aussielover

I'm glad to hear David is doing better. I wonder how his guide dog is? The bond between guide dog and owner is often very strong as they spend most of their time together and put a lost of trust into each other, so even if the dog wasn't physically hurt, I wonder how he/she is doing emotionally?

Because Poodles are considered sissy dogs for sissy people and so not owned by the type who like to breed/raise thug dogs. Secondly, because the most often owned Poodles would be miniatures or toys so if a child gets bitten, the wound is small and not enough to require hospital attention. Certainly not enough to create a "newsworthy" picture of a face full of stitches. That's right, I agree. Excellent! So, no more rants about breeds then, just rants about owners. Dangerous breeds have the ability to inflict fatal injuries.There's no denying it. Constant news reports make that apparent. What do you mean by dangerous breeds? Do you consider GSDs, lab, border collies etc dangerous because they are big to inflict fatal injuries?

If he is going to your sister and she is a great dog owners- than that is the best situation for all involved. Is she able to give him more attention and exercise than you currently can? And I guess you will still be able to see him sometimes, if you ever visit her. I think I would try and do what was best for the dog and to me it sounds like moving in with your sister might be better?

all breeds are potentially dangerous in the wrong hands. Some are just more dangerous than others. Do you think the press deliberately excludes attacks out of the news by what is regarded as non dangerous breed? I don't think so. I have yet to see in the news Toy Poodle kills young child. Why do suppose that is? I'm sick of people defending dangerous breeds. Actually, I do. For one thing, i think if they can't accurately identify a dog as a purebred (and it has been proven many times that most people have no idea, its only us dog obsessed that would actually be able to identify a APBT or bullmastiff etc), they should say crossbred dog or mixed breed. A labrador or GR attack rarely makes the news yet they do have quite a high incidence of biting people (I'm not lab/GR bashing, it is probably due to their popularity) Obviously a pit bull, GSD, labrador, pointer etc are potentially more dangerous than a toy poodle, pug or chihuahua due to their size. "bull breeds" appear to attack people more often because the media chooses to publicize any attack where the dog looks vaguely like "bull breed"and then call it a Pit Bull. most of these dogs are actually crossbreds (bred by bybers who don't care who they sell to) and owned by not the most respnsible people.

all breeds are potentially dangerous in the wrong hands.

Teach him quiet but not speak. If you teach speak to a dog that is already a problem barker, it may increase the problem as they sometimes receive a reward for barking. How often does he bark and why? is it only if the neighbours are in the yard?

I think that with my girl sometimes, the consequence of losing something is far worse for her than the consequence of getting a correction. If she really wants the tug, she does not deal well with losing the chance to get it. Same with downing before we start tracking, she learned pretty quickly that dogs that don't down, don't track. So sometimes I think, if you can control the dog's access to the reinforcer (which is quite often true in daily life), then that can be a more powerful & memorable consequence for the dog than correcting the dog. What about for something that they will never be allowed to have? eg. never being allowed to pick up food off the floor while on lead, or never being able to greet other dogs while on the lead. You can't get rid of all the food on the pavement and you can't tell other people not to walk their dogs LOL In this case would you apply a correction or would you distract or is it something that depends on the individual dog? (just out of interest, I already have instructions on what to do with my own dog in this case )

I admit our first dog was from a petshop. He was supposedly purebred bichon frise but in reality more likely a poodle or poodle x. The only thing he had in common with a bichon was being white and woolly! He was a nightmare to train, probably a result of our inexperience as well as his bbackground and upbringing (toilet training was horrific due to him being used to going in his own bedding), but i'm sure this combination is common in many first time puppy buyers and petshop puppies. It was only after he died we did some research and then wanted to get a less common breed that we even considered registered breeders.

Thanks for that list, she doesn't actually spend much time unsupervised in the yard and we don't let her eat plants or go into the bushes. She could have contact with them at the park though.

I feel labs do best when they can be included in all activities. They can be quite a full on choice, especially if you don't know what you're in for (ie be prepared for the worst). I think they could be the right dog for you if you have the time and patience for training and discipline as well as exercise. They are lovely, fun dogs with great potential in the right homes An older lab that has been socialised with children might be a better choice if you don't have the time or energy for a puppy. One of Mindy's (my lab puppy) was rehomed to a more experienced person becuase he was too much for the owner and her 4 year old son to handle (jumping, biting etc). Its pretty hard to ignore jumping and biting, and thats for adults! So it would be very difficult for a young child to understand and follow instruction regarding the puppy (ime)

I'm sorry but I wouldn't use these alone for paralysis ticks especially if you are going into a bad tick area. Maybe in conjunction with a chemical treatment. Perhaps they are ok for bush ticks though. Advantix, frontline are pretty good but don't work 100% I have had a paraylsis tick on my dog even though we were using frontline every 2 weeks. The most important thing to do is to check everyday for ticks, in conjunction with a good preventative treatment. The risk of a serious reaction to FL or advantix is very low, much lower than your dog getting a tick in a high tick area.

I thought in some states, it wasn't required for the pup the be chipped before being sold? I personally don't think 6 weeks is too young, we do 6- 8 week old kittens all the time, it looks dreadful (massive needle) but they get over it very quickly. Its going to be awful at whatever age you do it because the needle is very thick. I think it is odd that the breeder did not elect to chip before the pups going, but her choice i suppose? I would want to know that all my pups were chipped (and not rely on the future owners as some may not bother to get it done- no offence to the OP) just in case any ended up in need of rehoming etc.

