megan_

Neither of my dogs would stand a chance against any dog that I couldn't fight off myself. Fergs is fast but I don't know whether he would leave me. If he did run off, I'm confortable he'd find some help, kiss them and I'd get a call to pick him up. Lucy is fear aggressive and she'd try to stay and fight so I couldn't drop the leash. I'd block her with my body, yell for help and hope for the best. I'd most probably throw some food just in case they weren't serious.

1 week while we moved. I think it is good for dogs to be away from you and develop coping skills. If you've only been away from your dog for a few hours, how will your adult dog cope if you have an emergency (eg hospital)?

That is great Kabul. The more stuff I've seen of his on YouTube the more inlike him. I've just bought the tugging one.

Any chances of making an a frame (even a baby one) that one person could move and assemble

Me too please -

So they surrender the dogs and face no fines? Bloody disgrace!

Nope - I don't see them as replacement children/my kids. I do tease my Dad though and call him their Grampa. He actually gave them $20 each last Christmas too!

I wouldn't choose a vet based on their theories on food. The very best vet for my boy at the moment (who has an injury that my normal vet - who is happy for me to feed raw and vaccinate every 3 years - didn't pick up) was found by a vet who advocates feeding Science Diet (which is full of fillers). He specialises in racing greyhounds though so he knows a lot about dog physiology, trigger points and sports dogs. Go to a vet that you believe will be able to diagnose disease, ask questions, have a good problem solving ability etc. Don't just pick a vet who is okay with raw (and some would argue that prepared commercial BARF patties made from pet quality mince that hasn't gone through the same pest inspection process as human grade meat isn't a great diet anyway). I'd take a vet that "lectures" me over one that doesn't care any day :)

Yes. By all means, we should muzzle aggressive dogs, but these days your dog could be declared dangerous becuase it jumped up and hit someone on the lip etc. With the liability that comes with having a dog, soon they will only be owned by the rich or stupid. It is actually one of the reasons I went with PetPlan insurance - they have public liability insurance included in the plan. Won't save the dog from being declared dangerous though...

All dogs aren't friendly - they don't have to be either, as long as they're under effective control. I agree that we expect waaay too much from dogs today - they must love every one and every dog lest they be deemed aggressive! My girl has been abused and doesn't like strangers paying her attention. She should be able to go for a walk without feeling threatened all the time. It can be great socialisation for a dog with a very sound temperament and very solid nerves, but it can break a dog who doesn't have these qualities. grumpette - I think it is possible to deflect 99% of people in a positive way. I always use by body as a bit of a blocker if someone is trying to get to my girl and then explain that she has been abused and is happier if left alone. Most people understand that but some people then get right in her face and start baby talking to her (WTF? Even so called dog people do this!). That is when I am polite but very firm. I explain that that is a very intimidating thing for a dog, and if a dog is scared ignoring them is the best course of action, talking to them and focusing on them is actually seen as aggressive.

Are they able to afford legal advice? Often the difference between a dog dying vs living is an owner's ignorance of their rights.

perfect - it is an area we need to work on and it is soo handy in agility, but no one can tell me how to train it. I've ordered the DVD, and some more tugs.... ETA: To answer your question, Greg said that was for puppies, but it could be used on adult dogs. I think the dog would need to be pretty small and very focused on the tug though.

Does the Michael Ellis tugging DVD cover the retrieve? I really need it for agility!

6 weeks is very young to be away from mum. What vaccinations has he had? Some unethical breeders give puppies away early to avoid costs (= more $$$ for them). No ethical breeder would sell a pup that young unfortunately. Given that French Bulldogs have a number of heriditable (sp) diseases, including some very serious spinal ones, I wouldn't buy from a breeder that didn't do a whole slew of tests on the parents. Given the age that the breeder has sold this dog, I doubt very much they have done the tests. Puppies - especially teeny ones - need LOTS of sleep. Even if they play well with the other dogs, they won't get enough sleep if they tumbling around with the others all day. There is also a very big risk that the frencihe will learn nervous behaviour from the JRT. There is nothing wrong with the puppy going in the car, but given the dog is 6 weeks I doubt they have the immunity needed to be out and about. This might not be what you want to hear, and I'm not flaming you, but I would return the dog to the breeder. Frenchies are a specialist breed and I wouldn't by from a shonky breeder - years of heartache and suffering might lie ahead. Also, if I had a pup I would want it to live with me with my rules. I wouldn't want to take on an adult dog when I move out that had been spoilt and learnt behavioural problems from other dogs. It sucks to wait but IMO that is the best way forward for you and this pup.

