4Kelpies

How is Barney? I hope all went well.

Ruff had several teeth out about six months ago when he was 14 and a half. I was so worried about such an old dog going under an anaesthetic but when I went to pick him up he met me with a wagging tail and a happy grin. It was obvious he felt so much better when he was no longer in pain from one decayed and one broken tooth. He was so much brighter and happier afterwards. Barney must be feeling terrible if the abscess has caused his face to swell up. Having the teeth out will definitely be the best thing you can do for him.

Although I've always spent lots of time and effort socializing my puppies, when I've met their litter brothers and sisters who have never been away from the farm, I've been amazed at how similar their temperaments have been. If this is a well bred Kelpie with a true Kelpie temperament, it won't hurt in the slightest if it hasn't done any socializing until 11 weeks. I got Caleb at 9 weeks and not only had he only met 2 or 3 people, he'd spent most of his life locked in a stable. He was born in summer during heat waves and the coolest place on the farm was in a loose box in an old stable with concrete floors and thick brick walls. The pups got out for 30minutes morning and night but spent 23 hours a day in the stable. I brought him home where he met my lot, kept him inside with TV and music playing, took him to puppy kinder within a week and he took it all in his stride. Young Kelpies begin their trialling careers at noisy agricultural shows and most are totally calm and go about their work as if they have been doing it all their lives. I did see some react to the highland dancing right beside the yard trial once when they had a piper playing the bagpipes. Several dogs turned their backs on the sheep and just stared but made no attempt to run away or show aggression. I've been to trials where the yard dog trial was right beside the wood chop or stockwhip cracking competitions and have only seen one older dog react with fear (and I suspect he may have met a stockwhip or two at home.) If this is your only concern about this puppy I don't think you should worry. But please don't call your Kelpie pup "Cupcake" - that would be so embarrassing for the poor dog.

Have you looked at the Working Kelpie Council website? http://www.wkc.org.au/ The best sheep dogs I know would make excellent pets. My dogs are total couch potatoes when not working. I'm sure two of my bitches would just love pet homes where they could curl up on comfortable furniture. When I take them for walks they are happy to stroll around and I often have to wait for them. I have to be careful to keep them from putting on weight when they are not doing much work. My two youngest are livelier and one can be excitable but they all spend most of their days sleeping. There are scatter brained Kelpies around but these don't make good working dogs either. It is more important to give Kelpies lots to think about rather than lots of exercise. From all you've written about Elbie, I'm sure you would give a Kelpie an excellent home. Go to some agility trials and if there are Kelpies competing, ask their owners about their breeding and how their dogs cope as pets. It's important to meet adult Kelpies and see how they have turned out and if they have stayed sound - don't just talk to puppy owners, all puppies are cute and their owners will generally tell you they are wonderful.

I chose my working bred dogs because they have been bred to be smart, sound, good natured and willing to work with people. Generally they are full on when working but total couch potatoes when the job is done. Even when I'm too old to manage my property and have to move somewhere smaller I would still want to keep Kelpies as pets.

I've never met anyone who refers to themselves as being "purely positive" and I doubt that such a person exists. I have heard of plenty of people referring to themselves as "crossover " trainers as they used to use punishments but have now crossed over to a way of training that works better for them. I don't know anyone who wouldn't use aversive methods at some time or other. For example I can't imagine anyone watching their dog approach a snake and ignore the behaviour, waiting for the dog to stop or look away so they could click and throw a treat. They would do what ever it took to get the dog away and keep it safe. I see positive training as philosophy behind what people do in training rather than rigid rules of never doing anything the dog doesn't like. I agree that it is ludicrous that prong collars are banned and yet every supermarket and pet supply store sells choker chains to anyone with no instructions on how to use them. I've tried both around my own shin and would prefer a prong collar any day.

Try this website http://www.blinddogs.com/ Oops double post - you don't have to try it twice.

Try this website http://www.blinddogs.com/

I'm glad everything is going so well. I'm sure some of it is because of the great job you're doing in looking after him.

My old dog had a bout of this several months ago. Compared to other stories I've heard, his was a mild case. He was still eating but would lose his balance when he put his head down to eat. He was walking crookedly - bumping into the sides of doorways and falling over when he tried to turn. His eyes were going from side to side. My vet diagnosed it quickly and was very reassuring that he would recover. I took him to a chiropractor/acupuncturist who gave me some tablets and Chinese herbs for him. He spent a few days in his bed but was much steadier on his feet within a week. I still have his food dish elevated - when he tried to eat from the dish at floor level, his feet would slide sideways and he would crash to the floor. He still has the head tilt but in other ways he has recovered. He is fourteen and a half.

