mackiemad

i don't think my dog would enjoy the bustle fo the city. he's fine at places like camberwell market but it hink a rally would be a bit much for him. also, i'm planning on taking the tram to get there from my place, so it makes it harder to bring along the canine.

i'm coming and have been handing out fliers and spreading the word!

i'd be worried that someone might take him on and use him as a byb stud-you said he wasn't desexed? maybe take him on as a temp thing, get him fixed and chipped, a few basic manners, boundaries and behaviours into him and try to move him on to a suitable home? but i would be another to say that perhaps it is a bit early for tango. it sounds like you are starting to have some breakthroughs with him, but if your heart and head are initially quite unsure then i think your gut is telling you that perhaps tango simply isn't ready yet...? and just because you didn't get him from a registered breeder or 'rescue' him, it doesn't make him any less worthy of a really good home, nor does it mean you are doing anything wrong or supporting something unethical. -just in case you were worried about that!

or are you in the emerald, victoria area?

advance has a high degree of vegetable rather than meat proteins, which some dogs find harder to process so perhaps that is what is upsetting her tummy? pal will not alter this, as they use almost no met proteins... honestly, if you think it is better for mindy long term, then switch her feed to a kibble that has good quality meat proteins and feed her a bit of probiotic yoghurt as well. when she goes back for training she might not have the same reaction to the food and if she really doesn't do well on it they might change her anyway cos she won't be working at her optimum... it depends on what you want to do, but if you coudl find soemthing which really works for her, then when she goes back and if she doesn't do well back on advance, at least they and you knwo what she will be happy and best on.

i think in the OP she said that she has been sick. as someone with a current chest infection, my dog hasn't been walked this week and he just has to cope. if he were a working breed perhaps i would hire a dog walker or a get a friend to walk him, but for one week he can deal with it. (though he is perhaps getting some extra cuddles and couch time as a trade-off!) she did also say that when she isn't unwell the dog gets a good hour and mental exercise as well everyday. and that the behaviour continues regardless. and the person who said fake grass can get dug up-i went away for a couple of weeks and left my mini schnauzer boy with my parents and although he had a good time he fretted a bit (they think it was boredom, but he is happy to curl up at home and did so there too?) but he destroyed a 1metre x 3 mtre patch of their mod-grass tennis court! opened the sliding door in the night and slipped out and did his dirty work in the dead of night, unfortunately falling asleep at the scene of the crime is not a good idea! so, yes, they can definitely kill fake turf! to indigirl, i'm sorry your dog can cause you hassle and that it is so frustrating. sometimes we just have to sigh and take a deep breath. others have been through what you're going through, on here and out in the world...

my vote is with a mini schnauzer-they love jumping and all the ones i've known are really good at agility. mine doesn't bark much at all, only after the doorbell has gone, and he quietens down quickly. smart and love their people but can play juts as hard as big dogs... but a border terrier or a wire foxy or JRT could also suit.

AWESOME! absolutely wonderful news for you and the fur kids!

yes, secretkei i think that a tattoo would be deemed 'unidentifiable' because you have to actually know how to read it. they may just assume it means the animal is desexed and nothing more- and that is has no identifying capabilities. after all, we aren't dealing with rhode scholars here, are we?

with my mini schanuzer i hold out the jumper and if he wants it on then he comes forward, if he doesn't he stares at me and sits where he is. it sounds like yours doesn't actually like wearing it- it is a pretty unnatural thing for them to do. perhaps just try to shedule clipping so he doesn't need one in winter? in the end of the day mine doesn't often need/want his fleece pjs on-only when he has a very short coat and it is very cold at night (we don't have heating but he has a very warm bed, so i figure he is fine), they are designed to deal with colder weather than we are... i guess it could be that it is giving him something to use to itch his back where he can't reach, like us using a stick/ruler to itch hard to reach spots (or a pencil down my cast on my broken wrist atm!). you know, something that causes friction or whatever so that it provides a better itch than just rolling/rubbing would do?

i have a separate bank account that is linked to my ING account-where every pay day a certain amount of money is removed into the pet account without me ever having seen it. i have 2 debit cards linked to the pet account, one in my wallet and one in my OH's. this is for all the animals, dog, cats and horse. regular bills like shoeing, feed, check-ups come out of our normal bank account, any emergency or serious injury/illness of the animals comes out of the special pet account. works well for me and i don't need to worry that i won't get money back, nor do i miss the money going out because i never notice it. but then i don't trust insurance companies since my old horse, who i had insured with no claims from one company for 7 years, was diagnosed with early navicular disease and the insurance company wouldn't pay up because it had been an 'existing condition' of his breed exacerbated by the fact that he wasn't always worked on perfect surfaces (though i have always made a huge effort not to work my horses on hard ground, in australia, especially if you compete, you can't really avoid it). so even if you think you're covered, they can find a way to wrangle out of it.

