Mrs Rusty Bucket

hi Westiemum Any chance the flakey skin could be from a fungal infection? Adelaide hills might be cold but they're also damp and humid this time of year and can promote the growth of fungi - not just mushrooms. In which case some sort of anti fungal ointment eg for tinea (stinky feet) or vet equivalent might be needed? I think if you want to be sure - need to do a skin scraping and send it off to the lab to see what grows.

IS there some reason you can't just put 10% less in the dog's bowl and top up with raw carrots if it complains?

We had a bunch of the "don't wanna don't haveta" (DWDH) tonight. I had to remember to quit a session when she still wanted more. Not when she decided she'd rather have a drink or do a spot of mouse hunting... I also need to pay more attention to when I "recue" stuff when she has "selective hearing". It's a crutch - and there's a time and a place for that and most of the time - it's not now.

Funny Leah82 Now you can play IYC with your hubby in bed and see how long it takes for him to figure out what to do to get the "treats"... could get quite some mileage out of that...

Steph M that's so sad. Your company could probably dedicate a web page to how to check you're getting a real puppy...

Didn't we have a long thread where somebody was trying to buy a puppy off a scammer... and the scammer - it being the dredded G-T site... said they were in the same city - to start with (think it was Adelaide) and then said they (and the puppy) were "temporarily" somewhere else like "Griffith" and the would be buyer was posting here so someone here who lives in Griffith said they'd go check it out, and then the seller-scammer said the puppy was somewhere else... eventually said the puppy was in South Africa... and that killed the deal because it's not worth importing (if it's even possible) from there. Not quite the same as a puppy in the same town. The person who started the thread didn't lose any money tho. But there is something known as the "Advance fee fraud" where you pay a small fee for shipping and that doesn't work out so you pay a bigger fee to get the puppy out of jail or hospital or whatever... and the fees get bigger and bigger and the excuses get grander... and people get sucked in because they've made an investment (cash and time and emotion) and they want the product... they don't want to cut their losses and run. It's not just puppies, it's all sorts. I don't think the newfies were scam puppies but I could be wrong. They also steal other people's pictures from breeder websites etc to make their scam ads... happens a lot with scuba equipment - the really expensive stuff like "rebreathers". Except the scuba community - especially the guys who use that stuff is so tiny they usually recognise the photo off their own personal or friend's website...

Thanks for the update, ringer, and trying to do the right thing by your dog. I hope it works out for the best.

If you think it is a scam (since we can't import that breed etc) scam watch govt site. https://www.moneysmart.gov.au/scams/report-a-scam

I guess it's a breach of customs law to import them. And a breach of most state laws to breed them - so that would be state police or council. Really should not look at gumtree there's a litter of newfoundland puppies give away in "Sutherland area > Gymea " With an address posted. ARGGGHHH

********** Alert ********* R5 Coaching call "Live training session" announced. 6:30pm Toronto Canada time on Saturday 19th or 8am Adelaide time on Sunday http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html Remember when posting question - good idea to type it up in notepad first and then paste it in - make sure your core question is the first line and simple and clear. SG is dyslexic and will lose focus if you write an essay with a question somewhere in the middle. Sometimes they have an interactive chat going and you can post extra stuff there if you're watching live. And if you didn't notice the announcement - please follow the "announcement group" and/or "Mandy Pilgrim".

---------------ALERT ALERT ALERT ICPeeps Rego ----------------- IC PEEPS first come first serve - server jam - ie opportunity to get into IC Peeps at 10:30pm tonight SA time. You can only join if you've already signed up for Recallers... If you're already in Recallers - you should have an email. If you didn't get the email telling you to watch out for the ICPeeps rego email with link... you need to email customer happiness and ask to be put on the list eg put in the subject line "Please put me on the ICPeeps rego email list - I'm in recallers and I didn't get the warning email". This is what I get for being busy all weekend. Use the time converter here (convert from Canada Toronto time to your local) http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html ---------end ALERT ICPeep rego-----

If you have an old tshirt you could wear a bit, and then put that in his kennel... that might help. it possibly smells like varnish at the moment.

on one of my net profiles, I've got a signature with a link to RSPCA how to choose a puppy info - and I've called it "puppies for sale" - it freaked the moderators out the first time they saw it - until they clicked on it and saw where it went. I guess I could create another one for people who need to rehome... dogs wanted and point it at the pet rescue rehoming info... There must be a way - even if we had a roster of people to place the ads. And then link them back to organisations that already deal with it. Breed specific rescue is good but it would probably be easier to provide info to allow the gumtree people a way to find it themselves. Gumtree is the home of lazy people but it's also the home of the ignorant so every little bit would help - if we save a couple of dogs a month or redirect a couple of would be puppy mill buyers that way, would it be worth it?

