Adnil444

Hi, the blanket game sounds great - funny how they can amuse themselves. You can pick up old blankets from St Vinnies etc and if it keeps them busy and not destroying your things, this is great.

OK I take everyone's point here, I don't actually agree but can see where you are coming from. I just think in the approx 11 months she has been on the verandah and the amount of times I go past this house (at different times) that at least once, I would have seen her off that verandah. I won't report it but just hope I'm doing the right thing.

And they'd have every right to be angry and tell you to mind your own business... She is also on the verandah every night - coming home at 3am last Saturday, there she was!!!

Hi, can I ask which dog park this happened at - I live in Sydney's north and want to avoid this one.

Good on you - I have been lobbying our council to make some parks or segregate the ones into small and bigger dog ones. Most issues at dog parks would be resolved - though not all. I agree, the amount if either ignorant or just rude people with their dogs amazes me. It just makes sense to have separate areas for the small ones (even in play they can be injured), and an area for the larger ones.

Agree totally with you. My RottiexDobe is pretty good with most dogs except the little ones that aggressively come and go for her for no reason. I have been lobbying the council to have the dog park segregated into small and large dog areas - no luck yet but will keep trying. I am amazed at the amount of small dogs owners who do absolutely nothing that their little "treasures" aggressively go for the bigger dogs and then get all upset and abusive if the larger dogs go back at them. There is no rule for small dogs and large dogs, the rules are the same. If the little dogs are going to be aggressive to other dogs in the park, then don't bring them in. In this instance I feel very sorry for this little dog an I hope he is ok (as well as the owner). The owner of the greyhounds should be made accountable for his dogs' actions and he should be fined/banned from going into a dog park again and his dogs should be muzzled.

Hi, there is a lovely dog (I think boxer x staffy or lab) that lives not far from me. The owners live on a busy corner block with low fences. When this dog was a puppy, she would be in the yard but could not get over the fence. She would be patted and talked to by everyone that walked past (very busy corner with a pedestrian crossing outside their place). However as she got older, she could get out, so the owners now keep her on the second floor verandah which overlooks the busy street. It doesn't matter what time of day I go past this house (sometimes 3-4 times a day at different times), she is always there - I have never seen her taken for a walk, or anyone outside on the verandah with her. Her existence must be pitiful just living on a verandah and watching the world go by. She is always sitting at the sliding doors, looking desperate for someone to let her in (which they don't) or someone to pay attention to her. She is an outside dog only. I feel so sorry for her as this is not a life for a dog. Also with it getting so cold now, she doesn't have a kennel, but only a blanket on the verandah which personally I don't feel is adequate in this cold weather. She is fed, and looks healthy, but I feel for her. Should I report this or possibly approach the owners, but I'm worried that if I do they may get angry with me or abuse me for not minding my own business. But I feel that that's the least of my concerns as I'm very worried about this poor girl. She has been on that verandah for about 9-11 months now. What should I do?

It's hard to imagine anyone getting their kicks out of watching such cruelty. A normal person just cannot understand it. These poor dogs. These people are not normal human beings, to see such suffering and enjoy it is beyond my comprehension. I hope they catch these people and throw the book at them and rescue the dogs that have endured so much. Even if the dogs have to be pts, it surely is a better outcome than what they are going through now.

