perfect partners

My rescue Border Collie had a huge bladder stone removed just before I got him about two and a half years ago. He was put on Royal Canin S/O and medication but he didn't like it much so vet said I could add a little meat. I gradually weaned him off all medication and onto a raw diet and all his urine tests have come back clear.

Kymythy Schultz has bred and raised several generations of Newfoundlands on a raw diet, as do a lot of other breeders. She has written a book called "Natural Nutrition for Dogs and Cats - The Ultimate Diet' http://www.kymythy.com/bookpage.html You could try googling 'Great Danes raw diet'. I did that for Newfs and came up with a few breeders who had their diets on their websites. According to what I've read, dogs are less likely to bloat on a raw diet than on kibble and it is recommended to divide food into two or more meals per day.

This sounds like it would be a much better idea for pet dogs than most standard obedience classes. What sort of exercises do you use to bring the dogs away from the other dogs and get them to focus on their handlers?

That is a shame. Do you know why? I guess it might mean more entries for the August one.

I know what you mean PP. I was trialling in agility whilst training for an ET a few years ago and my dog was struggling a bit with the jump height... that said the jumps were significantly higher in those days too :D I will be doing an ET next year also. So, if you wish to do some general fitness and conditioning mid level training (bike work) and would like a partner, just let me know. For the next few months I will be continuing at just over 6km at a time and do this approx. once a week at Springers. Will start building up for ET around April next year. Recently a few of us have been getting together to bike and it has been terrific. We have our own little training crew :) That sounds great - thank you. I had thought I'll try to keep doing a little bit of bike riding with him. I hope you all enjoy your training and test. Pics would be good! :-) Anyone is welcome. Ooops. I seem to have got my reply a bit mixed up with your post.

I know what you mean PP. I was trialling in agility whilst training for an ET a few years ago and my dog was struggling a bit with the jump height... that said the jumps were significantly higher in those days too :D I will be doing an ET next year also. So, if you wish to do some general fitness and conditioning mid level training (bike work) and would like a partner, just let me know. For the next few months I will be continuing at just over 6km at a time and do this approx. once a week at Springers. Will start building up for ET around April next year. Recently a few of us have been getting together to bike and it has been terrific. We have our own little training crew :) That sounds great - thank you. I had thought I'll try to keep doing a little bit of bike riding with him. I hope you all enjoy your training and test. Pics would be good! :-) Anyone is welcome.

Well after a couple of weeks training, I've decided to postpone doing an ET until next year. I'm disappointed but we've just started trialling in rally and obedience and he was doing well but the endurance training made him a bit flat. Maybe I built up the distance a bit quickly because I started a bit late, so next year we'll start a lot earlier and build up more gradually. Good luck to all those doing ETs this year.

Isn't the Sporn harness one that tightens when the dog pulls? If so I doubt it would be allowable.

I'm so sorry for your situation and the others that have posted here too. I hope you all recover quickly. What about some baby/child's socks to cover their nails for a start? You could put some tape or velcro around them to keep them on. You might be even able to get some cheap from an op shop. What area of Melbourne are you in? I live out of suburbia but I'd be happy to take your dogs for a walk maybe once or twice a week if you were close enough and maybe others would be happy to help too.

I think Leerburg and K9 Pro sell that type of thing - not sure if they have exactly what you're looking for but it might be worth a look at their web sites. All the things I have got from both of them have been good quality.

Hi PP, sounds like you have a fit and agile dog who could easily cope with the demands of an ET. The training is important. You can't just enter, front up on the day and expect to be successful. There is much more to it. From what you have said, I believe that your dog is fit enough, and is used to working next to you on a bike. Good advice to practice with others, one fore and one aft. You should be able to do 6ks without the dog becoming stressed. After training for this distance. Stop and check your dog's pads for any sign of wear. If the dog has injured a pad, or if it is red, raw or bleeding, stop immediately. KCC is a good place to practice. Just make sure you cover three different surfaces, paved, gravel and grass. Make sure your dog also has a basic level of control at obedience. It would be a terrible shame to complete the 20ks and have the dog fail the final willingness test. Good luck! and please ask any and all questions. M Thanks Abbbiestar. There's no way I would enter a trial without doing the necessary training. Just wondered if 8 weeks was long enough. We did just over 3 ks again today and then he came home and played with another dog so obviously wasn't tired. I thought I'd try 4ks tomorrow or is that bumping it up too quick? I also thought I'd aim for two consecutive days biking, then miss a day, etc. Fortunately we don't have to worry about the obedience part. He's already gained a CCD pass at his first trial a couple of weeks ago.

Good idea. Thanks.

Thanks again for your help. It all makes sense. I thought the same thing about the gravel car park at KCC Park. I go there during the week when it is pretty quiet so thought I could probably so some riding on the paved areas.

