melzawelza

Comet you're clearly an absolutely wonderful dog owner and this boy is incredibly lucky to have you. Thank you for working so hard with him, physically and mentally. From what you're describing I think it's likely he's a good candidate for medication to go with your behaviour mod. I have huge issues with how many vet behaviourists are handing out medication like candy for simple training problems BUT there are absolutely dogs out there where it's necessary and from what you're describing of your guy I think it's likely he's one of them. Constant hypervigilance, anxiety, unable to settle even at home and despite all the work you've been doing to me indicates there may be something going on with his mind that needs some extra help. If he is in a total state of anxiety no matter how much work and training you do you'll only get so far as they just can't learn when they're in that state. If he's medicated and you continue your behaviour work it means those dogs can actually learn and many of them are able to be weaned off the medication (some aren't, and that's okay as well). A visit with a good Vet Behaviourist is probably the next step for you guys, as others have said.

No, I'm expecting the industry itself to be able to police it's members and clean up the sport. They have never been able to do that, they promised they'd be able to do it after they nearly lost it all, and yet the issues still exist.

And dog aggression and human aggression are completely different things. Plenty of dogs out there that absolutely hate other dogs but are bombproof with people and kids.

This is awesome!

Exactly. If the only way to keep this sport clean is for members of the public to happen to be privvy to the corrupt happenings within and then report it, then the sport has proven once again that it can't self regulate and clean itself up and it's time to finish it. Maddy has the unique ability to be 'part' of the industry without actually being part of it, so she sees these things and can speak out and report, sure, but most of the time the only people who know this is going on is the people well and truly involved in the sport and the corruption. Relying on outsiders to be the only gatekeepers for accountability in the industry is not a sustainable model for welfare and is, quite frankly, bullshit.

Pics would be great to see his current condition, then we can let you know if he needs more weight or not. As Rebanne said, he might not actually be a cross of those two breeds and may be just a much smaller dog.

That's awesome, Phyl!! I still can't quite do the splits yet and certainly can't put my legs behind my head, but I'm getting there! Got up in to my first tripod headstand recently and despite being able to do normal headstand for a couple of years now I always struggled with handstand - but did it a few months ago! It's so great when you achieve new things! A couple of weeks ago I got back from a yoga retreat click here in Bali. Highly recommended if you have ever wanted to do that sort of thing!

Congratulations on your new pup, Phyl. I'm sure she'll bring you many years of happiness. I'm very sorry for the rudeness you've endured so graciously in this thread. As a fellow yoga lover I hope I'll also be standing on my head when I'm 80!

Thanks Steve! Nice when hard work pays off

18 months is testing boundaries/maturity reaching stage. I consider it completely normal for dogs to start blowing you off and being little turds at this time, and it's very common for dogs to mature in to being less tolerant of other dogs at that age, but showing aggression towards a person (and a family member) is a worry. Vet visit first, then behaviourist.

Ah, that's a shame Phyl! Keep your eye out, hopefully the perfect little dog will come in and you can adopt. Sometimes it takes a little time but it's worth it once you find that perfect dog

Hi Phyl, Have you tried any local pounds or shelters? While most usually have bigger dogs you do see the littlies come through fairly regularly. Dealing with a pound or shelter directly should prevent the issue you're having of not hearing back - you can physically go to the premises to meet the pets and if you like a dog you'll usually be able to adopt them same day Good luck, you seem like a wonderful home!

Did you know that Dogs NSW profit from Breed Specific Legislation in our state? We've worked hard for over a year and successfully challenged their 'Course in Canine Breed Identification', which supposedly taught Council officers to identify 'Pit Bull' dogs. http://www.teamdog.com.au/team-dog-challenges-dogs-nsw/ If you're a Dogs NSW member and you have an issue with them teaching this course, please contact them and let them know.

I agree with the other comments on this thread to speak to the owner (without your dog) calmly and ask him to keep his dog away, if no joy you need to either avoid the situation or call the Council. If unleashed dogs run up to mine yep I'll kick them or shove them away with my leg if I have no other option, but there's always the chance of the dog redirecting on you or you copping a bite aimed at your dog, so best to avoid that if possible. One more thing to add - if the dog is 50kg and weighs more than your entire male Rotty it's not an Amstaff.

Did you bring him from WA to NSW? If so, he won't be on the NSW register unless you actually put him on there by filling out forms with your local council. The NSW registry doesn't participate with Pet Address, so it won't show up on there no matter whether he's on it or not.

