raineth

Bubitty, this is an article from the k9pro website and it explains why some people don't like the idea of a dog just getting what it wants because it wants it: http://www.k9pro.com.au/pages/DJ-the-Black-Lab-vs.-Granny.html But I know what you mean about the average person who thinks that spoiling a dog is doing things that make your dog's life a happy one. I have been told by people in my neighbourhood that I'm spoiling my dogs because they get walked everyday, or because they have coats in winter, or because they are inside... whatever my dogs are the ones living happy comfortable lives and that's what matters

I think his temperament, socialisation, training, and the 'savvyness' of the owners are probably more crucial factors as to whether they will all get along maybe you should ask them how he goes with other dogs?

what do the bent legs of the pekingese do? I have never actually seen a pekingese, so didn't know there legs were bent.

swimming pool! I'd love one for both the kids and the dogs. And I would love a to have a huge garden. Recently staying at mum and dads with their huge beautiful garden and Digby enjoyed exploring and following the paths as much as the kids did

great way to teach a dog to resource guard! I think you need to explain to you rroom mate why its not ok and what the better way to mange it would be.

Its madness, I would just be doing everything I can to convince her not to do it.

I voted 1-3. I study from home so I am home most of the time. The dogs get compulsory outside time (with each other) every day. And they have to be alone when I'm out walking the other one. During the day I'm mopstly studying and they get pretty much ignored when I'm doing that. They are provided with some form of entertainment when they are alone. Its more to make them think that us leaving is a good thing, than giving them something to do.

that's hilarious! aww look at Bubby, its no wonder you love him so

hey you forgot the harlequin Danes in it too!

Conztruct you raise a point that I have thought about as well. I'm not into byb and puppy farms... I don't see it as possible for everyone to buy off registered breeders though. This is because more often than not the people who buy from petshops or from bybs don't provide the kind of home that registered breeders would approve of. Often these people do not value what the pedigree breeder provides anyway. But if they did go to a registered breeder, the breeder would most likely not sell a dog to home where they suspect it will live a life of boredom. (obviously it would be preferable these sorts of people not buy a dog at all, but if they want one, they will buy one). I think this is relevant to how pedigree/registered breeders promote themselves and purebreed dogs. Promoting the idea of a dog being a valued member of the family (and having all its needs met) would be just as important as promoting registered breeders. If that mindset can be developed then people would take the purchasing of the dog more seriously as well and start to see for themselves the benefits of buying from a registered breeder. please note: I do know that there are people who are wonderful owners who bought from petshops or byb's. I am talking in general terms, where I see people who so often purchase a dog that never really ends up having its needs met and becomes a back yard ornament

this thread is wonderful reading what a beautiful puppy he is :D how are you feeling about saying goodbye? The thing that has most surprised me is the amount of walking you have to do, as so often you hear that with large breeds you should only be walking them very short distances. I wonder if its to do with the working lines being hardier, or just whether the socialisation of it is worth the risk.

aww its so wonderful to hear well done you must be very proud

do you think someone said it to her in jest and she thought they were serious? there's a couple of doga around here that I could describe as terrorists :p

oh goody you can clear something up for me! friend and I were talking about malinois. I pronounce it 'mal-in-wah' and my friend thinks the correct pronunciation is 'mal-in-woo'. She is actually Belgium though so I am inclined to think I must have it wrong? Mal - in - wah http://www.merriam-webster.com/cgi-bin/audio.pl?malino01.wav=Malinois I've never heard it pronounced malin- woo by any european friends either. Though they do pronounce the other three types of BSD's in ways that I could never get my tongue around . oh I'd missed this! thanks

oh he's very handsome

aww that's great :D yeah i was wondering because i imagined it could be tricky if you get into that nip-squeal cycle (as in puppy nips, child squeals, repeat!)

oh goody you can clear something up for me! friend and I were talking about malinois. I pronounce it 'mal-in-wah' and my friend thinks the correct pronunciation is 'mal-in-woo'. She is actually Belgium though so I am inclined to think I must have it wrong? If it was the 'wah' sound at the end it would be 'noir' Nois sounds like 'oo'.. French is a strange language haha thanks!

Growing like a weed . She's constantly amazing me with her confidence and energy (oh the energy!!). We've started with some basic tracking and obedience work, all coming along slowly. ....and I have 'blender hands' big time hehe "blender hands" can I ask how do you go with socialisation with kids with a very mouthy pup?

oh goody you can clear something up for me! friend and I were talking about malinois. I pronounce it 'mal-in-wah' and my friend thinks the correct pronunciation is 'mal-in-woo'. She is actually Belgium though so I am inclined to think I must have it wrong?

yeah that's interesting I think first off 'normal' would go hand in hand with adaptive. But adaptive could be different depending on the purpose of the dog. I think genetic predispositions to anxiety are not adpative for any dog though. I loved my less than normal pup with a passion too

yes it is refreshing to read that My first puppy was definitely not right. I put so much time and effort into raising him; and felt that guilt that she talks about because I thought it must have been because I'd done everything wrong. As time went on though, and my experience with dogs has grown I can see clearly how abnormal he was. It is good to hear someone talk about it because people can lose confidence when they believe the problem lies solely with them; when in actual fact there is something not right with their dog.

She is barking to come inside, my husband has already said that he would much prefer she not sleep inside at al, otherwise i'd just let her sleep in the bathroom - (this is what we do on nights where the weather is particularly horrendous). If we were to use an anti-bark collar overnight what sort would be most appropriate? i've seen muzzles, spray ones and shock ones. this is probably partly why its so bad... she knows that sometimes she has been allowed to sleep inside. Why doesn't he want her sleeping inside? What is it that worries him about this idea? I'd find out exactly what that is and come to a compromise. Currently for me, next door's puppy has been barking non-stop for over an hour and I'm beginning to find it very irritating! Don't wear out the good-will of your reasonable neighbours I say!

that's awful! i'm sorry you had to go though that. I think it wouldn't hurt to tell the police.

They should have control over their dog to call them back from approaching another dog. But I also think that having control over your dog means that you don't let it bite another dog.

not weirded out, I just thought I'd share some info that you might not have thought about