Staff'n'Toller

How old is she now? Where are you practising your stays? Are you using a bridge or a release command to end the behaviour? Mel.

Is this article free information or did you pay for it? If you paid for it I would think you were breaching copyright. Just don't want you to get into any trouble. Mel.

Except I think Erny has a spacebar.

Yes, the producers have done trials and all dogs after 5 successive treatments have returned to full function and motility. I have the pre-clinical trials at work if you want to read them. Mel.

Sorry no ideas here....luckily Geordie has never done it much and when he tried as a young dog my 2 desexed girls told him exactly what they thought!! BUT he does (or did) go nuts over girls in season before the implant. Perhaps try the Toller List? Mel.

A couple of years ago a Vet reported an owner who was refusing to treat his cat with hepatitis - this cat would have been in awful pain and dying a horrible death. We were given a 'case number' and never heard anything after that. We don't even know if anyone investigated it. This is a formal complaint from a Vet Clinic with legal records. Go figure.

Try sending a PM to 'Powderpuff', she has trained at a few clubs up there, not sure if she is centrally located in Brisbane though. PS she only has net access some weekends, so you might not get a reply straight away. Mel.

Attach him to yourself for a few days - umbilical cord. Does he have a mat or blanket in his crate? Mel.

I assumed the OP was talking about a regular flat collar Erny. :rolleyes:

I would go for a whippet collar or a martingale (training collar) Black Dog Wear make some good ones and you could even email them and see what they recommend. Whilst she would not be able to slip out of a prong, you need to be very careful when fitting them to aggressive dogs, most aggression is fear aggression and we don't want to be punishing fear or put her into stressful situations she would normally pull away from if she is avoiding correction from the prong collar. It would be a good idea to consult a trainer so that they could read the situations for you and give suggestions. Perhaps you are placing her in situations (out and about) that she doesn't want to be in? You can work on this by reading her body language and managing situations for her, and using some slow desensitisation training. Mel.

We do routine C5's but will certainly do a C3 only if asked, we just can't do the C4 'cause our KC vaccine is combined - we can't split it. Mel.

Hmmm...I thought they were a bit older, I had some good results with sister/brother Kelpies at one of my Puppy School courses - they used to come into the clinic growling and slinking around, now they are great - so there's still some hope. I think they were 12 weeks when they started with me. Fair enough about Sunday, how is Darcy's weight going? Mel.

I will have Geordie and Gypsy the Stafford with me on Sunday... Gypsy has been running with other dogs since she was a pup, she doesn't like being bumped or jumped on but is not aggressive, she'll just tell them off verbally she is quite a good dog in that she can run with others but doesn't need to meet them face to face she is happy to ignore the others and do her own thing. Mel. ETA and I'm sure you know already. you can prolly get some improvement but they may always be timid - certainly alot of Kelpies are just like that - my old boy is the same.

Yeah put them in the wash and tumble dryer with the pockets full, then you'll be a real certified dog owner. :D

Kibble is food, food is food, dogs don't care about it or see it as you would view breakfast being breakfast. Kibble is not as high value as some of the other foods, but for things like toiletting outside, sitting for putting a lead on, it is fine. You have two probs when you recommend a lot of high fat foods every day - the dog getting fat, and the dog getting diarrhoea or pancreatitis. It is much easier to put weight on dogs than to take it off, and if you cause something like pancreatitis then the dog will never be able to eat any of those 'treats' ever again. Food is great for puppies, it's great for teaching new things and cementing things they have already learned, but you do need to phase out the food and put it on a variable schedule. It is better to introduce life rewards to puppies whilst they see fetch, tug, inside time, play as being highly rewarding because you'll need those things later when you have no food in your pocket. Mel.

Yeah Edam is ok for the interim, the emergency Vets tell us light cheese is the best (if they eat heaps it can cause a blockage) but a few pieces every other day shouldn't be a problem. Colby is great as it doesn't crumble. Mel. ETA: Check your liver treats, I know they sell both beef liver and pork liver at the supermarket and pork is a no-no, way too fatty and does regularly make dogs sick. Also what brand of dry food are you using?

Council registration is required by 3mths of age, but if your puppy is already microchipped, then you can get the discounted rate. Your Vet can microchip your pup, and they will register the details with a microchip registry, but this is entirely separate from your Council rego. Mel.

Make sure what you give is tiny tiny tiny, they only need a taste for it to be rewarding. You can interchange it with small amounts of light cheddar/colby cheese, small pieces of steak or chicken, if you are feeding dry food, save some of the daily allowance for treats too. Anything used in large enough amounts will upset a puppy's stomach. Mel.

now that is a good thought. Real Trainers are already doing it. Do you means Real Trainers as in a business name or .. good trainers? Good trainers Mel.

now that is a good thought. Real Trainers are already doing it.

I started my Toller on the natural at 5 mths, swapped over from Hills b/c his poos were massive. I use it in conjunction with BARF patties and he does very very well. I also use it solely when I can't get down to pick up any patties. I had him on a bag of power as I wasn't happy with his weight but have now switched him back to the Natural. I have used the holistic fish with my skin allergic Staffy, and found it to be good, but not as good as the Hills z/d in her particular situation....but all the dogs go CRAZY over the fish and it really does smell like fish when you open up the bag. I am going to switch my senior dogs over to the senior care formula b/c Hills have had yet another price rise and my old Kelpie seems to have trouble with the big kibble. All dog kibbles are supposed to meet a certain 'design' as far as teeth cleaning goes, to be approved, but I do think you need to give bones every so often with the EP. Cheers, Mel.

Delete the milk... Mel.

Well that isn't good enough, I spend half the day with a mop in my hand! :rolleyes: Mel.

Yeah.......I know it's around here somewhere, I just can't seem to find it! :rolleyes: .......Wanders off.........

this is the puppy forum....i know puppies.....puppies are my forte. Yes yes Dougie, but you can't actually provide any concrete evidence that you *do* know what you're talking about. Hogwash, get with the program Dougie, alot of those 'real' schools are now offering puppy classes themselves. The critical socialisation period for pups is usually well finished by 18 weeks, which is the age most pups will be after their full course of vaccinations. I will take a younger pup into my pre-school if it is about due for it's 2nd Vacc, particularly when all the others have had a 2nd Vacc, because by the time I begin a new group it will be too old. You don't actually take classes and wouldn't have the faintest idea so I'll enlighten you: Puppy owners will go to a pre-school that's convenient, if I don't take them, and refer them onto another 'real' trainer...they may not go, based on the fact that it's 15 more minutes travel on a weeknight. They particularly don't want to go elsewhere, when they've been specifically referred to me by the local obedience club, by one of the several councils that refer or some of the Vet Clinics in the area. I would much rather take a younger pup into a class THAN IT NEVER TO GO TO A CLASS AT ALL, because that's what happens on a very regular basis. You're in Staffies which are a highly adaptable breed, love people and are generally outgoing, and you probably do a lot of socialisation at home before they go, but the crappy breeders are unfortunately still the majority. I'd much rather take a younger pup into the group than see it at 5-6mths a f**ked up mess because the owners wouldn't take it out for socialisation, you can't undo a pup at six months like you can a pup who is only 10-12 weeks and showing the same behaviours. Makes my life - and the real trainers I refer to later on- much much easier. Mel.