Done!

Totally. Thinking further, I'd lawyer up and pursue the rescue too if they didn't immediately return my dogs. They did not obtain the dogs legally and in accordance with the legislation in the state they were impounded and therefore they do not legally own those dogs.

Ooh, that's bad. Firstly, I'm a Companion Animals Officer in NSW, and while our Gov-run registry is the compulsory one I've still got access to all the other registries which I *always* search immediately if a dog is chipped but not on the NSW registry. Most of the time they're on another one. The Rangers have really stuffed up on this one because the 7 day hold only relates to a dog that is not microchipped, not a dog that is chipped but not on the register. Minimum hold should have been 14 days. They are in clear breach of the Act. That plus not checking all the registries and I'd be pursuing them for sure.

Exactly. Not to mention there's a bit of a logistics problem in running illegal Greyhound races vs illegal dog fights. Fights can be run in dingy basements with a pit made out of four wooden planks in small spaces, making them more difficult to detect. You need a hell of a lot more space and permanent structures to run an illegal Greyhound race, and it'd be pretty damn hard to keep that undetectable.

For most dogs who have experienced both, toys will not elicit the same drive satisfaction as a true bite. Ask police dog handlers if the dog changes after the first time it gets to bite an actual arm, rather than a sleeve...

I think it's more than that WestieMum - there's no doubt that the thrill of experiencing the chase and a real kill at the end of it increases drive. My very prey driven dog unfortunately caught a possum one night while out on a toilet break in the backyard - her drive for prey but possums specifically went through the roof even more after that. It was clear that there's very few things in the world that will ever compare to just how much she enjoyed that experience and she certainly wants to seek it out again (of course, further measures have been put in place to prevent that). So, live baiting *does* on the whole give an already prey-driven dog huge satisfaction of it's instincts, and it likely to get the dog to work harder/faster to try and achieve that in the future. Basically, it gives your dog a potential advantage over one that hasn't been live baited. When we're talking about big money and accolades that's a risk many are willing to take, especially when the likelihood of them being caught is still fairly slim. Which is a perfect example of why the industry is unsustainable. People will always continue to live bait because it gives them an advantage and the potential to earn more money from the dogs.

Agreed Westiemum. Where a dog's sole purpose in life is profit, there's *always* going to be ongoing issues with welfare and cruelty. These systemic issues can never be resolved. Shut it down.

Trap/Neuter/Release is incredibly effective for reducing numbers of unowned cats, especially in urban environments. Catch & kill is completely ineffective unless we're talking about small islands, and evidence shows that killing can increase cat numbers by between 75% - 211%. http://www.abc.net.au/science/articles/2015/04/07/4203004.htm

Sure, if you get them as kittens and they never know outside exists then it's not too hard, but what about cats you adopt as adults from shelters or rescues that have lived outside? One of mine door dashes every single chance he gets, the other couldn't care less. Both have experience outside because both were from a shelter. I can manage my door dasher because I don't have kids leaving doors open and once he's out he doesn't go far so I can just go and pick him up, but if he was a bolter or my house was a lot more busy it would be very difficult.

In a good majority of cases, trapping and taking to the pound *is* killing them, let's not pretend it's not. This. I also have two indoor cats with an enclosure. I encourage people to contain their cats if possible, but despite what some here are saying it absolutely can be difficult to contain cats. I don't have issues doing it but I don't have kids or visitors coming and going regularly and leaving doors open, I've got cats that are generally fairly happy with the restricted indoor life, and I am thankfully financially healthy enough to be able to afford my cat enclosure (which cost about $1500) which keeps them sane. The idea of containing cats is very new and something that seems completely odd to most pet owners. And as TSD said there has been next to no education of the public on the topic to create a culture change. I support education and showing people the benefits of containing cats but I absolutely do not support legislation requiring. All that results in is mass dead cats in the pound, and is essentially unenforceable unless everyone wants a significant rate increase to put on an extra ten animal management officers dedicated to rounding up cats causing no problems and subsequently killing them in the pound. Legislation like that would also completely hinder Trap/Neuter/Release programs for unowned/community cats, which is the *only* effective and humane way to manage unowned cats, particularly in the suburbs. Catching and killing *increases* cat numbers. As for the comments encouraging cruelty to cats - absolutely disgusting on a supposed animal-loving forum.