Kavik, I went to Mia Skosgar's (sp) seminar last weekend and she actively encourages her dogs to do a victory lap and be proud that they won (she doesn't allow chewing though as it doesn't promote a good grip). She does tug on lead though and then goes up to them and starts tugging again. I didn't get to ask her what she would do for a dog that had already learnt to do a victory lap and then give you the finger. It seems that they value the tug over tugging with you. Greg Derrett said he trained brining the tug back buy sitting with his feet touching a wall, dog between his legs and tugged. When the dog won it would automatically bounce back to him. I would imagine that this would only work with a high drive dog with strong nerves so that the impact of the wall wouldn't put them off tugging. I asked him what he would do about the victory laps and chewing issue and he said he'd always make sure that the tug was attached to something that he could reel in. He also said that if there is something that they do bring back (eg ball), attach it to a rope and tug with that. My boy had been tugging with an injury (unbeknownst to me) and he has gone froma tug demon to "meh" about the tug so once he has fully recovered we're going to have to rediscover the fun of tug, as I think he might have a negative association with it at the moment.

wire mesh fencing, attached to the brickwork (and remove and fill it in before you go). If you get their permission they might be fine with it as it won't impact the aesthetics of the house (and picture hooks do). Whatever you decide, you need to keep airflow around the heater so you can't box it in.

I had intro to box work today - well worth it (even though my dog was rested due to injury). I haven't been schooled in his system but so much of what he said makes sense and I realize the little mistakes I've made have often sent my dog off in the wrong direction

Thanks KC - it is foundation

Just spoke to Ray - his hips are good! He says it is just soft tissue then and with rest he believes it will resolved, so lead walks only for the next 2 weeks with a check-up in a week to see how things are progressing. ETA: He is enrolled for the Greg Derrett workshop this weekend. He'll be in his crate most of the time anyway. It is a handling training session, so I doubt there is much jumping. Does anyone know? I'll try to contact the organisers just in case. another edit: I also learnt a few things about both myself and my dogs at Mia's seminar last weekend. There is a fine line between motivation and begging, and I cross it a fair bit! She only uses play and motivation when they're paying attention. I also practice NILIF, but once they've done something for me, they get what they want in return (eg when I have youghart, I always make them sit, focus on me for a while then they get to lick the tub). I tried just ignoring them and not giving them any, Lucy tried a sit and then a drop (clever girl) and gave up, walking away happily. Fergus tried a sit, a drop, pawing at my hand, licking my hand then barking and banging on the door - he is very smart and persistant. Because they are good dogs and don't break the rules, they most probably think there are no rules IYKWIM? So I'll be implementing a few new rules (you never get youghart from the tub, for example) so that they know there IS structure, and shenanigans won't get you very far. Finally, thanks for everyone's help and support - "normal" people just don't understand!

Thanks Judi - but Jo is #2, *I* am #1! I just phoned to check on his results, and Ray is caught up at the moment, but the vet nurse did mention that he gave lovely cuddles. He sure knows how to charm vet nurses....

I am not a show person but I think the committees should simply take down their gazebos etc and put them away. When they pitch up for the show (I would imagine they wouldn't bother showing up early) they can collect their stuff and set up where there is space left, just like everyone else.

In NSW I believe the dog gets breed assessed and then, if it is deemed a pitbull, it gets temp assessed. If it passes the temp assessment all is okay. Restricted breed isn't the same as dangerous dog so tell them not to panic. Maybe PM Pavlova as she seems to know about these things?

Another quick update: We went to see RAy Ferguson this morning. I am glad I'm such a paranoid dog owner because Ray picked up things that my normal vet didn't (who is good for the day to day stuff): * Fergus had a about of tonsolitis a few months ago. I noticed him clearing his throat a bit lately so I wanted that checked. His tonsils are fine, but Ray pressed around a bit and Fergus gave a throat clearing cough. Ray said that he has a very mild case of chronic (something) bronchitis. Teh crhonic bit only indicates that it is persistant, not bad. He said that if if stays this mild it shouldn't impact Fergus and no treatment would be advised. If it got worse he would be put on the dog equivalent of the puffers that are used for humans. He said this wouldn't be the cause of Fergus sometimes avoiding the jumps. * He then bent Fergs around like a pretzel and poked and prodded. He found two major trigger points. The hind quarter (which the Bowen therapist picked up too) and his left front, top-of-the-leg area (clearly dog physiology is not my strong point). He wanted to give him some pain relief, some chiro and then take it a bit easy for a few weeks and see how he progresses. He suggested x-rays if that didn't resolve things (because HD can cause this kind of pain too, however given his age and size this is unlikely). I asked him if he suggested waiting on the x-rays just to save me money, because I'd rather just spend it upfront and know where we stand. So Fergs is staying in hospital today to get his x-rays, pain injection and chiro. I really hope I'm just wasting money getting the x-rays done and it is purely a muscular thing. I'll know more at 3pm.

let's hope that it offers more than "run down the contacts"

SK do you use a harness or a flat collar? I could imagine they could really hurt their neck if running full pelt and you step on the lead?