Thanks for your advice, Tassie. I agree about recovery days. In a previous endurance thread Abbiestar recommended biking 4 or 5 days a week, so I thought maybe two days ride and then a day off. I was going to do a short ride with him yesterday because I had the opportunity to do it at a different place, but didn't end up doing so. We'll do another ride today. I'm lucky because where we'll do most of our training, there is grass, dirt road and very short patches of loose gravel and asphalt so I'm using all of them. I can also take him over to KCC Park and do some training there. I have friends who are happy to ride in front and behind to get him used to that. I've also been using stop and turn verbal directions. I know it depends on the dog, but roughly how long would you expect to take to build up to 6ks? And how long before you would throw in an 8k ride?

Is 8 weeks long enough to get a dog ready for an ET? My husband told me our bike rack was broken and I have been at him to fix it so I could start training. He finally looked at it last weekend and now says it's ok. I would aim for the Rottie Club test on 28th June, or could possibly do Sale on the 5th July. The dog is a rescue so not exactly sure of his age but probably about 5 - I've had him for two and a half years. He's a working Border Collie (or looks that type), weighs about 16-17 kilos. He is reasonably fit - was going to the beach and swimming once or twice a week through summer (but hasn't done that for about the last 5 weeks), plays a bit with my other dog, we do some obedience training and tricks and a little bit of agility training. Now that the paddocks have been slashed, I've been taking him out on a slight hill for a walk/run morning and evening for the last week or two. Yesterday I rode the bike with him and we did a couple of ks at about 8-10kph. This morning we did just over 3 ks - probably did a bit more at the slower pace than yesterday. He coped fine with all that - wasn't even puffing. We went to the local rec reserve and rode on the dirt road around the outside of the football oval, there is also grass beside about half of it and short stretches of loose gravel and asphalt. Thought I might try for 4 ks tomorrow and see how he goes with that.

Well done - your Newfie for finding the keys and you for training him. Newfs are awesome! I may be a little biased as I have two and have had two previously. I see you are in Victoria - are you a member of the Vic Newf Club?

My vet told me the other way round - American T-ter, Australian Tie-ter! A bit confusing. :-(

I have Syntek collars for my three dogs that they wear when swimming. I like them as they're really soft. Unfortunately the gold buckles aren't brass so they do show signs of slight rust from the salt water. It's a pity they don't make them with brass fittings. I also bought one for my daughter's Staffie as her collar was rubbing her neck and it seems to be much better. She wears hers most of the time. The gold colour has pretty much worn off the fittings on hers and they now just look silver coloured. I'm about to buy another one for my pup who has grown out of his.

Signed and shared.

There are several different Entralive products - which one do you use for dogs and what dose rate?

I didn't go to the Sydney Pet Expo but have had similar thoughts about previous Melbourne ones. It's a pity because they could be so much more. The Dog Lovers Show was a bit better and hopefully will grow. I have written to the organisers and suggested they look at Equitana which draws huge crowds, some from interstate. I used to go 3 out of the 4 days and would have gone to 4 if I'd been able to, whereas I'd only be at the pet expo for a few hours. I didn't go for the shopping, but to watch/listen to all the demos by different trainers and lectures. Some would do the same demo each day but some would show their training progression over the 4 days. I never managed to watch everything I wanted to. with all the different dog activities these days, I can't see why they couldn't follow the same format and make it much more interesting and educational.

This might be helpful - http://drsophiayin.com/resources/video_full/training_a_dog_to_enjoy_toenail_trims

Southern Cross Animal Stars trainers are all NDTF qualified and do a lot of training with our own dogs. Our classes are held indoors in a very large area. We have classes for puppies, juniors, beginners, intermediate, advanced, beginners and advanced tricks and pre-performance. Classes are held every night except Fridays, and also on Saturday and Sunday mornings.

Here is the info on the oil blend - http://www.naturalanimalsolutions.com.au/omega36&9-oil-for-dogs-horses.html I changed to using this because it is balanced for 3, 6 and 9 and also includes natural vitamin E so I don't have to work out correct dosage. You could email Jacqueline and ask where you can buy it in WA. She's very helpful. When you go for the cartrophen injection, ask your vet about Synovan - I found results showed within a day or two of the injection.

There is a new injection for arthritis - cartrophen and glucosamine - it's called Synovan. Just slightly more expensive, but it's more effective. I used to give Swisse salmon oil capsules - 4 per day to a 43 kg dog, but I now use Natural Animal Solutions oil blend, which also contains vitamin E. She also gets the N.A.S. Joint Support. I sometimes give a couple of salmon oil tablets with breakfast, as well. I also feed sardines and mackerel once or twice a week. And calcium ascorbate/ester C daily. Here is an article about its effectiveness in dogs with HD and associated arthritis - http://workingdogs.com/doc0039.htm#chitika_close_button. A rescue Newfoundland who had to be helped to get up has made amazing progress since being given Rosehip Vital Canine. He now gets up without help and is running around.