I'm not sure this is entirely right. Australian consumer guarantee requires the pet shop provides a healthy puppy. Unfortunately if they don't you can only ask for repair or replacement. Car shops are not allowed to insist you take your car to them for warranty care - you can go to any independent car shop that follows the manufacturer care guide lines. But I don't know if you can get your (independent) vet fees back from the pet shop. Or whether it would be worth trying. But given the three way financial vested interests between puppy farm, shop and vet, they're not going to put any effort into properly diagnosing the problem or providing adequate care. Not until the law forces them to. And none of that takes into account the emotional bond that forms almost instantly with the puppy. It would be akin to taking a child back and asking for a refund. You could only do it if the bond was completely broken. How to fix it? Well parents sue the crap out of the doctors if things go wrong with delivery and they get an unhealthy or disabled baby because of it. Hence obstetricians can not afford their legal insurance on their own. We all pay for that.

Max#1 there's usually a group that refers to themselves as "the turtles". Lynda (Orton Hill) herself usually leads that group. And they're often in the tuggers. To mix in with your IYC and collar grab... add some nose touches - ie get your dog to target your hand with their nose and reward that with a treat in your now nose-slimed hand... see if you can get repeat nose touches, then work on IYC with the nose touch - and see how many nose touches you can get while you wave treats around with your other hand... ie I've usually got my left hand out, with my elbow braced against my leg for the nose touches, and then try to drop treats into my left hand from above with my right hand - but only when she stops trying to look at the treats while she's snotting away. It is the funniest trick - because of the way she keeps trying to do two things at once...

Is it possible for someone (ideally a rescue) to put up an add something like wanted small dog or puppy... the sort of inverse of the ftgh going OS kinds of posts. So that when someone wants to rehome their little dog they see someone "wants" their puppy and gets a bit educated about puppy mills and why they should always put a fee on their dog. Maybe a link to the pet rescue - need to rehome info page. http://www.petrescue.com.au/library/articles/help-i-need-to-rehome-my-pet And maybe a rescue could put the "puppies for sale" educational ad up too... ie how to find a good breeder or rescue, how old the puppy should be etc. I figure if gumtree allows the scumbags to advertise - they should allow for some educational ads by rescues that are set up to be noticed by people who need to rehome their dog or people looking for a puppy. You probably want to use a dedicated gmail account for contact - to keep the ratbags off your door step... Is this possible, done already, a good idea, failed (why)?

PS it's probably not Mark himself but his "new delhi" team working on his behalf. Sigh. They pay poor people to spam everything.

This is the third poop (from this morning not yesterday) - I used the insert picture img tag thingies so it will display There's no runny spill but it still looks very red and dark when you zoom in on it.

search engine optimisation is about trying to trick search engines like google into giving websites you've been paid to promote - higher rankings in searches. So for some reason this person is trying to use your redbubble id to promote a website ranking in google. It's also like a forum spammer - ie someone who comes and posts but puts text or links to promote a particular website / business. I don't know anything about redbubble followers but if its like twitter - not a lot you can do. As best I can tell twitter is completely open - you can't limit who gets to see your tweets or who gets to follow you. This person might be trying to promote some business related to dog products. I notice the tags are all along the lines of se o n xt complaints scams etc. Note - if you type out their name exactly - you help their google ranking but if you put a couple of extra characters in - it won't match so well.

ka89 Your puppy did not look well in the pet shop. There is a good chance it's from a puppy farm and their vet and the puppy shop and the farm do not care about your puppy being healthy. They will lie to you just to make you buy and leave. See a different vet. If you post here - what suburb / area / city you are in - I am sure someone will recommend a vet near you. I don't understand why you would buy a puppy and ask questions here if you're not willing to look after it or listen to the advice we give. The new vet should be able to advise about follow up vaccinations, worming, flea treatment, and puppy pre-school - so that your puppy learns how to play nice with other dogs and people and you learn something more about looking after it. You might also want to join Ian Dunbar's Dog Star Daily and read the digital text book about raising a puppy. http://www.dogstardaily.com/ Things that could be wrong include Parvo (death to puppies who don't get treated immediately) and obstruction like a piece of bone stuck in the gut and making it bleed.

It was probably sick there too. You are entitled to get your money back as puppies are supposed to be fit and healthy when sold. In Victoria they're also supposed to be 8 weeks old and micro chipped. If you take the puppy back - you might be able to get one from somewhere more reliable than a pet shop. You should at least get them to pay your vet fees. http://kb.rspca.org.au/What-is-the-RSPCA-policy-on-pet-shops_222.html http://kb.rspca.org.au/What-is-a-responsible-companion-animal-breeder_327.html

Hi all I wish there was a like button for that sad Great Dane face, tiny gate photo. :) I tried doing a bit of RZ around the house last night (dark and stormy outside). And that didn't work so well. I figured I was really luring so put the food down and tried some more. She got the following me round concept but the heel in tight spaces - not so keen. We had a good IYC moment today. I'd put brekky down on the coffee table and then went to stop her from counter surfing in the kitchen - I really must do better - it's definitely a bad habit for both of us - I get brekky ready and carry it to the lounge to eat (don't have a dining table) and she goes counter surfing checking for prep crumbs while I'm pre-occupied with my food. Doesn't seem to matter if there's nothing left either. She's better when there actually is something worth having. Like she sat next to the counter - that had a spoon with yogurt still on it... and yiffed at it... (indicating). She could have helped herself but she didn't. So I paid that - after she got on her kitchen mat place.

