aussielover

When we rbought our dog back from england she was in quarantine for a month. I think it was worse for us than for her tbh. The quarantine people are really nice and really seemed to care for the animals very well. You are allowed to visit them, although I think this often makes it harder on both dog and owner. (well socialised and well-bred) dogs generally adapt to most situations fairly quickly. Quarantine had no effect on our dog's personality at all. She was still her lovely self when she came out. It would be a good idea to crate train the dog before though. She was a bit chubby when she came out though as she wasn't getting the exercise she would normally get (3hrs+ a day), i think they on;ly get short leash walks.

I completely agree with this post.

Lucky girl! Yeah i thought the bit about the groomer was weird too! She certainly looks very umm plump these days... TBH its great she is in a very loving home, but I don't really think dogs appreciate things like diamonte collars etc. It does look like she gets included in a lot of activities which is what dogs really DO like.

YAY not rainng today! Poor Mindy, no puddles to splash in. I might take her to the beach instead though.

Totally agree with your post. There is a lab I see at a beach dog park that wears a muzzle because he had obstruction surgery once before from eating seaweed. I dont automatically see a muzzle and think aggressive dog. I'm afraid I do.... Better safe than sorry. If i see a muzzled dog I start heading in the opposite direction, with my dog on lead. I usually walk my dog in off peak times, so we generally have the whole park to ourselves, but the frustrating thing is that dog walkers also tend to go at off peak times as well. There are some that do have ok control over their charges, but a lot that don't. Especially the semi-professional ones that turn up in a car or van and literally have several dogs pile out of the back. When someone asks you to remove your dog, you should do it, not say everything will be ok because it is muzzled!

You poor thing! Personally I wouldn't bother with the MRI. They are unlikely to be able operate in that region anyway. My dog had a similar thing when she was 12 years old and when we saw the neurologist at the uni, she said there is no way she would recommend an MRI- too risky (the dogs are not closely monitored, ie a nurse/vet is not in the room with them, when they are having the MRI. They can be monitored by machines by vets in another room though) and although it may give us a more definitive diagnosis, it was unlikely we would be able to treat. This neurologist was very good, and obvoiusly had the dogs welfare in mind, unlike another vet we consulted who wanted to do a CT myelogram! (not even a specialist!). The neurologist said this causes some dogs to become worse after the procedure, so it was lucky we didn't take that advice. Our dog lived for approximately a year after seeing the neurologist. Thinking of you guys

My black lab Mindy has just started barking when people enter our property. Also in the middle of the night if she hears noise outside. I think it is more out of fear rather than true protective instincts though, but its still really scary! We don't discourage her from barking when people enter the property as it is quite useful.

What are some of the better breeds for an average first time dog owner? By "average" first time dog owner i mean someone who is responisble and reaosnable enough to consider going to a registered breeder, someone who is willing to train for basics but not compete in any dog sports and the dog will primarily be a companion animal. Having said all this, i do realise if a first time owner is extremely dedicated, well researched and well-matched for a breed (personality and lifestyle wise) then ay breed could potentially suit. My question is more about what breeds first come to mind when your hear peopple wanting an "easy" dog, for their first dog. Personally i think breeds like labradors and golden retrievers are "easy" breeds- they are intelligent, eager to please, extremely food motivated, have moderate exercise requirements (in comparison to other working breeds) and generally happy, friendly dogs with humans and other dogs alike. I also think breeds like Cavaliers are good first time dogs as they are laid back, sweet and fairly easy to train. Greyhounds also seem pretty laid back and easygoing dogs.

DA does not equal HA. Just because she attacks your other dog, doesn't mean she will be likely to attack a person. Any large dog can potentially do serious damage to an uninvited guest, they question is whether they actually would attack or not.

My dog gets 3 walks a day rain, hail or shine. At least one is a "training walk" so we might go up to the shops (undercover thank goodness!). At least one walk is at a leash free park where she can have a run. I have a fantastic raincoat and gumboots so i don't get too wet. One of the things I love about dogs is that they make you get out into the fresh air, no matter what the weather is like! The labrador coat is perfectly suited to wet weather, and a towel down will see Mindy as good as new in no time! Today she came up to the shops with me to get some coffee and brekky in the morning. We didn't get out again until 2pm when we walked to the dog park and had a swim (she did, i didn't). I plan to take her for a walk around the block again later tonight.