What do you mean 'you', i've haven't done anything wrong against 'their breeds'.. most apbt owners love their heritage.. we haven't created anything, the media created a monster, thugs embraced it, they mistreated the dogs, dogs have attacked, they got the news coverage and so on and so on... You're abandoning dogs, you think you're better? like i said thugs will embrace whatever they feel is macho, they will not read up on the amstaffs, they will get hold of them and call them pitbulls, they will not look after them properly, they will put them in the spotlight in a bad way... not us responsible owners. Hi Geo, Wow, I've just been reading this thread and I see a huge amount of emotion is being poured out by everyone. Everyone on this site, love their dogs, care for them, are responsible owners etc, whether they are papered or not. Fighting each other will get the cause nowhere. Governments and Councils have their hands tied - when there are dog attacks, the public want something done, regardless of "it's not the breed it's the deed" comments, which we know to be true. They have to be seen to be doing something and unfortunately the only option it appears, is to ban certain breeds. They can't ban people, or certain people owning certain breeds of dogs, so they believe that by making them illegal, they will be reduced and the cycle will cease. It would be nice to see decent, hardworking, dog loving people promote APBT, Amstaffs etc because quite frankly, what the public generally see are the thugs, the dogs in paddocks wearing huge chains, the dogs in aggressive stances, the dogs with scars, they see them associated with the morons of society, the crims of society etc. We don't see family pictures with these dogs, we don't see these dogs taking part in agility, obedience, different dog sports etc (which I know they do). We don't see these dogs in a family environment. That's what needs to change. When the public sees a pitbull they only see aggression, fear and this is something that could possibly be changed over time. The more people that are exposed to the responsible bred dogs, the more the opinions will change. SBT123 I believe is probably right, BSL is here to stay, more states have come on board and it probably won't be long before we see what is happening in the UK - a dog can be taken away from its owner (even if just walking down the street on lead) if there is a suspicion that it is an APBT - the dog will have tests done on it and it will be destroyed if it is found to be a APBT or cross, returned to the owner if not. We are heading this way.

Hi Jackie, try the following link - give as much info about the ad (id number etc as possible). If they cannot help you ask them to refer you to someone on the site that can - I have done this and have received responses. Good luck. http://sydney.gumtree.com.au/p-Help Adnil.

Unfortunately Pitbull owners are actively being advised to register their dog as another bull breed ie bullmastiff. amstaff etc in order to escape the legislation requirements. This is a real touchy point with me so I wont go into it - it just really annoys me that people are so selfish that they are willing to put another breed's head on the chopping block just so they dont have to follow legislation requirements. I can understand that, the bullmastiff should not be anywhere near that classification (wonderful dogs). I have also on occasion taken note of where the sellers are and sent there information to the corresponding council advising the council that there is a person (giving all details of the ad) selling a restricted breed in your area - I'm sure most councils don't want that on their heads.

Hi Jackie, I have also spent time on gumtree and I am really disappointed in this site. So many times you see pitbulls advertised as amstaffs - god only knows where they end up, how they are treated etc. I searched to find the administrator of this site and was able to make complaints about certain ads. After doing this, some of the ads were taken off. I also replied directly to the advertisers of these "pitbulls" advising that they are a restricted breed in most states etc etc, how can you be breeding when they are restricted as they are all supposed to be desexed. Usually the advertiser takes the ad off for a while then relists with the breed of the dog/puppy changed. You can report any advertiser on these sites.

Hi, we have a farm in Oberon (over the other side of the Blue Mountains, not that far from Jenolan Caves). It is Tiger and Brown snake heaven. We have lost two of our beloved Great Danes to Tiger Snake bite - dead in 20mins, both 80kg dogs (separate incidents). Mind you, both times they attacked the snake, not the other way around. It was only defending itself. Our next dane, we did "snake training" and she was very good and always left them alone. We also get the black snakes, red belly etc and lots of copperheads, which don't worry me as much and they are very shy. I have seen a Tiger snake out in the snow in the middle of winter, it was a sunny day and it was just hanging out in the snow and actually lived under our tack room. I don't like them at all. If they came around the house yard they were shot and I know they are protected, but we never shot them in the paddocks, but the house yard was the one place that the dogs and kids should be able to roam around without being bitten. Haven't seen one for ages which is great news. There is a saying though, that everytime you walk in the bush/countryside, you are only about 20 feet away from a snake, but if conditions are good, i.e. the grass is long, you don't see them. When we have had severe droughts, and there is no grass, ground cover, we see lots of them.

