mr.mister

Alright, no worries. Thanks anyway guys.

Definately true - I am simply asking what one would do in such a situation.

Okay, well in that case, for the sake of this scenario, say they have done that and the results are confirmed. Thanks for the heads up on that one.

Hi there, again. I was just wondering, as breeders, what you offer to your puppy purchasers in way of support for the life of the dog re:health etc? - A lifetime genetic health guarantee? - Taking back the puppy at any time in its life if need be? - Moral support and generally a wealth of info so to speak for any questions? On top of this, I'll give you a scenario. (completely made up, has never happened to me) You sell a pup to.. Joe. You sell it with proof that parents are health tested for hips/any genetic diseases in the breed/what have you, and you offer a genetic health guarantee. A while down the track, pup becomes ill and after tests it is apparent that what pup has is an inherited condition that was not anticipated or tested for, perhaps because it wasn't known to occur commonly in the breed? Sorry, I don't know much about this so bear with me, but I'm sure you get the idea! Joe contacts you and shows vet cert showing inheritable disease. What do you do? Would you: -offer to take pup back/offer refund/replace? -help to pay for vet fees? - any other support? Again, just me being curious George and taking advantage of the fact that experienced people such as yourselves frequent a forum such as this. I hope you don't mind. Any answers and opinions are duly taken and appreciated.

What I like to see on a breeders website: -Pages of the separate dogs and bitches, good clear photos of them, and as I myself plan on showing, to start off with I like to see stacked and gaiting pictures. -A bit about themselves and how they got involved in the breed, how long they've been breeding. -A page about the breed itself -Not necessary but I have seen a couple of breeders put recommended reading that they themselves found useful in the beginning. -preferably showing pedigrees of all current dogs -a simple page that doesn't take hours to load on slow internet -my mentors have an 'owners section' where owners can actually log in to talk about any issues they may be having and to recieve help and info, etc. I think this is AWESOME! -On litters page, if no litters a basic time span of when they may be expecting next, and if possible, who the parents may be. It's just nice to have a ball park time figure. Things that tend to turn me off a website: -music. especially when I have itunes turned up very loud listening to music, and get my eardrums blasted off and jump a mile high when the page loads! -no pages for the dogs, or just a page for the 'favourite' dog. What I mean by this is not only no pages, but no information full stop on the individual dogs. I have seen websites where a person has photos of the different colours in the breed and labels them as such, but doesn't have any pages of their current dogs! This makes me a bit wary and I feel.. blind. edited: put a dot point in the wrong section

+1 to what others said. Perhaps she'd enjoy flyball?

My boy was never distressed in his sleep so I can't help there.. I'm sure dogs are capable of nightmares, though. Tobie used to just run and make these gentle little 'wuf' noises. The first time I ever heard it I was in the bedroom and he was in the hallway... 'wuf wuf wuf' and I was like... wth? So I come out and almost split my sides giggling watching him pressed up against the floor and the wall running and 'wuf'-ing!

What a brilliant photo! Kudos to the photographer thinking on their feet!

I was peed on once by the neighbour's Basenji. I just gave him a swift, sharp 'OI!!!' and he skipped away like he'd been electrocuted. That was all he needed. He'd been very agitated the past few days because the feral pigs had come back and were roaming around the property. He'd only done it once before, about a year beforehand and also when the pigs were about, so I believe he was just agitated and unsure of things.

If you want a trolley but not the large price tag, keep an eye out at your local markes or op shops - I picked one up, in fab nick except the matting inside was ripped (easily replaced - clark rubber) for $40! I don't think the shopkeeper knew what it was.. "Oh yeah, you can probably stick your dog in it or something.." "How much?" "Call it $40.'" "Deal!!" I ran away with it quick-smart before she changed her mind!!

We had 15 acres when we had our BC - but he didn't use any of it!! We only used the front yard for ball throwing and that was it, but that could easily be achieved with an on-lead jog or a designated off leash park. My border was much happier being with me than running around outside and it was the one-on-one stimulation time that counted more than anything else to him. I do believe, though it may have been more of a challenge, that I could have had him in an apartment, so long as I gave him all the mental stimulation and exercise he needed.

