LizT

Certainly helps my understanding of the situation, thanks" sharonpuggywuggy"!

I think what she means is it would be relatively easier to mange two or three litters of 3 to 5 pups than one of 12 larger breeds.

Well your understanding is VERY wrong . We attended the roundtable discussions and there isnt a hope in hell they are after peopLE who are making big bucks out of breeding dogs. Better take a better look at what they define as a puppy farmer because it has nothing what ever to do with making money.Its anyone - anyone who ever breeds a litter of puppies who keep them in substandard conditions. Then stand back and take a closer look at what they want as standard conditions. Of course its registered breeders. All I'm going on is a Newspaper article my OH cut out for me this week and that was the jist of it. Frustrated to hear that is sounds like nothing useful is/will be achieved after all.

Have more than five dogs, mate a bitch when you think she's mature or heaven forbid mate her back to back . Oh yeah and just having the pups in the box in your loungeroom turns you into one of those rogue criminal breeders. Seriously? is that a 'Law'???

It's also fair to say that not all Pet Shop Puppies are from Puppy Mills. Many are probably from BYB who have a Purebred 'this' that they have breed to a mates 'purebred 'same' and then passed the puppies on to the Pet Shop for a quick buck. No Registration fees, no health checks etc. And the consumer buys a 'Purebred dog'. In the past I've seen signs in the Window stating "Puppies Wanted", that almost cheered me up because at first I thought maybe supply was low, but perhaps demand was high! :D I had a workmate who heard I had sent my bitch to Stud. Oh, you can get up to $300 (quite a mark up for the Pet Shop isn't it!) per pup from a Petshop for those. That's what my sister in law does!! Another patient explanation of why I became a Registered Breeder. They actually agreed with me and said they would like to see no animals in Pet Shops. Which was just as well because sometimes you don't want the conversation to go on and on and on and on....

Well it's really hit me this time. I was sitting at the Shelter with one of my Cavs waiting for my daughter to come out of school when another parent approached me and asked if that was a CKCS. Why Yes it is. We have been thinking about getting one, they are a lovely dog etc. etc. Spoke about breed for a bit, mentioned I had a litter due, then she asked about price range. And stated, oh, yes that's about what I've seen them sell for at the Pet Shops. My reply was of course, please don't buy a puppy from a Pet Shop. Why? Was the genuine and sincere reply. I went on 'briefly' to try to explain about the lack of health testing, unknown parentage, possible Puppy Mill Suppliers etc. etc. She was really shocked and surprised. Oh yes I've heard about Puppy Mills, do they supply Pet Shops? I thought they just sold direct to the Public. No, many wouldn't because they don't want people seeing their facilities or dogs, I explained. She said she would talk to me further and if I had a puppy available that would be great or if I could help her to find a Reputable Breeder that would also be terrific. One more person educated......but there are so many more out there who are smart educated people that just don't realise.

So do they not have Council Pet registration in the UK as we do here? That's basically a "Pet Licence".

Parkeyre are you suggesting the police would do something not above board!!! Not saying that they would do it; but i sure do hope they consider this rather then putting down the police dog who did his job. Well at least the dog has "the law on it's side"! He may well have to take a forced retirement though.

It just highlights the importance of supporting your co-exhibitors. Lets EVERYONE keep an eye on our fellow exhibitors belongings and precious animals. If anyone is showing alone, don't be shy. So sad that this has happened. I hope that the little guy is returned soon.

Lovely! Poodles are such fun. My first ever pure breed dog was a Black Miniature Poodle that I bought at 16 (Pet only) from a Registered Breeder. My family had only ever had mutts up until that point and I've owned purebreds ever since. He may have cost me a weeks wage but even my dad who is the biggest cheap skate ever agreed it was money well spent.

Kinda like the cat who'll search out the cat haters lap huh??

Tell me about it, my daughter has a class friend and since they were seven years old my daughter has patiently tried to explain that a "Beaglier" isn't a Breed of dog but a combination of two breeds. "Yes, it is, Santa promised me it was". Doesn't help that the mother doesn't know the difference either. The mother has stated it 's a breed made from combining the two breeds.