I don't have a problem with a muzzled dog. Of course greyhounds are the exception generally as there is no real reason for EVERY grey to be muzzled it is just some stupid law Though i have seen an off leash greyhound cause considerable harm to another dog, even when muzzled. I just think that for a dog to be muzzled it must have some history of aggresison and should therefore be controlled by a competent person (not some random dog walker with several other dogs).

NO breed of dog is guaranteed to be a good guard dog. If you want a guard dog, buy a security trained dog. Labradors are extremely smart and can easily be trained to give a warning bark which is reasonably intimidating. I would not rely on a pet dog to protect my home. A dog may scare off opportunisitic burglars or undesirables, but someone who is determined to break into your property will most likely not be put off by a dog and may even harm the dog There is no difference between colour or sex when it comes to guarding tendencies in labs- pretty much they all suck

I don't think it was a matter of routine- they also had larger dogs with them that were unmuzzled. Most dog walkers I see have more than 4 dogs under their "control". And even those who have 4 or less, don't really seem to have control over them... I don't really think a muzzled dog belongs in an off leash park unless it is under the control of its owner, not some random dog walker who sees the dogs maybe a few times a week for an hour.

Yesterday before a training session out of my usual area, I saw a dog walker walking two muzzled dogs off leash (in an off leash area). They also had sveral other dogs with them as well. Luckily I saw them early and was able to call my dog (also off leash) and put her on the leash and start walking away from them. However they followed us and kept trying to interact with my dog using what i would say was very dominant posturing and behaviour. Luckily my current puppy is quite a submissive and non-confrontational dog, so a situation did not arise. I asked the dog walker to get them away from us only to receive the reply that it was fine they were muzzled? As far as I know dogs can still attack and do damage when they are muzzled. They also could have scared the s*** out of my dog, who is potentially gonna be a guide dog. Surely a dog that needs to be muzzled is not suitable to be walked off the lead in an off leash area, especially by a dog walker and not their owner, who presumably knows the dog better and has more control. I was not able to identify what company the dog walker was from unfortunately otherwise i would be contacting the company about my concerns. Additionally another "dog walker" let his several dogs run up and jump all over a lady carrying a baby/toddler. When she asked him to get the dogs away, he just said they were all friendly (so??) and then said to me if you don't like dogs why go to a dog park? He compared it to having a picnic in the middle of a dog park (which frankly, I don't find an issue at all, my dog isn't bothered by that kind of thing) Am I alone in thinking there is a huge difference between not liking dogs and not liking dogs jumping all over you??? Sometimes i think these dog walkers lack respect for other park users (including other dog owners) and give responsible dog owners a bad name and often make normally nice people who tolerate/like dogs, start to not like dogs which is not a good thing

Not necessarily. That is a very unusual adverse reaction to occur! I am not sure an antihistamine would help in this situation as it appears to involve the nerves and/or muscles. I am not sure why the vet wouldn't be concerned??? Surely paralysis warrants further investigation? Sometimes when my lab has an itchy ear, it will make her face appear lopsided, because she holds it in a lower set position Also there was a time I thought one lower eyelid was droopier than the other, but it isn't apparent anymore.

Oh dear how would Hoover go as a working dog, tied up with a bit of tin shed and a hessian sack if lucky LOL! Mindy is only on one meal a day (morning). I am lucky in that I don't have to get wet going outside with Mindy when it is raining. I just stand by the door and tell her to do "quick quicks" and she is quite prompt about it and will come straight back in after.

Thats awesome! Happy birthday to Kuma and Ava! Looks like a great dog area! *almost* makes me want to move to canberra lol

Hi Zigito, It sounds like you still need to further investigate and get a proper diagnosis for both problems. I hope you can reach a diagnosis and make the best decision for Ziggy's quality of life. My thoughts are with you during this difficult time.

