Robbi

Surely his claim about putting dogs 10 metres in the air in cages is blatant cruelty, his boasts of them being hunting and fighting dogs must also raise red flags over the welfare of his animals. I hope his publicity ploy will back fire. I rang The Advertiser and complained about the article, although I am sure they thought I was a crazy dog lady, I was calm and pointed out all the positive dog stories that would be more deserving of a two page spread rather than, the editor gave me the name and contact number of the journalist (Elisa Black) if any one would like her number to chat with her please pm me as I am not sure I should post it.

I love dung beetling when it is hard rubbish time your photos show what a wasteful mob we have become, such wonderful treasures for people in need all crushed and discarded without a thought for recycling.

Pets are so important in many peoples lives, it has always saddened me to see the elderly separated from their pets and contact with other animals. Lately as this articles shows, there are nursing homes and other facilities realizing that the human/animal bond is an integral one for many of us, hopefully this trend will continue to be implemented. One of the hospices that I visit has a dog and a couple of cats wandering around visiting residents, the most peaceful sight I saw once when I was transferring a person one of the cats was curled on the end of the bed sleeping, I was almost moved to tears by the aura in the room, for some reason the presence of the cat made the passing seem very spiritual and special. I bet the residents love Dezzy, older people always love my chunky Abbie when I bring her to work with me

Abbie modeling her gorgeous Ruthless Leather collar, it is incredibly strong and always gets noticed when she is out and about

Love and care carry many a dog well over their age expectancy. Hobbes has every chance at making it to 18 with you Ricey

Bull Arabs the Pawfect Companions are an Australian wide rescue, they do an amazing job helping these dogs. Contact info for them is - Contact Name Renee Whiting Phone number 1 0405296313 Phone number 2 0412652645

Another angel is given his wings I have followed the stories of Hector and the other 'Vick' Dogs since their escape from hell. Such inspiring stories of redemption and forgiveness from the most special of dogs.

Ricey, what a shame that more owners are not like you. A number of years ago I had the pleasure to meet a Pit Bull terrier owned by a person like you. A better behaved dog I have never met, I feel sick when I think of these dogs being targeted and killed due to bsl and irresponsible owners. Hobbes sounds like a very special dog

Heartbreaking A brave young mans life wasted. Those photos of his dogs moved me to tears. I hope his family eventually find peace and gain comfort from those beautiful dogs.

Yogi Whippet loves his chooks so much he tries to bring them inside with him He can be a bit fixated on them but never chases them fortunately.

I grow Calendulas, happy orange flowers that self seed year after year. I let some flowers go to seed on the plants and pick some, drying them on an old flyscreen to let the air circulate and prevent mould. Once they are dried I store them in a large glass jar. When I require some calendula tea I just steep 3-4 flowers in boiling water. All varieties of calendula have the same medicinal value I believe.

My mothers previous dog died when she was turning 80, so she announced that there were to be no more dogs for her as she would die before the new dog. A couple of months later she decided the house was to quiet and she missed having a little companion to take on walks and share the couch with. We went to the AWL in Adelaide and found the delightful Jackie Chan, a little terrier with an outgoing and bubbly demeanor. After assuring the AWL staff that my sister and I would step up to help care for Jackie if the need ever arose we departed with a much happier mother and a delightful little companion. Five years later Jackie and mum are a great team enjoying daily walks and many hours of company for each other. Thank dogness for the companionship that dogs provide our elderly population, with a little support and help from others there is no reason why we can't all enjoy dogs for all of our days

Oh no, I was worried it may have been Parvo, my thoughts are with you and your dogs.

I am a little bit put off by the price but the large dog mat we tried was large enough for me to lie on as well as Yogi!! Am seriously considering it but as others have said it is not cheap. I will have to weigh it all up

Anita lives in Northern NSW, she is happy to chat about cost, therapy programs etc. I will pm you her details. She travels to do complementary demos

Vince the cat didn't want to get off the mat, even though it was meant for Yogi

Yogi and Vince enjoying their Canine Performance System Therapy on the large canine mat. It must be good when the cat chooses to lay on it. Anita Brojatsch has come over from NSW to run a series of demonstrations of this system at the Adelaide Hills Kennel Club Shows this weekend. Due to the heat she is offering private demos to anybody who may be interested in improving their dogs mobility, lymphatic drainage and general wellbeing. It has the Yogi stamp of approval.

Not a good time in Australia for animal welfare issues

I haven't heard anything good about the one near the toll gate for many years, it is the kennel closest to us. The one time I spoke to the proprietor when Yogi went missing in a storm and Adelaide Hills Council suggested that I ring them the woman was quite short on the phone with me and said to ring the works department as they may have scraped him off the freeway (he was safely found). We use Top Spot kennels http://www.topspotboarding.com.au/ and have done for many years, the dogs always come home healthy and happy.

I use the vet (Adelaide Hills Vet Hospital) opposite the hotel in Stirling and have done so for the past 10 years and have nothing but praise for Derek and Lyn Wells, they have been wonderful in all sorts of dog disasters and emergencies. Dereks surgical skill saved Yogi's life when he pierced his lung.

amrric does an amazing job helping dogs in remote areas. they are the unsung heroes of dog welfare here in Australia and deserve all recognition that can get. I love seeing the photo's of healthy happy community dogs on their facebook page and support them when I can.

When an elderly neighbour of mine died I got told by someone who should know better to put five healthy and delightful whippets to sleep rather than go to the bother of trying to rehome them as they were too old and institutionalized to become pets. With the untiring help of a wonderful lady and Victorian Whippet Rescue all these dogs found loving, wonderful families and are all living the goodlife

Trudy, I completely understand, I have come home from walks thinking maybe I do need therapy Why is it that when you ask people to put their dogs on leash( In an area they are meant to be leashed any way) does it end up a very stressful situation, never have I had someone put their dog on a leash without being rude or abusive. I always initially ask politely but have been known to end up yelling like a banshee when situations require it, suprisingly the times that I have ended up yelling at someone my dogs have behaved impeccably!

The hysteria about Bull breeds is also a huge worry to me, Abbie is a bull breed cross and I fear that regardless of how an incident may happen when I am walking it would be her that got the blame she is always on leash and under complete control but by her type alone she would be the dog blamed. In our family the Whippet is boss and more likely to be dog reactive but people don't take him seriously.

I was looking for some research about dog aggression, because of this thread. One study I found, concluded that people hitting their dogs was one of the factors that actually makes the dog aggressive. http://homepage.psy....0Sun%202010.pdf The human was the one doing the wrong thing.... by allowing her dog to be off-leash in a public area. So she hits the dog??? Mita, thank you for the link, I have had a quick look through and will print it off at work tomorrow Interesting that one of the two studies is Taiwanese, I didn't think of Taiwan as being interested in dog behaviour for some reason but I am wrong obviously. I was horrified when she hit the dog, punishing the dog for coming to her made no sense to me either.