Your puppy is only 4 months old and this is the first time that she has not come when called. Wow I'm impressed. Your puppy didn't recall because she found a new and exciting scent more interesting than coming to you. It's normal for a puppy (or a dog any age) to do this sometimes. You did the right thing in going up to her and putting her on lead rather than continuing to call her and giving her practice in ignoring you. But don't think of it as a punishment - just intervention. If she is consistently recalling when called away from other dogs she is doing extremely well for her age. Try to up the rewards - whether it a special treat or toy, a very animated happy dance to make yourself more exciting than the scent. But don't stress if occasionally she is distracted by something new.

I remember by thinking In classical conditioning the dog makes associations between an action and a consequence e.g. bell and food. being rewarded when a strange dog comes near and so loses fear. In operant conditioning the dog operates in order to bring about a consequence e.g. sits in anticipation of a reward, takes up heel position because it has learned that this is the way to be taken for a walk.

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Have you tried Ozpetshop in Drysdale? I really like the Polapaws treats (and so do my dogs.) http://www.ozpetshop.com.au/index.php?cPat...p;filter_id=168

A few years ago I worked with someone who thought it was funny that his Shetland stallion had got under the fence and was trying to serve his Clydesdale mare. He went to get a halter to catch the pony and came out to find the mare had obligingly backed up to a dam bank and the Shetland was very appreciative. The resulting foal was actually quite nice - about 13:2 with a pony head and Clydesdale colouring but very hairy. He was sold to someone who broke him to harness and was very happy with him. The mating wasn't repeated.

According to http://www.dogaware.com/health/arthritissupps.html "High doses of fish oil (body oil, such as Salmon Oil or EPA oil, not liver oil), as much as 1000 mg per 10 lbs of body weight." and in http://www.b-naturals.com/newsletter/feedi...-december-2009/ "Recommended dose is one capsule per 20 lbs of body weight daily. That dose can be increased in certain health conditions and to improve skin and coat." So from 3 and up to 6 capsules. I give my GSDx 3, my older Kelpies 2 and my younger Kelpies 1 each day. None of them have any symptoms of arthritis, I'm only using this as a preventative.

Have you seen the Responsible Pet Ownership program that is used in Victorian schools? http://www.pets.dpi.vic.gov.au/01/main.htm I used to use this in my classroom.

More information about Breakaway collars http://www.breakawaycollar.com/about.cfm I've been using them for some years now. They don't last all that long but are well worth the money to keep my dogs safe. I leave them on all my dogs except Cara who tends to wrestle with Caleb. I only put hers on when I'm leaving her in her run. It's easy to find in there if Caleb pulls it off her.

I've won a few bag of Dog Pro at yard dog trials (they often sponsor trials in Victoria.) I've mixed this with Eagle Pack and my dogs have kept their condition and shiny coats with no differences that I have noticed.

My dog had similar symptoms when he had Vestibular Syndrome but fortunately his case was nowhere near as bad and he wasn't vomiting. He still has a head tilt - not severe but one ear is always higher than the other. I have had to raise his food dish as lowering his head to eat made him lose balance and fall over. Is there any more news about Bella? I hope she is feeling better.

Good for you Missy Moo for rescuing this dog and giving him a far better life than he has known. He sounds like a lovely dog and the fact that he only snapped and growled last time shows that he is learning to trust you. He could have bitten as he did the first time but he chose to warn you instead. You've been given excellent advice here. I really like the way Mrs Rusty Bucket has set it out in steps. It's hard to know if the problem is caused by fear or pain. It may be something simple that the chiropractor can adjust but he will probably still be fearful for a while if he has been expecting it to hurt every time his collar is touched. Good luck with him.

Thank you Lowenhart and Joblo for the suggestions. I'll keep an eye on his nails in case of infection. If the nail hasn't come off by itself by Monday I'll be looking at taking him to the vet. I'll look out for gelatine and Hard as Nails next time I'm in the supermarket. He'll be the most elegant Working Kelpie around if he starts wearing nail polish but hopefully the dirt will cover it so no one laughs at him.

Thanks Bella Donna. I suppose brittle isn't really the correct word as his nails bent the first couple of times and it only split the last time. It's happened to the outside nail on both front feet. He's fine around the house and on paths etc. but when running and turning sharply in the paddock his nails tend to dig into the ground. I just hope it was just "bad luck" and this isn't going to be a recurring problem.

Does anyone know of any feed supplements or other treatments to stop a dog's nails from breaking? My youngest Kelpie (who has the shortest nails of all my dogs) has twice bent a nail back causing a lot of pain and needing to have it trimmed off. At the weekend when he was working he looked fine when running but kept holding a foot up each time he stopped. I checked to find that he had split the nail lengthwise and it was bleeding. I didn't see him do it but he could have hit a stone or twig embedded in the ground. As he is a sheep dog he won't always be running on smooth mowed surfaces. Does anyone have any ideas on how to treat this? I can remember there used to be a feed supplement for horses to help with their hoofs but I can't remember what was in it.

Thank you. I wouldn't have noticed. I don't bother checking the TV guide for channel 1 any more - it's usually overloaded with American sports and racing cars and rarely shows anything that interests me. I just checked and it's on the non HD channel 1 also for those of us without HD.