Hi Whipitgood, what a horrible thing to have witnessed. It's hard to imagine that living and growing up together that this can happen. I've had Great Danes in the past, one had a high prey drive and the other 3 didn't and they all got on well with our cat - she was there first and was the boss. My new dog that I rescued (RottiexDobe) also has a high prey drive and she can't be trusted with small furry animals - the cats next door fascinate her, however, thankfully they don't come into my backyard, but sometimes they will be in my frontyard, but my dogs are only out front on lead (either to go for a walk or to get in the car). It does worry me though, that if the cats went into my backyard and my girl went for them. I'm hoping the cats do have some sense and will stay away. I hope your other cat is ok. It's hard to stop something that is naturally in them. Where I take my dogs for their morning walk, they were both offlead, however now I keep my girl on lead as there have been a few rabbits and she chased a feral cat. I don't like her chasing other animals and I certainly don't want her to catch another animal either, cause I'm pretty sure she would kill it if given the chance. She is now on lead for her morning walks.

Hi, I just had one installed - large size into a solid wooden door. Purchased from ebay it is a Staywell door and the company on ebay is Gensel. Watch out for on-line store www.petfood247.com.au - they are constantly in trouble with the Dept of Fair Trading and have many many complaints about them, including one from me.

One of my dogs howls when Law & Order SVU comes on. Must be something in the theme music that makes him do it - my other dogs don't continue sleeping!!! The howling is very mournful.

Turkey necks are great too - huge and last much much longer. They are a meal in themselves.

Thanks Erny, glad to hear. Since having my dogs, I certainly have become a lot fitter and slimmer!! The other thing that I forgot to mention is I also take one to my son's league game on a Saturday and the other to his rugby union game on Sundays. The sports fields are great places for people socialisation. They love going (my son thinks they are the team's mascots). I've done this right from the word go and they are used to screaming kids, lots of noise and bustle. Does amaze me though the amount of people who let their toddlers and young kids run straight up to them and hug them etc. I let the parents know nicely that you should always ask the owners first if the dog can be patted (mine love it, but I watch them and the kids very closely).

Me too - I'm have a rottiexdobe and the swfs going crazy at the fenceline also keep me very alert and cautious - what if they got out and attacked my pretty well behaved girl and she went back - would my dog be held responsible because she was on a lead and the swfs got out of their property and attacked? I also had the same thing happen to me on the weekend, where I had taken my girl for a 1.5 hr leash walk and she didn't put a foot wrong, an absolute joy to walk on lead, however when passing this one particular house, there is a very dog aggressive dog that lives there and it has been out several times recently. As I was getting close to the house, I could see the front gates were open slightly, but enough to let the dog out. I stopped and could see the owners in the yard and yelled out to them to quickly shut the gate, which they promptly did just before their dog got out. It of course went balistic behind the gates, but you no what gets me, my dog probably would have a chance, but the old lady walking her old little mini foxie about 50m behind me, her dog probably would have been killed or very badly injured. I am also going to report this owner as they should no better. They have a da dog and should ensure 100% of the time that their dog will never get out of their yard without being on lead. It's pretty simple, but something a lot of owners can't seem to grasp. Would you be willing to name the breed of dog that almost got out? Farking people yet again with their heads buried deeply in their arses! I tend to get just as annoyed at people who dont take responsibility for their small dogs getting out and possibly run the risk of getting run over, lost, stolen or attacked! Yes, it was a bull terrier.