I'm so sorry to hear of your probelms It sounds like a very stressful situation. Is the paralysis related to the infection or is it a separate problem altogether? Do you have a diagnosis for the paralysis? What is the prognosis for the paralysis? Is the bacteria isolated to the spleen? If it is, could you consider removing the spleen? Mycobatceria is very difficult to kill and does take a long time.

Oh poor Elbie!!! Mindy loves the rain too and luckily I can just stand at the back door and direct her to go toilet and she will. How many poos does he need to do a day? Mindy generally only does one or two a day so if there was any issue with getting her to go out, we could probably try and time it when its not raining. She also lets us know when she needs to go out, so maybe you could just wait till Elbie's desperate to go???

Puppy biting is very frustrating! But I think it is one of those things that they do generally grow out of if you are consistent in your approach. My puppy is a labrador- a very "mouthy" breed in general. Her puppy biting was extremely frustrating and lasted about a month. At 4 months old she had totally stopped though thank goodness! She did similar behaviours to your pup although not humping our legs. She would latch onto our trouser legs and not let go though lol. For a very people oriented dog, a good approach that worked for us was to simply end the interaction when the dog engages in the undesirable behaviour. We have used this approach for a number of problems that arose with our puppy such as - puppy biting - counter surfing - barking for attention/food - jumping up on furniture It is really helpful to have a designated "time out/punishment" area such as the laundry, which is devoid of toys or potential entertainment. we would only leave the pup in there for a minute, and if she performed the behaviour again, it was straight back in. She got the message pretty quickly. Now we put her outside or inside (whever we are not) if she does something naughty but when she was little, she would have too much fun in the yard (ripping up shrubs etc) and leaving her in the house unsupervised was NOT a good idea (im sure you can imagine why LOL).

It is sad that renting with a dog is so difficult Having said that i don't think a dachshund would be the most suitable breed for outdoor-only living. You might be hard pressed finding a reputable, ethical breeder willing to sell a pup as an outdoor-only dog in most breeds. You might have better luck with an older puppy/dog though who is used to kennel/outdoor living. Puppies really should have some time indoors even if it is only for a few hours. Although plenty of dogs do adapt to being outside only, I think a lot of breeders feel it is more desirable for them to be allowed at least some time inside with the family. Even the most "outdoorsy" family is probably not going to spend a lot of time out with the dog in inclement weather. Some breeds do cope better in outdoor conditions and being by themselves for longer periods, however, the Dachshund is not one that comes to mind in this situation.

And taking a dog that was so sick for a run and swim at the beach and then going to the vet? I would be heading straight for the vet with a feverish dog. Think about it - how did the camera crew know he was at the beach with a sick dog and was then going to the vet A lot of the show is staged - he would have turned up at the vet for a consult and then they shot some location shots afterwards once they decided his story was worthy of the show Who takes a dog with an ear infection swimming? Its all for the cameras...

Is that the rotation honours or the science one that goes for a year? I'm still trying to get my head around how vet science courses work. I am not sure how anyone can do an honours project in 8 weeks. I did mini projects in undergrad that went longer than that. We had an above credit average cut-off, but in reality the supervisors were the limited resource. Most supervisors opted for the distinction average or above students. Some were known for not even considering supervising you unless you were at the top of the cohort. Vet science honors are between 2-4 months long. To do vet honours you need a gpa of over 75, which is not easy in the vet course. The time is also not really long enough to collect a lot of meaningful data. There is also the option of a research year between 3rd and 4th year which I have just finished. At Sydney uni any canine behavior or welfare projects would have to go thru Mcgreevy who is not popular with a lot of ppl on here and in the dog world. Lots of people are interested in canine welfare and behavior research, I know I am, however the funding for these projects is sorely lacking.

I also think it is more about changing attitudes. Many people do have a good level of obedience but choose not to use it. For example, at the park some people will not call their dog back to them if it harassed other dogs, w Even when the dog does have good recall, as they are simPly unawRe of basic manners etc or think their dog is just being friendly. People who can't or don't train their dogs to at least a basic level either get rid of the dog or never take it out.