Flye

At one point we were looking at adopting a mastiff mix, who turned out to be a hermaphrodite. They only found out when they went in to repair a hernia, and found he had female bits inside; he also had normal-looking male genitalia. (Castrated during the hernia operation)

Dogs will hump in play, because they're nervous, because they're excited, because it feels good, because they're rude... Any number of reasons. Dominance theory in dogs is a bit of a fallacy, I wouldn't say he's trying to 'dominate' Poppy, but maybe likes it because it's fun and he hasn't been corrected for it in the past.

Very interesting insight, it makes me wish Australia were more like Finland. Do you think that being able to take dogs everywhere with you, means that people value them more? I know if I could take my dog on the bus, to cafes and restaurants, shops, etc. I would be able to spend so much more time with him. It probably results in better behaved dogs as well. My Dad travelled to the Netherlands quite frequently a few years ago, and he said it is much like that there. You walk into a cafe and most tables have a dog under them, just sleeping with their owners. I can't see that happening in Australia, as many of the dogs would probably be crazy and undersocialised. It's a real shame, but hopefully the attitude starts to change here.

'fraid not I'm trying to work on Louis's socialisation as well and would love to help you out, trouble is Louis isn't a 'nice doggie' if another dog gets in his face That sounds great Gary likes saying hello face to face, but not much else, he's a bit fussy about other dogs sniffing his bum... So that's something we definitely need to work on. He also doesn't seem to get that other dogs can be played with. ;) Our other one was off to the vet today, just had Gary in yesterday for his vacc's. She has a gross sore, most likely from licking and a flea allergy, which is nice! Add that to some bad family news, and a mild car accident, and it was probably my worst day in a while. ;)

What a beautiful house CC, I would never have given that up for stinking hot summers and snakes! My little buddy Gary and I would love to meet some nice doggies around here. We are trying to work on his socialisation. It's not that he's aggressive, but he is a little timid and gets overwhelmed by the big, persistent sniffy dogs who tend to frequent the local park. I need some positive experiences for him in a more controlled environment, I think. :rolleyes:

Does she take treats when you're training her? You could try feeding her bigger treats during training, to make up for not eating during other times. When my dog's feeling fussy, he gets a raw egg or some fish oil over his food. Something really stinky, so that he can smell it. I think dogs rely on smell far more than taste, when they choose something to eat. If she's really not intent on eating for over a week, and she's not getting food elsewhere, I would bring it to the vet's attention. Bloodwork might show nothing, but it could be a hormonal imbalance or something like that.

He is so cute! I have a feeling my dog has some Aussie Terrier in him, he has the colouring, the terrier temperament, the body shape and face shape. Even down to the slight silvery-ness on the top of his head. Only thing is his muzzle is a bit short and his tail is tiny, kind of like a Cairn. Course he's probably just a muttly BYB bitsa, heh.

Spaying might help, but sometimes there is nothing you can do. Even if they are mum and daughter, adult dogs can just not be compatible. I would get in a behaviourist and see if there is anything you can do to help the situation. Otherwise, you might have to consider keeping them separated permanently.

Those stuffing-free animals are a big hit at our place, I can only imagine what would happen with a real animal!

Most groups have a standard fee for every dog from what I've seen. While they might save money on one like you say, it goes back into the others who do need work.

I would see it as a correction, when one dog thinks the other is being rude or overly playful... Can easily see that happening with a pup, not so sure about the cat though!

Colors in a breed have something to do with blindness? I've never heard that one before. Correct me if I'm wrong... But it's called 'double mere', essentially the pup gets a merle gene from both parents. This frequently results in pups with malformed ears and/or eyes. It can happen in pretty much all breeds with merle colouring.

I've given what I can. Good luck to the family and the dog.

Gary hasn't presented any problems yet, fingers crossed for the future! I do suspect some sort of allergy as he does chew his paws sometimes, but this is intermittent. We'll look into it if it gets any more frequent or he hurts himself. He is very overweight but is working it off.

Gary had an interest in our cat when we adopted him, but not aggression. She's quite timid with new things, but we're at the point now where she will hiss at him if he annoys her, and he leaves her alone. I think this is the best we will get with these two, but I can easily see him and another cat being friends. He licked her on the nose once. The thing that helped the most was taking the bell off her collar. He was more interested in chasing the noise than chasing the cat.

He's four years old. Thanks for the idea, I will read up on titre testing and see if it would be practical for us. Of course I will But I'd rather be educated before going to see them. This is my first dog that I've owned by myself.

A related query... We adopted our dog about a month ago, and we were told he had been vaccinated in the past, but they were sure of when this was. How soon would you vaccinate, if you weren't sure of the last time he had one? I was thinking we would do it in about 5-6 months, (highest chance of it being only a little late or a little early), is this the best way to go?

We go out the front for a wee just before bed, normally around 10:30. Most days I'll let Gary out when my partner gets up for work at around 6, then he comes back inside until I get up around 8. He can hold if it I don't get up though.

Gary walks on a flat collar and lead. He had perfect leash manners when I adopted him, very lucky in that regard.

We have a lovely little park on the opposite corner from our house. It's pretty well-used by people and dogs alike, most of whom are nice and responsible. But there have been more tools than usual around lately. Two weeks ago I found an entire beer bottle smashed up in the grass! They couldn't even do it on the paving where it would have been easy to clean up. I could easily see a kid or a dog not seeing it and running over it. The other day we headed down there to have a run around. There were a couple of toddlers and their mums on the playground, along with a lovely amstaff-type. She was nice but had non-existent recall and bad manners, continuing to follow me and Gary around the park. She was jumping all over him which he doesn't like. The owners came and got her back, and she sprinted back across the oval to us. It seems so stupid to bring a dog like that to an unfenced park, when she has no recall and doesn't respect other dogs' space. My dog could have been a grumpy so-and-so or dog aggressive... Fortunately he's not, but she could have easily got much more than his warning snap. If you can't control both dog and children at the same time, you shouldn't bring them both to the park.

Argh, this pissed me off every time I saw the ad.

I really like Patricia McConnell's writing on dominance and pack heirarchy... http://www.theotherendoftheleash.com/the-d...onships-in-dogs for example. Dominance can really vary based on what's at stake, and it's often misleading to think of it in terms of alpha, beta etc. Even in wolves, it's much more complicated than that.

It was -0.4 when I headed off to work this morning! First time I've had my windscreen totally iced over.

Can anyone recommend me a vet in the Scarborough/Innaloo/Osborne Park area? Likewise a basic group training course... I have been to the RSPCA ones before, but unsure how much they have changed in 8 years. :D

I've heard of people using regular food colouring - just dilute it and then brush it through their fur. Given that it's FOOD colouring I can't imagine it doing any harm.