aussielover

My first thought would be a GAP or rescue grey. from what i've heard and the ones I know, they are very lazy couch potatoes in the house, but do enjoy a longish walk. I've taken my friend's grey on an hour walk, which he loved. There is one that comes down to the park, with a reliable recall, watching it run around is a sight to see! I'm sure a whippy or saluki might be suitable as well.

Perhaps he doesn't want to take it into public places etc. Guide dogs don't actually decide when to cross a road- the handler does If the handler says cross, but a car is coming, then the dog is meant to not move, which is different to the dog actually deciding when to cross. Maybe he just wants a dog that can guide him around potential hazards but not necessarily come with him into shops, or on public transport?

This guy uses them: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qh9YOyM2TAk Probably a bad example because he gets bitten quite a lot, probably doesn't have much experience though. Oh well, at least that dog is now safe. I can't imagine that dog would ever bite anyone else after that experience, no sir. Actually, it wasn't clear if he had ever bitten anyone before either. But what reason would he have to bite someone now? People are definitely "alpha" over him and he knows it! Sorry for going slightly off topic Aidan but was the dog lying down on the ground because he'd been choked, and was recovering? CM made out it was because he had accepted his dominance. I saw that episode ages ago and thought I'd have put the dog to sleep if he was like that. That sort of "training" is best left to professionals. You can see the dog tried to attack the handler. I can't believe some people recommeded that the OP try this. I think the dog in that video had sort of "given up" perhaps gone into a state of helplessness.

It is not good for the puppies that learn to be scared of big dogs, nor is it good for puppies who learn that bullying is ok. You need to *train* him to walk on a flat collar, they don't just come fully leash trained and ready to go (i wish) To start with when he pulls, DO NOT move, wait until he comes back close to your body (you can call him to get his attention), then reward and begin to move off again. You may not get very far, and keep these session very short (5-10 mins), quality of walking is more important than quantity at this stage. If he is really strong, I would think a front leading harness might be a better training aid than a halti, that way you are not risking neck damage. A lunging puppy on a halti may be injured. Obedience school will potentially be able to help with this (though i went to one where they recommended all strong pulling dogs to be on a halti ) A good school will be able to teach him to walk on a flat collar or martingale collar.

Are you leaving her with toys or food etc? Perhaps you could leave her with her meal in a treat ball or kong. Also make sure she has plenty of toys and fresh water available. I also find crating and/or tying up is useful to practice even when you are in the same room. They get used to sort of separated from you this way. You can wait for 5- 10 seconds of silence before you go to her. There is no problem (apart from the neighbors!) with leaving her barking/crying if she has been fed, has water and has been toileted and should be otherwise comfortable. Our puppy school teacher said that some puppies may bark or cry for upto 3 hrs at a time.

I "check" her when she begins to sniff something. I verbally praise her when she does respond, and after a few steps of good walking i very occiasonally will give a food reward. She is generally a good walker though and i don't really need to use corrections that often. I can say "leave" if i see some food on the ground but sometimes she goes to sniff something invisible lol. She is happy to go on the leash and will put her martingale collar on by herself (well she puts her head thru it anyway) because she knows it is walkie time. She has never tried to run away from me at the park when I recall her to put the leash back on. Hopefully she will not develop a fear of the leash, I do give more rewards than corrections when on leash- for things like stopping at roads, indicating stairs, indicating a seat, ignoring distractions, leaving food etc. So I hope it is overall a positive experience for her, she seems to enjoy working/walking and is always fairly tired on return even though we don't actually go that far! Thanks to everyone for their feedback

Hi Tapua, As you have mentioned, only 50% of guide dog puppies actually make it through the training. The puppy raising staff can often tell at a fairly young age ( around 4 months) which pups may be more suitable but even then, some pups do fail even in the last few days of training. I would be interested to know why he doesn't want to deal with Guide Dogs NSW? As others have said there is a big difference between an assistance dog and a guide dog, with fewer dogs being suited to the latter. I also think assistance dog training is something that may be easier to teach, guide dog training is fairly specifc and A LOT depends on the temperament of the dog. If he is so keen to go down this path (his choice i suppose), then I do know of a sydney based dog trainer who has experience with guide dog training in the UK and USA. She is always willing to give me advice with my trainee guide dog pup. She might be willing to help and go see him very occiasonally (she is in sydney) and perhaps phone/email contact would be ok? She is involved with training assistance dogs for private people i think. If it is a guide dog he is specifically after, I'm not even sure if she would agree, due to potnetial litigation etc, but anyway PM me if you want details. I do hope everything works out with this puppy though. PS. I love your labs they are so gorgeous!!!

Honestly Fiona, I am surprised that someone with your supposed experience is happy to give such detailed advice over the internet without having laid eyes on dog or owner. You have not been able to observe the dog in person, nor have you been able to observe the interactions between dog and owner. I would have thought any expereinced person would at least want to observe the problem in real life and then give recommendations. No offence to Rockydog, but we can't really know for sure what is going on until we see the dog in person. I don't have a problem with using punishment where appropriate. Leash corrections as you have described *might* be appropriate for Rocky but can you really say without seeing the dog??? You can't tell if Rocky has ANY respect for the owner at all, we can only go by what the OP has said (again no offence intended), for all we know they could be not seeing some important factors. Your advice, carried out by an inexperienced person to a dog that potentially has no respect for the owner, has the potential to go seriously wrong, as others have pointed out. Recommendations to muzzle the dog in public and separate the dogs at home and seek assessment ASAP carry nowhere near as much risk and imo are the only safe advice we can give over the net.