fantastic video! the hounds just looked so happy, after being on stage, to get pats and be perfect ambassadors for their breed outside the show. fantastic!

i have a mini schnuazer and though we love him (they are very smart and pretty easy to train, the grooming i love and the slightly less 'drive' than a terrier i also love. plus i'm a huge fan of a decent moustache on a dog! and i am constantly laughing at the xpression my boy can make with the aide of his magnificent eyebrows!) i wouldn't necessarily reccomend them to be home alone all day. our boy would cope with being home alone, but he is happier when either the cats or we are around. if you are planning on leaving the dog outdoors then i'm not sure a mini schnauzer would be too pleased with that! some schnauzers will just curl up and go to sleep if left alone, inside or out, but many may start to become destructive as they are smart little dogs and like a lot of environmental stimulation and mental challenge. -though i imagine this would hold more true for westies? but i love my mini schnauzer and though probably not my 'heart' breed per se (that has to belong to the rough collie) they suited our lifestyle and so they were our choice-BUT we are so pleased with him and so happy with the breed that i might always own a mini schnauzer. i really was suprised at how well he held his own against the working breeds at obeidence and agility. have you considered a mini poodle? we were considering them too but wanted something with a bit more spunk...but poodles are pretty awesome dogs. i have no experience with westies so i can't comment.

sorry, haven't read the rest of the thread but his comment is just plain nasty. i don't think i've met a vet who leaves a problem so that it will be worth more money later and i think the insinuate such a thing is horrid. as for anal glands, my boy can get a sensitive tum and if it is quite bad then i will express his anal glands when he is feeling a bit better because is gets very tense and hold on- there is always a huge build-up a day or two after he ha had a funny tummy time. my vet did it once and suggested that i feel it nd that, if he hadn't been toileting as normal for more than a day or two, and he seemed tense in the bottom then to do it, but that he really shouldn't need it done often. i've since done it twice in 3 years. but his diet is more stable now and he doesn't have stomach issues as often either so that helps too-more fibre and oils now mean less issues.

i get that stormie, and i would rather brands do testing to ensure everything is fine-at least this proves they do that. although i stand by the fact that i find it concerning that the euk factory/s have had a problme more than once in the past few years-i'm not saying they're slack but i am saying that two issues relatively close together is a bit of a concern. however, as i don't think i said well enough previously, my real issue is that the pet supplies store i bought the food from only heard about this last night, post-5pm closing time and so started calling poeple this mronign to bring in their food for a swap. this was known about at least a week ago in the US and as they ship it all over the world pretty darn quick they should also be able to get the word out a bit quicker that the product is not suitable for consumption, or more importantly, handling by people. i use my dry dog food as a treat/reward at the dog park and for training so i handle it everyday. if i got salmonella symptoms today, when they could have recalled the product 5-6 days ago in australia then i could probably take them to court. i wouldn't and in the end, as long as everyone is healthy and fine who cares?-but the issue isn't so much that they've had an issue but that they've had one before and it still took them 7 days to get a recall in place in aus. that is poor management and communications, something that such a large company should have steps in place to deal with in this kind of situation.

bugger i had only bought some naturally wild salmon for my dog a short time ago and was in the process for changing over from what i was feeding. have now exchanged it for a bag of canidae, have heard good things about that product and my boy doesn't really dea lwith with corn and wheat in his diet. so hopefully it works out well. it is pretty disgraceful that this has taken a week to get here and that this is the second time the company has had to recall products-what the hell is going on in that factory where these things crop up more than once? hmm, i was reticent about feeding euk and now dont think i shall return to it.

the rspca in melb has heaps of vollies and they do vollie intakes a few times every year-check the website cos it'll say what the next vollie intake is. they do like you to commit to a weekly or fortnightly rostered day and for at least 3 months. you can volunteer in the vet clinic, grooming, cattery, kennels, offices-pretty much everywhere otherwise pets haven, save a dog (though they may have stopped taking vollies, but might still need foster carers), lort smith and perhaps aaps might all be happy to have a chat to see if they want to add you as a vollie. during kitten season most places are falling over themselves to get more forster carers for their kittens...

