SmoothieGirl

I love it when they seem surprised by the noise and the smell. But I do feel sorry for you Nekbet - perhaps you should grab a peg from the laundry.

Were you at the scent detection workshop last Saturday? Yes I was there with Miss Bronte. Which puppy was yours? Xanthe, the Newfoundland, and my sister was there with Lizzy, the Australian Shepherd. Are you going this Saturday? I'm going and taking Xanthe as Tamara wants a long haired dog for a grooming demo. No not this week. I actually have a training free weekend, it feels kind of naughty. Xanthe is lovely, she was so enthusiastic and gentle, even when she was crushing boxes. Probably see you at the next scent clinic though, after some practice!

Think some people call it 'air biting'. Puppies playing usually demonstrate this a lot. Bronte is a big air biter when she's playing with a mate or two.

Were you at the scent detection workshop last Saturday? Yes I was there with Miss Bronte. Which puppy was yours?

If Steve is going to give a talk or demonstration in training in drive I'd be interested in attending as a spectator just to soak up information. I would like to get a better understanding of this, particularly how it can be used in training quite low key soft dogs. Training styles/methods have changed quite a bit since I trained my last dog some 16 years ago and I think it would be a valuable experience for me. I don't think I'd be inclined to bring Bronte to this session though, I would prefer to observe and absorb.

Here's mine, in its infancy. Now I'm off to delete the other post it made suggesting it, I lost this threas til now. http://misssmoothiegirl.blogspot.com/

That tongue shot is adorable. Fantastic colour contrasts, damn I'm so jealous. I really need to go and con/bribe/pay Dad to follow Bronte and I around for a while with his camera.

I've just started this tonight and its not up to date yet, but I'm now a blogger. If you want a little looky see, here's the link - http://misssmoothiegirl.blogspot.com/

oh my god there is sound too. i was working on my work laptop and had my personal laptop open with puppy cam on. all were asleep bar one who was happily chewing on the anothers ear. all of a sudden there was a squeal from the laptop which frightened me and intrigued Bronte. Seems naughty awake puppy had chewed on the ear a little too hard. I'm with Monah, massive time waster.

Great thread, but I'm not sure if I'm just more confused now. I have carpet in the bedrooms that needs replacing and tiles everywhere else. The cat and I love the tiles, but Bronte isn't the best on them, hence I have mats down everywhere too. I'm thinking of getting floating floorboards, but I'm a little worried about too much scratching. That being said I really don't want to replace the carpet with more carpet as its just too hard to keep clean. More research, more research...

That is so cool, I've never seen a puppy cam before. Mum looked like she was having some lovely 'me' time while the bundles of fun were piled in the corner. Quite a variance in coat colours isn't there, I didn't expect that. Mind you what do I know about Shiba's, nothing other than they are cutie pies.

Im assuming that you know that there are 3 "sections" that are equally importatnt in schutzhund (when considering the sport as a whole) And they are Obedience Tracking and Character assesment I always thought that majority of DOLers that are in the trainig section would be interested in at least obediecne. You are not? If you are only interested in law - perhaps your question should be asked on a law forum, not a dog training forum.... Werent we going to go together??? No, MonElite I had no idea. That being the case I stand corrected, apparently I am interested and I even participate in one section of schutzhund as I've trained in obedience for many years. Hopefully, cross my fingers, I'll even do some obedience trials this year or next. My next challenges are going to be agilty and a spot of herding. Edit - A law forum, blargh, how dull and dry. I wanted a practical answer though, not their 'technical' translation.

Just changed to a Volvo XC70 and loving it. The drive is so smooth and quiet and my former car sick, car phobic dog LOVES it. It fits the bill with room for 2 crates when required, plenty of room for a 2-3 med/large dogs without crates and not too high off the ground for jumping into - Bronte ain't the best jumper. God knows how she's going to go when she starts her agility career. Oooh, also, its one of the few cars where the back seat fold down 100% flat - that was a big plus from my point of view. Not sure of your price range, but may be a bit pricey compared to some of the others mentioned here. Depends what you are after for you too, I like my luxuries.

If they're part of a club then it is all taken care of. Ahhhh, it all makes sense now. Thanks for explaining this everyone, I am much better educated now.

No I'm not interested in dobbing them. I'm not trying to make a point, I'm simply curious and I thought someone on the forum would know. As I said, I don't know much about the laws therefore I was just a little unsure as to why a trainer 'might' be doing something if it was illegal. I'm painfully law abiding, heck I feel guilty crossing the road where there isn't a set of traffic lights, so it peaked my interest. I find it impressive training, but as I said its just not something I'd get involved in. I guess it was more the point of law I was interested.

I'm a Black Dog junkie. Walking away to Google i-click, maybe I'm missing out on something....

I am aware of an accredited dog trainer in Victoria who is currently raising and training two young dogs in Schutzhund. Now I'm not the slightest bit interested in this type of training so I'm not up on the latest, but I thought it had recently been made illegal in Victoria. Is this the case? Before you ask, no, its not a trainer I train with and I don't believe they're a forum member.