What breed is she? Just try saying no, or whatever command you use to let her know you are unhappy. She is old enough to know by now when you are displeased. Honestly, it can be hard to stop some gundogs as they tend to use their mouth to explore things and seem to be hardwired to have something in their mouths Is it gentle mouthing? I would be especially concerned if it was quite rough ie. hurts. I would say no and put her in time out, when this is possible (obviously not possible in the car!). They also tend to do this when they get excited so perhaps have a chew or a toy available for the car or when you know she is going to get excited. Personally, although many disagree with this and it depends on the indiviual dogs personality, I don't mind mouthing if I initiate it (like when playing) and it is very gentle. I used to play with my aussie who was soo gentle and she would mouth me but NEVER went to bite anyone, I think they know the difference. Like Mindy will be soo gentle with little dogs and puppies and will be soo rough with pups her own size and age. With a more dominant or excitable dog this is not appropriate. Good Luck, she is still only young, I'm sure you'll get things under control, it is one of those puppy things, that is especially pronounced in gundogs (especially labs, as i have found out recently!). My own puppy learnt not to do this by us walking away from play or her going into time out and she was quite a little terror when we first got her home. She would actually latch onto our pants or shoes and if you went to pat her or play with her it would immediately be bitey bitey. She leanrt after about 2 weeks not to mouth us so much and now she doesn't attempt to mouth us at all.

Mindy has continued to have sloppy poo She just finished a course of antibiotics (metronidazole) , which hasn't seemed to clear it up. Well, it did initially but as soon as I added the normal food back in, it continued despite still being on the abs. I am starting her on a trial of i/d only, will continue that for about a month-2 months and then see if I can introduce "normal" food back in gradually. I am also going to get a faecal PCR done, to see if there is anything else going on. I have also noticed she is a bit more itchy than she should be? She has a scratch once every hour or so, but I can't find and rashes or reddended areas when i look. She doens't have fleas either, I have checked and she gets frontline every 2 weeks (for ticks). I've also given her a capstar. Not sure if this amount of scratching is normal but I have a feeling (can't really explain sorry) that it isn't. There are no other clinical signs. Can anyone recommend a good probiotic for dogs? we don't sell it where i work. Would prefer a powder rather than yoghurt just in case the dairy upsets her.

Thanks for your advice guys, she has improved a bit this week. Its funny because if you put food down specially for her (eg her meals or a kong or a bone etc) she will not touch it until given permission to do so. She must see food on the table differently though??? It is not helped by the fact that my mum and sister thinks it is cute nd just laught when she does this

How can you tell?

Well really, you're going to have a hard time opening any large breed dogs mouth if it has just decided to clamp down and not let go (nothing to do with a locking jaw). Personally, I don't have a problem with them using any method available to get the attacking dog off, I think most people would do whatever to protect their own dog.

I got the pit bull on 1st go, but try this one, it is bit a harder find the pitty puppy

what exactly is prey drive? I have often heard playing tug and/or chasing after a moving object in association with prey drive. My puppy likes to play tug and will chase after things that are thrown for her but i'm sure a lot of dogs also like to do these things. HOw do you tell if a dog has high prey drive? Is food drive any different to just being hungry or wanting to eat?

I am assuming they mean DD crosses of lab sux=ch as lab x poodle or lab x spaniel. I'd like to see the hiarless lab though. Perhaps goldies and flatcoats are invited as well. Sounds like fun though

Must've been dreaming about food

It is sad to think that a vet could actually believe the "lockjaw" myth, especially considering their training in anatomy, they should sure;y realise it is anatomically impossible. "pitbulls" have the same basic jaw structure as any other breed and furthermore, "locking" of the jaw is physically impossible for canine jaws! As for that ridiculous woman who thought that if her dog had pitbull in it, it would be dangerous...... words cannot describe how ill informed I think she is. I am also extremely disappointed that the vets went along with her and did not discuss the REAL reasons why dogs may become aggressive. APBT's are known as nanny dogs due to their friendliness towards children. Obviously, not every pitty is going to love kids as alot depends on breeding, upbringing, training, socialisation etc. Please correct me if i am wrong but weren't pitties selected for having very low levels of HA. A dog that couldn't be pulled out of the pit or checked over etc, wouldn't be of much use to their owner.

Mindy my 5 month old lab puppy has just discovered the delights of the kitchen bench. She is now big enough to put her paws up on the bench (which is quite high). On occaison she has managed to grab some food- mostly food in packets or crumbs. I do know a simple method to deal with this would be to deny her access to the kitchen. Unfortunately, our house is open plan so there is access to the kitchen from three sides, very large spaces which are not practical to block off. The kitchen area is not really defined, it is literally in the middle of the house. Her crate is currently up in my room and only used for sleeping now and is too cumbersome to move up and downstairs. She is left in the laundary if we need to go out, but I don't feel having her in the laundary whilst we are home is a good solution either. She is only at home 3 or 4 days of the week, the rest of the time she is at uni with me from aroun 8-6pm. She knows stay but hasn't mastered more than a few minutes. I kind of feel like she should be able to wander around the house (she is trustworthy in terms of toilet training and destruction) at this stage. Whilst I do think in a lot of cases simply preventing a behaviour is fine, for this sort of thing which is really quite dangerous, I am wondering if the use of a correction would be useful in this situation, such as an on leash check ( I am happy for her walk around the house on lead under my supervision), or a firm No and then being put in "time out".

Definitely a fine needle aspirate for cytology (to see what types of cells are in the lump) Possibly, and perhaps based on the FNA results, a biopsy might be required, if a diagnosis can't be reached by the FNA. Bloods would probably be useful as well, to see if there some kind of systemic response. What does the lump feel like?

What are curly coats grooming requirements?