raineth

Vernie are you politician? because you seemed to answer that question - but you didn't I am really curious to know exactly why pup cannot sleep inside? No one has actually suggested you let it sleep in your bed... there is a lot of alternatives in between sleeping outside and sleeping in your bed! But yeah, i think if you have made up your mind about the dog sleeping outside - then it should sleep outside from day one. I think its a bit harsh to have it inside at night for a few weeks and then suddenly turf it out. I don't mean to come across as having a go at you. I think its more ideal for a pet dog to sleep inside with its pack (not in the same bed!) I think its safer and emotionally better for the dog. But I think as long as it does have a soft warm place to sleep then it sleeping outside is not cruel. And its your pup so your choice ofcourse. Could you please tell us you reasoning and motivations behind having a dog that is allowed inside but not allowed inside at night? I am very curious

hi puppybreath Puppy Etiquette is run by our local trainer. Its just the name she chose. She is a Delta person and is excellent, she also trains service dogs and medical assistance dogs. So unless you happen to live in Wagga NSW you probably don't have access to Puppy etiquette BUT what you can do is research the puppy training classes in your area. In fact maybe the puppy playschool in your area is excellent (its just that a lot of them were the way I described it above) Maybe your local training club has a great puppy training class. what I would look for in a puppy class would be: * the use of mainly positive, reward based methods (they should tell you to bring heaps and heaps of treats with you.) * focus on training as well as socialisation (but where the puppies are just allowed to run around together doing craazy stuff! at puppy etiquette the puppies actually weren't allowed off lead at all and the focus was on getting them to focus on you even though there are other dogs about) * you want to see that the trainer can change methods for different puppies and give advise specific to your puppy. * look for a class that actually teaches a lots of things (or atleast gives you the foundation for all your basic training. At puppy etiquette we did sit, stand, drop, stay, give, loose leash walking, 'leave it', bed command, 'watch me', sit from a distance, recall, and more things that I can't quite remember. She also talked about how to socialise your puppy correctly... and that sort of thing anyway that's just my advise of what I would look for

Hello there Definitely I would never take another puppy to puppy playschool! I really thought I was doing the right thing and I trusted the lady who ran it but basically it just ended up being puppy free-for-all. There were puppies there older than six months completely bullying other puppies and it was just so bad. After puppy preschool I took my pup to puppy etiquette. it was fabulous!!! i wish I had just taken him there instead. It was more of a training course and we were taught to teach our puppies and puppies had to learn to ignore each other etc. And definitely focus more on neutralisation rather than socialisation... THe other thing I wish I had done was invite more people and kids over right from the start. I tended to take him out to meet and see people, but next time I would invite more people in. yeah, i think I made heaps of mistakes with my first pup. I did some really good things too. But yeah, lots of mistakes!

Yes, I think something needs to be done. If you feel that you would be comfortable to knock on their door and tell them - then do that. Otherwise definitely go to the council. It is unacceptable for HA dog to be out on its own. People deserve to be safe when walking through their neighbourhood good luck

well I'm not saying it was easy, I was just saying it is possible. And you most definitely have a point that it may be in the best interest of the cat for the dog to be rehomed. I'm sure MM will make a good decision. And I thought it may be helpful to her to read what I did with my dog, even if she chooses not to use it, or chooses to try another method. Edited cos I stuffed up the quote tags

Hi there, In January, I got a big mutt from rescue. He is the sweetest animal - except when it comes to cats!!! We don't have a cut, but we see at least half a million of them on our walks. Some of them are very friendly towards dogs and will approach to say hello. WHich in my situation was a bit He was very bad - he would completely zone out (rigid body stance, completely focused on the cat) if he saw a cat from even a distance of 200 metres!!! If one moved closer to him he would go pretty wild lunging at the end of his lead barking and carrying on. Anyway I have worked steadily at it using food rewards and we can now walk past cats and have cats approach us, and even have cats run past us (!!!) and he will just look up at me and wait for his big food reward THe only thing was, that initially I had to do something more drastic to shake his focus. Digby is quite sensitive, and I would rouse on him if he zoned in on a cat. I only had to do this a few times enough for him to understand I didn't want him to do that. SO I think an aversive can work, but for them to really turn around you need rewards. Make it so that the sight of the cat = means special rewards for the dog. When he started to link that cat=reward, he would then look at me when he saw a cat. Ofcourse that meant he got a really really big reward! You want to change it so that his automatic thought on seeing the cat is not chase/bite/kill, but cat=reward. But it might help you to train him so that he looks at the cat and he sits, then gets the reward. Because in a way you want to teach what to do when he sees a cat, not just 'what not to do' when he sees a cat. So yeah, I think you can definitely do it ;)

hehehe that 's very cute :p

yep, wash everything first and you'll be fine. Last year, I bought my little boy some fleecy pyjamas. He was very excited about them and so I let him wear them before the first wash. What a mistake! We ended up in emergency, his whole body swelled, he came up in a red rash that was so bad it was bruising underneath. He looked so bad :p The docs said it was an allergic reaction and the pyjamas (made in China) were the only thing different he had come in contact with. No need to panic, just wash stuff before its worn