Bronte was a shocking traveller and nothing really worked for her. The vet did prescribe an anti nausea tablet - no drowziness resulting, but this was a bit hit and miss for her. It was a low dose of Metomide. She eventually stopped throwing up of her own accord, but then drooled and drooled and drooled until I changed my car about three weeks ago. She is now a brilliant traveller, happily hops into a car and loves going on trips. 100% turn around. I think it was the engine/roadnoise of my last car and the movement of a manual car. She LOVES the new one, its smoother, bigger, quieter, an auto and she sleeps in her bed in the wagon section. Edit - Updated with the name of the drug.

My first dog was a Dobermann called Sasha. She was a dog that was a born protector and always stepped up to the plate, consequently I had to be vigilant in my management of her. She wasn't aggressive, but very certainly protective. The best example of this... I used to pretty much always walk Sash around 7.30 at night and of course in winter its pitch black. One night I'm walking home across a quite a well lit park, my pretty girl happily heeling next to me when I hear "don't be stupid man, she's got a dog". I turn round to see a kid, maybe 16 or 17 on a bike yelling towards me. Then I hear another noise, turn almost a 180 and see out of the corner of my eye another kid bearing down on me on a bike. Stupid, stupid boy. Sash growled her horrendous growl, started barking, leapt up on top of her back legs and lunged at him. I had to check her off him and he turned so sharply to avoid her landing on him he came off his bike. Sasha is still going bananas barking at him, his mate is laughing at what was no laughing matter. As he's scrambling to get his bike off him and get out of there I tell him he's a d***head, tell Sash to heel again and march off a bit shaky, but with quite a smile on my face. Good girl, keeping me safe. Bronte on the other hand would probably have leapt into my arms squealing with horror. She's the one that needs protecting.

Yes. Doesn't happen often, but it has happened and sometimes it is as though you understand the dog more than even the owner understands him/her. I've noticed this a few times. Most memorably when I was about 14 I went to a party and the people who owned the place had an OSD. Toby and I became fast friends and while I was there he coped with the house full of people very well, basically being my shadow for the evening. We left about 11pm and on the Monday the friends told my Dad that after we left Toby basically lost it, freaked out with all the people being in 'his' house and bit someone. He was so happy, quiet and well behaved when I was there, poor boy.

I mentioned Collies. They are somewhat different to some of their Border Collie cousins and are quite a bit lazier. Yes they do need training, exercise and stimulation but as do all dogs. However if you are concerned about it then perhaps you are right they may not be the dog for you, the last thing you want is to have a dog and then be constantly worried you are not providing enough for it, it takes the fun out of your doggy/person relationship. If you are worried about a Collie though, be careful with choosing a gun dog or any working dog as they will all need the same and some of them much much more.

Hi PC...couple of things If you really want a dog and know you are going to commit, you are not too young. I waited 21 years for my first dog and she was the centre of my life all her nine years, I never thought I was tied down. To answer your second question, she was a Dobermann and very well suited to my personality and desire to train dog and work with animals. I definitely wouldn't recommend them to everyone, but the breed works well with me. That being said, I now have a Smooth Collie in my life and she is a dream. Reading your posts a Collie would also suit your situation and you have the option of the short coats - smooths or long coats - roughs. Now you seem bamboozled as to deciding on which breed to choose - welcome to the dilemma many of us face. I could list about ten other breeds I would like to own at some point, including Dobes again, but right now Collies seem to suit my lifestyle very well. As well as getting some ideas on the forum and checking things like Select a Pet, I suggest you get out and about to some shows and some obedience trials and have a look at the variety of dogs. Then when you have a narrowed it down a bit, see if you can tee up some time to meet some DOLers who own the breeds and meet their dogs. One option is to have a look at the Social Event pages and see when DOLers are getting together in Vic and then you can perhaps join them and see a range of doggies as well in a social situation. Don't know where you are in Vic, but some of us are going to Kepala in Diggers Rest next Sunday and there will be about 8 different breeds there and a very large span of the dog family tree. There is also a group that regularly meet down Warrnambool way too. Oh and of course over the other side of the pennisula there is KCC Park and there is always stuff going on over there. Happy choosing!

We are working on a few things, but specifically: Targeting her shoulder to my leg in heel Stand stay in readiness for a stand for exam Increased distractions in stays (people, being called by others, toys, food distraction etc)

Carl is notoriously frightened of many animals, in particularly small dogs, I'm surprised they managed to get him to hold one. My concern is that its very easy for all of us to say they are stupid and idiots etc and that any one that believes them is too, but a segment such as this has wide penetration with the Joe Average audience. While we DOLers can turn off (I saw the story coming and went and had a shower as I knew it would just get me angry) we have to remember that this is the only information that some people get, rightly or wrongly. As members of the dog community, most of us involved in showing, breeding, dog sports or training, we need to continue to pick up the slack the media sloppily drop and provide more education to our friends, colleagues etc.

Very relieved to hear our beautiful Fletcher is safe and well, I was getting really scared for you as I read the post. Bel I hope you have managed to restaple your heart inside your chest and been able to calm down just a little bit. FYI - Anyone looking for safe dog areas in Vic there is a new dog park opening in Lalor, its fenced and has agility equipment. Check out the Facebook site below. http://www.facebook.com/CompanionDogClub?r...7710&ref=mf