with small dogs too.

The vast, vast majority of South Africans speak English - especially those that have immigrated to Australia. My guess is that they aren't responding because someone else is giving the commands. I know that if someone just told my boy to "weave" he'd look at them quizzically, and yet he knows the command from me. I'd start with them from scratch, take them to a good obedience club that uses motivational methods and start to develop a relationship with the dogs. Re: playing, often dogs that are a bit overwhelmed don't play. It took a good year or two before Lucy really started to play with Fergus. Give them time and let them settle in. I don't believe it is too late at all, she is now an expert player, she just doesn't play as often as he'd like.

My workplace has massages for stress relief. I guess we're a bunch of wooses too?

so the dogs are safe with our "southern" bat poo (with the exception of parasites)?

Hendra? I don't think the Botanical Gardens bats carry it though - I though the QLD ones did?

Thanks Alyosha. Can it be found in bat poo? We go walking in the Botanical Gardens often as it is gorgeous and we don't run into off leash dogs in the morning. However, the dogs do snack on all sorts of poo....they do know "leave it" and "ahah" but I don't always spot them before they lay into it...

yeah, people should just shut up and suffer. Life is meant to be like that.

I've seen plently of pics with him without a leash? One of my favourites is him lying nicely on his bed while the First Lady was giving a tour to underprivileged kids. He looks like a well trained, well exercised, much loved dog.

Thanks All. Aussie3 - she is fine, however was a bit resentful when I took it away from her :) . I rang Monash Vets but the vet was in a consult so they rang me back when they finished up - gee I love them! They suggested giving her an all-wormer and watch her for stomach upsets, but the chance of her getting an virus etc from the bat were very, very remote.

Thanks, I put a pop bag over my hand and grabbed it from her. It was very decomposed do hepofully anything was dead - it was almost all bone. I won't let her kiss me tonight (she has a beard). I'll call the vet too just in case

As per the title, she got hold of dead bat wing and chilies on it before I got it away. I'm concerned because of all the diseases they carry, ESP lissa (so) virus. Is there anything I should do? She is up to date with wormers

Dogs that live in pens only need 2 x 10 minutes walks on lead/exercise . Steve - if you are with DogsVic and have less than 10 fertile females, do the dogs need to live in pens with concrete floors, or can they live in the house?

If it is very hot it is best to just not take the dog out - they can burn their paws on a hot pavement.

Another thing to remember is to never put a wet dog into a hot car - they heat up and the hot water gets trapped in their coat. Mine hate water and any slightly wet feeling, so clam shells and cool mats are out - they refuse to use them, even when we had Black Saturday in Vic. I give them frozen no fat youghart in kongs as a treat and then just leave them be during the day. I make sure I walk them very early on hot days (before 6.30am). My house is relatively cool and I have floor boards which are cooler than carpet, but if we have a run of super hot days then I just leave the air con blasting to cool them down. I have cool coats but it is not safe to leave these on unattended. Besides getting caught up in them, for most brands if they dry out they will make your dog much, much hotter. I think one of the most important aspects to cooling a dog is letting them choose where it is most comfortable for them - a lot of dogs like digging a hole under a tree as the soil is nice and cool.