I'm sorry you had to hear something like that about your beloved boy. I remember visiting my boyfriend's place the weekend after my heart dog, my Border Collie Tobie, had died (way before his time at 23 months old). His dad was there and when my mother told him the story and said she'd better drop me off and go before she burst into tears, once she left he said, 'So.. this was some sort of a calamity, was it?' in a kind of 'why is it such a big deal?' tone. I could barely control my anger and managed a tight, 'Yes, as a matter of fact, it was,' when what I really wanted to do was slap him, hard. He certainly isn't a dog person and I think was chased by one as a child, but even so I believe if you're a human being with a working heart, you should have the sense to realise that even though you don't share another person's grief, you can at least hold back such a comment if you can't fathom comforting them. Thought I'd share my story so that we can relate to each other's... anger, sadness, maybe? Fancy that, donating to them and then getting such a heartless comment. I think I also would have done what Nekhbet described.

I was thinking Dutch Shep, but then again there are many crossbred brindle prick-eared dogs around.

My next dog will be a show prospect pup from a registered breeder who also happens to be on DOL, and the few after that in the coming years! Eventually though I would like to consider looking into a lovely rescue Grey. They're such sweet dogs and have always appealed greatly to me.

Thanks again for the info everyone, much appreciated

ah the spice of life, and the neighbours' life, and their neighbours' life!

fifi.. I just got a very interesting image in my head indeed! winpara: I'm not sure, I've just heard from some people their dogs seem more at ease if they've got 'their girl' in their sight and safe from any other boys who might steal them, so to speak.

thanks guys If i were to apply this situation to my place, it's a rental so I can't imagine asking if I could put in dog runs.. haha. I guess in that situation it would be easier to have either or, not both. eta: posted at same time as cowan i guess it would be a pain but if determined enough it can be done sans accidents. (one would hope.)

Sorry, I mustn't have been clear: I'm talking about showdogs. Also, I have no dogs. I am simply curious.

Hey there guys, wasn't sure whether or not to post this in General or Breeders but here goes Let's say you're a hobbyist and own two or so dogs for show. For this topic's sake lets say one is a bitch, the other a dog. You live in the average house with a fenced backyard (though dogproof may be questionable, so you'd rather supervise their outside time) but the dogs are inside/outside pets. You don't own any runs or have the yard sectioned off into quadrants. Now, let's say you don't ever plan on breeding these two, be it their lines are not compatible, or they're different breeds, or whatever reason you like. What do you do when girly comes in season? I can imagine leaving them while going out would be the easy bit - you could crate one and keep the other in a separate room or crate them next to eachother with no easy to 'mate-through' holes, or whatever. But how would you deal with it on a daily basis? Would putting bitches britches on the girl in question be enough? Would you endeavour to keep them in separate parts of the house through the duration? Belly band for the boy? (I don't know how belly bands work so don't jump me on that one) I was just thinking about it recently and it never actually occured to me before, so I'm curious. Thanks everyone!

Jesus. Poor babies. Why couldn't they have speyed the bitch as part of the charges? I'm sure as anything a $2500 fine isn't going to kick start her into going to spend money at the vets for a desex.. So this woman has just had a baby.. of course we all KNOW that babies cost way less than litters so this was completely justified. -SARCASM- Pathetic trash and rediculous excuse for a human being. ETA: changed having baby from future tense to present tense.

I'll just tell you my story: Since I was a child I knew I was going to own and show Border Collies as an adult and last year decided, although I may or may not be ready for a pup for another 1-3 years, put my feelers out. As it turned out a topic I posted on the Breeders forum caught the attention of a particular breeder whom I deeply respect and consider a mentor of mine now, and she contacted me. We shared a few emails and I made apparent what it was I woud be looking for in the future and exactly how keen I was to learn, and as she is interstate from me spread my name onto a few breeders in Victoria. Breeders and exhibitors are all very interconnected so it speads quite fast whether someone is really keen and dedicated to the breed or someone to stay away from, so generally people are incredibly friendly and helpful once they know what you're about. As it is now, one of these breeders I have become great friends with, they mentor me, and I go to almost every show to them where they teach me everything from conformation of the BC to show grooming to handling. It's awesome fun and it appears that I may even end up with a fantastic pup by the end of the year. So, moral to the story is I guess that it's never too early to start making friends in the breed as people do get to know you, and they do appreciate the help and love the breed enthusiasm (hey, we're all crazy dog people, right? ) and when the time finally comes when you're ready for a pup, chances are you'll be offered something pretty special.

thanks pixie btw oberon is absolutely gorgeous. I was actually thinking of showing if i were to get a zoi

I consider myself very lucky reading these that I owned such a gentle soul of a dog as I never sustained an injury from him (maybe it was just luck!) He did however split my friend's lip jumping up to give her a kiss and over-estimating the force of his trajectory... lol.

Wow! amazing. :D