aussielover

GREAT PHOTOS

What do you mean by "healthy" an apparently healthy animal still carries reccessive genes for disease. I if it is to be bred it should at least be screened for common diseases within the breed. And to stand a dog at stud- don't you need papers documenting familt tree etc.? Also, I thought the Coolie was not yet an official breed anyway. If its a working dog, its another story.

Are these dogs in Australia at all?

Wow some people are really dumb...

My first dog was a poodle cross. His coat was a nightmare to look after! even though we groomed him frequently, he would still haved to be shaved a few times in the year. He was our first dog and we were never told how much work his coat would be and we frequently took him swimming, bushwalking etc so you can imagine the nightmare especially because he was white! Our Aussie girl was so easy in comparison, I don't know if other aussie shepherd owners have found this, but Clover hardly shed at all (that we noticed). We also only had to brush her weekly, and her coat would never getted matted (only under her ears for some reason?). We did get her clipped for summer though as we live in a very bad tick area.

I would want my dog to bark at a potentially dangerous person, but then if the person did not back off, we would both run for it!!! Surely you would not want to put your dog in any danger? I would have thought the sight of a GSD would be enough to deter a normal person. Also, does a personal protection dog have to be registered as a dangerous dog and kept accordingly ie. wear the red and yellow collar, muzzled in public etc..

I think it really depends on how bad the arthritis is. It used it on my girl and it didn't really help but I've heard other people had good results. I've also heard good outcommes from people who use GLYDE but is is VERY VERY expensive! I think these products containing chondroitin and glucosamine can help prevent further damage to joint, but they can't actually fix any existing damage. You could also try cartrophen injections

What worming product are you using? sentinel, drontal, interceptorn and milbemax dog only last in the body system for 24 hrs. So it is ok to give your dog a tablet once a month. In fact, for most intestinal worms (roundworm and hookworm) the pre-patent period for infection is 3-4 weeks, so you would actually be better off doing monthly worming. I would recommend you use sentinel spectrum as this does all intestinal worms plus heartworm and is a once a month chewable tablet. Perhaps next time you are at your vets, they can recommend a program for you?

When he goes to bite toes or fingers, put a toy in is mouth instead and encourage him to play with that instead. If you don't want to play with him at a particular time, put him in a crate/playpen/outside.

How long can 8-16 week old puppies be expected to "hold on" for? I will hopefully getting a new puppy soon but I haven't had a puppy for 13 years! I think I have forgotten how much work they require! With regard to nightime- is it recommended to use a crate overnight? I have heard this will encourage them to at least try to hold on, but obviously the pup can't be expected to hold on all night. Will they end up covered in their own mess? I'm not sure what to do overnight because for security reasons, I don't feel comfortable leaving a door open and at such a young age, it is unlikely they will even realise they need to go outside anyway. My first dog slept outside and we never really had to train Clover (who passed away recently)- she always waited to go outside!

Hi, I would just like to hear from anyone who has had experience with puppy raising for guide dogs (NSW). I would especially like to know your thoughts and experiences on giving the pup up at the end of the 12 months. Also, is is diffucult to be accepted into the program adn how long does it take? Thanks for your help

How cute! Where did you get her from?

16 Years is amazing! RIP Misty, you have been much loved. I know you are missing her terribly, I hope you can take comfort in the fact that she is no longer in pain and she brought you 16 years of happiness and companionship.

Thanks for your kind words. Its been almost a month now and we are still missing her terribly. I still cry every time I think of her. It has been good coming here and being able to share my love for Clover with other people who also love their dogs.

RIP lovely Bonnie. Sorry to hear about your loss. My dog also suffered from severe arthritis until she died a month ago. At least now they are no longer suffering and hopefully playing together in doggie heaven!

What a lovely girl she was. So sorry for you loss of beautiful Brydee.

I'm so sorry to hear about your terrible loss. She sounds like she was an amazing dog and what a cutie! RIP Charm

Thats great news! How old is she now? Its so nice to hear about people who care so much for their dogs and get good treatment for them and then have a happy ending!

Your vet sounds very insensitive and rude! Euthanasia vs amputation- don't sound like great options to me and then to make you feel bad- well thats just terrible! I can't believe they didn't bother with staging and grading. Also, Doggie chemo is not like human chemo- the doses used are much, much lower. The aim of the chemo is NOT cure, so it causes less adverse effects than chemo in humans does. So you might still consider it, it may buy some more time without compromising quality of life.

I'm so sorry to hear of your loss. RIP Ralphie

Well considering most working dogs are tied up or in a small dog run (when they are not working) don't think there would be a problem keeping a working breed in a small yard/apartment as long as you spend time exercising and interacting with them. Many working dogs would only work for around 2hrs in the morning and then another 2 hrs in the afternoon and spend the rest of the day tied up. I do find it annoying when people assume you have to have a big yard to have a big dog and even more annoying when people with big yard don't bother to exercise thier dog because they think the dog gets enough in the backyard.

Its funny when they tell you their dog is "non shedding"- while it is dropping hair all over you as you stroke it!

What a horrible idea. A puppy is a commitment for life, in some cases up to 17+ years. Its not teaching your children a very good lesson- you can just rent a pet when it is convienent for you. I don't believe pet shops should sell animals, there is no need for them to sell live animals, they would make enough by selling pet products such as beds, grooming equipment, accessories etc.

Today at work I was registering a new client and i asked what breed the dog was. She said it was a groodle??? I then said "oh you mean Golden Retriever Cross Poodle" and she got really angry and gave me a 5 min lecture on on Groodles and said she'd paid like 2000 bucks for the dog (like i care). I refuse to make a new entry for these ridiculous sounding dog breeds so I just entered it as a GR X Poodle. Anyway, it printed out like that on the invoice and she got pissed off with me again. I'm beginning to think I should just accept the silly names for these new "breeds", but I don't agree with the way they are bred (commonly in puppy farms) and many of them come from pet shops. But seriously who comes up with some of these names? I've actually had someone tell me their dog is a shit-poo, they thought it was funny! Also, it is terrifying the number of people who own these types of dogs who say they don't want (insert silly name here) desexed "until she's had her first litter" because apparently they've been told its is good for dogs to have at least one litter before they are desexed. I really do wonder where they get that kind of information from... I forgot to add- a few days ago I saw a gorgeous Bernese Mountain Dog tied up outside a shop. A woman with her son literally ran over to the dog and said to her 4 year old son "ohhh (sons name) put your arms around it, feel how thick its neck is" and then proceeded to practically strangle the poor dog. Luckily the son had more sense than her because he seemed quite hesitant. Why would you make your kid go up to a completely random MASSIVE dog and then HUG IT??? WTF? The dog had a lovely nature and seemed ok with this assault, but they weren't to know that.

The other day I waa walking a large GSP (on a lead) through the park and 3 SWF's started barking and rushing up to her! The owners did absolutely nothing and couldn't care less even though it was obvious I didn't want them anywhere near her. They followed us (yapping and carrying on the whole way) for about 700m, the owners didn't even bother to call them back. It was even more annoying because on weekends (which it was) dogs are meant to be on leash at that park due to families being there etc. What kind of person would let their little dogs run up to a completely unknown large dog and provoke them? I would be worried about the dogs safety.