No - but if you've got a good hand touch you can guide them into position that way and them following the palm of your hand into position - doesn't have the same problems that luring with food or toy can have. Ie you step back and put your hand out behind you when the dog gets there you lead the dog from behind to RZ position with your hand. There's no choice or understanding in this. This is the easiest way to start. You get your dog to sit/drop and you step so the dog is in the zone. hand over five treats for "being there" - you might say "yes" or the dog's name first. And don't forget to touch your hip or knee (for short dog). We were considering putting peanut paste (or similar) on a wooden spoon for rewarding really short dogs. Hopefully your dog understands sit = stay, but here's an opportunity to train it - tho I'm not sure how you put the dog back if it moves. I think maybe you give the dog a choice as you move (start with one step), and if the dog moves you collar grab and turn you both in a small circle and start over. Ie while holding the dog - you get the sit (ideally without asking for it), and then you stand in the RZ and start over. I just say "wait" because that's how I taught my dog before SG and she (the dog) understands that. Take one step forward, then say "go" or whatever your release word is. Hopefully your dog will take one step forward to be next to you and where all those treats came last time... The understanding of the release word (and the stay) - comes from crate (or mat) games. Ie one game builds on the next. Playing RZ will build understanding of "control position" aka automatic stay (which we only have with the word "wait") and release too. Probably easier to work one side until you have it good enough to add a cue, and then work the other side. The dog should always come to the RZ on the side shoulder that you're looking over, hand signalling on or that they started on. Ie Agility doesn't like uncued blind crosses (dog swapping sides behind handler). I think that probably doesn't work so well in Obedience either. With my dog - "heel" always means left side. Unless she's next to me on the right side already - even then if I say "heel" she often goes to the left side. And I use hand signals to get the right side - tho sometimes I say "other side" which gets shortened to "side" sometimes. But you only want to add a cue - when you've got a nice behaviour.

about the ball thing... SG also believes that chasing a ball for exercise is just dangerous - I think she's seen too many top agility dogs get injured doing it. Has to do with the way they stop and face plant and change direction when they get to the ball. It's way too rough on a dog body and some dogs break. She sometimes does a throw and chase - but she will do it with a toy that doesn't bounce or roll. And sometimes she will require the whatever it is to be stopped on the ground before she allows the dog to go get it (which hers do absolutely flat out). Part of what she sets as criteria in her agility training - as the dogs get an understanding of what they're doing on equipment - that they also learn to collect their stride and slow down so they can make a good approach and a tight turn without wiping themselves out or crashing, while going flat out between.

@silentchild Hmm for the first 18 days - approx - you don't let your dog off lead at the park or anywhere else you might have difficulty catching it. You do go exercise and do long walks but the intial part of the course (and I wish it was clearer) you want the dog to learn all the new skills and you're not testing them at university level eg there's recall in the bathroom (confined space) with bestest ever treats eg kindergarten level and there's calling off fun dogs at the park - university level - tho calling off from chasing ducks or chasing cars or angry snake might be PHD level... You can still go to the park - but don't let your dog off lead. Work on getting her focus on you and reward that. Play some games - but keep her on lead. For now - do not give her permission to go play. And yes - you can eventually use that as a reward for doing what you want - but it's WAAAAYYY too early for that now. You probably don't want the other dogs coming up to say hello and what you do then can make big problems later. Best to be far enough away that they don't notice you. But otherwise - try to keep your dog's attention on you and be boring for the other dogs. do not do what I did - and reward your dog for attention on the other dog or use luring to get attention back on you or release after a play bow even if you get a calm sit first... because now my dog has escalated her request to be off lead by growling and lunging at the other dogs - even tho all she really wants to do is go hoovering in the playground. (ARGH). If you make a mistake at this point (eg let your dog off lead and she doesn't come back when you want) - you need to be able to be "swift and deliberate" about catching the dog and putting back on lead. And no treats / rewards for a significant amount of time. My problem was my dog back chaining being naughty with being good then getting off lead. Eg she understood to get off lead - first she needed to be naughty and excited and offer play, and then act calm and hold a nice sit, and then she gets off lead... So she'd do that whole performance for me and I'd fall for it... There's a bunch of other stuff she does until I notice I've become the treat dispensing machine (dispense when she presses the button) and it's not me driving the bus any more. You could do the kindergarten version of IYC at the park - eg put some food on the ground, keep your dog on lead but allow her to make a choice about whether to go for the food or wait. And then you want to choose what behaviour you want. Is it ok if she "indicates" hey there's food here - can I have it? Or do you want her to completely ignore the food. Personally I like the sit and "hey there's food here" in preference to covert or overt foraging and hoovering. You can also post these questions in the IYC game day page, or the training chat section. It's possibly a good idea to simplify your question to the essence of what you're asking eg "can I let my dog off lead at the park to go play with other dogs yet? what criteria do I want? How do I do IYC at the park?" And then also post any answers you might have to that. eg My plan is to ... And then tag it with something that allows you to find your comment again later and any answers eg MRB 140707 8:53pm IYC at the park #itsyerchoice