dissonant

Hurro, m-sass, I note with interest the way you have attacked this particular breed, and appear to be a proponent of Breed Specific Legislation, it seems rather aggressive to me. You must be a pit bull. Fairly, however, in response to your idea that a dog must be genetically pre-disposed to aggression, I would argue that as it is commonly accepted that all dogs are descended from the grey wolf, and are of the genus canis familiaris, then all dogs are genetically pre-disposed to aggression. Of course, such an argument would rather basic in it's thought processes, so I won't do that. What I will do is cite the Herald Sun here (as the bastion of truth, and reason that it is *LOL*): http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/familys-pet-jack-russell-kills-eight-day-old-baby/story-e6frf7jo-1226521785937 Hmm, Jack Russel killed a baby and TORE THEY EYE OUT OF A TEDDY BEAR. ergo: pit bull. I own an AST and an SBT, and I have had a bit to do with Pits in the past. Here's what I can tell you from personal experience: 1. If you're friend is missing pre-attack signals, you're not looking hard enough. With many dogs, of differing breeds, they're slight, but they're there. 2. Signaling is dog specific, not breed specific - each dog has an individual threshold. 3. If your highly experienced trainer was mauled by a dog under his care, I would suggest remedial training, or perhaps flipping burgers. But, please, tell me more about aggression and the base pairs that genetically predispose a breed...

Hello Forum, Well, Havoc had a unilateral arthroscopy done today by Dr. Mitchell. Turns out she had a (displaced) fractured coronoid process (a rather large chunk it seems), and was graded at 2 for cartilage deterioration, which is a better result than I had dared to hope for. The staff at NCVS, and in particular Dr Mitchell are the most professional I have encountered in any line of work. For someone who's academically published Dr Mitchell knows how to communicate to laymen and is incredibly thorough. The cost turned out to be less than what I was quoted - not that this matters to me (see previous post), and Dr Mitchell's recommendations for followup and providing guidance on realistic expectations are excellent. Havoc's lying behind me right now, sleeping (a blessing), she's a somewhat sore and sorry hound, but I understand that it needs to get (a little) worse before it gets better. We've got a few weeks of intensive rest ahead of us, and we'll be doing lots of physio and swimming after the three week mark. best, mls

Hi Pointeeblab, Thanks for the information, it is greatly appreciated. I'm up for whatever hard work it takes to improve Havoc's quality of life. Havoc has already been desexed, so I'll be counting a bit on her 13 y/o english staffy x boxer playmate Zed to help her recover phase (after the requisite rest period). I'll post again (perhaps with photos) once she's recovered a little. If anyone's interested, there's some photos of both girls at http://apps.mls.id.au under the links titled: Zed, Lost and Hound, and Unleashing Havoc. Thanks again. mls

Hello Forum, I have a 14 month old pure (over?) bred American Staffy called Havoc, who has recently been diagnosed with elbow dysplasia. It appears to be *severe* on her passenger side front leg, and I have an appointment with Dr Richard Mitchell on tuesday. Her elbow on this side has severely restricted movement, even under anaesthesia. ( cannot acheive 90 degrees). I'm interested in hearing about similar cases, prognoses, and *anything* else that people who have experienced similar ailments in their hounds can provide information on. Essentially I've already decided to go ahead with arthroscopic surgery - if this will make a difference to her quality of life - on both elbows if required. Although I am a modest wage earner, cost is no barrier. I can get more cash. I can't get another Havoc. I'd appreciate any information you can throw my way. Best regards, M