I do the same, Adnil444. These social skills are very important, IMO. In fact, dogs learning to be able to ignore other dogs is something that is also important, but not that many people give credence to. Not every place in life is a park. Hi Erny, thanks for that. I'm always hoping I'm doing the right thing by my dogs and from their natures and the fact they are a pleasure now to take on leash walks, I'm probably doing something right. How many times a week would a romp at the dog park be beneficial do you think. If I go 2-3 times a week and the other days leash walks, I'm assuming that their social skills will be kept up. I walk my dogs for just over an hour in the morning (one off lead at the park and the other on-lead as she has found out that there are rabbits and have been a few feral cats and wants to chase them, the other one doesn't care about such things). Then in the afternoon, I take them to the dog park 2-3 times a week (out of peak hour time) and the other afternoons, long leash walks (approx 1hr). They always get their morning walk, sometimes though I may have to miss the afternoon walk (work or son's sporting commitments, though this is rare). I also think it is vitally important that my dogs learn to ignore other dogs or other distractions around them, yes not everything in life is a romp in the park, they like us, have to learn by some manners and some rules.

Me too - I'm have a rottiexdobe and the swfs going crazy at the fenceline also keep me very alert and cautious - what if they got out and attacked my pretty well behaved girl and she went back - would my dog be held responsible because she was on a lead and the swfs got out of their property and attacked? I also had the same thing happen to me on the weekend, where I had taken my girl for a 1.5 hr leash walk and she didn't put a foot wrong, an absolute joy to walk on lead, however when passing this one particular house, there is a very dog aggressive dog that lives there and it has been out several times recently. As I was getting close to the house, I could see the front gates were open slightly, but enough to let the dog out. I stopped and could see the owners in the yard and yelled out to them to quickly shut the gate, which they promptly did just before their dog got out. It of course went balistic behind the gates, but you no what gets me, my dog probably would have a chance, but the old lady walking her old little mini foxie about 50m behind me, her dog probably would have been killed or very badly injured. I am also going to report this owner as they should no better. They have a da dog and should ensure 100% of the time that their dog will never get out of their yard without being on lead. It's pretty simple, but something a lot of owners can't seem to grasp.

Hi, agree, but with everything in this life, how would it ever be policed/enforced. There is no licence or laws for humans to stop creating our future adults and look at many of them. Should never have been allowed to breed in the first place. The problem is that everytime we hear or read about another dog attack, the general public want "blood" - they want something done to stop this. Councils and governments have to be seen to do something and since they cannot ban people from owning dogs or specific breeds, they do the only thing that is available to them - ban the breed/s that are in the headlines. They are taking the same approach to the gun buyback program - the less guns out in the community, the less gun related deaths/injuries/crime that there will be - it worked to a degree, though I'm sure the criminals of society still have the guns, just like the undesirables now will own the banned breeds for all the wrong reasons. The people on these forums are not the average joe-blow that we are trying to reach. We all care, love, devoted, and I'm assuming responsible dog owners. We do need tougher laws and enforcement and education. But you only have to look at the on-line ads, classifieds etc to see that no matter what you try and do, there are pages and pages of puppies out there, many who will be sold to homes that are not suitable and many will end up in trouble with the law, in pounds, dumped etc. I wish we could eradicate the byb - and you could only purchase a dog from a registered breeder, who provided you with all the correct information on that breed, and the buyer had to guarantee a certain amount of training, socialisation, care etc etc. The only other place to get a dog would be from the pound/rescue organisations. These dogs would be temp tested, desexed etc. Would love to know the answer and one that could be enforced.

Hi, I have 2 rescue dogs and they are wonderful and a joy to have. If you check out petrescue.com.au you will see that there are pages and pages of worthy dogs - mine were rescued from pounds and put into foster homes - there they were assessed and were living in a normal family situation with other dogs, kids etc. The foster homes had them for about 4-5 weeks before I purchased them. You will find a lot of working breeds, however, every breed is found on these pages - stacks of staffies and staffy crosses, german shepherds, labs, golden retrievers etc. If you are after a small breed, you will also be spoilt for choice. Another poster said it was mainly working breeds, I disagree, every breed is pretty much represented and sometimes in very large numbers. The petrescue site has been targetting sharpeis lately and again if that is the breed you are after, you will find many to choose from. Ensure that you have adequate fencing, that is an absolute must for any dog owner. My family has a farm, which we visit 4-5 times a year, and one of my rescues is perfectly fine with stock, even though he was not brought up around them. My other one is not, and I doubt ever will and I have to keep her on lead when we go for walks outside of the fully fenced hourse yard. My suggestion is to speak to the foster carers of these dogs - they will give you a very good description of their temperaments etc. Many will also let you trial a dog as well. Good luck.