Ooops!

Ooops!

Com'on guys we have to start somewhere!!! Everyone complains about "Puppy Milling" and those unethical people who keep too many dogs and are keeping them in horrible conditions in cages etc. We've seen the "Posters", know about the "Rally" and then we all go Oh, woe is me I have to apply for a different kind of Permit if I keep more than 5 fertile animals and earn more than $XXX per year from income derived from my dog breeding. My understanding of the proposed changes to legislation is to nab those that are making big bucks out of dog breeding. That wouldn't be any "Registered Breeders" now would it??? We all know where the money is in Dog Breeding.

Restlessness and nesting can go on for days before the actual labour begins. One of my maidens nested every night for nearly 10 days prior to whelping and only started nesting during the day 3 days prior. A slight drop isn't what you're looking for. It'll be a massively noticeable drop to a degree or more less than the previous reading or the usual reading for that time of the day. Yeah, it's back up again, looks like I'm going to have to go to work tonight after all....bummer.

Thanks Cazzie!

Well we have lots of restlessness, agitation and sheet shredding and the beds a mess here......and that's just me!! I'm having trouble sleeping and keep tossing and turning so I'm probably in first stage labour today!! On a more serious note, slight drop in temperature for this time of day, alot of bed scratching and sheet re-arranging and vulval swelling and HUGE boobies! Also a lot of "heart felt sighs" from my (not so little) little girl.

CONGRATULATIONS!!1 Sorry to hear about the Lost Boy. Hope mumma is healing well and babes are growing stronger.

"Where'd the cute piccy go??" ;) Don't sweat it people, I've been told my Cavaliers are "weird looking". Funnily enough, there are many breeds that I know I would never own and didn't find to my liking UNTIL I started going to Dog Shows. There I can see beautiful examples of most breeds and each is very special in it's own right. Once upon a time a Poodle X was a popular low cost pet that was often bred "accidently' or simply due to the fact that people didn't desex their pets. They were usually placed free to a suitable home and that was the end of it. People had a cute "mutt" as their family dog. I don't really fully understand how the "DD" managed to pull the big bucks in the first place???? Seriously was it just because of the combination of the two breed names sounding "fun" and "trendy".

I don't profess to being an expert on them, but I do know there is a legitimate core group trying to do the right thing. There are many though that are cashing in on the DD craze also. :rolleyes: Yes, they have their OWN registery, in the USA for instance there are a number of "DD" registeries started by the particular "DD" breeders. This is just their record of breedings having taken place. It doesn't mean they are breeding TRUE to type. It doesn't mean they will be recognised any time soon as they don't meet the criteria as yet. Obviously this is something they are still trying to achieve. There are still many variations in the types of puppies they produce. Some very are'Labra' and some very 'doodle'. At this stage the same applies for the Coolie, which by the way was bred down from the German Kooli so has a type to follow on from. Their records are still incomplete and there is still quite a variation and some cross breeding occurring in some lines. That isn't to say that one particular breeder may not be breeding to type within his bloodlines of Labradoodles and have established "multi generational lines" but they are still quite different from other Labradoodle breeders. It will be interesting to see the "bun fight" that occurs when they get together to decide "whose is the standard"!! Sure there will be new breeds in the future, I hope so anyway, but the guidelines required are complex. Many of the so called "new breeds" that have occurred in the past 200 years or so have in fact existed within the confines of their countries for quite a long while before a "standard" was settled on by breeders. This is particularly true of working dog breeds, and breeds that belonged to the privlidged such as the small Asian breeds found only in monastries and owned by "Emperors" and such.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Or get "milk money".

Hmmm, yes particularly for an old woman. What is she ex Soviet Olympian Gymnast/swimmer!!! BS.

Indeed. That water would have been icy. Even Aussie Rivers are bloody cold in Summer. Those poor babes, mercifully, would have died rather quickly I'm afraid. And yes, having seen the footage the pups appeared to be black/white. 'Spin Doctors' I'm sorry to say.