Myself and two friends of mine bought a tonne of the $5 K-mart ones for the pound. It has been very wet where I live, and absolutely freezing, it gets below zero at night and the dogs at the pound only have concrete to lie on :p Together we bought enough for one to be in each kennel, while another is being washed and with a dozen left over. So consider buying an extra one and dropping it off at you local pound or donating one to a rescue organisation Or even just donating an old blanket of yours, now that you have a nice new one

that was very cute!

I think its a good idea. I did it with my Dane puppy and the Vets went along with it aswel we weighed him weekly as on average he put on two kilos a week for his first six months. When he reached fifty kgs the Vets actually put it on a graph for me, which was nice of them There is an american based graph for Danes and I just converted it to kgs. Worked well for me!

Good on you Gily

Correct me please if I'm wrong, but I didn't realise a Mini Foxy was a recognised breed here in Australia Or elsewhere for that matter? that's what I thought too! my street is huge but I know there are three rescue mutts in it though

oh my he is adorable!!! I'm no JR expert but I think maybe he is ot crossed with anything just a very scruffy jack Russell? :D This is also the perfect opportunity to say my Great Dane fell in love with a Jack Russell we met on our walk this evening - she was smitten and she cried when he went inside

hehehe my kids have already decided what breeds they are having! Little Man wants labradors, labradors, and more labradors and Little Miss wants Papillons (many), a great Dane, and an Irish wolfhound What I would do is meet as many dogs on my short list as possible and rule out any that don't really fit your circumstances. Then I would recommend looking at breeders and go with whatever breed has the breeder you like the best

:mad thank you!

megs coats are awesome SBT123 also makes coats made to order. I just got mine delivered yesterday, and they are lovely! eta LINK

Yep that's all you need to do. Also kids also follow instruction better when you tell them what to do; rather than what not to do. Say 'walk slowly please' rather than 'don't run'. We (DOLers) like dogs a lot; other people don't necessarily. People who have never grown up around dogs are unlikely to teach their children how to behave around dogs. That is comon sense. I frequently walk my dog up to the school gates and we stand there while several hundred children (primary and infants) go past. And I have not had one problem using the hand out and 'stop' method. All the kids have been gentle with my dog. It makes me sad to hear people talk about children with such venom :D we were all kids once! But I guess a lot of people on here were perfect when they were a kid

could you please post those pics you got sent in an email I'd love to see them! and to answer the original question... I think its great! I don't really consider it much different to dressing one's children up

thinking of you Jed :D

I really think either from the right breeder would be wonderful. But I wanted to say that make sure you emphasise to the breeder that the dog is to be a family dog so that they can select the pup in the litter with the best temperament for that situation. As temperament still varies quite a bit within a litter and some puppies will be better for your circumstances than others, no matter the breed. I would also specifically ask the breeders you're interested in, whether they think a pup from their lines would be do well as a family dog. ETA:

I'll be watching you all

Just be polite and assertive, focus on your concern for her little dog, say that you saw it nearly get hit by a car. Say that you are worried that the lady doesn't realise just how much he is getting out....

cute :D

Hi Kissindra! Oh bless him! O.k. not an expert - but I can say this is how i would handle it. although maybe you're already doing this (?) I would walk confidently up them, completely ignoring any fear behaviours of his, especially whining. If he wants to stay put in the middle of the the stairs whining I would just let him. I think eventually he would get sick of this, and sick of being by himself in the middle of the stairs, and go up them. I would reward this with some yummy treats or a game of tug (if he likes that). I find you can also use jealousy quite well in this circumstance if you were to be at the top of the stairs having a wonderful game with your other dog... that may motivate him to come up. Alternatively; If his fear was more intense, I'd probably use the clicker and make every step up worth a click and treat. Also try some calming signals, and always make sure your body and face show that you are relaxed and confident. and practice, practice, practice