Yes, he is a fool. He has failed to provide the dog with adequate leadership, which is why it " prowls the room in a threating crouching posture, emitting a low growl. " And even though it behaves so he doesn't have enough smarts to have the dog euthanased, now that he has ruined it, and made it dangerous. And he could have just as easily done the same to any and every breed. Peeps, we are wasting our time with these people. They believe whatever garbage they read in the newspapers and see on TV, are too lazy and uninterested to check the veracity for themselves, and sufficiently bog ignorant to continually refute all evidence and stats presented to them, preferring instead to cling to their beliefs. Why bother? well said!

OMG what happened??? I hope Mia will be OK!!! Hugs to you

Agree with the others about the halti. Really they should only be used as a training tool for large, strong dogs that the owner cannot control on a flat collar. I am sure you are strong enough to control a little 3 month old kelpie puppy It is unusual for such a young puppy to be getting into fights? Do you mean play fights or the real deal- causing injury etc??? I wouldn't be letting him offleash at this stage if he is not listening to you. The puppy class doesn't sound like the best imo. The teacher should really be taking charge and ensuring that no puppies are bullied etc and the fact that "fights" are breaking out isn't a good sign. In our puppy school we had a very dominant rottie pup, a GSD, a mastiff cross and my lab puppy as well as a few smallies and there was never any fights at all. The pups were always separated when they got too boisterous or if any inappropriate or dominating behaviour was occuring.

I would not let mine off lead on the street. In a park or on a track or walkway away from the street yes. My dog is not fast enough to outrun many dogs anyway. It is a hard one, i guess you have to weight up the risk of the dog being hit by a car vs being attacked by another dog.

I fail to see how letting your dog off lead will help! what if he/she takes fright and runs? then you are really in trouble, especially as this will potnentially escalate the situation and excite the other dog which may then chase your dog. The best you can do in these situations imo, is physically block the other dog by standing in between your dog and it. saying "bad dog" or "go home" is also sometimes helpful and of course having some spray or an implement such as a stick also helps if the dog actually starts attacking but I wouldn't use any of these things before it started attacking as this may startle or scare it into attacking you.

I'd like to know where you are getting your info from?

So sorry to hear you lost your girl I would find a registered breeder that does all the breed specific health testing and also check the history of the parents and close relatives of the potential a few generations back to see if any problems have cropped up.

So sorry to hear you lost your girl I would find a registered breeder that does all the breed specific health testing and also check the history of the parents and close relatives of the potential a few generations back to see if any problems have cropped up.

You are judging a breed from your experience (not even first hand) of ONE dog??? I agree with malsrock, there are some INDIVIDUALS in ANY breed or xbreed that are just born inherently aggressive. This is evident from a young age and may be caused by a neurological disorder or very poor breeding. However, these dogs are extremely rare. The bolded statement, in my opinion is a dangerous and misguided one. Ive seen more aggressive labradors and golden retrievers than I have aggressive Rotties, GSDs, Dobes, and "bull breeds" I think part of the reason is that people assume labs and goldens are placid obedient dogs that don't require any training becuase they are assumed to have as you have described "a bulletproof temperament" and are "sociable". NO breed has a bulletprof temperament!!! ANY good dog can be ruined by a bad owner. These traits come from proper socialisation and adequate exercise, training and mental stimulation. This sort of talk is making me mad...

I don't know how anyone can take a guy seriously who buys a pet shop puppy, then says how evil puppy farms are, performs orthopediac surgery without a mask on, thinks pitbulls are child killers and any breed thats not pitbull is perfectly safe not matter what and implants fake testicles into a dog to appease it's insecure owner. It saddens me that many people actually believe what he says.

Are there any little clues that an experienced person would be able to pick up to tell if a dog is going through a silent heat? Are male dogs attracted to female dogs who are having a silent heat? A vet friend told me the first heat is usually silent?

how longs he been on abs for? You should start to see a little improvement after a few days, provided the right antibiotic are being used. He may be very sore and tired, in which case he needs time to rest and recover, sometimes these things take weeks to clear up. I hope he is feeling better soon

Yeh i'll take one of those stocking filler ones too, Does the price include gift wrapping?

Oh labradors need to eat do they? that must be why mine is so small you missed out lovemesideways becasue mine is defiantly hyperallergenic!

Mindy is now on puppy pal as instructed by guide dogs. yes I know its very bad, but she seems to be doing much better on it??? I honestly can't work out why. I am giving her more bones now and adding in sardines and egg, and she seems to be doing a lot better.

Would you say I had alot of hair? way to much Nah. I was joking. You're hair cut is grate. Your to nice erny. its really quiet long and dissapealing. I think we can be in aggreeance hear?

Yes I understand but I also think about that poor puppy that gets sent to the pound because it can't hold it's wee wee. There are drugs that can help control this.