That's exactly right. The parks aren't labelled "doggy kindergarten". Hi Erny, but I think that is what they have become. The park I go to regularly can have 50 dogs (sometimes more) in it. Which is just too many in my opinion and this is when most incidents occur. I am now trying to avoid "peak hour" at the park and use it when it is quieter. I have heard of some dogs parks that have timeslots, which may be an option so to reduce incidents. You will find many people rush home from work, grab the car keys and the dog, drive them to the park and let them loose for the 30 mins or so and they have a chat with others (some bring a beer or two) and basically ignore their dogs for that entire time. If I can't get to the dog park in out of peak hour, I am giving my dogs lead walks and working on their other social skills - meeting people, dogs etc in the streets, moving to the side of the footpath to let others pass, sitting at the kerb before crossing, I feel that these skills are also valuable in developing well balanced dogs as much as making sure they get plenty of socialisation with other dogs.

It sounds like a good idea to have small and large dog areas. I would be happy with that Two sides to that coin. I agree that people just want to (and should be able to) enjoy the freedom of peace, quiet and relative safety when their out (with or without their dogs). I also work hard at not subjecting my dogs to undesirable fate at the hands of other people whom, without knowing them and their dogs, I can only assume (for safety reasons) that they and their dog/s are not likely to be friendly and/or responsible/knowledgeable dog-owners. The sad part is that everything we do in life with our dogs (and even everything about our restrictive dog laws) seems to be about avoidance, avoidance, avoidance. The more we avoid; the more we place bans on things our dogs can/can't do, the less life experiences they get and therefore the less likely that they will have the opportunity to be well-balanced, sensitive dogs, learning to be aware and exhibit self-control. If we could scrap half of our dog laws, start over and raise our dogs in an environment as they do in the UK, we would find our dogs to be far more calm and less reactive to others (regardless of size) and we'd also find the dog-owners themselves exhibiting being more in touch with instinctive dog-handling/training/behaviour attributes than what we are achieving here. As it is, with every law/regulation/by-law that comes in, we're getting further and further away from this possibility. And all of this started with irresponsible/disrespectful dog-owners. It's a vicious cycle we have got ourselves caught in. Hi Erny, I didn't think of it like that and it makes sense. You're right, we as people live with so many rules and regulations and we also avoid - take kids for instance, when I was a kid we played in the creeks, went into the bush etc etc, nowadays kids don't get that exposure, they have "soft-fall" playgrounds fenced in etc etc. We have become afraid of what might be and councils probably just see a law suit if something goes wrong. I don't know the answer to this though. How does every dog owner learn these skills? I'm sure many dog owners barely have time to walk their dogs let alone get in touch with their dogs. I'm going back a while now, but the last of our family dogs that was allowed to roam free (there were no council laws about keeping your dog in a yard and only taking it out on lead, except for guard dogs). She would walk with us to the school bus stop and meet us there in the afternoon - she would take herself of on walks, meet other dogs etc etc. This was the same situation as lots of other dogs in our area (and I assume most areas as there were no laws). There were also less breeds than there are today. There were labs, german shephards, the odd doberman, foxies, beagles, and lots of crossbreeds (assuming because desexing wasn't such a huge issue). I hadn't heard of staffies until I was about 18, they were just not around in those days. There were less fights, you never heard of anyone getting bitten or attacked, but I'm sure it did happen. Dogs back then did seem to be more stable because of their freedom. I wish there was an answer to this but I don't know how to fix this.