i would be feeding him puppy until he is around 12 months old. small breeds tend to switch at about 9months and large breeds 18mnths. he isn't large breed so he doesn't need the extra stuff for a few extra months-it might just make him fat. but i am not a bulldog person so i'm not an expert on that- as the above poster said, ask on the bulldog forum for more informed answers. and if he is doing well on advance then why not stick with it? if you like his coat, what comes out the other end, his teeth and he doesn't have a sensitive tum or allergies then stay with what you've got. is this the pup that had a limp recently? did you find out what was wrong? it might be necessary to take a bit of weight off the pup depending on what the diagnosis was on the leg, switching him to adult may help with this...

i think if the grooming of a sammy is too much for him, or a collie, then the requirements of a lappie would also be not ideal for what he wants? he doesn't want to brush everyday or a few times a week, nor does he want a coat blowing, i think. but i might be wrong as i am kind of reading between the lines here... i'm putting in a vote for the english pointer or the smooth collie.

also, maybe this woman just approached your dog in a way that startled or made your dog back off a bit- as in she might have been a bit full on and got in your dog's personal space before your dog was comfortable with them and the surroundings. poodles really shouldn't be 'timid' from my experience but there are variations on personality between all breeds and litters. it could just be that your dog likes to get to know someone a bit before the person gets all in their face?-nothing wrong with that!

actually if she hasn't changed the chip info and there was no reciept (even for $0.01) then i think this dog might still legally belong to her? don't verbal contracts mean zilch in this situation? if i were her i'd report it to police and the local pounds/rspca, though if i'm honest i mightn't say that i gave the dog away just that it has gone missing. well, i would be doing this to find the new owners to make sure he is safe and i would also be doing this to try and get a hold of the guy so that the ppl whp paid for the dog can take him to court for misrepresentation. i wouldn't necesarily try to regain possession of the animal, that would depend on the new owners...

good question! and some lovely answers... barry came to us to teach us that people can cause irrepearable damage and that some things, even lovely, kind things, cannot be fixed. that even if they want to protect you, sometimes you have to protect them. vb came to my family to show us that the animal kingdom can encompass everything that is good about this world in one, wonderful being-patience, love, kindness, fun, leadership, wisdom and family. and that the animal gods actually do like you and know what they are doing! max came to me to teach me about dog training, being a cool, calm, reliable, responsible leader- as well as to indulge my consumer side! and that everything we do is a choice-so you beter make it a good one.

with absolute respect and not trying to be rude (things can come across as such on a forum-and i really don't want to be misunderstood ), i think that is pretty naive aussielover. resuce orgs will not take on a HA dog, but more importantly by keeping this dog with a child you can be not only endangering the child physically but also mentally scarring it for life. i live with a phobia and wouldn't wish it on anyone. it doesn't take much to give children serious fears and phobias and the longer this pup lives with a child the more likely it is that some damage will be done. "it is only fair" to get this poor pup, who is probably scared out of its mind and freaking out, humanely euth'ed. after all, professionals on this forum don't need to know a whole lot more about the pup that the behaviour described-if they were trying to rehab it, of course they would need mounds more info, but to make an assesment on the best option for the dog and the family? that one is easy, take it to the vet and put it down. it is in the best interests of the dog, the parents and the child. i feel really sorry for the people who took this dog on, yes they were silly, but someone palmed off a sad situation onto them and now they have to do the hard thing. jeeze, people can really suck sometimes, can't they?

i thought the OP answered this in their first post? the way they would like to have a set up with the family and the dog is that the dog sleeps outside, on a covered deck, with a kennel and a hot water bottle if needed but is allowed to come inside and be part of the family during the day. the OP is about to have another child, with some small children already so probably only wants the dog inside when she is home and aroud so she can supervise any interaction. the dog will go outside to sleep when the adults are heading off to bed themselves. i see nothing wrong with having a dog that can come indoors during the day, with supervision, and sleep outside-that way it can interact and be part of the family whilst being an 'outside dog'. and i believe a lab is perfectly capable of sleeping outdoors. personally i would allow a puppy to sleep inside in the laundry or somewhere similar and train it to recognise and use it's kennel in small bursts during the day (when you can toilet train it for the deck). however their breeder seems to have been having the pups sleep outdoors anyway and reccomended they continue as they hope to end up when they brought the pup home. i would never have a dog in my bed personally. i love my animals and would go to the ends of the earth for them, but i also believe in treating a dog like a dog, honouring what it is and meeting the needs that come with that and to me that means he can have him comfy bed but my bed is mine, not for dogs (as well as other things, such as giving him RMB that make his beard stinky and giving him leadership and boundaries). i allow my dog to sleep inside, although i have no ill-will or concern about dogs sleeping outside, depending on breed (i probably would have an issue with a pug or a CKCS sleeping outdoors). anyhoo, that's just my humble opinion.

bumpity bump how's this dog going? did you get a diagnosis?